What constitutes the sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, and why will it not be forgiven either in this age or the one to come? #

Indeed, while other commandments are relatively straightforward—“Do not kill” means you must not kill, and “Do not steal” means you must not steal—what does it mean to blaspheme the Holy Spirit? Why is this sin unforgivable, even though Christians are called to emulate God and forgive their offenders? Furthermore, God is the Holy Trinity, and the Persons of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are equal. Why, then, is blasphemy against the Son forgivable, but not against the Spirit?

St. Athanasius the Great states that “if we interpret everything in Scripture literally, we will fall into grave blasphemy.” Likewise, this passage should be understood figuratively, not literally.

For example, St. Athanasius believed that blasphemy against the Son of Man referred to insulting Christ in His human nature, whereas blasphemy against the Spirit is an insult to His divinity. Indeed, many who were unaware of who Jesus Christ truly was, seeing His actions and deeds, might have thought He was merely a man and treated Him inappropriately. Such a sin is forgivable. However, if someone insults Christ while understanding that He is not merely a man—consciously insulting His divinity—that sin will not be forgiven.

When the Pharisees accused Christ of casting out demons by the power of Beelzebub, they committed blasphemy. This occurred when He healed a man who was mute and blind. Christ performed miracles publicly; there was no room to suspect deception. Thus, the Pharisees knew that Christ was no deceiver and that His extraordinary miracles could not be achieved by any sorcerer but only by the power of God. This means they consciously opposed the power of God, even while understanding it to be divine. They refused to humble their pride and acknowledge the Son of God in a wandering, impoverished preacher.

St. John Chrysostom described blasphemy against the Spirit as “shameless rejection of evident truth.” In other words, it is committed by someone who knows what they are doing—someone who consciously, not out of ignorance, resists God.

This sin is unforgivable not because God is harsh but because the person refuses to accept forgiveness, remaining unrepentant before God’s greatness. In essence, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is disbelief and impenitence, for there is no sin that cannot be forgiven by God except the unrepentant one.

— Priest Evgeny Gureev.