Therefore I tell you,This phrase indicates a conclusion or important teaching following previous statements. In the context of
Matthew 12, Jesus has been addressing the Pharisees, who accused Him of casting out demons by the power of Beelzebul. The "therefore" connects this teaching to the preceding discussion about the source of Jesus' power and authority. It emphasizes the seriousness of the message that follows, as Jesus is directly addressing His audience with a solemn declaration.
every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men,
This phrase highlights the boundless nature of God's grace and forgiveness. In Jewish culture, blasphemy was considered a grave sin, often punishable by death, as seen inLeviticus 24:16. However, Jesus emphasizes that all sins, including blasphemy, can be forgiven, underscoring the New Covenant's promise of redemption through Christ. This reflects the prophetic message ofIsaiah 1:18, where God invites sinners to reason together with Him, promising that though their sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.
but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.
This statement introduces a significant exception to the previous promise of forgiveness. The "blasphemy against the Spirit" refers to a deliberate and persistent rejection of the Holy Spirit's work and testimony about Jesus. In the context ofMatthew 12, the Pharisees attributed Jesus' miracles, performed by the Holy Spirit's power, to demonic forces. This act of attributing the Spirit's work to evil is seen as an ultimate rejection of God's revelation and grace.Hebrews 6:4-6 andHebrews 10:26-29 echo this warning, describing the peril of falling away after receiving the knowledge of the truth. This unforgivable sin is not a single act but a hardened state of heart that persistently denies the Spirit's testimony about Christ.
Persons / Places / Events
1.
Jesus ChristThe speaker of this verse, addressing the Pharisees and the crowd. He is the central figure in the Gospel of Matthew, teaching about the Kingdom of God.
2.
PhariseesA religious group in Judaism known for strict adherence to the Law. They are often in conflict with Jesus over interpretations of the Law and traditions.
3.
Holy SpiritThe third person of the Trinity, whose work and presence are essential in the life of believers. The blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is a central theme in this verse.
4.
BlasphemySpeaking against or showing irreverence towards God. In this context, it refers specifically to a sin against the Holy Spirit.
5.
ForgivenessA key theme in Christian doctrine, emphasizing God's willingness to forgive sins, except for the blasphemy against the Holy Spirit as stated in this verse.
Teaching Points
Understanding Blasphemy Against the SpiritThis sin involves a deliberate and persistent rejection of the Holy Spirit's work and testimony about Christ. It is not a single act but a hardened state of heart.
The Gravity of Words and ActionsOur words and actions reflect our heart's condition. We must be cautious not to attribute the work of the Holy Spirit to evil, as the Pharisees did.
God's Abundant ForgivenessWhile this verse highlights an unforgivable sin, it also underscores God's readiness to forgive all other sins and blasphemies when we repent.
The Role of the Holy SpiritThe Holy Spirit is essential in convicting us of sin and leading us to Christ. Acknowledge and respect His work in your life and the lives of others.
Guarding Against Hardness of HeartRegularly examine your heart and remain open to the Holy Spirit's conviction and guidance to avoid developing a hardened heart.
Bible Study Questions and Answers
1.What is the meaning of Matthew 12:31?
2.What does Matthew 12:31 teach about the unforgivable nature of blaspheming the Spirit?
3.How can we ensure our words honor the Holy Spirit in daily life?
4.Connect Matthew 12:31 with Ephesians 4:30 on grieving the Holy Spirit.
5.Why is understanding the Holy Spirit's role crucial for avoiding blasphemy?
6.How can believers seek forgiveness for sins, excluding blasphemy against the Spirit?
7.What is the unforgivable sin mentioned in Matthew 12:31?
8.How does Matthew 12:31 define blasphemy against the Holy Spirit?
9.Why is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit unforgivable according to Matthew 12:31?
10.What are the top 10 Lessons from Matthew 12?
11.Matthew 12:31–32: How can blasphemy against the Holy Spirit be “unforgivable” if Scripture elsewhere teaches God’s limitless forgiveness?
12.What constitutes blasphemy against the Holy Spirit?
13.What does it mean to be irreverent?
14.What does the Bible say about blaspheming God?What Does Matthew 12:31 Mean
Therefore I tell youJesus opens with a solemn declaration, underscoring His divine authority. Whenever He says, “Truly, truly, I say to you” (John 3:11) or “Therefore I tell you,” He signals unvarnished truth. His words carry the same weight here as inMatthew 28:18, where He affirms, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.” We can trust that what follows is certain and unchanging.
every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men• Scripture repeatedly assures us that no ordinary sin is beyond God’s mercy (1 John 1:9;Isaiah 1:18).
• Even the violent persecutor Saul was forgiven and transformed into Paul (Acts 9:1-18), proving the breadth of grace.
• Jesus’ own words from the cross, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34), illustrate that forgiveness is available for ignorance, rebellion, and even direct hostility.
