Jesus was declaring an eternal sin

JESUS WAS DECLARINGAN ETERNAL SIN
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
Mark 3:29 29but whoever blasphemes againstthe
Holy Spiritwill never be forgiven; they are guilty of an
eternal sin."
GreatTexts of the Bible
An EternalSin
Verily I say unto you, All their sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and
their blasphemies wherewith soeverthey shall blaspheme: but whosoevershall
blaspheme againstthe Holy Spirit hath never forgiveness, but is guilty of an
eternal sin: because they said, He hath an unclean spirit.—Mark 3:28-30.
I shall never forget, says Dr. Samuel Cox,1 [Note:Expositor, 2nd Ser., iii.
321.]the chill that struck into my childish heart so often as I heard of this
mysterious sin which carriedmen, and for ought I knew might have carried
even me, beyond all reach of pardon; or the wonder and perplexity with
which I used to ask myself why, if this sin was possible,—if, as the words of
our Lord seemto imply, it was probable even and by no means infrequent,—it
was not clearly defined, so that we might at leastknow, and know beyond all
doubt, whether it had been committed or had not. And, since then, I have
againand againmet with men and womenof tender conscienceand devout
spirit who, by long brooding over these terrible words, had convinced
themselves that they had fallen, inadvertently for the most part, into this fatal

sin, and whose reasonhad been disbalancedand unhinged by a fearful
anticipation of the doom they held themselves to have provoked. The religious
monomaniac is to be found in well-nigh every madhouse in the kingdom; and
in the large majority of cases,as there is only too much ground to believe, he
has been driven mad by the fear that he has committed the unpardonable sin:
although the man who honestly fears that he has committed this sin is just the
one man who has the witness in himself that he cannotpossibly have
committed it.
I was as silent as my friends; after a little time we retired to our separate
places of rest. About midnight I was awakenedby a noise;I started up and
listened; it appeared to me that I heard voices and groans. In a moment I had
issuedfrom my tent—all was silent—but the next moment I again heard
groans and voices;they proceededfrom the tilted cart whore Peterand his
wife lay; I drew near, again there was a pause, and then I heard the voice of
Peter, in an accentof extreme anguish, exclaim, “PechodYsprydd Glan—O
pechod Ysprydd Glan!” and then he uttered a deep groan. Anon, I heard the
voice of “Winifred, and never shall I forgetthe sweetnessand gentleness ofthe
tones of her voice in the stillness of that night.… I felt I had no right to pry
into their afflictions, and retired. Now “pechodYsprydd Glan,” interpreted, is
the sin againstthe Holy Ghost.1 [Note:G. Borrow, Lavengro, chap. lxxiii.]
I
The Occasionofthis Warning
It was a time of spiritual decisions, whenthe thoughts of many hearts were
being revealed. For nearly two years the Gospelhad been proclaimed in the
land, and for nearly a year Christ had been teaching in Galilee. All eyes were
upon the new Prophet. His words were with authority, His deeds were of

amazing power, though as yet no dazzling “signfrom heaven” had appeared.
Public opinion was divided. The multitudes were heard saying, “Can it be that
this is the Son of David? We fear not! Why is no greatdeed done for the
nation’s deliverance? This Messiah, if He be the Messiah, forgives sins and
heals the sick, but that will not drive out Herod from Tiberias nor the Romans
from Jerusalem.” Our Lord’s own brothers, hearing the reports brought to
them, made up their mind that He was deranged. On the other hand there
were many, though but few compared with the greatmajority, who could
already saywith Nathanaeland Peter:“Thou art the Son of God; thou art the
King of Israel.” But in high ecclesiasticalcircles anothertheory was heard
which had its part in shaping public sentiment: “He is a false prophet,
possessedby Satan.”
The immediate occasionofthe discourse was the healing of a peculiarly
afflicted demoniac. It was in the house at Capernaum, soonafter Christ had
returned from an extended evangelistic tour, accompaniedby the Twelve and
many other disciples. A sad picture—this man brought before Him in the
midst of the pressing crowd—dumb, blind, and possessedby an evil spirit; a
soul imprisoned in silence, shut awayinto hopeless darkness, reachedby no
ray of earth’s light and beauty, and, what was still more terrible, subject to
that mysterious “oppressionofthe devil” by which an evil presence from the
unseen world was housed within him, and rendered his inner life a hideous
and discordant anomaly. With what unutterable joy must this man have gone
forth from the Saviour’s presence, with unsealedlips, with eyes looking out
upon the world, and in his right mind.
Every such miracle must of necessityhave raisedafresh the question of the
hour, Who is this Sonof Man? Jesus must be accountedfor. The scribes are
ready with their theory—plausible, clear, and conveniently capable of being
put into a nutshell. Jesus is Himself a demoniac, but differs from all other
demoniacs in this respect, that it is no ordinary demon, but the prince of all

the evil spirits, that has takenpossessionofHim; hence His control over all
inferior demons: “by the prince of the devils castethhe out the devils.”
I was greatlyperplexed about the secondlessonI should read in the
conducting of a Sabbath morning service. It seemedan utter impossibility to
fix my mind upon any chapter. In this uncertain state I remained until the
singing of the lastverse of the hymn preceding the lesson. I prayed for
direction. A voice said, “Readwhatis before you.” It was the twelfth chapter
of St. Luke. At the tenth verse (similar to Mark 3:28-29)I paused, read again
the verse, “Whosoevershallspeak a word againstthe Son of man it shall be
forgiven him, but unto him that blasphemeth againstthe Holy Ghostit shall
not be forgiven.” Then I asked:“Whatis this sin againstthe Holy Ghost?” I
explained it as attributing the works and words of Christ, His influence, spirit,
and powerto Satanic agency. Justthen I turned to my right, and noticing a
beautiful bouquet which some one had placed on my table, I took the bouquet
in my hand, saying, “There are bad men in this district, but I do not think
there is one so depraved as to say that the growth, the beauty, and the
fragrance of these flowers are the work of the devil. In the lower sense that
would be sinning againstthe Holy Ghost.” Then I continued my reading. The
result was that the following Tuesdaythe gardener’s daughter calledto thank
me, saying her father had found the Saviour the preceding Sabbath. She said
he had long thought he had sinned againstthe Holy Ghost, but that
illustration about the flowers sethim at liberty. Going down the garden,
standing before a rose bush in full bloom, he said, “Badas I have been, I have
never said these flowers were the creationof the devil. No, my Fathermade
them all.”1 [Note:C. G. Holt.]
II
The Language

1. “Verily I say unto you.” This is the earliestoccurrence ofthe phrase in St.
Mark, and therefore in the Gospels.
2. “All their sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men.” As if He shrank from
the saying that is to follow, He prefaces it with a fresh and loving
proclamation of the wideness of God’s mercy. There is no shortcoming in the
bestowalofthe Divine mercy, there is no reluctance to pardon sin. Equal,
abundantly equal, to the human need is the Divine provision. “Foras the
heaven is high above the earth”—andwe have no line to measure that
distance—“sogreatis his mercy toward them that fearhim.” “All their
sins”—notone of them shall be put down as unforgivable; they may all be
takenaway, though they be red like crimson. The very thief upon the Cross,
the vilest at whom the world hisses, may appeal in his lastdesperate hour for
mercy, and receive the assurance ofit from the lips of Christ. It is a very
tender proof of the love and longing of Christ for men’s souls that He speaks
thus ere He lets fall the most solemnwarning that ever came from His lips.
“All their sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men.” What more do we want
to hear? Is not this enough? “He shall redeem Israelfrom all his iniquities”;
“the blood of Jesus Christ his Soncleansethus from all sin.” But there is
more.
3. “And their blasphemies.” Whatis meant by blasphemy? It is hardly
necessaryto explain that the word blasphemy means primarily injurious
speech, and, as applied to God, speechderogatoryto His Divine majesty.
When our Lord said to the palsied man, “Thy sins are forgiven,” the
bystanders complained that the words were blasphemous, for no one but God
had the right to saythem. To blaspheme is by contemptuous speech
intentionally to come short of the reverence due to God or to sacredthings;
and this, according to Jesus, was the offence of the Scribes and Pharisees.
What He says is occasionedby their charge that He had an evil spirit, that is,
that the power acting in Him was not goodbut bad. Their offence lay in their
failure to value the moral element in the work of Jesus. Theysaw what was

being done; in their hearts they felt the power of Christ; they knew His words
were true, and that His works were goodworks. Ratherthan acknowledge
this, and own Christ for what He was, they chose to say that the spirit in Him
was not God’s Spirit but the spirit of the devil, involving a complete upsetting
of all moral values, and revealing in themselves a stupendous and well-nigh
irrecoverable moral blindness.
4. “But whosoevershallblaspheme againstthe Holy Ghost.” Fromthis the sin
is often and properly described as “Blasphemyagainstthe Holy Spirit,”
though the popular title, takenfrom what follows, is “The Unpardonable Sin.”
5. “Hath never forgiveness.” Literally“hath not forgiveness unto the age” (εἰς
τὸν αἰῶνα). The phrase is used in the Septuagintfor the Hebrew le’olam,
which means “in perpetuity” (Exodus 21:6; Exodus 40:15), or with a negative,
“never more” (2 Samuel 12:10; Proverbs 6:33). But in the New Testamentit
gains a wider meaning in view of the eternalrelations which the Gospel
reveals. It signifies “this presentworld” in Mark 4:19, the future life being
distinguished from it as “the world to come” (αἰὼν ὁ ἐρχόμενος)in Mark
10:30. In the passage in Matthew about the blasphemy againstthe Holy
Ghost, corresponding to the present passage in Mark, the two words are
“neither in this world, nor in that which is to come” (Matthew 12:32).
6. “But is guilty of an eternalsin.” The passageis in no case easyto
understand, but it is made much harder in the Authorized translation than it
is in the original. The Greek word (κρίσις), which in the reading adopted by
the Authorized Version, ends the 29th verse of the chapter, is not
“damnation” or even “condemnation,” but simply “judgment.” It is now,
however, universally allowedthat the word in the original manuscripts is here
not “judgment” at all, but “sin”—“is guilty of (or “liable to”) an eternal sin.”
Some early commentators, not understanding the expression, inserted

