i. The sin against the Holy Spirit.
In the division of sins into those for which repentance is still possible (peccata irremissibilia) and those for which repentance is excluded (peccata irremissibilia), only one sin remains for the latter class, the sin against the Holy Spirit.
The scriptures that deal with this sin (sedes doctrinae) are Matt. 12:22-32 and the parallels Mark. 3:22-30; Luke 12:10. 1 Jn. 5:16 is also rightly referred to the sin against the Holy Spirit. In these passages the sin against the Holy Spirit is distinguished from all other sins and described as such that will not be forgiven. Matt. 12:31: "All sin and blasphemy is forgiven men, η δε τον πνεύματος βλασφημία ούκ άφεϑήσεζαι. The uniqueness of this sin, is still more emphasized by the fact that it is also distinguished from the sin against the Son of God. Matt. 12:32: "Whosoever shall speak aught against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him: but whosoever shall speak aught κατά του πνεύματος τον άγιον, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, neither in the world to come." Likewise Mark. 3:28-29: "All sins are forgiven to men, και βλασφημίαι δσας αν βλασφημήσωσιν [even those
1670) Luke 19:40; cf. Heb 12:22-25.
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blasphemies as much as they, δαας, may blaspheme]; but whosoever blasphemeth the Holy Spirit hath no remission for ever, but is guilty of everlasting judgment." Likewise Luke 12:10, 1 Jn. 5:16 a distinction is made between sin ου πρός ϑάνατον and sin προς ϑάνατον, distinguished in such a way that in the case of sin "not unto death" intercession is taken for granted, but in the case of sin unto death the duty of intercession is clearly dispensed with; ου περί εκείνης λέγω ϊνα έρωτήαη. Therefore, in the case of sin unto death, it is not to be thought of unbelievers for whom intercession is obligatory (1 Tim. 2:1, 4; First and Second Petition, Christ's and Stephen's example). Furthermore, it is not to be thought of such persons within a Christian congregation who were revealed as apostates and therefore had to be excluded or excommunicated from the congregation. Intercession is to be made for them, because excommunication is a last sharp means to bring the apostates to repentance and to lead them to salvation, 1 Cor. 5:5; 2 Cor. 2:6-11. Since it is expressly said here with regard to the sin πρός ϑάνατον that one does not need to make intercession in this case, we cannot avoid finding here a designation of the sin against the Holy Spirit.1671)
What, then, is the sin against the Holy Spirit, or what is its nature (forma), as distinguished from all other sins? a. It does not consist in impenitence to the end (impoenitentia finalis). The great multitude of men die in unbelief, and yet the Scriptures do not say of them that they have committed the sin against the Holy Spirit. b. Nor does the sin against the Holy Spirit consist in every resistance to the efficacy of the Holy Spirit. Otherwise, all men who hear or read the gospel would commit the sin against the Holy Spirit, because they all, according to their natural state, consider the gospel to be foolishness and therefore resist until they have become non-resisters through the action of the Holy Spirit in the Word. c. Nor does the sin against the Holy Spirit consist in the blasphemy of the truth as a result of spiritual blindness. Paul confesses of himself that out of ignorance, in unbelief was
1671) So also Luther in his "Sermon von der Sünde wider den Holy Spirit" (from 1529; St. L. X, 1205) and most dogmatists.
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"a blasphemer and a persecutor and a taunter" (βλάσφημος καί διώκτης και υβριστής); but nevertheless mercy befell him, 1 Tim. 1:13. Also the denial of the truth out of fear and other affects, as with Peter, is not the sin against the Holy Spirit. Peter was also converted again, Luke 22:61-62. The situation was different with the Pharisees who came from Jerusalem, from whose behavior the Savior takes cause to warn against the sin against the Holy Spirit. These Pharisees could not escape the powerful impression of the miracle performed any more than the people, of whom it is said, "And all the people were removed with terror (εξίσταντο), saying: Is not this David's son?" Matt. 12:22. But though those Pharisees were inwardly convinced of the divinity of the miracle, yet they blasphemed it with the highest blasphemy that there is: they declared it to be the devil's work. They said, "He does not cast out devils except by Beelzebub, the chief of the devils," Matt. 12:24. This is followed by Christ's warning against the one great sin that is not forgiven in distinction from all other sins. After this we will have to say: The sin against the Holy Spirit is committed when the Holy Spirit inwardly convinces a man of the divine truth and the man nevertheless not only rejects the recognized truth, but also blasphemes. This is summarized, for example, in Hollaz's description of this sin: 1672) Peccatum in Spiritum Sanctum est veritatis divinae evidenter agnitae et in conscientia approbatae malitiosa abnegatio, hostilis impugnatio, horrenda blasphematio et omnium mediorum salutis obstinata et finaliter perseverans reiectio. [Google]1673) Therefore, in describing the sin against the Holy Spirit, we correctly say that it is peccatum in officium Spiritus Sancti, that is, a willing and determined going against the inner conviction wrought by the Holy Spirit. Therefore, it is also specifically distinguished from the address against the Son of God, that is, against the Person of the Son of God. [Ed. — English ed. References Walther's Law and Gospel, Thesis XXIV, p. 393.]