• The promise is comprehensive: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us” (1 John 1:9). The only boundary Jesus now draws is the one He states next.
but the blasphemy against the Spirit•Mark 3:30 explains this specific sin: the scribes claimed, “He has an unclean spirit,” willfully attributing Jesus’ Spirit-empowered miracles to Satan.
• This is not a careless outburst but a deliberate, informed, persistent rejection of the Holy Spirit’s testimony about Christ (John 15:26).
•Hebrews 6:4-6 and 10:26-29 echo the danger of hardening the heart after receiving clear light.
• It is a settled stance that calls good “evil” after unmistakably witnessing God’s power—an ultimate insult to the Spirit who reveals and applies salvation (John 16:8-11).
• It is not:
– Doubt during a season of weakness (Matthew 11:3-5, where John the Baptist questioned).
– A past life of gross sin that is now repented of (1 Corinthians 6:9-11).
– A stray irreverent remark later regretted (Peter’s denial inMatthew 26:74-75 was forgiven).
will not be forgiven• Jesus states this twice for emphasis (Matthew 12:32): “will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the one to come.” The verdict is final and eternal.
• Forgiveness is withheld because the offender has slammed the only door to mercy; rejecting the Spirit’s witness leaves no remaining avenue (Acts 4:12).
•1 John 5:16 calls this a “sin leading to death,” urging believers to pray for repentant sinners but recognizing there is a line some refuse to cross back over.
• By contrast,Ephesians 4:30 warns believers, “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit.” While grieving is serious, it is not the same as outright blasphemy, which is resolute hostility.
• Those fearful that they have committed this sin show concern and conviction—evidence the Spirit is still at work, indicating they have not committed the unforgivable offense.
summaryMatthew 12:31 teaches that God’s grace covers every repentant sin, no matter how vile, yet persistent, willful attribution of the Spirit’s work to evil constitutes a unique, final rejection. Jesus speaks with absolute authority: the invitation to forgiveness is wide, but the refusal of the Spirit’s clear testimony slams the door of mercy. Those who trust Christ and heed the Spirit’s conviction can rest in full pardon; only conscious, hardened unbelief remains unforgiven.
(31)
The blasphemy against the Holy Ghost.--Better,
against the Spirit, the word "Holy" not being found in any MSS. of authority. The question, What is the nature of the terrible sin thus excluded from forgiveness? has, naturally enough, largely occupied the thoughts of men. What, we ask, is this blasphemy against the Holy Ghost? (1.) The context at least helps us to understand something of its nature. The Pharisees were warned against a sin to which they were drawing perilously near. To condemn the Christ as a gluttonous man and a wine-bibber, as breaking the Sabbath, or blaspheming when He said, "Thy sins be forgiven thee," was to speak a word against the Son of Man. These offences might be sins of ignorance, not implying more than narrowness and prejudice. But to see a man delivered from the power of Satan unto God, to watch the work of the Spirit of God, and then to ascribe that work to the power of evil, this was to be out of sympathy with goodness and mercy altogether. In such a character there was no opening for repentance, and therefore none for forgiveness. The capacity for goodness in any form was destroyed by this kind of antagonism. (2.) We dare not say, and our Lord does not say it, that the Pharisees had actually committed this sin, but it was towards this that they were drifting. And in reference to later times, we may say that this is the ultimate stage of antagonism to God and to His truth, when the clearest proofs of divine power and goodness are distorted into evidence that the power is evil. The human nature in that extremest debasement has identified itself with the devil nature, and must share its doom.
Verses 31, 32. - Parallel passages:
Mark 3:28-30 (where the verses immediately follow our ver. 29) and
Luke 12:10 (where the context is not the same, he having passed straight from our ver. 30 to our ver. 43,
vide infra). It is to be observed that all three accounts differ a good deal in form, though but slightly in substance. The Apostolical Constitutions contain what is probably a mixture of these verses with
2 Peter 2:1 and other passages of the New Testament. Resch ('Agrapha,' pp. 130, 249, etc.), in accordance with his theory, thinks that the Constitutions have preserved a genuine utterance of the Lord, of which only different fragments are presented in various parts of the New Testament. A few words of introduction to these difficult verses. It has been strangely forgotten, in their interpretation, that our Lord spoke in language that he intended his hearers to understand, and that probably not a single one of those who stood by would understand by the expressions, ,, the Spirit" (ver. 31), "the Holy Spirit" (ver. 32), a Person in the Godhead distinct from the First Person or the Second (cf.
Matthew 1:18, note). At most they would understand them to refer to an influence by God upon men (
Psalm 51:11; cf.