“judgment,” as more intelligible, in the margin, from which it crept into the
text.
The word here translated“eternal” (αἰώνιος)is the adjective formed from the
word “age” or“world” (αἰών) of the previous phrase. In a greatmany places
where this adjective may be rendered “everlasting,”it is impossible not to feel
that this does not give the whole or the exactmeaning. This is very noticeable
in such profound sayings of our Lord as “Whoso eatethmy flesh hath eternal
life,” “This is life eternal, that they might know thee”; “He that hath my word,
hath eternal life, and shall not come into condemnation, but is passedfrom
death into life”; “Thou hast the words of eternal life.” All such expressions
rather convey a thought somewhatlike that of St. Paul’s “Hidden with Christ
in God,” life not of the world, but above and beyond temporal and worldly
things; not so much the endlessness ofeternity, as its apartness from time.
Something in the same way, “an eternal sin” can hardly mean an everlasting
sin, but rather a sin which has in it a living powerof evil, the bounds of which
cannot be prescribed.
We regardthe argument againstendless punishment drawn from αἰώνand
αἰώνιος as a purely verbal one, which does not touch the heart of the question
at issue. We append severalutterances of its advocates. The Christian Union:
“Eternalpunishment is punishment in eternity, not throughout eternity; as
temporal punishment is punishment in time, not throughout time.” Westcott:
“Eternallife is not an endless duration of being in time, but being of which
time is not a measure. We have indeed no powers to graspthe idea except
through forms and images of sense. These mustbe used, but we must not
transfer them to realities of another order.”
Farrar holds that ἀίδιος, “everlasting,”whichoccurs but twice in the New
Testament(Romans 1:20 and Judges 1:6), is not a synonym of αἰώνιος,
“eternal,” but the direct antithesis of it; the former being the unrealisable

conceptionof endless time, and the latter referring to a state from which our
imperfect human conceptionof time is absolutely excluded. Whiton, Gloria
Patri, 145, claims that the perpetual immanence of God in consciencemakes
recoverypossible after death; yet he speaksofthe possibility that in the
incorrigible sinner conscience maybecome extinct. To all these views we may
reply with Schaff, Church History, ii. 66—” After the generaljudgment we
have nothing revealedbut the boundless prospectof æonian life and æonian
death.1 [Note: A. H. Strong, Systematic Theology, iii. 1046.]
III
The Meaning
1. How is it that sin againstthe Sonof Man may be forgiven, while blasphemy
againstthe Holy Ghost may not? The Son of Man, says Dalman,2 [Note:The
Words of Jesus, 254.]here refers to the Messiahin His estate of humiliation.
“The primary form of the utterance is seenin Mark, who merely contrasts
blasphemy in generalwith blasphemy againstthe Spirit which inspired Jesus
(Mark 3:28 f.). Luke 12:10 speaks ofblasphemy of the ‘Son of man’ and of the
‘Spirit’; Matthew 12:32 is similar, but the statement to this effectis annexed
to another, which corresponds to the form found in Mark. It is impossible that
Matthew and Luke should here intend to make a distinction betweentwo
Persons ofthe Godhead, as if it were a venial sin to blaspheme the ‘Son.’The
distinction is betweenJesus as man and the Divine Spirit working through
Him. Invective againstthe man Jesus may be forgiven; blasphemy againstthe
Divine powerinherent in Him is unpardonable, because it is blasphemy
againstGod.”
2. How then may one be guilty of this unpardonable sin of blasphemy against
the Holy Ghost? The conditions of obtaining pardon are three, namely—

Confession, i.e. acknowledgmentof sin; Repentance, orhearty sorrow for sin;
and Faith, or trust in the sinner’s Saviour. Now, how can these conditions be
fulfilled? How are we brought into a state in which we can realise the
willingness to acknowledgeourtransgressions, the hearty sorrow which
breaks us down on accountof our sin, and the trust which helps us to believe
that Jesus canforgive? We can be brought into this condition only by one
Power, through the agencyof one Person, the Holy Spirit of God. The Holy
Spirit of Godmust teachour consciences,the Holy Spirit of God must gain
control over our wills; and only through the teaching of the Holy Spirit in our
souls are we made able or willing to acknowledgeoursin, repent of our sin,
and believe in our Saviour. This Holy Scripture teaches us. But it is possible
for us to rejectand blaspheme the whole testimony of the Spirit of God; it is
possible for us, not only to reject what the Holy Spirit teaches us, but even to
say, in the wilfulness of our depraved nature, that what the Holy Spirit says is
truth is untruth, and what the Holy Spirit says is light is darkness.
Progressionalong this awful pathway is marked in Bible language by three
words. First, there is “Grieving the Spirit of God.” The secondstage is
“Resisting the Holy Spirit.” Then, thirdly, there comes the awful state in
which the Spirit of Godis “quenched.” Grieve, resist, quench! These three sad
words mark the progress along this path of evil, this path of sin, which
ultimately brings men into a state where their sin is unpardonable. When that
is done, and not until that is done, the unpardonable sin has been committed.
Here, then, we see the nature of this sin. It is a stubborn and conscious
unwillingness to fulfil the conditions of pardon. If a man brings himself into a
state in which he at first will not, but which ultimately becomes a state in
which he cannot, fulfil the conditions of pardon, how can he be pardoned? It
is not that Godis unwilling to pardon him; it is not that God’s forgiving grace
is incapable of bringing him forgiveness;it is that he has brought his own soul
into such a state that it is impossible for him to fulfil those conditions upon the
fulfilment of which alone God can grant forgiveness.1[Note:W. A.
Challacombe.]
3. The Freedom of the Will.—Those who hold that the will of man is
absolutely free, should remember that unlimited freedom is unlimited

freedom to sin, as well as unlimited freedom to turn to God. If restorationis
possible, endless persistence inevil is possible also;and this last the Scripture
predicts. Whittier:
What if thine eye refuse to see,
Thine ear of Heaven’s free welcome fail,
And thou a willing captive be,
Thyself thy own dark jail?
Swedenborg says that the man who obstinately refuses the inheritance of the
sons of God is allowedthe pleasures ofthe beast, and enjoys in his own low
way the hell to which he has confined himself. Every occupantof hell prefers
it to heaven. Dante, Hell, iv.:
All here togethercome from every clime,
And to o’erpass the river are not loth,
For so heaven’s justice goads them on, that fear
Is turned into desire. Hence never passedgoodspirit.

The lostare Heautontimoroumenoi, or self-tormentors, to adopt the title of
Terence’s play.
The very conceptionof human freedom involves the possibility of its
permanent misuse, or of what our Lord Himself calls “eternalsin.”1 [Note:
Denney, Studies in Theology, 255.]
Origen’s Restorationismgrew naturally out of his view of human liberty—the
liberty of indifference—anendless alternation of falls and recoveries,ofhells
and heavens;so that practically he taught nothing but a hell.2 [Note:Shedd,
Dogmatic Theology, ii. 669.]
It is lame logic to maintain the inviolable freedom of the will, and at the same
time insist that God can, through His ample power, through protracted
punishment, bring the soulinto a disposition which it does not wish to feel.
There is no compulsory holiness possible. In our Civil War there was some
talk of “compelling men to volunteer,” but the idea was soonseento involve a
self-contradiction.3 [Note:J. C. Adams, The Leisure of God.]
A gentleman once went to a doctor in London to consult him about his health.
The doctortold him that, unless he made up his mind to give up a certain sin,
he would be blind in three months. The gentleman turned for a moment to the
window, and lookedout. Clasping his hands together, he exclaimed, “Then
farewell, sweetlight; farewell, sweetlight!” And turning to the doctor, he said,
“I can’t give up my sin.” He was blind in three months.4 [Note: Henry
Drummond.]

4. The Irrevocable.—How easyit is after a time to lose the sense ofsin in this
world; to substitute for it outward propriety of conduct, to transgress which is
immorality; to substitute the opinion of the world, goodor bad, to go against
which is bad taste; to look at the world around us as affecting duty,
benevolence, and the like; and to make our relationships towards this the test
of character, wherebywe may be known as goodor bad.
Thou little child, yet glorious in the might
Of heaven-born freedom on thy being’s height,
Why with such earnestpains dost thou provoke
The years to bring the inevitable yoke,
Thus blindly, with thy blessednessatstrife?
Full soonthy soul shall have her earthly freight,
And custom lie upon thee with a weight
Heavy as frost, and deep almost as life!1 [Note: Wordsworth.]
Taught in the schoolofpropriety, reared on utility, and pointed to success, by
degrees the sense of sin may become faint and dim to him, until out of the

ruins of respectability and the desolationof his inner life, he is brought face to
face with an eternal sin. The figures of existence have deceivedhim; he has
made the addition of life, omitting the top line, and not allowing for
deductions—he is face to face with an utter loss, aneternal sin.2 [Note:W. C.
E. Newbolt.]
The laws of God’s universe are closing in upon the impenitent sinner, as the
iron walls of the mediæval prison closedin, night by night, upon the victim,—
eachmorning there was one window less, and the dungeon came to be a coffin.
In JeanIngelow’s poem “Divided,” two friends, parted by a little rivulet
across whichthey could clasphands, walk on in the direction in which the
stream is flowing, till the rivulet becomes a brook, and the brook a river, and
the river an arm of the sea, across whichno voice can be heard and there is no
passing. By constantneglectto use our opportunity, we lose the powerto cross
from sin to righteousness,until betweenthe soul and God “there is a great
gulf fixed” (Luke 16:26).
Whittier wrote within a twelvemonth of his death: “I do believe that we take
with us into the next world the same freedom of will as we have here, and that
there, as here, he that turns to the Lord will find mercy; that God never ceases
to follow His creatures with love, and is always ready to hear the prayer of the
penitent. But I also believe that now is the acceptedtime, and that he who
dallies with sin may find the chains of evil habit too strong to break in this
world or the other.” And the following is the Quakerpoet’s verse:
Though God be goodand free be Heaven,
No force divine can love compel;

And, though the song of sins forgiven
May sound through lowesthell,
The sweetpersuasionofHis voice
Respectsthy sanctity of will.
He giveth day: thou hast thy choice
To walk in darkness still.
As soonas any organ falls into disuse, it degenerates, andfinally is lost
altogether.… In parasites the organs of sense degenerate. Marconi’s wireless
telegraphy requires an attuned “receiver.” The “transmitter” sends out
countless rays into space:only one capable of corresponding vibrations can
understand them. The sinner may so destroy his receptivity, that the whole
universe may be uttering God’s truth, yet he be unable to hear a word of it.
The Outlook:“If a man should put out his eyes, he could not see—nothing
could make him see. So if a man should by obstinate wickednessdestroyhis
powerto believe in God’s forgiveness, he would be in a hopeless state. Though
God would still be gracious, the man could not see it, and so could not take
God’s forgiveness to himself.”
Lowell’s warning to the nation at the beginning of the MexicanWar was only
an echo of a profounder factin the individual life of the soul:

