Bible verses about "backsliding" | Common

⁶² Jesus said to him, "No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God."

⁸ For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God ⁹ not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.

²⁰ For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world by the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and are overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. ²¹ For it would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than having known it, to turn away from the holy commandment handed on to them. ²² It has happened to them according to the true proverb, "A dog turns back to its own vomit," and, "A sow, after having washed, returns to wallowing in the mire."

¹ "To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: 'These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands: ² I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance. I know that you cannot bear evil men, but you have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and have found them to be false; ³ I know you have persevered and have endured for my name's sake, and you have not grown weary. ⁴ But I have this against you, that you have left your first love. ⁵ Remember then from where you have fallen, repent and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. ⁶ But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. ⁷ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the Paradise of God.' ⁸ "And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: 'These are the words of the First and the Last, who died, and came to life: ⁹ I know your tribulation and your poverty (but you are rich) and I know the slander of those who say that they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan. ¹⁰ Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of you into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful even until death, and I will give you the crown of life. ¹¹ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death.' ¹² "And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write: 'These are the words of him who has the sharp two-edged sword: ¹³ I know your works, and where you dwell, where Satan's throne is. And you hold fast to my name, and did not deny my faith even in the days of Antipas my faithful witness, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. ¹⁴ But I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat food sacrificed to idols and to practice sexual immorality. ¹⁵ So you also have those who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans. ¹⁶ Repent therefore, or else I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth. ¹⁷ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes I will give some of the hidden manna. And I will give him a white stone, with a new name written on the stone which no one knows except him who receives it.' ¹⁸ "And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: 'These are the words of the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and whose feet are like burnished bronze: ¹⁹ I know your works, your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that your works are now more than at the first. ²⁰ Nevertheless I have this against you, that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and beguiling my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols. ²¹ I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her immorality. ²² So I will cast her on a sickbed, and I will throw those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of her ways. ²³ And I will strike her children dead. And all the churches shall know that I am he who searches minds and hearts, and I will give to each of you according to your works. ²⁴ But to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not learned what some call the deep things of Satan, to you I say, I will not lay upon you any other burden; ²⁵ only hold fast what you have until I come. ²⁶ He who overcomes, and keeps my works until the end, to him I will give power over the nations ²⁷ "He shall rule them with a rod of iron; as when potter's vessels are broken in pieces" ²⁸ just as I also have received from my Father; and I will give him the morning star. ²⁹ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.'

¹ "And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: 'These are the words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars: I know your works; you have a name of being alive, but you are dead. ² Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works perfect in the sight of my God. ³ Remember therefore what you have received and heard; keep it, and repent. But if you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come upon you. ⁴ Yet you have a few names in Sardis, people who have not soiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white, for they are worthy. ⁵ He who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the Book of Life; but I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels. ⁶ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.' ⁷ "And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: 'These are the words of him who is holy, who is true, who has the key of David, who opens and no one shuts, and shuts and no one opens: ⁸ I know your works. See, I have set before you an open door, and no one can shut it. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word, and have not denied my name. ⁹ Behold, I will make those of the synagogue of Satan who say that they are Jews and are not, but lielook, I will make them come and bow down before your feet, and know that I have loved you. ¹⁰ Because you have kept my command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth. ¹¹ I am coming soon; hold fast to what you have, so that no one may take your crown. ¹² He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall never go out of it. And I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from my God. And I will write on him my new name. ¹³ He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.' ¹⁴ "And to the angel of the church in Laodicea write: 'These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of God's creation: ¹⁵ I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot! ¹⁶ So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spit you out of my mouth. ¹⁷ You say, "I am rich; I have become wealthy, and have need of nothing"and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked, ¹⁸ Therefore I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments to clothe you, and to keep the shame of your nakedness from being seen; and salve to anoint your eyes, that you may see. ¹⁹ Those whom I love, I rebuke and chasten. So be zealous and repent. ²⁰ Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me. ²¹ To him who overcomes, I will grant to sit with me on my throne, as I also overcame and sat down with my Father on his throne. ²² He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.'"

¹ After this I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the voice, which I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, "Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this." ² At once I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne was standing in heaven, with one sitting on the throne. ³ And he who sat there was like jasper and carnelian in appearance, and round the throne was a rainbow that looked like an emerald. ⁴ Round the throne were twenty-four thrones, and seated on the thrones were twenty-four elders, clothed in white garments, and golden crowns on their heads. ⁵ From the throne come flashes of lightning, and voices and peals of thunder. And before the throne were seven lamps of fire, which are the seven spirits of God; ⁶ and before the throne there was as it were a sea of glass, like crystal. And in the center, around the throne, are four living creatures, full of eyes in front and behind. ⁷ The first living creature was like a lion, the second creature like an ox, the third creature had a face like that of a man, and the fourth creature was like a flying eagle. ⁸ And the four living creatures, each of them with six wings, are full of eyes all around and within, and day and night they never cease to sing, "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come." ⁹ And whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to him who sits on the throne, who lives for ever and ever, ¹⁰ the twenty-four elders fall down before him who sits on the throne and worship him who lives for ever and ever; they cast their crowns before the throne, saying, ¹¹ "You are worthy, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created."

⁵ Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in youunless, indeed, you fail the test?

⁹ If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

⁴ For it is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, ⁵ and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, ⁶ and then have fallen away, to renew them again to repentance, since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put him to an open shame.