Mark 3 29

Mark 3:29 kjv

But he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation.

Mark 3:29 nkjv

but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is subject to eternal condemnation"?

Mark 3:29 niv

but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin."

Mark 3:29 esv

but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin" ?

Mark 3:29 nlt

but anyone who blasphemes the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven. This is a sin with eternal consequences."

Mark 3 verses

Mark 3 29 Meaning

Mark 3:29 declares that deliberately and persistently attributing the divine works of Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit, to demonic influence is an unforgivable sin. It is not an impulsive act, but a profound and final rejection of God's saving truth as revealed through His Spirit, leading to an irreversible state of impenitence. Such a sin bears eternal consequences because it severs the individual from the very means by which God offers forgiveness and draws hearts to repentance.

Mark 3 29 Context

Mark 3:29 is situated within a broader controversy in Mark 3:20-30, often called the Beelzebul controversy. Jesus has just cast out demons, demonstrating divine power. However, scribes who had come from Jerusalem, deeply rooted in legalistic tradition, did not attribute His power to God. Instead, they vehemently accused Him, "He is possessed by Beelzebul, and by the prince of demons he casts out the demons" (Mk 3:22). This accusation was not merely a misunderstanding but a malicious and deliberate rejection of the Spirit's undeniable work through Jesus, attributing God's good to Satan's evil. Jesus responds to their accusation with logical parables about a kingdom divided, highlighting the absurdity of Satan casting out Satan (Mk 3:23-26), and then issues this severe warning about the unique nature of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit. This verse serves as the climax of Jesus' strong rebuttal to those who, with hardened hearts, refused to acknowledge divine truth evident before their eyes.

Mark 3 29 Word analysis

• βλασφημήσῃ (blasphēmēsē): From blasphēmeō, meaning to slander, defame, revile, or speak evil of, especially God or sacred things. The aorist subjunctive tense here implies not necessarily a single, isolated verbal act, but potentially a decisive action or a settled attitude that culminates in this rejection, signifying a fundamental, persistent, and willful perversion of truth, where God's light is deliberately called satanic darkness. It speaks of a hostile and malevolent spirit of opposition.
• εἰς τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ Ἅγιον (eis to Pneuma to Hagion): "against the Holy Spirit." Pneuma means "Spirit" or "breath," and Hagion means "Holy." The definite article before Pneuma emphasizes a specific, divine Person—the third Person of the Trinity. This specifies the target of the blasphemy, marking it as distinct from slandering Jesus (Son of Man) or God the Father in ignorance. The Spirit is God's active presence in the world, convicting, illuminating, and empowering. To blaspheme the Holy Spirit is to malign the very agency through which God is revealing Himself and offering salvation.
• οὐκ ἔχει ἄφεσιν (ouk echei aphesin): "will not have forgiveness." Ouk is a strong negative, echei is "has" (implying present reality or future certainty), and aphesin means "release," "remission," or "forgiveness." This phrase signifies that there will be absolutely no pardon or acquittal. It emphasizes the complete absence of a pathway to reconciliation.
• εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα (eis ton aiōna): "forever," "for all eternity," literally "unto the age." This phrase amplifies the absoluteness of the "no forgiveness," underscoring the permanent nature of the state. It conveys the unending duration of the consequence.
• ἔνοχός ἐστιν (enochos estin): "is guilty of," or "is liable to." Enochos denotes being subject to a penalty, bound by something, or deserving of punishment. It emphasizes legal guilt and the certainty of enduring consequence.
• αἰωνίου ἁμαρτήματος (aiōniou hamartēmatos): "eternal sin." Aiōniou is "eternal" or "everlasting," and hamartēmatos is "a sin," "a transgression," or "a sinful deed." While the KJV translates this as "eternal damnation" (focusing on the consequence), the Greek literally speaks of "an eternal sin." This implies a sin whose effect or guilt lasts forever, or perhaps, a sin that inherently brings eternal separation from God. It suggests that the person committing this sin has, by this act, permanently chosen a state of unchangeable opposition to God, thus rendering themselves incapable of ever receiving the forgiveness offered by God. It’s not just a sin that leads to eternal punishment, but a sin that, by its very nature, is eternal in its spiritual effect on the person, forever isolating them from repentance and grace.

Words-group analysis:

• "Blaspheme against the Holy Spirit": This is not just any slander. It specifically targets the Spirit's divine work of conviction and revelation, denying the clear evidence of God's power and attributing it to evil. It's an open, deliberate, and sustained hostility against the truth recognized by the conscience and seen in manifest divine activity.
• "Hath never forgiveness": This profound statement emphasizes that there is no remedy for this sin because it fundamentally rejects the means by which forgiveness is made possible (the Spirit's drawing, conviction, and enablement of repentance). It points to a final and unchangeable state of opposition.
• "Is in danger of eternal damnation" / "Is guilty of an eternal sin": These convey the gravity and permanence of the consequence. The "eternal sin" implies that the sin itself, by hardening the heart against God, creates a perpetual barrier to grace, making repentance impossible. It is an enduring state of separation from God that one willingly brings upon oneself by definitively shutting the door to the Holy Spirit.

Mark 3 29 Bonus section

The uniqueness of this sin lies in its specific target: the Holy Spirit, who is God's direct and manifest witness to Christ in the world, bringing conviction, revelation, and power. Sins against Jesus as the "Son of Man" might be committed out of ignorance or misunderstanding before the full scope of His divinity and the Spirit's work was clearly demonstrated (as exemplified by the Apostles before Pentecost, or Saul's initial persecution). However, blasphemy against the Spirit occurs when a person has received undeniable light concerning Jesus' divine origin and power, through the Spirit's witness, yet chooses to willfully, stubbornly, and maliciously attribute that divine work to evil. This is not about feeling spiritually cold or committing a particularly bad act; it’s about a fixed disposition of unrepentant rebellion and a fundamental re-identification of good as evil. It represents the utter rejection of the only power capable of bringing one to repentance and faith.

Mark 3 29 Commentary

Mark 3:29 articulates the ultimate theological sin: not an isolated outburst, but a hardened, deliberate, and malicious state of heart that willfully rejects the clear witness of God through the Holy Spirit and attributes divine power to satanic forces. This sin is "unforgivable" because it involves a decisive and final closing off of the heart to the only avenue by which God brings repentance and offers salvation. The person committing this sin has effectively, and perhaps permanently, renounced the Spirit's work, thus making it impossible for them to be convicted of sin or drawn to faith. It is a rebellion that so sears the conscience and corrupts the will that spiritual change becomes humanly impossible. It highlights that while God's mercy is boundless, there is a line beyond which human obstinacy, in its willful rejection of God's overtures through His Spirit, becomes irreversible. Those who genuinely worry that they might have committed this sin demonstrate a spiritual sensitivity and desire for forgiveness that indicates they have not done so. The sin belongs to those who, with full knowledge and malicious intent, despise the very means of grace.