Once to every man and nation comes the moment to decide,
In the strife of Truth with Falsehood, forthe goodor evil side;
Some greatcause, God’s new Messiah, offering eachthe bloom or blight,
Parts the goats upon the left hand, and the sheep upon the right,
And the choice goes by forever ’twixt that darkness and that light.1 [Note:
Lowell, The PresentCrisis.]
Throughout the physical world you may cure fevers, dropsies, fractures,
derangements of vital organs;you may violate all the multiplied economies
that go to constitute the individual physical man, and rebound will bring
forgiveness;but there is a point beyond which if you go it will not, either in
youth, in middle life, or in old age. Many a young man who spends himself
until he has drained the fountain of vitality dry in youth is an old man at
thirty; he creeps and crawls at forty; and at fifty, if he is alive, he is a wreck.
Nature says:“I forgive all manner of iniquity and transgressionand sin to a
man who does not commit the unpardonable sin,”—forthere is an
unpardonable sin, physically speaking, thatis possible to every man. If a
thousand pound weight fall upon a man so that it grinds the bones of his leg to
powder, like flour, I should like to know the surgeonthat could restore it to
him. He may give him a substitute in the form of woodor cork, but he cannot
give him his leg again. There is an unpardonable sin that may be committed in
connectionwith the lungs, with the heart, or with the head. They are strung
with nerves as thick as beads on a string; and up to a certain point of excess,
or abuse of the nervous system, if you rebound there will be remission, and
you will be put back, or nearly back, where you were before you transgressed

nature’s laws;but beyond that point—it differs in different men, and in
different parts of the same man—if you go on transgressing,and persistin
transgressing, youwill never getover the effectof it as long as you live. So
men may go so far in sinning that there can be no salvation for them, their
case being hopeless just in proportion to the degree in which they become
moral imbeciles.1 [Note:Henry Ward Beecher.]
IV
The Use
1. There are three ways in which this sin may be regardedat the present day.
(1) As a GreatMistake.—Itis part of that almost automatic punishment of sin
(automatic, i.e. unless checked)in which God, who canrelease, unbind, and
forgive, stands on one side, and allows the sin to work itself out. Surely we are
face to face with the possibility of a greatmistake, where a man gets so
entirely out of sympathy with God that, where there is God, he can see only an
evil spirit; where there is goodness, he can see only malignity; where there is
mercy, he can see only cruel tyranny. The greatmistake!It begins, perhaps, in
the will. Life is presentedwith all its fascinating material; there is the deadly
bias of disposition, while there is the make-weightofgrace;and the will gives
in, appetite after appetite is pressedinto the service, presentenjoyment,
present gratification, are everything; the world is one greatterrestrial
paradise of enjoyment, indiscriminated, unchecked. And the dishonoured will
now seeksto justify its degradationby an appeal to the intellect. Sin is decried
as an ecclesiasticalbogey. It is easyto get rid of grace by saying that it has
been dangerouslypatronised by an enslaving priestcraft. Enjoyment must be
scientificallysought, and that means sometimes at our neighbour’s expense by
acts of unkindness, malignity, or incredible meanness. And then from the

intellect it goes to the heart. “My people love to have it so.” This is looked
upon as a sufficient accountof life. Nothing more is desired, nothing more is
lookedfor. “I will pull down my barns, and build greater.” This is the extent
of the heart’s ambition. See how the great mistake has spread! Self has
deflectedall the relations of life until the man has become denaturalised.
What can the Holy Spirit do for him? The claims of religion are a tiresome
impertinence; the duties to societyare a wearisome toil. The thought of death
is a terror, and the other world a blank. He has made a greatmistake—his
relations to the world, to God, to self, are inverted unless God interferes, i.e.
unless the man allows Godto interfere; he is guilty of an eternal sin, in the
sense ofhaving made an irreparable mistake, and missed the object for which
he was created, the purpose for which he was endowed.
(2) As a GreatCatastrophe.—Whereas the loweranimals are almost
mechanicallykept in bounds by instinct, man owes this to the sovereigntyof
his will, that in every action he does, he must command and be obeyedas a
free man, or submit and be controlled like a conscious slave.And from the
early days of his history there has been a tendency to dissolution and
catastrophe in the injury known as sin. Sin means a defeat;it means that the
man has been beatensomewhere, that the enemy has swept over the barrier,
and laid siege to the soul; it means a revolution, that the lowerpowers have
risen up and shakenoff control; and this in the end means injury; if persisted
in, an eternal prostration of the soul. It is an awful moment for a man when he
feels he cannot stop, when the will utters a feeble voice, and the passions only
mock;when habit winds its coils tighter and tighter round him like a python,
and he feels his life contracting in its cruel folds. What a terrible
consciousnessto wake up to the thought that the position which God has given
us, the talents, the intellect, the skillhave been abused by a realperversion of
life, and that we have been doing only harm when we were meant to be
centres of good!See how an eternal sin may mean an eternal catastrophe,
where the forces of life have become mutinous and disobedient; where self-
control has gone for ever, and anarchy or misrule riot across life—where
there is the perversion of blessings, whichreaches its climax in the factthat
man is the greatexceptionin the order of Nature; that while every other living

thing is striving for its own good, man alone is found choosing what he knows
to be for his hurt. There is no ruin to compare to it, no depravity so utterly
depraved as that which comes from a disordered and shatteredhuman
nature. There it floats down the tide of life, a derelict menacing the commerce
of the world, an active source ofevil as it drifts along, burning itself slowly
awaydown to the water’s edge, once a gallantship, now a wreck;once steered
in the path of active life, now drifting in the ways of death—an eternal sin.
(3) As a GreatLoss.—“Ido not wonder at what people suffer; but I wonder
often at what they lose.” You see a blind man gazing with vacant stare at the
glorious beauty of a sunrise or sunset, when the changing light displays ever a
fresh vesture for the majesty of God. It is all blank to him, and you say, “Poor
man, ah, what he has lost!” You see one impassive and unmoved at the sound
of splendid music, where the notes ebb and flow in waves of melody about his
ears;one who canhear no voice of birds, no voice of man, in the mystery of
deafness;and you sayagain, “Poorman, what he has lost!” But there is a loss
of which these are but faint shadows. The loss of God out of life, which begins,
it may be, with a deprivation, and is a disquieting pang; which, if it is not
arrested, becomes death;which, if persisted in, becomes eternal, becomes
utter and complete separationfrom God; which becomes what we know as
hell—the condition of an eternal sin. A mortal sin as it passes overthe soul is a
fearful phenomenon. And yet it has been pointed out that the little sins play a
more terrible part than we know in the soul’s tragedy. A great sin often brings
its own visible punishment, its own results; we see its loathsomeness;but the
little sins are so little we hardly notice them. “Theyare like the drizzling rain
which wets us through before we think of taking shelter.” The trifling acts of
pride or sloth, the uncheckedlove of self, the evil thought, the word of shame,
the neglectofprayer—we never thought that these could kill down the soul
and separate from God, and suddenly we wake up to find that Godhas, as it
were, dropped out of our lives. To measure the costof sin, little or great, we
have but to look at two scenes.Let us reverently gaze at the form of our
blessedLord in His agonyin the Garden, bent beneaththe insupportable
weight of the sins of the world, and see in the sweatof blood and the voice of
shrinking dread the anguish of the weight of sin which could extort a groan

which the pangs of the Cross failed to evoke. Orlisten againto that word of
mystery which echoedout of the darkness of the Cross into the darkness of
our understanding—“My God, my God, why hast thou forsakenme?”1 [Note:
Canon Newbolt.]
Without forming any theory about sin, Jesus treats it as a blindness of the
soul. If only the eye were in a healthy state—thatis, if the organof spiritual
sense were normal, the light of God would streaminto the soul as it did with
Him. But here lies the mischief. The centre of life—the heart—is wrong. In
vain the light from without solicits entrance;it plays on blind eyeballs. The
light within is darkness. The goodnesswhich passes musteramong the
Pharisees,orthe religious philosophy of the Scribes, is no better than the
blundering of those who know not the law. When the blind leads the blind,
leaderand led fall into the ditch.2 [Note:R. F. Horton.]
2. There are two applications of Christ’s words that we may make for our own
instruction.
(1) First of all, we may put awayfrom ourselves the thought that the
blasphemy here spokenof has anything in common with those unhappy
wanderings of thought and affectionwhich morbid introspection broods upon
until it pleads guilty to the unpardonable sin. It is no sin of the flesh, of
impulse or frailty or passion, no spiritual lapse of an unguarded hour, of
erring or misled opinion, that shuts us out from the Divine forgiveness. There
is nothing here to alarm any mourner for sin whose contritionproves that it
has actually been possible to renew him unto repentance. Whoeveris troubled
with the thought that he may have committed the unpardonable sin proves, by
his very grief and self-accusation, that he has not committed it; for he who is
really guilty will be secure againstallsuch self-reproaches.The perilous state
is theirs, who have no qualms and no doubts, but are blinded by their pride
and self-complacency.

(2) Secondly, the narrative illustrates this other greattruth—that with what
measure men judge of Christ and His work it shall be measured to them
again. The Scribes thought they had given an answersufficient in its
contemptuousness whenthey referred Christ and His miracles to the devil.
They little knew all they were doing; they were revealing their own character
and writing their owncondemnation. Their judgment was in reality the most
complete betrayal of themselves. Whatthey thought of Christ was the key to
open up their ownmiserable souls.1 [Note:D. Fairweather.]
There is an Easternstory, not unknown,
Doubtless, to thee, of one whose magic skill
Called demons up his water-jars to fill;
Deftly and silently they did his will,
But, when the task was done, kept pouring still.
In vain with spell and charm the wizard wrought,
Fasterand faster were the buckets brought,
Higher and higher rose the flood around,

Till the fiends clapped their hands above their master drowned!2 [Note:
Whittier.]
An EternalSin
BIBLEHUB RESOURCES
The Unforgivable Sin
Mark 3:28-30
A.F. Muir
I. AN ACTUAL OFFENCE. It is not mentioned againin the Gospel, but the
warning was calledforth by the actual transgression. There is no mere
theorizing about it therefore. It is an exposure and denunciation. This gives us
an idea of the fearful unbelief and bitter hatred of those who opposedhim.
The manifestationof light and love only strengthened the antagonismof some.
They consciouslysinned againstthe light.
II. WHY IS IT UNFORGIVABLE?
1. Bemuse of the majesty of the crime. It identifies the Representative and Son
of God with the devil - the best with the worst.
2. the nature of the spiritual state induced. When a man deliberately falsifies
his spiritual intuitions, and corrupts his conscienceso that goodis considered
evil, there is no hope for him. Such a condition canonly be the result of long-
continued oppositionto God and determined hatred of his character. The
means of salvationare thereby robbed of their possibility to save.