Luke 11:13), such as Christ had claimed to possess in a special degree (
Luke 4:18). In inquiring, therefore, for an explanation of our Lord's sayings, we must not begin at the Trinitarian standpoint, and see in the words a contrast between "blasphemy" against one Person of the Trinity, and "
blasphemy" against another. The contrast is between "blasphemy" against Christ as Son of man, Christ in his earthly work and under earthly conditions, the Christ whom they saw and whom they did not understand, and "blasphemy" against God as such working upon earth. "
Blasphemy" against the former might be due to ignorance and prejudice, but "blasphemy" against the latter was to speak against God's work recognized as such, against God manifesting himself to their consciences (cf. vers. 27, 28); it was to reject the counsel of God towards them, to set themselves up in opposition to God, and thus to exclude from themselves forgiveness. Just as under the Law there were sacrifices for sins of ignorance and minor offences, but none for wilful disregard of and opposition to God, so must it be at all times even under the gospel itself. Observe that the "blasphemy" is understood by our Lord as showing the state of the heart (cf.
Acts 7:51). What the effect of a change of heart,
i.e. of repentance, would be does not enter into our Lord's utterance. All other sin is venial, but for heart-opposition there is no forgiveness.
As Tyndale says ('Expositions,' p. 232, Parker Society), "
Sin against the Holy Ghost is despising of the gospel and his working. Where that bideth is no remedy of sin: for it fighteth against faith, which is the forgiveness of sin. If that be put away, faith may enter in, and all sins depart." (Cf. also Dorner, ' System,' 3:73; 4:91.)
Verse 31. -
Wherefore (
διὰ τοῦτο). Referring primarily to ver. 30, and to be joined closely to "I say unto you." Because such is the terrible effect of what you think mere indifferentism, I say this solemnly, Beware of committing the great sin. Luke's connexion of our ver. 43 with ver. 30 gives a good but a weaker sense - Become fully decided, lest the devil return to you stronger than ever. Matthew's connexion is - Become fully decided, for the legitimate outcome of want of decision is the sin that will not be forgiven.
I say unto you (
Matthew 6:25, note),
All manner of;every (Revised Version);
πᾶσα.
Sinand blasphemy. Genus and species (Meyer).
Blasphemy passes in this verse from its wider meaning of open slander and detraction in the first clause to its now commoner but restricted meaning of speech against God in the second clause.
Shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost;
the Spirit (Revised Version), thus making it more possible for the English reader to see the connexion of thought with the phrase in ver. 28.
Shallnot be forgiven unto men. The words,
unto men, must be omitted, with the Revised Version. They weaken a statement which in itself may apply to other beings than those that are on earth.
Parallel Commentaries ...
Greek
ThereforeΔιὰ(Dia)Preposition
Strong's 1223:A primary preposition denoting the channel of an act; through.I tellλέγω(legō)Verb - Present Indicative Active - 1st Person Singular
Strong's 3004:(a) I say, speak; I mean, mention, tell, (b) I call, name, especially in the pass., (c) I tell, command.you,ὑμῖν(hymin)Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Dative 2nd Person Plural
Strong's 4771:You. The person pronoun of the second person singular; thou.everyπᾶσα(pasa)Adjective - Nominative Feminine Singular
Strong's 3956:All, the whole, every kind of. Including all the forms of declension; apparently a primary word; all, any, every, the whole.sinἁμαρτία(hamartia)Noun - Nominative Feminine Singular
Strong's 266:From hamartano; a sin.andκαὶ(kai)Conjunction
Strong's 2532:And, even, also, namely.blasphemyβλασφημία(blasphēmia)Noun - Nominative Feminine Singular
Strong's 988:Abusive or scurrilous language, blasphemy. From blasphemos; vilification.will be forgivenἀφεθήσεται(aphethēsetai)Verb - Future Indicative Passive - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 863:From apo and hiemi; to send forth, in various applications.men,ἀνθρώποις(anthrōpois)Noun - Dative Masculine Plural
Strong's 444:A man, one of the human race. From aner and ops; man-faced, i.e. A human being.butδὲ(de)Conjunction
Strong's 1161:A primary particle; but, and, etc.theἡ(hē)Article - Nominative Feminine Singular
Strong's 3588:The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.blasphemyβλασφημία(blasphēmia)Noun - Nominative Feminine Singular
Strong's 988:Abusive or scurrilous language, blasphemy. From blasphemos; vilification.againstτοῦ(tou)Article - Genitive Neuter Singular
Strong's 3588:The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.[the] SpiritΠνεύματος(Pneumatos)Noun - Genitive Neuter Singular
Strong's 4151:Wind, breath, spirit.{will} notοὐκ(ouk)Adverb
Strong's 3756:No, not. Also ouk, and ouch a primary word; the absolute negative adverb; no or not.be forgiven.ἀφεθήσεται(aphethēsetai)Verb - Future Indicative Passive - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 863:From apo and hiemi; to send forth, in various applications.
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NT Gospels: Matthew 12:31 Therefore I tell you every sin (Matt. Mat Mt) 
