Falling Away (Apostasy): 150 Biblical Passages

+ Catalogue of Sixty Traits That Apostates Formerly Possessed When They Were in God’s Good Graces

[all passages from RSV. Many “thanks” to the good old reference work, Nave’s Topical Bible (1897). Nave (1841-1917) was a Methodist, so he agreed — as an Arminian / Wesleyan — that one could fall away from faith; hence, he didn’t overlook that teaching in his Bible references]

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Leviticus 26:15 . . . you spurn my statutes, . . . you will not do all my commandments, but break my covenant,

Numbers 14:22-23 none of the men who have seen my glory and my signs which I wrought in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have put me to the proof these ten times and have not hearkened to my voice, [23] shall see the land which I swore to give to their fathers; and none of those who despised me shall see it.

Deuteronomy 4:9 “Only take heed, and keep your soul diligently, lest you forget the things which your eyes have seen, and lest they depart from your heart . . .”

Deuteronomy 8:11 “Take heed lest you forget the LORD your God, by not keeping his commandments and his ordinances and his statutes, . . .”

Deuteronomy 8:19 And if you forget the LORD your God and go after other gods and serve them and worship them, I solemnly warn you this day that you shall surely perish.

Deuteronomy 29:18 Beware lest there be among you a man or woman or family or tribe, whose heart turns away this day from the LORD our God to go and serve the gods of those nations; lest there be among you a root bearing poisonous and bitter fruit,

Deuteronomy 29:25-26 . . . they forsook the covenant of the LORD, the God of their fathers, which he made with them when he brought them out of the land of Egypt, [26] and went and served other gods and worshiped them . . .

Deuteronomy 31:16 . . . this people will rise and play the harlot after the strange gods of the land, where they go to be among them, and they will forsake me and break my covenant which I have made with them.

Deuteronomy 31:29 For I know that after my death you will surely act corruptly, and turn aside from the way which I have commanded you; and in the days to come evil will befall you, because you will do what is evil in the sight of the LORD, provoking him to anger through the work of your hands.

Deuteronomy 32:15 . . . he forsook God who made him, and scoffed at the Rock of his salvation.

1 Samuel 15:11 . . . Saul . . . has turned back from following me . . .

1 Samuel 15:23 “. . . Because you have rejected the word of the LORD, he has also rejected you from being king.”

1 Samuel 15:26 And Samuel said to Saul, “I will not return with you; for you have rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD has rejected you from being king over Israel.” (cf. 16:1)

1 Samuel 16:14 Now the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD tormented him.

1 Samuel 18:12 Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with him but had departed from Saul.

1 Kings 11:4-6, 9-10  For when Solomon was old his wives turned away his heart after other gods; and his heart was not wholly true to the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. [5] For Solomon went after Ash’toreth the goddess of the Sido’nians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. [6] So Solomon did what was evil in the sight of the LORD, and did not wholly follow the LORD, as David his father had done. . . . [9] And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart had turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice, [10] and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods; but he did not keep what the LORD commanded.

1 Kings 11:33 . . . he has forsaken me, and worshiped Ash’toreth the goddess of the Sido’nians, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the Ammonites, and has not walked in my ways, doing what is right in my sight and keeping my statutes and my ordinances, as David his father did.

2 Kings 18:12 . . . they did not obey the voice of the LORD their God but transgressed his covenant, even all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded; they neither listened nor obeyed.

2 Kings 21:22 he forsook the LORD, the God of his fathers, and did not walk in the way of the LORD.

1 Chronicles 28:9 . . . if you forsake him, he will cast you off for ever.

2 Chronicles 12:1-2 When the rule of Rehobo’am was established and was strong, he forsook the law of the LORD, and all Israel with him.[2] In the fifth year of King Rehobo’am, because they had been unfaithful to the LORD, Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem

2 Chronicles 13:11 . . . we keep the charge of the LORD our God, but you have forsaken him.

2 Chronicles 15:1-2 The Spirit of God came upon Azari’ah the son of Oded, [2] and he went out to meet Asa, and said to him, “Hear me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: The LORD is with you, while you are with him. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will forsake you.