III. THE LIKELIHOOD OF ITS BEING REPEATED. As it is an extreme
and final degree of sin, there is little danger of its being committed without
full consciousness andmany previous warnings.
1. It is therefore, a priori, improbable in any. Yet as increasing light and grace
tend to throw into strongeropposition the spirit of evil, it must be regarded
as:
2. A possibility of every sinner. Necessityfor self-examinationand continual
recourse to the cleansing and illuminating power of Christ. - M.
Biblical Illustrator
All sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men.
Mark 3:28, 30
Greatsin not unpardonable, but continuance in it
G. Petter.
There is greatcomfort to be derived from this statement, for such as are
tempted by Satan to think their sins are too greatto be forgiven. Thus thought
wickedCain, and thus many good though weak Christians are tempted to
think still. Let such be assured, that there is no sin so great but God's mercy is
sufficient to pardon it, and the blood of Christ sufficient to purge away the
guilt of it; neither is it the multitude or greatnessofsins simply, that hinders
from pardon, but impenitency in sins, whether many or few, greator small.
Therefore look not only at the greatnessofthy sins with one eye, as it were,
but look also, with the other, at the greatness ofGod's mercy and the infinite
value of Christ's merits; both which are sufficient to pardon and take away
the guilt of thy most heinous sins if truly repented of. Look therefore at this,
that there be in this a greatmeasure of godly sorrow and repentance for thy
greatsins; and labour by faith to apply the blood of Christ to thy conscience
for the purging of thy sins, and thou needestnot doubt but they shall be

pardoned. Whether thy sins be many or few, small or great, this makes
nothing for thee or againstthee as touching the obtaining of pardon; but it is
thy continuing, or not continuing in thy sins impenitently, that shall make
againstthee or for thee. To the impenitent all sins are unpardonable; to the
penitent all sins are pardonable, though never so greatand heinous. Yet let
none abuse this doctrine to presumption or boldness in sinning, because God's
mercy is greatand sufficient to pardon all sins, even the greatest, exceptthe
sin againstthe Holy Ghost. Beware ofsinning that grace may abound; beware
of turning the grace ofGod into wantonness, forGod has saidHe will not be
merciful to such as sin, presuming on His mercy. Besides,we must remember
that, although God has mercy enough to pardon greatsins, yet greatsins
require a greatand extraordinary measure of repentance.
(G. Petter.)
Blasphemy
G. Petter.
In that our Saviour, setting out the riches of God's mercy, in pardoning all
sorts of sins, though never so great(except that againstthe Holy Ghost), doth
give instance in blasphemy, as one of the greatest;hence gather, that
blasphemy againstGodis one of the most heinous sins, and very hard to be
forgiven. This sin is committed in the following ways.
1. By attributing to God that which is dishonourable to Him, and
unbeseeming His Majesty;e.g., to sayHe is unjust, cruel, or the author of sin,
etc.
2. By taking from God, and denying unto Him that which belongs to Him.
3. By attributing the properties of God to creatures.
4. By speaking contemptibly of God. Pharaoh(Exodus 5:2); Nebuchadnezzar
(Daniel 3:15).
(G. Petter.)

Remedies againstthis sin of blasphemy
G. Petter.
1. Considerthe fearfulness of the sin. It argues greatwickednessin the heart
harbouring it.2. Considerhow God has avengedHimself on blasphemers, even
by temporal judgments.
3. Our tongues are given us to bless God and man.
4. Labour for a reverent fear of God in our hearts.
5. Take heedof using God's Name irreverently, and of common swearing.
(G. Petter.)
The man who will not be forgiven, cannot be forgiven
H. R. Haweis, M. A.
In one place Jesus seems to speak of this sin as an action, at another time He
calls it speaking a word againstthe Holy Ghost. Is there any one word or
actionthat a man or womancan perpetrate which will forevercut them off
from God's mercy and pardon? Not one!Study this phrase of the scribes, that
Jesus castout devils by Beelzebub, for it was the phrase which brought them
under sentence for sin againstthe Holy Ghost, and you will understand what
that sin of theirs really was. The word spokenis nothing apart from the state
of heart which it reveals. It has only powerto save or damn, because outof the
fulness of the heart the mouth speaketh. It bears witness to that. The sin is not
a word or an action, then, but a state — a state of heart; the state which sees
goodand denies it; which turns the light into darkness;which canlook on
Jesus and still lie. Such a state is the unforgiven and unforgivable sin in this
world — in the eternity that now is or in that which is to come. Pardon is
betweentwo parties; he who will not be forgiven cannotbe forgiven. In the
hardened state above described — the state which is sin againstthe Holy
Ghost— you will not, therefore you cannot, be forgiven. As long as you are so,

that will be so, but it is nowhere said that you shall never be lifted out of that
state;converted — awakened— aroused— saved — just as a man lying
down with the snow torpor upon him, which means coming death, may be
kept walking about, or lifted out of that torpor and saved; but as long as he is
in it he cannotbe saved — he must die.
(H. R. Haweis, M. A.)
The unpardonable sin indescribable
JosephParker, D. D.
Explanation of this mystery there is probably none. It bestexplains itself by
exciting a holy fear as to trespass. Another step — only one — and we may be
over the line. One word more, and we may have passedinto the state
unpardonable. Do not ask whatthis sin is; only know that every other sin
leads straight up to it; and at best there is but a step betweenlife and death.
From what the merciful God does pardon, we canonly infer that the sin which
hath never forgiveness is something too terrible for full expressionin words.
He pardons "abundantly." He pardoned Nineveh; He passedby the
transgressionof the remnant of His heritage; where sin abounded, He sent the
mightiest billows of His grace;when the enemy would have stoned the
redeemed, by reminding them of sins manifold, and base with exceeding
aggravation, beholdtheir sins could not be found, for His merciful hand had
eastthem into the sea. Yet there is one sin that hath never forgiveness!As it is
unpardonable, so it is indescribable. If it be too greatfor God's mercy, what
wonder that it should be too mysterious for our comprehension? My soul,
come not thou into that secret.
(JosephParker, D. D.)
Irreclaimable
J. H. Godwin.

Those who make the best things effects of the worstare irreclaimable.
(J. H. Godwin.)
The unforgivable sin
Vita.
If you poisonthe spring, the very source, you must die of drinking the water,
so long as the poison is there. And if you deny and blaspheme the very essence
from which forgiveness springs and flows, forgiveness is killed (for you) by
your own hand. There can be no remission, no healing for that, since it is in
fact — "Evil, be thou my good; good, thou art evil!" How significantit is that
it is the attributing goodness, righteousnessofword, life, action, "goodworks"
in short, to an evil source, which is the unpardonable sin — not the converse;
not the ascribing unworthy things to the source of good;not the having faulty
conceptions ofHim. If it were that, who among us would escape?
(Vita.)
Sin againstconsciousnessgreaterthan againstsight
J. Parker, D. D.
Christ taught that a word spokenagainstthe Son of Man would be forgiven,
but that a word spokenagainstthe Holy Ghostwould not be forgiven: by
which He probably meant that in His visible form there was so much that
contravenedthe expectations ofthe people, that they might, under the
mistakenguidance of their carnalfeelings, speak againstOne who had
claimed kingly position under a servant's form; but that in the course of
events He would appear not to the eye but to the consciousnessofmen; and
that when He came by this higher ministry, refusal of His appealwould place
man in an unpardonable state. The vital principle would seem to be, that
when man denies his own consciousness, orshuts himself up from such
influences as would purify and quicken his consciousness, he cuts himself off

from God, and becomes a "sonof perdition." Speaking againstthe Holy
Ghostis speaking againstthe higher and final revelation of the Son of Man.
(J. Parker, D. D.)
God wilt vindicate His honour
During the prevalence of infidelity in America after the reign of terror in
France, Newbury, New York, was remarkable for its abandonment. Through
the influence of "Blind Palmer," there was formed a Druidical Society, so
called, which had a high priest, and met at statedtimes to uproot and destroy
all true religion. They descendedsometimes to acts the most infamous and
blasphemous. Thus, for instance, at one of their meetings they burned the
Bible, baptized a eat, partook of a mock sacrament, and one of the number,
with the approval of the rest, administered it to a dog. Now, mark the
retributive judgments of God, which at once commencedfalling on these
blasphemers. In the evening he who had administered this mock sacrament
was attackedwith a violent inflammatory disease;his inflamed eyeballs were
protruded from their sockets,his tongue was swollen, and he died before the
following morning in greatbodily and mental agony. Another of the party was
found dead in his bed the next morning. A third, who had been present, fell in
a fit, and died immediately; and three others were drowned a few days
afterwards. In short, within five years from the time the Druidical Societywas
organized, all the original members met their death in some strange or
unnatural manner. There were thirty-six of them in all, and of these two were
starved to death, sevendrowned, eight shot, five committed suicide, sevendied
on the gallows, one was frozento death, and three died "accidentally." Of
these statements there is goodproof; they have been certified before justices
of peace in New York.
The unpardonable sin
C. Hedge, D. D.

The doctrine of the Trinity is the foundation of Christianity, both as a system
of doctrines and as a religion. We stand in specialrelation to the several
persons of the Trinity. All sin as againstthe Fatheror the Son may be
forgiven, but the sin againstthe Holy Ghostcan never be forgiven.
I. ITS GENERALCHARACTER.
1. That there is such a sin which is unpardonable.
2. It is an open sin, not a sin merely of the heart. It is blasphemy. It requires to
be uttered and carried out in act.
3. It is directed againstthe Holy Ghost, specifically. It terminates on Him. It
consists in blaspheming Him, or doing despite unto Him.
II. ITS SPECIFIC CHARACTER. This includes —
1. Regarding and pronouncing the Holy Ghost to be evil; ascribing the effect
which He produces to Satan or to an evil, impure spirit.
2. The rejection of His testimony as false. He testifies that Jesus is the Son of
God. The man guilty of this sin declares Him to be a man only. He testifies
that Jesus is holy. The other declares He is a malefactor. He testifies that His
blood cleanses fromall sin. The other, that it is an unclean thing, and tramples
it under foot.
3. The conscious, deliberate, malicious resistanceofthe Holy Spirit, and the
determined opposition of the soul to Him and His gospel, and a turning away
from both with abhorrence.His sin supposes —
1. Knowledge of the gospel.
2. Conviction of its truth.
3. Experience of its power.It is the rejection of the whole testimony of the
Spirit, and rejectionof Him and His work, with malicious and outspoken
blasphemy. It is by a comparisonof Matthew 12:31, and the parallel passages
in Mark and Luke, with Hebrews 6:6-10, and Hebrews 10:26-29 that the true
idea of the unpardonable sin is to be obtained.

III. THE CONSEQUENCEOF THIS SIN is reprobation, or a reprobate
mind.
IV. IMPORTANCE OF CLEAR VIEWS OF THIS SUBJECT.
1. Becauseerroneous views prevail, as(1)That every deliberate sin is
unpardonable, as the apostle says "He who sins wilfully."(2) Any peculiarly
atrocious sin, as denying Christ by the lapsed.(3)Post-baptismalsins.
2. Becausepeople oftender conscienceoftenare unnecessarilytormented with
the fearthat they have committed this sin. It is hard to deal with such persons,
for they are generallyin a morbid state.
3. Becauseas there is such a sin, every approachto it should be avoided and
dreaded.
4. Becausewe owe specific reverenceto the Holy Ghoston whom our spiritual
life depends.
(C. Hedge, D. D.)
H. W. Beecher.
I. Now, WHAT IS FORGIVENESS? Itis the remission of the consequencesof
a violation of law, and of pains and penalties of every kind which arise from
having brokena law. It may be consideredas, first, organic. In other words,
far awayfrom human societythe Divine will expresses itselfin natural law.
Thus a man, by intemperance, by gluttony, by excess ofactivity, by violation
of physical law, may disarrange his whole structure. His head may suffer, his
chestmay suffer, any part of his body may suffer. Violence may fracture a
limb, or some sprain may distort a tendon or a muscle; and everywhere man,
as a physical organization, is in contactwith God's organic law in the physical
world in which we live.
II. THE PRINCIPLE OF FORGIVENESS RUNS THROUGHCREATION.
That is to say, all violations of law are not fatal. They may inflict more or less

pain; they may bring upon a man suffering to a certain extent; but so soonas
a man finds that the derangement of his stomachhas arisen from eating
improper food, although the knowledge andthe reformation do not take away
the dyspepsia, yet, if he thoroughly turns away from the course he has been
pursuing, and pursues wholesome methods, in time he will recover. Nature
has forgiven him. Throughout the physical world you may cure fevers,
dropsies, fractures, derangements of vital organs;you may violate all the
multiplied economies thatgo to constitute the individual physical man, and
rebound will bring forgiveness;but there is a point beyond which if you go it
will not, either in youth, in middle life, or in old age. Many a young man who
spends himself until he has drained the fountain of vitality dry in youth is an
old man at thirty years of age;he creeps and crawls at forty, and at fifty, if he
is alive, he is a wretch. Nature says, "I forgive all manner of iniquity and
transgressionand sin to a man who does not commit the unpardonable sin."
III. FOR THERE IS AN UNPARDONABLE SIN, PHYSICALLY
SPEAKING, THAT IS POSSIBLE TO EVERY MAN. If a thousand-pound
weight fall upon a man so that it grinds the bones of his leg to powder, like
flour, I should like to see any surgeonthat could restore it to him. He may give
him a substitute in the form of wood or cork, but he cannotgive him his leg
again. There is an unpardonable sin that may be committed in connection
with the lungs, with the heart, or with the head. They are strung with nerves
as thick as beads on a string; and up to a certain point of excessorabuse of
the nervous systemif you rebound there will be remission, and you will be put
hack, or nearly hack, where you were before you transgressednature's laws;
but beyond that point — it differs in different men, and in different parts of
the same man — if you go on transgressing, and persistin transgression, you
will never getover the effectof it as long as you live.
(H. W. Beecher.)
H. W. Beecher.