1672) Examen, P.. II, cap. IV, De Pecc. Act., qu. 38.
1673) Luther distinguishes in the mentioned "Sermon", X, 1203, between the still "hidden Holy Spirit", as with Paul before the conversion, and the "revealed Holy Spirit", as it inwardly convincingly came into activity with the Pharisees. "Here the Holy Spirit is manifest and uncovered, bursting forth and shining like lightning, so that its radiance penetrates the heart . … Such things were called in times past impugnationem veritatis agnitae."
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A number of questions have followed on from this.
Does the sin against the Holy Spirit still occur today? Arminians have denied this and said that this sin is limited to the apostolic time.1674) We must answer the question in the affirmative because the scriptural passages Matt. 12, etc. are general and do not imply that this sin was limited to the time of Christ and the apostles. They are undoubtedly words of warning that are to be heeded until the Last Day.
If the sin against the Holy Spirit still occurs today, is it possible to know in concreto, that is, looking at the individual person, who has committed this sin? The practical importance of answering this question, both for the individual Christian and for pastoral practice, is obvious. The sin against the Holy Spirit is the sin of which it has been rightly said: those who have not committed it very often think that they have committed it, and torment themselves with it to the point of despair; those who have actually committed it do not worry about it, as this brings with it the extreme hardening which is a concomitant of this sin. He who worries about the sin or sins which make him fear that he has committed the sin against the Holy Spirit, and who has a desire in him that he may not be excluded from the forgiveness which Christ has purchased by his blood, there is in him, as this worry and desire clearly proves, a mighty work of the Holy Spirit. He stands in the faith. Very correctly, the Formula of Concord says:1675) "Those who feel and sense a little spark and longing for God's grace and eternal salvation in their hearts" can and should know "that God has kindled this beginning of true godliness in their hearts and will further strengthen them in great weakness and help them to persevere in true faith to the end." The Formula of Concord provides irrefutable scriptural proof of this by stating that a desire for God's grace in Christ is not found in the natural human heart, but is in every case God's working in "devout Christians." Most Lutheran dogmatists therefore hold that the
1674) Thus Episcopius in Resp. ad 64 qu, 14; quoted in Quenstedt I, 1072.
1675) M. 591, 14. [Trigl. 885, 14 🔗]
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Italian jurist Francesco Spiera († 1548) did not commit the sin against the Holy Spirit, but died in despair, because he thought to have committed this sin. Thus Quenstedt I, 1064: Spiera pro peccatore in Spiritum Sanctum minime habendus est, quia 1. non ex malitia, sed infirmitate, non εκουσίως et sponte, sed persuasus ab amicis defecit ad papatum. 2. Non impugnavit aut blasphemavit doctrinam evangelii, sed summe doluit, quod a veritate defecerit. Fuit ergo desperatio quidem, sed non blasphemia in Spiritum Sanctum, ut ait b. Meisnerus; vel ex sola opinione istius peccati. [Google] Even if this does not fully describe the case of Spiera, which has become historical, we consider Quenstedt's judgment to be correct.1676) — As for the recognizability of the sin against the Holy Spirit in the concrete case, two things are to be kept in mind: a. Let no one be hasty (temere) in ascribing this sin to themselves. Luther is also very careful here. One should take care "that no one falls into such sin so soon, for the sake of some poor weighted consciences, whom the devil drives to despair, that they themselves cause them to sin in vain.1677) b. On the other hand, those who claim that this sin cannot be recognized in any case also go too far. From 1 John 5:16 a double thing is evident: 1. Sin occurs and is recognizable because it dispenses with intercession, εστιν άμαρτία πρός ϋ'άνατον, ον περί εκείνης λέγω ινα έρωτήση. 2. Whereas John speaks in the plural before and after, describing a knowledge common to all Christians, he uses the singular in v. 16: "so someone sees," ίάν τις ΐδη. This describes a special case and indicates that the distinction between sin "not unto death" and "unto death" is a perception and knowledge limited to individuals, such as the pastor or individual Christians who have the gift of discernment of spirits before others.
1676) The case of Spiera is described RE.2 XIV, 799 ff, in Meusel VI, 354, but not with consistently correct theological judgment. Thus RE. op. cit. p. 801 says: "Spiera had played a sacrilegious game with the Word of God and His knowledge, otherwise he could not have denied so easily and so quickly." Consider how quickly Peter fell from fear of man and death. The calling on Calvin's judgment should also have been omitted, because Calvin, in his denial of God's general will of grace, cannot have the right judgment at all about sin against the Holy Spirit.
1677) "Sermon," X, 1209.
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Most Lutheran theologians assume that only the born-again can commit the sin against the Holy Spirit, although Quenstedt in his ϑέσις expresses himself cautiously:1676) Nobis probabilior videtur eorum sententia, qui solis vere renatis, iustificatis et renovatis peccatum in Spiritum Sanctum adscribunt. [Google] Others (Baier, Balthasar Meisner, Feurborn) want to leave open the possibility that also unregenerate can commit this sin, namely in the moment in which the Holy Spirit wanted to convert them. In any case, the inwardly convincing effect of the Holy Spirit must be thought of as antecedent, which lies in the expression είς τό πνεύμα το άγιον, κατά τον πνεύματος τον άγιον.