2 Chronicles 24:24 . . . they had forsaken the LORD, the God of their fathers. . . . (cf. 24:20)

2 Chronicles 25:1-2, 14, 27 Amazi’ah was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, . . . [2] And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, yet not with a blameless heart. [14] After Amazi’ah came from the slaughter of the E’domites, he brought the gods of the men of Se’ir, and set them up as his gods, and worshiped them, making offerings to them. . . . [27] . . . he turned away from the LORD . . .

2 Chronicles 26:4-5, 16, 20-21 And he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, according to all that his father Amazi’ah had done. [5] He set himself to seek God in the days of Zechari’ah, who instructed him in the fear of God; and as long as he sought the LORD, God made him prosper.  . . . [16] But when he was strong he grew proud, to his destruction. For he was false to the LORD his God, and entered the temple of the LORD to burn incense on the altar of incense. . . . [20] And Azari’ah the chief priest, and all the priests, looked at him, and behold, he was leprous in his forehead! And they thrust him out quickly, and he himself hastened to go out, because the LORD had smitten him. [21] And King Uzzi’ah was a leper to the day of his death, and being a leper dwelt in a separate house, for he was excluded from the house of the LORD. And Jotham his son was over the king’s household, governing the people of the land.

2 Chronicles 29:6, 8 For our fathers have been unfaithful and have done what was evil in the sight of the LORD our God; they have forsaken him, and have turned away their faces from the habitation of the LORD, and turned their backs. . . . [8] Therefore the wrath of the LORD came on Judah and Jerusalem, and he has made them an object of horror, of astonishment, and of hissing, as you see with your own eyes.

Ezra 8:22 . . . “The hand of our God is for good upon all that seek him, and the power of his wrath is against all that forsake him.”

Nehemiah 9:26-27 “Nevertheless they were disobedient and rebelled against thee and cast thy law behind their back and killed thy prophets, who had warned them in order to turn them back to thee, and they committed great blasphemies. [27] Therefore thou didst give them into the hand of their enemies, . . .

Job 34:26-27 He strikes them for their wickedness in the sight of men, [27] because they turned aside from following him, and had no regard for any of his ways,

Psalm 51:11 Cast me not away from thy presence, and take not thy holy Spirit from me.

Psalm 78:10-11 They did not keep God’s covenant, but refused to walk according to his law. [11] They forgot what he had done, and the miracles that he had shown them.

Psalm 78:40-42 How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness and grieved him in the desert! [41] They tested him again and again, and provoked the Holy One of Israel. [42] They did not keep in mind his power, or the day when he redeemed them from the foe;

Psalm 78:56-57 Yet they tested and rebelled against the Most High God, and did not observe his testimonies, [57] but turned away and acted treacherously like their fathers; they twisted like a deceitful bow.

Proverbs 2:17, 19 who forsakes the companion of her youth and forgets the covenant of her God; . . . [19] none who go to her come back nor do they regain the paths of life.

Isaiah 1:4 Ah, sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, offspring of evildoers, sons who deal corruptly! They have forsaken the LORD, they have despised the Holy One of Israel, they are utterly estranged.

Isaiah 1:28 But rebels and sinners shall be destroyed together, and those who forsake the LORD shall be consumed.

Isaiah 5:24-25 they have rejected the law of the LORD of hosts, and have despised the word of the Holy One of Israel. [25] Therefore the anger of the LORD was kindled against his people, . . .

Isaiah 17:10 For you have forgotten the God of your salvation, and have not remembered the Rock of your refuge; . . .

Isaiah 24:5 . . . they have transgressed the laws, violated the statutes, broken the everlasting covenant.

Isaiah 31:6 Turn to him from whom you have deeply revolted, O people of Israel.

Isaiah 65:11 . . . you who forsake the LORD, . . .

Jeremiah 2:11, 13  Has a nation changed its gods, even though they are no gods? But my people have changed their glory for that which does not profit. [13] . . . they have forsaken me, . . . (cf. 2:17, 19)

Jeremiah 2:27 . . . they have turned their back to me, . . . (cf. 2:32)

Jeremiah 3:6 The LORD said to me in the days of King Josi’ah: “Have you seen what she did, that faithless one, Israel, how she went up on every high hill and under every green tree, and there played the harlot?” (cf. 3:20, 22)

Jeremiah 3:13 . . . you rebelled against the LORD your God . . .