I. What are the SIGNS? This I speak by way of relief to many and many a
needlesslytried soul. The inevitable sign of the commissionof the
unpardonable sin is a condition in which men are past feeling; and if a man
has come into that condition in which he is unpardonable — incurable — the
sign will be that he does not care. If you find a person who is alarmed lesthe is
in that condition, his very alarm is a sign that he is not in it. I know not what
was the particular case that led to the request that I should preach on the
subject; but if there be those that are suffering because they fear that they
have committed the unpardonable sin, in the first place, it is not a single act, it
is a condition that men come into by education;and, in the secondplace, that
condition is one in which there is a cessationof sensibility. It is a want of
spiritual pulse. It is a want of the capacityof spiritual suffering. Therefore, if
you do not suffer at all, it may be, it is quite likely, that you are in that
condition. Those who are in that condition are never troubled about their
spiritual state. But where persons are anxious on the subject of their spiritual
state, and are in distress about it, and talk much respecting it, they are the
very ones that cannotbe in the unpardonable condition. What would you
think of a man who should anxiously go around asking everyphysician if he
did not think he was blind, when the reasonof his anxiety was that he had
such acuteness ofvision that he saw everything so very plainly and
continuously? Acuteness ofvision is not a signof blindness. What would you
think of a man that should go to his physician to ascertainif he was not
growing deaf, because his hearing was so good? The symptoms of deafness do
not go that way. And how incompatible with the condition in which one has
committed the unpardonable sin is fearlest one has committed it. That
condition is one in which a personis pastall feeling, and is given over to his
wickedness.
II. This subject will lead us to make an IMPORTANT DISCRIMINATION—
one which we may all of us need — whether we are in a sinful state or are
beginning to lead a Christian life. There is a tendency to fear greatsins, and a
tendency to be indifferent to little ones. Now, there are certaingreat sins that,
being committed, may give such a moral shock to a man's constitution as to be
fatal in their effects;but these are not usually fallen into. Men are not very
much in dangerof great sins. They are ten thousand times more in danger of

little ones. Men are not in danger of committing perjury as much as they are
of telling "white lies," as they are called. Men are not so much in dangerof
counterfeiting as they are of putting on little minute false appearances. Men
are not so much in danger of committing burglary as they are of committing
the myriad infinitesimal injustices with which life is filled. Any particular act,
to be sure, such as I have alluded to, which of itself is simply as a particle of
dust, is not so culpable as a greatsin; but what is the effect on the constitution
of a series of these offences that are so small as to be almostimperceptible? It
is these little sins, continued and multiplied, that by friction take off the
enamel of a man's conscience. It is these numberless petty wrongs that men do
not fear, persistedin, that are the most damaging. I should dread the
incursion into my garden, in the night time, of rooting swine, or trampling ox,
or browsing buffalo; but, after all, aphides are worse than these big brutes. I
could kill anyone, or half a dozen, or a score ofthem, if they came in such
limited numbers; but when they swarm by the billion I cannot kill one in ten
thousand of them — and what can I do? Myriads of these insignificant little
insects will eat fasterthan I can work, and they are the pest and danger of the
garden, as often my poor asters and roses testify. There is many and many a
flowerthat I would work hard to save, but the fecundity of insectlife will
quite match and overmatch, any man's industry. Weakness multiplied is
strongerthan strength. Now, that which does the mischief is these aphides,
these myriad infinitesimal worms, these pestiferous little sins, every one of
which is calledwhite, and is a mere nothing, a small point — a mote, a speck
of dust. Why, many a caravanhas been overtaken, smotheredand destroyed
by clouds of dust, the separate particles of which were so minute as to be
almost invisible. Many men are afraid that they will be left to some greatsin
— and they ought to fearthat; but they have not the slightestfear of that
which is a greatdeal more likely to bring them to condemnation — the series
of petty violations of conscience, andtruth, and duty, with which human
experience is filled. Here is where every man should most seriouslyponder his
condition, and ask himself, "What is the effectof the conduct that I am day by
day evolving? Am I educating myself toward moral sensibility, or away from
moral sensibility?"

III. This leads me to say THAT EVERY MAN SHOULD TAKE HEED TO
THE WAY IN WHICH HE TREATS HIS CONSCIENCE. If the light in him
be darkness, how greatis that darkness!When we put a lighthouse on the
coast, that in the night mariners may explore the dark and terrible way of the
sea, we not only swing glass aroundit to protectit, but we enclose that glass
itself in a network of iron wire, that birds may not dash it in, the summer
winds may not swoopit out, and that swarms of insects may not destroy
themselves and the light. Forif the light in the lighthouse be put out, how
greata darkness falls upon the land and upon the sea. And the mariner,
waiting for the light, or seeing it not, miscalculates, and perishes. Now, a
man's conscienceoughtto be protectedfrom those influences that would
diminish its light, or that would put it out; but there are thousands of men
who are every day doing their utmost to destroythis light. When they do
wrong, their consciencerebukes them, and they instantly attempt to suppress
it and put it down. They undertake to excuse themselves and palliate the
wrong. The next day, when they do wrong, the same process goes on, and they
make a deliberate war againsttheir conscience;for it is a very painful thing
for a man to do wrong and carry the hurt, and he feels that he must overcome
this tormentor if he would have any peace, a greatmany men not only are
making war againstthe light of God in the soul, but are beginning to feel the
greatestcomplacencyin their achievements. Theycome to a state in which
they can lie and not feel bad. They come to a state in which they can do a great
deal of injustice, and not have it strike them any mere as injustice. Men that
have got along so far in this moral perversion that their conscience has ceased
to trouble them, and they think of wrong-doing merely as a thing that is in the
way of business, are sometimes surprised as their mind strikes back to the
time when they were more sensitive to right, and they say, "I recollectthat,
ten or fifteen years ago, whenI first beganto do such things, I used to be so
troubled about them that I lay awake nights;but, it is a long time since they
have given me any trouble." They muse, and say, "How queer it is. I used to
shrink from things that were not just right, and to be afraid to deviate in the
leastfrom the strictestrectitude; but I have gotover it. Now I do not feelso.
How is it? I wonder what has happened to me." Oh, yes;you wonder what has
happened to you. There has been death in your house. The cradle is empty.
Souls die. The moral element of your soul is dead. Why, many and many a

man, who used to be sensitive to purity, whose cheek usedto colourat the
allusion to impurity, has gotso now that the whole literature of impurity is
familiar to him. Impure scenes, impure narratives, the whole morbid
intercourse of impure minds, they now never feel any shrinking from. Their
moral nature is searedas with a hot iron. There are men that come not only to
be wicked, but to be struck through and through with wickedness, so that they
love men that are, wicked, and hate men that are not. They come to have a
greatcontempt for anything that is not wickedness, andto have a great
regard, if not respect, for wickednessitself. And this they come to not at a
plunge. Men never go down such a moral precipice headlong. They go down
by degrees. The decline from a state of moral sensitiveness is very gradual —
so gradual that it does not seemto men to be on the downward way. Flowers
are round about their feet, the path is shaded and pleasant, and they go far
down before they begin to have any sense ofan approaching change. The way
from right to wrong is a deceptive way, and a fatal way, and on it men go far
along toward destruction before their suspicions are awakened.
(H. W. Beecher.)
COMMENTARIES
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
(29) In danger of eternal damnation.—Better, eternaljudgment, the Greek
word not necessarilycarrying with it the thoughts that now attach to the
English. The best MSS., however, give, “in danger of an eternalsin”—i.e., of
one which will, with its consequences,extend throughout the ages. It is, of
course, more probable that a transcriber should have altered “sin” into
“judgment,” substituting an easierfor a more difficult rendering, than the
converse.
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

3:22-30 It was plain that the doctrine of Christ had a direct tendency to break
the devil's power; and it was as plain, that casting of him out of the bodies of
people, confirmed that doctrine; therefore Satan could not support such a
design. Christ gave an awful warning againstspeaking suchdangerous words.
It is true the gospelpromises, becauseChrist has purchased, forgiveness for
the greatestsins and sinners; but by this sin, they would oppose the gifts of the
Holy Ghostafter Christ's ascension. Suchis the enmity of the heart, that
unconverted men pretend believers are doing Satan's work, when sinners are
brought to repentance and newness oflife.
Barnes'Notes on the Bible
And the scribes ... - See the notes at Matthew 12:24-32. The occasionoftheir
saying this was, that he had healeda man possessedwith a devil. The scribes,
who came from Jerusalemto watchhis conduct, chargedhim with having
made a compactor agreementwith the prince of the devils.
Jamieson-Fausset-BrownBible Commentary
Mr 3:20-30. Jesus Is Chargedwith Madness and DemoniacalPossession—His
Reply. ( = Mt 12:22-37;Lu 11:14-26).
See on [1413]Mt12:22-37;[1414]Lu11:21-26.
Matthew Poole's Commentary
See Poole on"Mark 3:22"
Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible
But he that shall blaspheme againstthe Holy Ghost,.... Againsthis person, and
the works performed by him, by ascribing them to diabolicalpower and
influence, as the Scribes did,
hath never forgiveness:there is no pardon provided in the covenantof grace,
nor obtained by the blood of Christ for such persons, or ever applied to them
by the Spirit;
but is in danger of eternal damnation. The Vulgate Latin reads it, and so it is
read in an ancientcopy of Beza's, guilty of an eternalsin; a sin which can

