THAT'S BLASPHEMY
by Jeremy Chance Springfield
9/1/2024
The blight of sin upon the soul of man is a force we all must face.
It is a struggle to recognize its reality and then an endeavor to distance ourselves from its destructive power in our lives. It seems an ever-present perversion in creation that must be confronted if we are to enjoy the intimacy intended by our Creator as His image-bearers.
Believers thus have a responsibility to distinguish right and wrong and banner our allegiance with the camp of righteousness. This is admittedly easier said than done, but we still must ally with eternal truths and vow to repudiate all that is evanescent.
The Torah stands as an everlasting beacon in this matter: it shines the Creator’s righteous rule for all men, a glowing standard of what is expected of a holy people. It also illuminates the mercy which comes from the Most High, where forgiveness is possible when we fall short of the calling that is upon us. If we live within the light of that grace, we can trust that our sins will be justly dealt with before the Creator. If we flout the warmth of His compassions, however, we will feel the severe heat of unavoidable consequence.
It is a struggle to recognize its reality and then an endeavor to distance ourselves from its destructive power in our lives. It seems an ever-present perversion in creation that must be confronted if we are to enjoy the intimacy intended by our Creator as His image-bearers.
Believers thus have a responsibility to distinguish right and wrong and banner our allegiance with the camp of righteousness. This is admittedly easier said than done, but we still must ally with eternal truths and vow to repudiate all that is evanescent.
The Torah stands as an everlasting beacon in this matter: it shines the Creator’s righteous rule for all men, a glowing standard of what is expected of a holy people. It also illuminates the mercy which comes from the Most High, where forgiveness is possible when we fall short of the calling that is upon us. If we live within the light of that grace, we can trust that our sins will be justly dealt with before the Creator. If we flout the warmth of His compassions, however, we will feel the severe heat of unavoidable consequence.
The ministry of Yeshua records two incidents where He speaks of this grace and severity, but He does so in a way that is not immediately clear as to what is intended. In Matthew 12 and Luke 12, we find the relevant passages worthy of a closer look.
31 On account of this I say to you that all sins and blasphemies shall be forgiven to the sons of men, yet the blasphemy that is against the Spirit of Holiness shall not be forgiven to the sons of men.
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32 And all who shall speak a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him, yet all that shall be spoken against the Spirit of Holiness, it shall not be forgiven him—not in this world, and not in the world that is coming.
~ Matthew 12:31-32 |
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8 Yet, I say to you that all who confess me before the sons of men, even the Son of Man shall confess him before the angels of the Deity.
9 Yet, he who denies me before the sons of men, I shall deny him before the angels of the Deity. 10 And all who shall speak a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him. Yet, he who shall blaspheme against the Spirit of Holiness, it is not forgiven him. ~ Luke 12:8-10 |
Yeshua asserts that those allied to Him shall be vouched for, while those who do not are relegated to stand on a far lesser and uncertain merit. Even those who oppose Him can still find forgiveness. This grace is changed to severity, however, when someone blasphemes the Spirit. Such a situation prevents forgiveness from occurring.
This is known traditionally as “the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit,” or “the unpardonable sin.” The term used by Yeshua in the ancient Aramaic text of the Peshitta that I have translated above as “blaspheme” is GADEF, and simply means “to hollow out.”
This is known traditionally as “the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit,” or “the unpardonable sin.” The term used by Yeshua in the ancient Aramaic text of the Peshitta that I have translated above as “blaspheme” is GADEF, and simply means “to hollow out.”
This Semitic approach to the concept of blasphemy emphasizes what the act is accomplishing: it is removing the substance or worth of a thing to leave behind an empty shell. To perform a blasphemous act is to therefore act against the Creator in a way that removes the inherent value He has imbued in a given situation or thing. That leads to a consequence from which there is no known remedy.
The equivalent to this type of punishment in the Torah would be the concept of being KARET “cut off” from any spiritual inheritance after death.
The equivalent to this type of punishment in the Torah would be the concept of being KARET “cut off” from any spiritual inheritance after death.
As an English term, the word BLASPHEMY literally means “slanderous speech,” coming from the Greek term BLASPHEMIA.
This is generally synonymous with the Hebrew notion of LASHON HARA “evil speech.”
“Evil speech” is any type of talk that is intended to lessen someone in another person’s eyes in such way that nobody is helped by the information shared. Doing so against the Holy Spirit would therefore diminish the Creator in the eyes of the people—that is, it would “hollow out” the worth that otherwise would be attributed to Him, and therefore, is blasphemy.
Although the phrase LASHON HARA is not found as such in Scripture, it is derived from the words of Psalm 34:14 (13 in most English versions), which says NETZOR LESHONECHA MEI’RA.