Jeremiah 3:21 . . . they have perverted their way, they have forgotten the LORD their God.

Jeremiah 5:19 . . . you have forsaken me and served foreign gods . . .

Jeremiah 5:23 But this people has a stubborn and rebellious heart; they have turned aside and gone away.

Jeremiah 8:5-6 Why then has this people turned away in perpetual backsliding? They hold fast to deceit, they refuse to return. [6] I have given heed and listened, but they have not spoken aright; no man repents of his wickedness, . . .

Jeremiah 11:9-11 Again the LORD said to me, “There is revolt among the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. [10] They have turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers, who refused to hear my words; they have gone after other gods to serve them; the house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken my covenant which I made with their fathers. [11] Therefore, thus says the LORD, Behold, I am bringing evil upon them which they cannot escape; though they cry to me, I will not listen to them.

Jeremiah 11:16-17 The LORD once called you, ‘A green olive tree, fair with goodly fruit’; but with the roar of a great tempest he will set fire to it, and its branches will be consumed. [17] The LORD of hosts, who planted you, has pronounced evil against you, because of the evil which the house of Israel and the house of Judah have done, provoking me to anger by burning incense to Ba’al.”

Jeremiah 13:25 . . . you have forgotten me and trusted in lies.

Jeremiah 17:5 Thus says the LORD: “Cursed is the man . . . whose heart turns away from the LORD.”

Jeremiah 17:13 O LORD, the hope of Israel, all who forsake thee shall be put to shame; those who turn away from thee shall be written in the earth, for they have forsaken the LORD, the fountain of living water.

Jeremiah 18:15 . . . my people have forgotten me, they burn incense to false gods . . .

Jeremiah 19:4 . . . the people have forsaken me, and have profaned this place by burning incense in it to other gods . . .

Jeremiah 50:6 “My people have been lost sheep; their shepherds have led them astray, turning them away on the mountains; from mountain to hill they have gone, they have forgotten their fold.”

Ezekiel 2:3-4 And he said to me, “Son of man, I send you to the people of Israel, to a nation of rebels, who have rebelled against me; they and their fathers have transgressed against me to this very day. [4] The people also are impudent and stubborn: . . . (cf. 2:5-8)

Ezekiel 3:20 Again, if a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die; because you have not warned him, he shall die for his sin, and his righteous deeds which he has done shall not be remembered . . .

Ezekiel 18:24 But when a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity and does the same abominable things that the wicked man does, shall he live? None of the righteous deeds which he has done shall be remembered; for the treachery of which he is guilty and the sin he has committed, he shall die.

Ezekiel 23:35 . . . thus says the Lord GOD: . . . you have forgotten me and cast me behind your back . . .

Ezekiel 33:12 And you, son of man, say to your people, The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him when he transgresses; and as for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall by it when he turns from his wickedness; and the righteous shall not be able to live by his righteousness when he sins.

Ezekiel 33:18 When the righteous turns from his righteousness, and commits iniquity, he shall die for it.

Hosea 4:6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge; because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from being a priest to me. And since you have forgotten the law of your God, I also will forget your children.

Hosea 6:7 . . . they transgressed the covenant; there they dealt faithlessly with me.

Hosea 8:14 . . . Israel has forgotten his Maker . . .

Hosea 9:1 . . . you have played the harlot, forsaking your God. . . .

Hosea 11:7 My people are bent on turning away from me; . . .

Hosea 13:16 Sama’ria shall bear her guilt, because she has rebelled against her God . . .

Hosea 14:1 Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God, for you have stumbled because of your iniquity.

Amos 2:4 . . . they have rejected the law of the LORD, and have not kept his statutes, but their lies have led them astray, . . .

Zephaniah 1:4, 6 “I will stretch out my hand against Judah, and against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and I will cut off from this place the remnant of Ba’al . . . [6] those who have turned back from following the LORD, . . .

Malachi 3:7 From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from my statutes and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you, says the LORD of hosts. But you say, ‘How shall we return?’

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Matthew 5:13 You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trodden under foot by men.