never be blotted out, and will never be forgiven, but will be punished with
everlasting destruction; See Gill on Matthew 12:32.
Geneva Study Bible
But he that shall blaspheme againstthe Holy Ghosthath never forgiveness,
but is in danger of eternal damnation.
EXEGETICAL(ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)
Expositor's Greek Testament
Mark 3:29. The greatexception, blasphemy againstthe Holy Ghost.—εἰς τὸν
αἰῶνα: hath not forgiveness for ever. Cf. the fuller expressionin Mt.—ἀλλʼ
ἔνοχός ἐστιν, but is guilty of. The negative is followedby a positive statement
of similar import in Hebrew fashion.—αἰωνίουἁμαρτήματος, ofan eternal
sin. As this is equivalent to “hath never forgiveness,”we must conceive of the
sin as eternalin its guilt, not in itself as a sin. The idea is that of an
unpardonable sin, not of a sin eternally repeating itself. Yet this may be the
ultimate ground of unpardonableness:unforgivable because neverrepented
of. But this thought is not necessarilycontainedin the expression.
Cambridge Bible for Schools andColleges
29. but he that shall blaspheme] The sin, againstwhich these words are a
terrible but merciful warning, is not so much an act, as a state of sin, on the
part of one, who in defiance of light and knowledge,ofset purpose rejects, and
not only rejects but perseveres in rejecting, the warnings of conscience,and
the Grace ofthe Holy Spirit, who blinded by religious bigotry rather than
ascribe a goodwork to the Spirit of Good prefer to ascribe it to the Spirit of
Evil, and thus wilfully put “bitter for sweet” and“sweetforbitter,” “darkness
for light” and “light for darkness.” Sucha state if perseveredin and not
repented of excludes from pardon, for it is the sin unto death spokenof in 1
John 5:16.
Bengel's Gnomen
Mark 3:29. Αἰωνίου ἁμαρτίας,everlasting guilt) Sin in this place denotes
guilt; and everlasting sin or guilt is opposedwith greatpropriety of language

to forgiveness [It therefore carries with it the punishment consisting as well of
(in) the feeling as also of (in) the penalty itself (damnation). V. g.—Ἀιωνίου
κρίσεως [the reading of the Rec. Text] is a gloss.[29]
[29] A, however, supports it. But BL Vulg. and Memph., and bcd (‘delicti’)
support ἁμαρτήματος. D reads ἁμαρτίας;and so a and Cypr. have
‘peccati.’—ED.
Pulpit Commentary
Verse 29. - Hath never forgiveness.Notthat any sinner need despair of
forgiveness through the fear that he may have committed this sin; for his
repentance shows that his state of mind has never been one of entire enmity,
and that he has not so grievedthe Holy Spirit as to have been entirely
forsakenby him. But is in danger of eternal damnation. The Greek words,
according to the most approved reading, are ἀλλ ἔνοχός ἐστιν αἰωνίου
ἁμαρτήματος:but is guilty of an eternal sin; thus showing that there are sins
of which the effects and the punishment belong to eternity. He is bound by a
chain or' sin from which he can never be loosed. (See St. John 9:41,
"Therefore your sin remaineth.")
Vincent's Word Studies
Guilty (ἔνοχος)
From ἐν, in, ἔχω, to hold or have. Lit., is in the grasp of, or holden of.
Compare 1 Corinthians 11:27;James 2:10.
Eternal damnation (αἰωνίου ἁμαρτήματος)
An utterly false rendering. Rightly as Rev., of an eternal sin. So Wyc.,
everlasting trespass. The A. V. has gone wrong in following Tyndale, who, in
turn, followedthe erroneous text of Erasmus, κρίσεως, judgment, wrongly
rendered damnation. See Matthew 23:33, and compare Rev. there.

PRECEPTAUSTIN RESOURCES
BRUCEHURT MD
FORGIVENESS UNAVAILABLE
But - This is a strong term of contrast, in this case highlighting that there is
bad news. Jesus contraststhe factthat all sins can be forgiven, except the one
He now describes which cannot ever be forgiven.
NOTE:For more detailed discussionofthe unpardonable sin see commentary
on Matthew 12:31-32.
Jesus warnedthem that they had become so hardened in unbelief that
forgiveness was impossible. The "unpardonable sin" for which there is no
forgiveness must be seenin context. It does not refer to a single action, but
rather to a mindful, willful, defiant attitude of antagonismtoward God. The
Pharisees hadthis kind of attitude as evidenced in their attributing the work
of the Holy Spirit to Satan.
Whoeverblasphemes againstthe Holy Spirit never has forgiveness - Never
means absolutelynever and is underscored by the next clause emphasizing
that never speaks ofeternity.
James Edwards - This is “aneternal sin” (v. 29)since anyone who, willingly or
not, cannot distinguish evil from goodand goodfrom evil, darkness from light
and light from darkness, is beyond the pale of repentance. “Woe to those who
call evil goodand goodevil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness”
(Isa 5:20). (PNTC-Mark)
H A Ironside says "Mark 3:28-29 was never intended to torment anxious souls
honestly desiring to know Christ, but the verses stand out as a blazing beacon
warning of the danger of persisting in the rejectionof the Spirit’s testimony of

Christ until the searedconscience no longerresponds to the gospelmessage."
(Mark 3 Commentary)
Gotquestions comments that "The blasphemy againstthe Holy Spirit, specific
as it was to the Pharisees’ situation, cannotbe duplicated today. Jesus Christ
is not on earth, and no one can personallysee Jesus perform a miracle and
then attribute that powerto Sataninstead of the Spirit. The only
unpardonable sin today is that of continued unbelief. There is no pardon for a
person who dies in his rejectionof Christ. The Holy Spirit is at work in the
world, convicting the unsaved of sin, righteousness,and judgment (John 16:8).
If a person resists that conviction and remains unrepentant, then he is
choosing hell over heaven. “Without faith it is impossible to please God”
(Hebrews 11:6), and the objectof faith is Jesus (Acts 16:31). There is no
forgiveness forsomeone who dies without faith in Christ." (Note)
John MacArthur adds "The eternal sin for them was this, “Jesus is demonic.”
They went to hell for that. You say, “Wait a minute. What if I said that?
Would I go to hell for that?” Not necessarilyif you said that without full
information. That’s a blasphemy that’s forgivable. Right? But if that’s your
final conclusionwith full revelation, if that’s your response to the full
understanding of the Gospel, the full revelation of Christ containedon the
pages of Scripture, if that’s your final conclusion, you could never be forgiven,
because you’ve had full revelation; you’ve had full light. What else is there?
You can’t get anymore. If that’s your final conclusion, that’s an eternal
sin.....Ifyou were there (IN JESUS'DAY IN PALESTINE), and you saw it,
and you heard it, and your final conclusionwas, “He’s demonic,” you’re
damned; you can’t be saved, because that’s your ultimate conclusionwith full
revelation. So, this is unique to those people who had that full revelation.
What about today? Could somebodycommit this? Right, they could. Look,
we’ve all been forgiven for rejecting Christ, haven’t we? We’ve all been
forgiven for rejecting Christ because we weren’tborn saved. So, we’ve all
been forgiven for that. But the one that won’t be forgiven is the one calledthe
apostate who gets full exposure to the truth, full exposure to the Gospel, full
revelation, and makes the final conclusion, “It’s not true; I rejectChrist. It’s a
deception.” That’s where you end up after full exposure;that’s what’s called
apostasy. That’s unforgivable. (The Unforgivable Sin)

Steven Cole does not completely agree with MacArthur about whether this sin
can be committed today - Some argue that since it specificallyinvolved
attributing Jesus’miracles to Satan, it could only be committed during His life
on earth. But it seems to me that the warnings of Scripture are applicable
today, even if the exactsense cannotbe duplicated. In other words, a person
today can repeatedly turn his heart awayfrom the witness of the Holy Spirit
to Jesus Christ until he reaches a point where he is hardened beyond remedy.
God only knows when a personcrossesthat line, but the point is, unbelief is
nothing to fool around with. If the Holy Spirit has been convicting a personof
sin, righteousness, andjudgment, and has been showing the person that Jesus
Christ is God’s anointed Savior, but the personrejects that witness, then he is
on the path toward the unpardonable sin. He is in grave danger that God will
withdraw the light he has been given and he will be hardened in unbelief. That
is the unpardonable sin. So the lessonfor us is, if the Spirit of God is tugging
on your heart, do not resistHim! If He is drawing you toward Jesus Christ,
but the lure of sin is drawing you the other direction, yield to Jesus Christ!
Otherwise, you may cross the line and your time of opportunity will be lost
forever! Thus Jesus’words here show us that we must beware of hypocrisy
because we will stand before God for eternal judgment. (Confessing or
Denying Christ) (See another wellreasoneddiscussionof the unpardonable
sin by StevenCole)
THOUGHT - I tend to agree with PastorCole. While one may not be able to
duplicate the exactsin of the scribes because Jesusis not present and we do
not see His miracles, there is still a stern warning in Jesus'words for all Who
rejectthe wooing of His Spirit! (cf Jn 3:5-8+) To say it another way, if a
person repeatedly, habitually rejects the truth that Jesus is the Lamb of God
Who takes awaythe sin of the world (and their sins)(Jn 1:29+), then they have
for all intents and purposes made themselves beyond pardon because there is
no other wayto the Father in Heaven than through His SonJesus Christ (Jn
14:6). One other point to consideris that rejectors in our day in a sense have
in a sense very likely witnessed"miracles"performed by Jesus. Whatdo I
mean? Of course Jesus is not physically present and they have never seen
healings or demons castout by Him. But if they have friends or relatives who
have receivedChrist as Saviorand been made new creatures in Christ (2 Cor

5:17+), then the truth is that they have witnessed"miracles,"and actually in
fact a miracle greaterthan the casting out of a demon or a temporal healing,
as dramatic as that must have been, because the new birth results in eternal
"healing" from the sin virus. Also the writer of Hebrews alludes in one sense
to an "unpardonable" sin in Hebrews 6 writing
For in the case ofthose who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the
heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and have
tastedthe goodword of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 and then
have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them againto repentance, since
they againcrucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame. 7
For ground that drinks the rain which often falls on it and brings forth
vegetationuseful to those for whose sake itis also tilled, receives a blessing
from God; 8 but if it yields thorns and thistles, it is worthless and close to
being cursed, and it ends up being burned. (Hebrews 6:4-9+)
I realize that Hebrews 6 is a controversialpassagebut I interpret it as those
who were given every opportunity to believe and yet chose to willfully reject
the Spirit's wooing them to Jesus to be their Savior, these individuals have
crossedthe line (see poem below) and can no longer receive pardon for their
sins. They have in essencebecome "unpardonable." (See MacArthur's
explanation toward the bottom of the page of his sermonThe Unforgivable
Sin)
There is a time we know not when,
A place we know not where;
Which marks the destiny of men
To glory or despair.
There is a line, by us unseen,
Which crosses everypath;
Which marks the boundary between

God’s mercy and His wrath.
—JOSEPHADDISON ALEXANDER
Brian Bill - In short, the unforgivable sin is attributing the mighty miracle
working power of Jesus to Satan. The scribes witnessedundeniable exorcisms
and instead of giving glory to the Holy Spirit they claimed that He was
possessedby Beelzebub. The blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is accusing Jesus of
being demon possessed. MattChandler puts it: “The blasphemy of the Spirit
is the knowledgeable, willful and continued rebellion againstthe ministry of
the Holy Spirit.” Sam Storms adds, “It is not a carelessactbut a calloused
attitude…it is not mere denial, but determined denial; not mere rejection, but
wanton, willful, wicked, wide-eyedrejection.” It’s a deliberate refusal of the
work and ministry of the Holy Spirit. (Mark 3:20-30 The Unforgivable Sin)
Blasphemes (987)(blasphemeofrom bláptō = to hurt, injure, harm + phémē
from phēmí = to speak)literally to speak to harm. The idea of blasphemeo is
that the words spokenhurt or smite the reputation of another. It means to
destroy or discredit another's goodname by speaking evil againstthem.
Never(3756)(ou)speaks ofabsolute negation!There is another Greek word
"me" which is not absolute, but that is not the word Jesus uses!
Forgiveness(859)(aphesis from aphiemi = actionwhich causes separationand
is in turn derived from apo = from + hiemi = put in motion, send) literally
means to send away. Aphesis refers to a remissionas when one remits
(pardons, cancels)a debt, or releasesthen from an obligation. (e.g., "forgive
us our debts as we forgive our debtors" Mt 6:12+). The absolute negation
absolutely no forgiveness thus this is final and forever (which should be
frighten any hearer, but did not budge the scribes for their hearts were so
hardened to truth!)
But (alla) is a term of contrastand here introduces a dramatic contrast,
ultimately the contrastbetweensins which can be forgiven in Mk 3:28 and
those which cannotand will damn a person to hell for eternity!
Is guilty of an eternal sin - KJV has "But is in danger of eternal damnation."
Eternal sin begets eternalpunishment!

