The first thing I had to establish was found in 2 Corinthians 3:17 it says, “Now YHVH is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of YHVH is, there is liberty. This verse gave me a paradigm to begin to comprehend better what Yeshua actually meant when strung with the verses below.

As we came into the truth that the “Old Testament” was still valid for today, it brought more understanding and light to what Biblical blaspheming could be and what this verse actually means.  Leviticus 24:10-16 says, “10 Now the son of an Israelite woman, whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the sons of Israel; and the Israelite woman’s son and a man of Israel struggled with each other in the camp. 11 The son of the Israelite woman blasphemed the Name and cursed. So they brought him to Moses. (Now his mother’s name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.) 12 They put him in custody so that the command of YHVH might be made clear to them. 13 Then YHVH spoke to Moses, saying, 14 “Bring the one who has cursed outside the camp, and let all who heard him lay their hands on his head; then let all the congregation stone him. 15 “You shall speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘If anyone curses his Elohim, then he will bear his sin. 16 ‘Moreover, the one who blasphemes the name of YHVH shall surely be put to death; all the congregation shall certainly stone him. The alien as well as the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death.”

The third commandment that YHVH gave to His children at Mount Sinai in Exodus 20:7 says, “You shall not take the name of YHVH your Elohim in vain, for YHVH will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain.”  “He will not leave him unpunished” is the same verbiage that Yeshua was using in Luke 12 when He said, “They will not be forgiven.”  So what does it mean to take His name in vain? The word vain means to make empty or useless.  How do we do this? While it would be too much for the purpose of the Daily deLIGHT to fully develop this here, suffice it to say, that we take His name in vain when we do not repent and keep His commandments.  It’s the life that we live that honors or takes His name in vain. His Word is who He is and when we don’t repent and return to it, then punishment comes. 

We see this concept in the beginning of the Scriptures in the middle and now in the end in the book of Revelation.  This concept is in several places in the book of Revelation; however, I will just list a couple of them here. Revelation16:9, 11 says, “9 Men were scorched with fierce heat; and they blasphemed the name of Elohim who has the power over these plagues, and they did not repent so as to give Him glory [honor]. 11 and they blasphemed the Elohim of heaven because of their pains and their sores; and they did not repent of their deeds.”

That is the key…it is the one who refuses to repent that forgiveness will not be given him. So, as long as there is conviction from the Holy Spirit and our response is repentance [turning away from the sin to obey His commandments], we can be comforted that we will be forgiven and have not blasphemed.   John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Have a blessed and shalom filled day!!

Tammy McLendon

Courtesy of
River of Life Tabernacle
Tammy McLendon
Great peace have they who love Your law. Psalm 119:165a