Matthew 24:10-13 And then many will fall away, . . . [11] And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. [12] And because wickedness is multiplied, most men’s love will grow cold. [13] But he who endures to the end will be saved. (cf. 10:22)

Luke 8:13-14 And the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear the word, receive it with joy; but these have no root, they believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away. [14] And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.

Luke 9:62 Jesus said to him, “No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.”

Luke 22:31-32 “Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, [32] but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail; and when you have turned again, strengthen your brethren.”

John 6:66 After this many of his disciples drew back and no longer went about with him.

John 15:1-2 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. [2] Every branch of mine that bears no fruit, he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.

John 16:1 I have said all this to you to keep you from falling away.

Acts 7:39 Our fathers refused to obey him, but thrust him aside, . . .

Acts 11:23 . . . he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast purpose;

Romans 11:20-22 . . . They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast only through faith. So do not become proud, but stand in awe. [21] For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you. [22] Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God’s kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness; otherwise you too will be cut off.

Romans 14:4 . . . It is before his own master that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Master is able to make him stand.

1 Corinthians 9:27 but I pommel my body and subdue it, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.

1 Corinthians 10:5-6 Nevertheless with most of them God was not pleased; for they were overthrown in the wilderness. [6] Now these things are warnings for us, not to desire evil as they did.

1 Corinthians 10:12 Therefore let any one who thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.

1 Corinthians 16:13 Be watchful, stand firm in your faith, be courageous, be strong.

2 Corinthians 1:24 . . . you stand firm in your faith.

2 Corinthians 12:20 For I fear that perhaps I may come and find you not what I wish . . .

2 Corinthians 13:5 Examine yourselves, to see whether you are holding to your faith. Test yourselves. Do you not realize that Jesus Christ is in you? — unless indeed you fail to meet the test!

Galatians 1:6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and turning to a different gospel

Galatians 3:1-4 O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified? [2] Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law, or by hearing with faith? [3] Are you so foolish? Having begun with the Spirit, are you now ending with the flesh? [4] Did you experience so many things in vain? — if it really is in vain.

Galatians 4:9 but now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and beggarly elemental spirits, whose slaves you want to be once more?

Galatians 5:1 . . . stand fast therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery . . .

Galatians 5:4 You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace.

Galatians 5:7 You were running well; who hindered you from obeying the truth?

Galatians 5:19-21 Now the works of the flesh are plain: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, [20] idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness, dissension, party spirit, [21] envy, drunkenness, carousing, and the like. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

Ephesians 5:5-6 Be sure of this, that no fornicator or impure man, or one who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. [6] Let no one deceive you with empty words, for it is because of these things that the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.

Ephesians 6:10-13 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. [11] Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. [12] For we are not contending against flesh and blood, but against the principalities, against the powers, against the world rulers of this present darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. [13] Therefore take the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

Ephesians 6:18 Pray at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints,

Philippians 3:11-13 that if possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. [12] Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. [13] Brethren, I do not consider that I have made it my own; . . .

Colossians 1:22-23 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and irreproachable before him, [23] provided that you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel which you heard, . . .

2 Thessalonians 2:3 Let no one deceive you in any way; for that day will not come, unless the rebellion [KJV: “a falling away”] comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of perdition,

1 Timothy 1:19 . . . By rejecting conscience, certain persons have made shipwreck of their faith,

1 Timothy 2:15 Yet woman will be saved through bearing children, if she continues in faith and love and holiness, with modesty.

1 Timothy 4:1 Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by giving heed to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons.

1 Timothy 5:8 If any one does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his own family, he has disowned the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

1 Timothy 5:15 For some have already strayed after Satan.

1 Timothy 6:10 For the love of money is the root of all evils; it is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced their hearts with many pangs.

2 Timothy 1:14 guard the truth that has been entrusted to you by the Holy Spirit who dwells within us.

2 Timothy 1:15 You are aware that all who are in Asia turned away from me, and among them Phy’gelus and Hermog’enes.

2 Timothy 2:12 . . . if we deny him, he also will deny us;

2 Timothy 2:16-18 Avoid such godless chatter, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness, [17] and their talk will eat its way like gangrene. Among them are Hymenae’us and Phile’tus, [18] who have swerved from the truth by holding that the resurrection is past already. They are upsetting the faith of some.

2 Timothy 4:3-4 For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own likings, [4] and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander into myths.