Guilty (liable, subject, deserving)(1777)(enochos fromenécho = to hold in,
i.e., to ensnare, to be entangled - Gal 5:1) literally means held fastin (in the
grasp, held in, containedin). ). Enochos is primarily a legalterm - liable to a
charge or actionat law or in court, in this contextat the GreatWhite Throne
judgment!
David Thompson makes an interesting comment writing that "there are
different "unpardonable sins" for different times in the program of God. For
example, in Eden, the "unpardonable sin" was to eat of the fruit of a tree. In
Egypt, the "unpardonable sin" was not to put the blood on the doorposts so
when the death angellookedat the door he would pass over the house and not
kill the residents.In the Tribulation the "unpardonable sin" will be to take the
mark of the Beast(SEE BELOW). Now the sin here is one when Jesus was
specificallyhere on earth. The blasphemy of the Holy Spirit was to actually
see Jesus Christperforming miracles when He was physically here on earth
and making up a lie that said He was doing those miracles by the powerof
Satan. When the religious leaders witnessedthe work of Jesus Christ and said
He was satanic, they were looking at the work of the Holy Spirit and giving
allegiance to Satan. If you were a personwho saw Jesus Christ preachand
teachand do the things He did by the power of the Holy Spirit, and then you
said He did those things because He was satanic, whenin factyou know He is
not, is a blasphemous sin that will put one straight into hell. Now hell is a
horrible, realplace graphically describedin the Bible: 1) It is a place where
people burn with actualunquenchable fire (Mark 9:43; Rev. 20:15);2) It is a
place of black darkness (II Pet. 2:17; Jude 13;Matt. 22:13); 3) It is a place of
conscious torturous pain (Rev. 14:11a);4) It is a place of constantweeping
(Matt. 13:42a;22:13);5) It is a place of constantgnashing teeth (Matt. 13:42b;
22:13); 6) It is a place of terrible loneliness (II Thess. 1:9b); 7) It is a place
where one always burns in fire but never burns up (Matt. 25:46). Now there is
one sin that you cancommit now that will put you into hell. It is a sin that will
guarantee you end up in hell and that sin is to not believe on Jesus Christ.
This is the unpardonable sin for this age. But come to Christ and all your sin
will be forgiven. (Sermon on Mark 3:22-30)
Tony Garland speaks aboutthe "unpardonable" aspectof taking the MARK
OF THE BEAST writing "This (ReadRev 13:8, 16+) is a defining moment for

the Earth Dwellers., much like the unpardonable sin of Jesus’day: "Thena
third angelfollowedthem, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the
beastand his image, and receives his mark on his foreheador on his hand, he
himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out
full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire
and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence ofthe
Lamb. And the smoke oftheir torment ascends foreverand ever, and they
have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever
receives the mark of his name.” (Rev. 14:9-11+)Those who choose to worship
the beastand take his mark are foreverlost. Even though they have not yet
died, they are irredeemable!"
THE UNPARDONABLE SIN
Gotquestions has an excellentsummary of the "Unpardonable Sin" to which
Jesus refers here in Mark and againin Matthew 12:31-32 (the following
repeats some of what was statedabove, but given the confusionconcerning
this topic, it bears repetition!) - According to Jesus, the unpardonable or
unforgivable sin is unique. It is the one iniquity that will never be forgiven
(“never” is the meaning of “either in this age or in the age to come” in
Matthew 12:32). The unforgivable sin is blasphemy (“defiant irreverence”)of
the Holy Spirit in the context of the Spirit’s work in the world through Christ.
In other words, the particular case ofblasphemy seenin Matthew 12 and
Mark 3 is unique. The guilty party, a group of Pharisees, hadwitnessed
irrefutable evidence that Jesus was working miracles in the powerof the Holy
Spirit, yet they claimed that He was possessedby the prince of demons,
Beelzebul(Matthew 12:24;Mark 3:30).
The Jewishleaders ofJesus’day committed the unpardonable sin by accusing
Jesus Christ (in person, on earth) of being demon-possessed. Theyhad no
excuse for such an action. They were not speaking out of ignorance or
misunderstanding. The Pharisees knew that Jesus was the Messiahsentby
God to save Israel. They knew the prophecies were being fulfilled. They saw
Jesus’wonderful works, and they heard His clearpresentationof truth. Yet
they deliberately chose to deny the truth and slander the Holy Spirit. Standing

before the Light of the World, bathed in His glory, they defiantly closedtheir
eyes and became willfully blind. Jesus pronounced that sin to be unforgivable.
The blasphemy againstthe Holy Spirit, specific as it was to the Pharisees’
situation, cannotbe duplicated today. Jesus Christis not on earth, and no one
can personallysee Jesus perform a miracle and then attribute that powerto
Sataninstead of the Spirit. The only unpardonable sin today is that of
continued unbelief. There is no pardon for a person who dies in his rejection
of Christ. The Holy Spirit is at work in the world, convicting the unsaved of
sin, righteousness, andjudgment (John 16:8). If a person resists that
conviction and remains unrepentant, then he is choosing hell over heaven.
“Without faith it is impossible to please God” (Hebrews 11:6), and the object
of faith is Jesus (Acts 16:31). There is no forgiveness forsomeone who dies
without faith in Christ.
God has provided for our salvationin His Son (John 3:16). Forgiveness is
found exclusively in Jesus (John 14:6). To rejectthe only Savior is to be left
with no means of salvation; to rejectthe only pardon is, obviously,
unpardonable.
Many people fear they have committed some sin that God cannotor will not
forgive, and they feel there is no hope for them, no matter what they do. Satan
would like nothing more than to keeppeople laboring under that
misconception. Godgives encouragementto the sinner who is convictedof his
sin: “Come nearto God and he will come nearto you” (James 4:8). “Where
sin increased, graceincreasedall the more” (Romans 5:20). And the testimony
of Paul is proof positive that God can and will save anyone who comes to Him
in faith (1 Timothy 1:12–17). If you are suffering under a load of guilt today,
rest assuredthat you have not committed the unpardonable sin. God is
waiting with open arms. Jesus’promise is that “he is able to save completely
those who come to God through him” (Hebrews 7:25). Our Lord will never
fail. “Surely God is my salvation;I will trust and not be afraid. The LORD,
the LORD himself, is my strength and my defense;he has become my
salvation” (Isaiah12:2). (Bolding added)
Mark 3:30 because they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”

WHY ETERNAL
UNFORGIVENESS?
Because- This is a critically important term of explanation. It serves to
qualify Jesus'warning about blasphemy of the Spirit. Jesus explains what it
means to blaspheme the Spirit.
They were saying, “He has an unclean spirit" - Saying is in the imperfect tense
indicating they were saying this over and over, persisting in their malicious
charge!In Mark 3:22+ saying is also in the imperfect tense. This is exactly
what they scribes were doing! First note that pronoun He refers not to the
Holy Spirit, but to Jesus. The question then is to whom does they refer?
Clearly in this context it refers to the scribes who had accusedJesusofbeing
possessedby Satandeclaring “He is possessedby Beelzebul.”. Secondlythey
attributed Jesus'miracles performed while He was physically present on
earth to the supernatural power of Satan, declaring “He casts out the demons
by the ruler of the demons.” (Mk 3:22+). This is the sin which God will not
forgive.
Hiebert - By persistently attributing Jesus’ actof exorcism, wrought in the
powerof the Holy Spirit, to the agencyof the Devil, the scribes were
consciouslymaligning the Spirit’s work. Motivatedby their hatred for Jesus,
they were willing to stamp as satanic the holy powerin which He worked. It
was a perversionof moral distinctions, ascribing the manifest work of the
Spirit of Godto Satan. The tense indicates that it was not so much a single act
as an attitude of heart which persisted in rejecting the light by calling good
evil and evil good. In such a state, the Holy Spirit can no longerwork to
produce conviction of sin. Many serious souls have been deeply agitatedwith
the thought that they may have committed this sin. Ryle well observed,
“Those who are troubled with fears that they have sinned the unpardonable
sin, are the very people who have not sinned it.” After noting that Jesus’
warning was made to the duly accreditedtheologicalleaders ofthe day,
Cranfield remarks, “Those who most particularly should heed the warning of
this verse today are the theologicalteachersand the official leaders of the
churches.”

Brian Bill - Christians cannotcommit this sin. If you are truly saved, then you
are truly secure. Whenyou believe in Jesus Christ for eternal life, then you
have eternal life.1 John 5:11-12:“And this is the testimony, that God gave us
eternal life, and this life is in his Son. Whoever has the Son has life; whoever
does not have the Son of God does not have life.” If you worry that you’ve
committed the unforgivable sin, you haven’t. If you’re mourning and grieving
and anxious about sin, it means that the Holy Spirit is active in your life.
Satanwants to stealyour hope and joy. He wants you to think you’ve gone too
far to be saved. He wants you to swim with shame and to be gutted by guilt.
This is a warning to those persisting in unbelief. Perhaps you’ve been
languishing under true guilt. Conviction is a goodthing if it leads you to
commitment. You are a sinner and if you have not repented and received
Jesus Christ, you will not be forgiven. The goodnews is that God is ready to
forgive eachand every one of your sins. Don’t put off a decisionto follow
Christ. One could say that the only "unpardonable sin" today is that of
continued unbelief. If you die in a state of disbelief, your sins will not be
forgiven and you will pay the price for them forever in a place of everlasting
destruction calledhell with the devil and all his demons!
DANIEL AKIN
The Unpardonable Sin Mark 3:22-30
Introduction: 1) It is like hearing the words “Antichrist”, “FalseProphet”,
“Great
Tribulation” and “Lake of Fire.” To any spiritually sensitive person the
phrase strikes
terror and fear. The phrase: “the unpardonable sin.” Actually that phrase
does not occur

in the Bible. In our text it is identified as an “unforgiveable sin” and “an
eternal sin” (v.
29). This, needless to say, does not softenthe impact of the words.
2) Severalquestions naturally arise when we examine the idea that there is a
sin that
once committed, will never be forgiven and will condemn us eternally to hell,
the lake of
fire (Rev 20:11-15).
1) Is there really an unforgiveable/unpardonable sin?
2) If there is, what exactly is it?
3) Can a Christian commit this sin?
3) Whateverthis sin is, we must approach it with the greatestpossible gravity
and
seriousness. Why? Because whenGodsays “commit this sin and I will never
forgive
you,” there is then no one you canturn to for help and there is no longer any
hope for
heaven and eternal life. When God says “never” it really means never! A
billion years
from now, His judicial verdict will stand like stone. His death sentence is as
certain as
His life giving pardon! John Piper is correct, “If forgiveness is withheld for
eternity,
guilt is sealedfor eternity. God is never neutral to sin. He either forgives it or
punishes
it… Notto be forgiven by God forever, is to suffer his wrath forever” (1-1-84).