Although the phrase LASHON HARA is not found as such in Scripture, it is derived from the words of Psalm 34:14 (13 in most English versions), which says NETZOR LESHONECHA MEI’RA.
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“You must guard your speech from evil…” |
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Yeshua’s warning about blaspheming the Holy Spirit being an unpardonable sin is interesting in that it is not a notion that is blatantly stated in the Hebrew Scriptures. His grim assertion about such an irreversible sin seems to arise out of nowhere if we remain within the text of Scripture itself.
Rather, the notion is indeed a Hebraic one, but is only elsewhere clearly stated in Judaism in the text of the Zohar, Ki Teitzei 276a.
Rather, the notion is indeed a Hebraic one, but is only elsewhere clearly stated in Judaism in the text of the Zohar, Ki Teitzei 276a.
The term SHECHINAH does not precisely appear in the Scriptures (the form Shechanyah [Shechaniah] appears 10 times as a man’s name), but it essentially means the “Indwelling Presence” of the Creator.
This definition may sound familiar if one has knowledge of Christianity and its traditional assertion of what the Holy Spirit does to a believer, and the Zohar helpfully clarifies the identity of the Shechinah in Ki Teitzei 275b.
The Shechinah and the Holy Spirit are thus two terms for the same concept in Judaism.
From these two passages we find that speaking evil of the Shechinah / Holy Spirit involves a serious consequence: one’s soul is destroyed by fire! Yeshua’s words and the words of the Zohar are thus in agreement: there exists an unpardonable sin and it directly involves how we treat the Holy Spirit / Shechinah when we are blessed to encounter such an undeniable move of the Creator among His people.
Yeshua appears to reference this most severe judgment in Luke 12:4-5.
From these two passages we find that speaking evil of the Shechinah / Holy Spirit involves a serious consequence: one’s soul is destroyed by fire! Yeshua’s words and the words of the Zohar are thus in agreement: there exists an unpardonable sin and it directly involves how we treat the Holy Spirit / Shechinah when we are blessed to encounter such an undeniable move of the Creator among His people.
Yeshua appears to reference this most severe judgment in Luke 12:4-5.
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4 “Yet, I say to you, my friends, do not fear them who kill the body, and who afterwards a thing further do not perform. 5 Yet, I shall show you He who you shall fear: He who after He has killed, is authorized to cast into Gihana! Yes! I said to you, this [one] you must fear!” |
The question, however, is why would such a final judgment be singularly ascribed to those who blasphemed the Holy Spirit? If other sins can be so readily forgiven (thankfully!), including even opposition to the very Messiah Himself—what is it about speaking evil against the Holy Spirit that brings about so severe of a consequence?
For this answer we must return to the Torah and consider the foundational concept for the notion of an unpardonable sin, which is found in Numbers 15:29-31.
For this answer we must return to the Torah and consider the foundational concept for the notion of an unpardonable sin, which is found in Numbers 15:29-31.
29 The native in the sons of Yisra'el, and for the sojourner who sojourns among you shall have one Torah for you for he who commits [sin] by accident.
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30 But the soul who commits [sin] with a high hand--[whether] from the native or from the sojourner—that one has blasphemed YHWH, and that soul shall be cut off from among his people,
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31 for [the] Word of YHWH he has despised, and His commandment he has broken. That very soul shall certainly be cut off; his iniquity is on him.
This passage is heavy with significance. First, we must understand that the context in which this passage is set is the aspect of forgiveness for sins one might have unintentionally made. In contrast to the sins which can be forgiven, the passage mentions a sin so egregious that the soul of the person “shall certainly be cut off”—that is, they experienced KARET.
This is particularly made clear by the understanding of the Hebrew phrase BEYAD RAMAH “with a high hand,” which is an idiom meaning “premeditated.”
This is particularly made clear by the understanding of the Hebrew phrase BEYAD RAMAH “with a high hand,” which is an idiom meaning “premeditated.”
Indeed, the Targum Yonatan to Numbers 15:30 has instead the phrase BIZ’DANA “premeditated.”
The concept is something done “intentionally,” as “with a high hand” physically involves a desire for one’s actions to be noticed, that is, an intention in place. In the passage’s surrounding context of forgiveness for unintentional sins, this stands boldly apart as describing one who is in blatant disregard to the Creator is one who is fully aware of the rebellious nature of his actions.
This is the sin against the Holy Spirit of which Yeshua spoke in His ministry. The context in which the two references Yeshua makes in Matthew 12 and Luke 12 shows His warnings were well placed when we look at the type of opposition He was facing in those incidents that eventually led Him to proclaim what He did about an unpardonable sin.
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22 Then, they drew near to one demoniac who was mute and sightless-in-one-eye, and he healed him, so that the mute and blind one should speak, and see.
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23 And all the crowds marveled, and said, “Perhaps this is the Son of Dawid?”