4 The passages Hebr. 6:4-8 and ch. 10:26-27 can only be harmonized with Matt. 12, etc., because they clearly deny the possibility of repentance to any willing (εκονοίως) sinner who had once received the knowledge of the truth and tasted the heavenly gift. As for Heb. 12:17 concerns, where it is said of Esau: μετάνοιας τόπον ονχ ενρεν, καίπερ μετά δακρύων εκζητήοας αντήν, the view has more in its favor than against it, that here the address is not of Esau's repentance, but of his father Isaac's change of mind with respect to the blessing of the firstborn. The attempted change of the father's mind with tears is reported in Gen. 27:34 ff.
How does the fact that the sin against the Holy Spirit is not forgiven correspond to the other fact that Christ has acquired forgiveness for all sins, thus also for the sin against the Holy Spirit? Scripture-inconsistent solutions to this difficulty are found among Calvinists as well as among Papists and Synergists. Calvinists finally come back to the solution that God's will of grace and Christ's merit do not extend to all men, but only to a part of them. Among the men whom God did not want to make saved at all and whom Christ did not reconcile with God, sinners against the Holy Spirit also belong. The solution is wrong, because according to the Scriptures Christ is the propitiation (Ιλασμός) for all the sin of the world, 1 John 2:2. In connection with this,
1678) Systema I, 1060.
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the effectiveness of the Holy Spirit does not extend to those who are lost, especially to sinners against the Holy Spirit. That this is a human invention is already evident from the description of the sin against the Holy Spirit. This sin, according to the Scriptures, consists precisely in maliciously setting oneself against the inwardly convincing efficacy of the Holy Spirit. Roman theologians solve the difficulty from another side. They think that sinners against the Holy Spirit belong to the class of those who have failed to acquire the merit necessary for attaining salvation. The synergists of all shades, too, finally conclude that, as in the case of unbelievers and the hardened in general, so also in the case of sinners against the Holy Spirit, there was a lack of the achievement of self-determination, of the reduction of reluctance and of the guilt of sin necessary for conversion and salvation on their part. That this cooperation for conversion and attainment of salvation is a fictitious factor is taught by Christ precisely in his warning against sinning against the Holy Spirit. Indeed, Christ teaches that all men remain in the power and under the dominion of the devil until the stronger one, Christ, comes upon him and snatches the robbery from him. In short, we must also say in regard to the sin against the Holy Spirit: a. That it does not come to this sin is merely God's grace and not founded in any named good nature or performance of man, b. That it comes to sin against the Holy Spirit is merely man's fault and not founded in any lack of God's grace and Christ's merit, or in any lack of the Holy Spirit's action. We do not get beyond sola gratia Dei on the one hand and sola culpa hominis on the other. We already reach this result if we stop at the sin of hardening. The Formula of Concord reminds us:1679) "One is hardened, blinded, given to a perverse mind; another, as well in the same guilt, is again converted. In these and similar questions Paul sets a certain goal for us, how far we should go, namely that we should recognize God's judgment in one part. For they are well deserved punishments of sins, ... that we
1679) M. 716, 57 ff. [Trigl. 1081, 57 🔗]
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may live in the fear of God, knowing and praising God's goodness without and against our merit in and with us, to whom he gives and leaves his Word, whom he does not reject and repudiate." And what Christian, when he reflects on himself, would dare to say: "That sin against the Holy Spirit does not occur in me, for that the decisive reason lies in me! That is why Luther says in his "Sermon":1680) "Let us pray that we do not fall into sin, if we do not want to suffer the revealed truth; for there is no further counsel, nor help, nor excuse, and the wrath of God has finally begun." And at the end of the "Sermon" again: "May God keep us from such sin!"
Conclusion. Only one thing saves from the temptation of having committed sin against the Holy Spirit. Heart, mind and thoughts must be directed to the completely general and completely free grace of God in Christ, which is sole clarius revealed in the Scriptures. Incompetent pastors in this case are the papists and synergists as well as the Calvinists. The Reformed theologian Schneckenburger proves conclusively that a Calvinist must first become Lutheran before he can save someone from the temptation of having committed the sin against the Holy Spirit1681) Therefore, universalem gratiam and solam gratiam must be kept separate, as will be further explained in the first section of the next volume.
1680) op. cit., 1206,. 1209.
1681) Vergleichende Darstellung des luth. u. ref. Lehrbegriffs I, 260 ff.: "One can only refer with Luther to the objective merit of Christ, to the promise of the Word of God, and to the faithfulness of the calling, who will not abandon the work begun, but will preserve it for us. This, of course, will only suffice if the Reformed pious person can put it out of his mind that the merit of Christ, etc., does not concern everyone, perhaps does not concern him in particular."