4) The contextin which this sin is discussedin Mark is: 1) the accusationby
Jesus’
family “He is out of his mind” (3:21) and 2) the arrival of an official religious
delegation
3
from Jerusalemassignedto investigate and evaluate the young Jewishrabbi
who was
causing such a stir in Galilee. In the midst of their harsh judgment and
criticism, we see
the overarching characteristicsofthe sin that cannever be forgiven. If ever
there was a
warning that would compel us to run from sin with fear and trembling and
flee to Jesus in
faith and repentance we find it right here! So, what do we learn about the
unpardonable
sin?
I. It reveals a harden heart that calls goodevil. 3:22
• Jesus is preaching, healing and casting out demons around the clock. The
crowds are
growing daily. His family wants to stop Him and take Him home. Theyfear
He is
losing it! (3:21).
• Scribes from Jerusalem– a delegationof religious specialists sentfrom the
Sanhedrin
to check Him out. William Lane says their assignmentwas to “distinguish
between

the instigators, the apostatesand the innocent.” (p. 141). Apparently they
reacheda
quick verdict about Jesus. He was a demon motivated apostate who should be
quickly silenced.
• Possessedby Beelzebul…the prince of demons – meaning perhaps “Lord of
the flies
or carrion,” Lord of that which is rotten and repulsive, “Lord of the dung
heap.”
More likely, “Lord of the house (temple)”, “Baalthe prince.” Thus, the ruler
of a
house or dynasty of demons (evil spirits) as the text makes clear.
• Jesus is possessed, controlledby Satan, the prince or ruler of the demon
world. (This
is the only time we know of in Jewishliterature where Satanis called
Beelzebul).
What He teaches andwhat He does in healing and casting out demons He
does, they
say, by the power of Satan.
4
• His family says He is deranged(3:21). These religious leaders sayHe is
demon
possessed(3:22)!
• One major observation I would note for our understanding is the tense of the
verb in

vs. 22 and 30: “they were saying.” It is the imperfect tense which carries the
weight
of “they were continually saying.” This is not a one time accusation. This is
not an
unfortunate slip of the tongue or a verbal faux pas (fo pa)!
• With a hardened heart which Bavnick calls “a sin againstthe gospelin its
clearest
revelation,” they call the supremely goodone the supremely evil one. It is a
persistentrejection of and declarationagainstwhatthe Spirit of Godis doing
in and
thru Jesus.
• The evidence was unmistakable and undeniable. Those who move in the
direction of
the unpardonable sin 1) are aware ofthe miraculous works ofJesus that
cannot be
denied (note they do not deny He has castout demons!); 2) consistentlyreject
the
obvious and logicalconclusionthat these spiritual works are done by the
Spirit of
God; 3) declare verbally and consistentlythose works are actually from
Satan; and 4)
consistentlytell others that Jesus’works are of Satan.
Transition: This reveals a hardened heart that calls evil good. Continue
down this road and you
will never be forgiven by God.
II. It reveals spiritual blindness that is willful and intentional. 3:23-27

• Jesus responds to these outlandish charges by calling the religious elite to
come near
to hear a parable. This short proverbial saying quickly refutes their
accusationsand
reveals the absurdity of their logic.
5
• He uses one illustration with two components to make His point: 1) a
kingdom
divided (vs. 23-24)and 2) a house plundered (vs. 25-27).
1) The kingdom divided (vs. 23-24)– Jesus makes a simple and basic
observationin
v. 23, “How can Satancastout Satan?” Would Satanact againstHimself?
Oppose
Himself? Seek to defeat Himself? The logic is inconceivable! If what you say
is
true, Satanis destroying himself. A divided kingdom cannot stand (v. 24)and
one
thing is certain: Satan is attempting to build a kingdom and I have come to
destroy
that kingdom. If Satanwere fighting himself he would be utterly powerless to
do
anything and obviously that is not the case. Look atall the misery he causes
and
perpetuates.
- Would Satantry to do himself in?

-Would Satanempower someone to wipe out his own army?
David Garland says it exactly right, “Satanextends his kingdom by sowing
chaos and
enslaving humans, not be setting them free” (ZIBBC, Mark, 26). To not see
this
reveals spiritual blindness that is willful and intentional. “My mind is made
up!
Don’t try and confuse me with the facts!”
2) The house plundered (vs. 25-27)– Jesus changesthe analogybut continues
His
argument.
Vs. 25 – A house divided cannotstand. Pick the context:marriage, family,
business,
sports, church. A division when it comes to goals and purposes will fail,
destroy
itself.
Vs. 26 – If Satanfights himself, he will fall; his doom is sealed.
6
Vs. 27 – here is the parable. Satanis the strong man and Jesus is the one
breaking
into his house, his realm, to bind him and plunder (destroy him).
• Satan is indeed a strong man in this world. His house is a “house ofhorrors”
filled with sin, sickness,death, demon possessionand all that is evil and
wicked.

His possessions are human beings, people, enslavedby these evils, and demons
are his agents of evil, his minions of misery, who delight in carrying out his
demonic and diabolicalagenda. No one but Jesus caninvade his realm and
carry
awayhis possessions. No one but Jesus is strongerand more powerful than
this
strongman. Then, as Eugene Petersonsays, “he cancleanhim out!” This is
what
Jesus is doing and will do climatically at the cross. It is self-evident and
indisputable that the Sonof God has come to destroythe works of the devil (1
John 3:8).
Transition: To deny it is to reveala spiritual blindness that is willful and
intentional. “Don’t
try to confuse me with the facts. My mind is made up!”
III. It involves a verbal declarationthat is continual and unforgiveable. 3:28-
30
• Jesus now moves to conclude the matter. He begins with the word “truly”,
literally
“amen.” This word will occur12 times in Mark, it is found only in the
gospels, and
said only by Jesus. There is no analogyto it in all of Jewishliterature. It is a
serious
and solemnaffirmation that adds strength and significance to what follows.
Lane
againsays it “introduced a completely new manner of speaking” (p. 144). It
affirms

His words are completelytrue and reliable because He is uniquely the true
witness of
God. Put this in the mouth of any other person and it is completely out of
place.
With Jesus, there is a perfect fit.
7
• Jesus begins on a positive note that affirms the gracious forgiveness and
mercy of
God in forgiving sins.
“All sins” will be forgiven, even literally, “the blasphemies whatever they may
blaspheme”. All sins and all sinners canfind the forgiveness ofGod if they
will
come to Him in repentance and belief. However, vs. 29-30 notes the one tragic
and
fearful exception.
• Speak againstthe Holy Spirit verbally and continually, with willful and
malicious
intent that reveals a hardened heart beyond the possibility of repentance:1)
there is no
forgiveness;2) you are guilty of an eternalsin.
I cannot improve on the insights at this point of the wonderful New Testament
scholarWilliam
Lane whose commentary on Mark remains to this day the benchmark in its
field He writes:

“Blasphemyagainstthe Holy Spirit forever removes a man beyond the sphere
where forgiveness
is possible. This solemn warning must be interpreted in the light of the
specific situation in
which it was uttered. Blasphemy is an expressionof defiant hostility toward
God… “the
profanation of the Name,”…This is the danger to which the scribes exposed
themselves when
they attributed to the agencyof Satanthe redemption brought by Jesus. The
expulsion of
demons was a sign of the intrusion of the Kingdom of God. Yet the scribal
accusationsagainst
Jesus amount to a denial of the powerand greatness ofthe Spirit of God. By
assigning the action
of God to a demonic origin the scribes betray a perversionof spirit which, in
defiance of the
truth, choosesto call light darkness. In this historical context, blasphemy
againstthe Holy Spirit
denotes the conscious and deliberate rejectionof the saving powerand grace
of God released
through Jesus’word and act…the failure of the scribes to recognize him as
the Bearerofthe
Spirit and the Conqueror of Satancould be forgiven. The considered
judgment that his power
8

was demonic, howeverbetrayed a defiant resistanceto the Holy Spirit. This
severe warning was
not addressedto laymen but to carefully trained legalspecialists whosetask
was to interpret the
biblical law to the people. It was their responsibility to be aware of God’s
redemptive action.
Their insensitivity to the Spirit through whom Jesus was qualified for his
mission exposedthem
to grave peril. Their own tradition condemned their gross callousness as
sharply as Jesus’word.
The admonition concerning blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is not to be divorced
from this
historicalcontext and applied generally. Mark emphasizes this by
terminating the incident with
a reference to the specific accusationthatJesus was possessedby an unclean
spirit… repetition
and a fixed attitude of mind… brought the scribes to the brink of unforgivable
blasphemy. (p.
145-146).
Conclusion: 1) So, what is the unpardonable sin, the sin that will never be
forgiven now or
ever?
It is to knowingly, willingly and persistently attribute the works ofGod done
by and in Jesus
through the powerof the Holy Spirit who testifies to these truths in your
heart, to Satan.
1) It is a sin of full knowledge andunderstanding.

2) It is a persistentand ongoing disposition of the heart that resists the
conviction of the
Holy Spirit.
3) It is a verbal act of the mouth which attributes the works of the Holy Spirit
to Satan.
4) It is a willful rejectionof God’s grace and goodnessin Jesus.
5) It is rootedin unbelief.
6) It is a sin a Christian cannot commit.
7) It is a sin not committed by one who fears and is concernedthey may have
committed
it.
9
2) But, it is a sin that should awakenallof us to the seriousness andgravity of
all sin committed
againsta holy and righteous God who never winks at sin. It is a sin that
should leadall of us to confess withJesus in Mark 9:42-28, “Whoevercauses
one of these little ones who believe in me
to sin, it would be better for him if a greatmillstone were hung around his
neck and he were
thrown into the sea. And if your hand causesyou to sin, cut it off. It is better
for you to enter life
crippled than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And if
your foot causes you
to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feetto be
thrown into hell.

Jesus was declaring an eternal sin

Jesus was declaring an eternal sin

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