24 Yet, the Prishe, when they heard, they said, “This [one] does not cast forth destructive spirits except by B’elzbub, the head of demons!”
~ Matthew 12:22-24
24 Yet, the Prishe, when they heard, they said, “This [one] does not cast forth destructive spirits except by B’elzbub, the head of demons!”
~ Matthew 12:22-24
From this context we can see that the Pharisees, who were austere students of the Word and had dedicated their lives to seeking out the things of the Spirit, were in a position of unflinching scorn towards Yeshua, as they readily accused Him of healing by the power of dark forces rather than acknowledge His gift was obviously from the Holy Spirit. This is the dangerous ground upon which they were treading, and so His words about sinning against the Spirit were set in a foundation that made complete sense.
This is essentially the same context for the incident recorded in Luke 12:1, where Yeshua first warned His students against the spiritual threat of the Pharisees who were opposing His ministry.
This is essentially the same context for the incident recorded in Luke 12:1, where Yeshua first warned His students against the spiritual threat of the Pharisees who were opposing His ministry.
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And when there was a great congregation of many crowds, so that they would have trampled one another, Yeshua began to speak to his students: “Firstly, you must beware with yourselves from the leaven of the Prishe, which is the receiving of faces!”
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Yeshua’s statement here that prefaces His words about not sinning against the Holy Spirit is best understood by realizing that the Aramaic word He used for “leaven” here in the text of the Peshitta also has another meaning which is wholly relevant to His message: besides a portion of “leaven,” the term CH’MIRA is also used for a rabbinic “restriction” that is overly-prohibitive, and should not be followed [see: Talmud Yerushalmi, Avodah Zarah 2:8, where the term is used in regard to Rav declaring such oppressive edicts concerning not eating locusts or meat during very specific circumstances].
All this comes about because the person was a “receiver of faces”—that is, a hypocrite, and as such despised the Word of the Creator and therefore broke His commandments. Consider that unique link: despising the Word / breaking the commandments equals blaspheming the Creator, which Yeshua equates to blaspheming the Holy Spirit.
This logical chain of concepts is made clearer in the words of the Tanya, PART IV: Iggeret HaKodesh 25:11.
This logical chain of concepts is made clearer in the words of the Tanya, PART IV: Iggeret HaKodesh 25:11.
The Shechinah, which is an idiomatic reference to the Holy Spirit, is also used as a reference to the Hebrew Scriptures! The reason the text of the Torah is viewed in direct connection to the Shechinah has to do with the unified relationship of the Holy Spirit and the Torah.
It is the prophet Ezekiel who reveals the link between the two—a truth we see stated twice in his book.
It is the prophet Ezekiel who reveals the link between the two—a truth we see stated twice in his book.
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19 “And I shall give to them a single heart, and a new Spirit I shall place in your innermost. And I shall remove the stone heart from their flesh, and give to them a heart of flesh,
20 so that in My statutes they shall walk, and My rulings they shall guard, and perform them. And they shall be for Me a people, and I shall be for them a Deity.” ~ Ezekiel 11:19-20 |
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26 “And I shall give to you a single heart, and a new Spirit I shall place in your innermost. And I shall remove the stone heart from your flesh, and give to you a heart of flesh,
27 and My Spirit I shall place in your innermost, and I shall make you walk [in] that which is in My statutes, and My rulings you shall guard, and perform them. ~ Ezekiel 36:26-27 |
The text is unquestionable in what it says: the Holy Spirit is bestowed upon us for a very specific outcome: it gives believers the supernatural ability to perform the commandments as we were intended to do with a clean heart! It is through the indwelling Spirit / Shechinah that His people are properly empowered to live lives of a true and meaningful obedience.
Yeshua was able to claim that sinning by blaspheming the Holy Spirit is so severe because it is a direct rebellion against the Torah itself, which comes from the Spirit. One who regrettably does such a thing is acting with impudence toward what the Spirit has wrought for the Kingdom: a rule expressed through commandments that draw us closer to Him and show us how to live a life of righteousness.
Yeshua was able to claim that sinning by blaspheming the Holy Spirit is so severe because it is a direct rebellion against the Torah itself, which comes from the Spirit. One who regrettably does such a thing is acting with impudence toward what the Spirit has wrought for the Kingdom: a rule expressed through commandments that draw us closer to Him and show us how to live a life of righteousness.
The Torah is clear that one whose actions are undoubtedly performed with the intent to rebel in a way that brings about being cut off from Israel is in serious spiritual trouble. Understanding that is blasphemy helps us to see that Yeshua’s assertion has its foundation upon the Torah itself, and if we can recognize that the Spirit and the Word go hand in hand in our journey of faith, we will hopefully never come close to committing the unpardonable sin.
All study contents Copyright Jeremy Chance Springfield, except for graphics and images, which are Copyright their respective creators.