Luke 12:10

And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but unto him that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost it shall not be forgiven.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(10) And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man.—See Note on Matthew 12:32. Here the words which had first been uttered in connection with the special charge of “casting out devils by Beelzebub,” seem to be repeated in their more general bearing.

Benson Commentary

Luke 12:10. And whosoever, &c. — Nothing, therefore, can be more dangerous and fatal than to oppose my cause: and yet the denying me in some degree, may, upon true repentance, be forgiven: for whosoever shall speak a word — Expressive of unbelief and disregard, or even of opposition and enmity; against the Son of man — In this his present state of humiliation and suffering, he may possibly hereafter repent, and on his repentance his sins may be forgiven him. But unto him that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost — If a man’s denying of me rise so high that he blasphemes and reviles the Holy Spirit, and ascribes the miracles wrought by him, in confirmation of the gospel, to the agency of Satan, this sin shall never be forgiven, neither is there place for repentance. And especially he that, after my resurrection and ascension, blasphemes the Holy Ghost, when that Divine Spirit shall have displayed his most glorious agency as my great advocate and witness; he who then opposes that last and most convincing and powerful method of God’s recovering grace, shall, as utterly incorrigible, be abandoned to final destruction. See on Matthew 12:31-32.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

12:1-12 A firm belief of the doctrine of God's universal providence, and the extent of it, would satisfy us when in peril, and encourage us to trust God in the way of duty. Providence takes notice of the meanest creatures, even of the sparrows, and therefore of the smallest interests of the disciples of Christ. Those who confess Christ now, shall be owned by him in the great day, before the angels of God. To deter us from denying Christ, and deserting his truths and ways, we are here assured that those who deny Christ, though they may thus save life itself, and though they may gain a kingdom by it, will be great losers at last; for Christ will not know them, will not own them, nor show them favour. But let no trembling, penitent backslider doubt of obtaining forgiveness. This is far different from the determined enmity that is blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, which shall never be forgiven, because it will never be repented of.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

See the notes at Matthew 12:32.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

10. Son of man … Holy Ghost—(See on [1648]Mt 12:31, 32).

Matthew Poole's Commentary

See Poole on "Matthew 12:31". See Poole on "Mark 3:28". See Poole on "Mark 3:29".

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And whosoever shall speak a word against the son of man, it shall be forgiven him,.... These words, though introduced by Luke among the sayings of Christ, recorded in Matthew 10 yet were said by Christ, on occasion of the Pharisees, ascribing his works to diabolical influence and assistance; see Gill on Matthew 12:32.

but unto him that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost; as the Pharisees did, by charging the miracles of Christ with being done by the help of the devil, when they were wrought by the finger of the Spirit:

it shall not be forgiven. The Ethiopic version adds at the close of this verse, as in Matthew, "neither in this world, nor in that which is to come".

Geneva Study Bible

And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but unto him that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost it shall not be forgiven.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Expositor's Greek Testament

Luke 12:10. πᾶς ὃς ἐρεῖ, etc.: the true historical setting of the logion concerning blasphemy is doubtless that in Mt. (Matthew 12:31), and Mk. (Mark 3:28), where it appears as a solemn warning to the men who broached the theory of Beelzebub-derived power to cast out devils. Here it is a word of encouragement to disciples (apostles) to this effect: blaspheming the Holy Spirit speaking through you will be in God’s sight an unpardonable sin, far more heinous than that of prejudiced Pharisees speaking evil against me, the Son of Man, now.

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

10. it shall be forgiven him] Thus our Lord prayed even for His murderers. This large rich promise is even further amplified in Matthew 12:31. It is the sign of a dispensation different from that of Moses, Leviticus 24:16.

unto him that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost] The other passages in which mention is made of this awful ‘unpardonable sin’ and of the “blasphemy against the Holy Ghost” are Matthew 12:31-32; Mark 3:29-30; 1 John 5:16. The latter sin is expressly declared to be closely connected with the attributing of Christ’s miracles to Beelzebub On the exact nature of the ‘unpardonable sin’ theologians have speculated in vain, and all that we can see is that it must be the most flagrant degree of sin against the fullest light and knowledge.

it shall not be forgiven] St Matthew adds “neither in this age (or ‘this dispensation’), nor in the age to come (the ‘future dispensation,’ i.e. the dispensation of the Messianic kingdom).” The two terms ‘this aeon’ and ‘the future aeon’ are of constant occurrence in Rabbinic literature. The passage—if it means more than ‘in either dispensation’— proves, as St Augustine says, that some would be forgiven if not in this life yet in the next (De Civ. Dei, Luke 21:24).

Bengel's Gnomen

Luke 12:10. Καὶ, and) From the denying of Christ in Luke 12:9, the transition is easy to blasphemy against Him.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 10. - And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him. And yet even that offense, which consisted in playing the renegade and the coward; which refused to suffer for him here; which, out of slavish fear of man, consented to abandon his pure and righteous cause; - that offense, which would be proclaimed before the angels of heaven, would in the end find forgiveness. Some commentators point, as an illustration of this, to the fact of the dying Lord praying on the cross for his murderers; but the offense alluded to here, which should in the end be blotted out, was of far deeper dye. He prayed on his cross for those Romans who sinned, but sinned in the face of little light. But this forgiveness was to be extended to men who, through fear of men and love of the world, should deny him whom they knew to be their Redeemer. This is one of the most hopeful passages which treats of sin eventually to be forgiven, in the whole New Testament. But even here there is no so-called universal redemption announced, for in the next sentence the Lord goes on to speak of a sin which he emphatically said shall never have forgiveness. But unto him that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost it shall not be forgiven. What is this awful sin? We have only to speak of its connection in this place. Here there is no possibility of mistake; it was that determined hatred of holiness, that awful love of self, which had induced the Pharisee leaders to ascribe his beneficent and loving works to the spirit of evil and of darkness. The accusation was no chance one, the fruit of impulse or of passion. They who accused him knew better. They had beard him teach, not once, but often; they had seen his works; and yet, though they knew that the whole life and thoughts and aspirations were true, who were conscious that every word and work was holy, just, and pure, in order to compass their own selfish ends, simply because they felt his life and teaching would interfere with them, they dared to ascribe to the devil what their own hearts told them came direct from God. This sin, now as then, the merciful Savior tells us has no forgiveness. Luke 12:10

Vincent's Word Studies

A word (λόγον)

Distinguished from blaspheme, which follows. A word against the poor and humble Son of Man might, as Godet observes, have proceeded from a sincerely pious Jew, under the influence of his early education, which taught him to regard Jesus as an enthusiast or even as an impostor. The sin of the Jews was in rejecting and resisting the power of the Spirit of Pentecost. Pardon was offered them there for the sin of crucifying the Lord (see Acts 2:38-40, and compare Acts 3:17-19).