Luke 12 - Indepthbible.org

2550(...continued)And He turned against them as an Enemy;He fought against them.This is a fascinating text, unusual especially for its affirmations concerning YHWH's "Spirit"that saved His people (compare Psalm 51), and its sharp contrast between YHWH's steadfastgoodness, compassion, love, mercy, and saving presence, with His turning to become His people'sEnemy, because of their "grieving" His Set-apart Spirit. There can be no doubt concerningits overall teaching--it is that the great God of love and mercy, YHWH, Who saves through HisSpirit, will turn and become His Own people's Enemy, when they rebel against Him. This is importantbackground for the teaching of Jesus concerning "blaspheming" or "speaking sacrilegiouslyagainst" the Set-apart Spirit.Where the Hebrew text uses the verb Av=d>q' x;Wrå-ta, WbßC.[iw>, we(itstsebhu )eth ruachqodhsho, "they ‘hurt,’ ‘they pained,’ ‘they grieved’ His Set-apart Spirit,” the Greek translates byparw,xunan, "they provoked," "they irritated." Compare the exhortation of Ephesians 4:30, kai.mh. lupei/te to. pneu/ma to. a[gion tou/ qeou/, "and do not grieve the Spirit, the Set-apart one of theGod." Compare Psalm 56:6.See the article on blasfhme,w by H. W. Beyer in Theological Dictionary of the NewTestament 1, pp. 621-25. In classical Greek, blasfhme,w means "abusive speech" over againsteuvfhme,w, "speaking well of..." It means "the strongest form of 'personal mockery' and calumniation[‘slander’]." (P. 621) In the LXX, the verbs closest to blasfhme,w are ovneidi,zein and paroxu,nein.Blasfhme,w implies "human arrogance with its implied depreciation of God." (P.622) "Inthe New Testament the concept of blasphemy is controlled throughout by the thought of violationof the power and majesty of God." (Ibid.)Here in Luke 12:10, Jesus teaches that for Israel, to whom He has been sent as a "Savior,"to speak maliciously against Him personally can be forgiven, but to speak abusively of theSpirit of God that is at work in the world, bringing salvation and forgiveness, is not forgivable. InHim and His ministry, God's Spirit was actively at work, bringing salvation to Israel--and to rejectthat movement of the Spirit of God as evil, meant that Israel was separating itself from the onlyhope for forgiveness and salvation, and bringing their nation into the “Valley of the Son / Sons ofHinnom.”Nolland, in commenting on this, suggests different possibilities of understanding: "Lukemay want here to distinguish such human failure as that of Peter's in 22:57 from a persistenthardening of oneself against what God is doing / has done in the ministry of Jesus...Luke couldbe distinguishing a pre- and post-easter situation (compare Acts 5:32; 3:17): rejection of Jesusin His historical ministry is forgivable, but not the rejection of the Spirit in and through the presentwitness of Christians...Luke may distinguish between the situation of a Christian who has receivedthe Holy Spirit and someone who has yet to be convinced of the truth of the Christian message1233(continued...)