2 Timothy 4:7-8 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. [8] Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.

Hebrews 2:1 Therefore we must pay the closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.

Hebrews 3:6 And we are his house if we hold fast our confidence and pride in our hope.

Hebrews 3:12 Take care, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God.

Hebrews 3:13 But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

Hebrews 3:14 For we share in Christ, if only we hold our first confidence firm to the end,

Hebrews 3:15 . . . it is said, “Today, when you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”

Hebrews 3:18-19 And to whom did he swear that they should never enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient? [19] So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief.

Hebrews 4:1 Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest remains, let us fear lest any of you be judged to have failed to reach it.

Hebrews 4:5-6 And again in this place he said, “They shall never enter my rest.” [6] Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience,

Hebrews 4:11 Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, that no one fall by the same sort of disobedience.

Hebrews 6:4-6 For it is impossible to restore again to repentance 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] if they then commit apostasy, since they crucify the Son of God on their own account and hold him up to contempt.

Hebrews 6:11-12 And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness in realizing the full assurance of hope until the end, [12] so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

Hebrews 6:15 And thus Abraham, having patiently endured, obtained the promise.

Hebrews 10:26-29 For if we sin deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, [27] but a fearful prospect of judgment, and a fury of fire which will consume the adversaries. [28] A man who has violated the law of Moses dies without mercy at the testimony of two or three witnesses. [29] How much worse punishment do you think will be deserved by the man who has spurned the Son of God, and profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and outraged the Spirit of grace?

Hebrews 10:36 For you have need of endurance, so that you may do the will of God and receive what is promised.

Hebrews 10:38-39 “but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him.” [39] But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and keep their souls.

Hebrews 12:15-16 See to it that no one fail to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” spring up and cause trouble, and by it the many become defiled; [16] that no one be immoral or irreligious like Esau, who sold his birthright for a single meal.

Hebrews 13:9 Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings; for it is well that the heart be strengthened by grace, . . .

James 1:14-15  but each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. [15] Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin; and sin when it is full-grown brings forth death.

1 Peter 1:14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance,

1 Peter 1:17 And if you invoke as Father him who judges each one impartially according to his deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile.

1 Peter 5:8-9 Be sober, be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking some one to devour. [9] Resist him, firm in your faith, . . .

2 Peter 2:15 Forsaking the right way they have gone astray; they have followed the way of Balaam, the son of Be’or, who loved gain from wrongdoing,

2 Peter 2:17-22 These are waterless springs and mists driven by a storm; for them the nether gloom of darkness has been reserved. [18] For, uttering loud boasts of folly, they entice with licentious passions of the flesh men who have barely escaped from those who live in error. [19] They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves of corruption; for whatever overcomes a man, to that he is enslaved. [20] For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overpowered, the last state has become worse for them than the first. [21] For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. [22] It has happened to them according to the true proverb, The dog turns back to his own vomit, and the sow is washed only to wallow in the mire.

1 John 5:16 If any one sees his brother committing what is not a mortal sin, he will ask, and God will give him life for those whose sin is not mortal. There is sin which is mortal; I do not say that one is to pray for that.

2 John 7-9 For many deceivers have gone out into the world, men who will not acknowledge the coming of Jesus Christ in the flesh; such a one is the deceiver and the antichrist. [8] Look to yourselves, that you may not lose what you have worked for, but may win a full reward. [9] Any one who goes ahead and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God; he who abides in the doctrine has both the Father and the Son.

Revelation 2:4-5 But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. [5] Remember then from what 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.

Revelation 2:10 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 unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.

Revelation 3:3 Remember then what you received and heard; keep that, and repent. If you will not awake, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come upon you.

Revelation 3:5 He who conquers shall be clad thus in white garments, and I will not blot his name out of the book of life; I will confess his name before my Father and before his angels.

Revelation 3:11-12 I am coming soon; hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown. [12] He who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God . . .

Revelation 3:16 So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spew you out of my mouth.

***

Calvinists and folks who believe in eternal security will argue that the people described above were never Christians. But the language used rules that out. Now that we have compiled 150 passages that reference actual apostasy or warn against it, we can see the strong cumulative force of this sub-argument. Here is a complete catalogue of sixty descriptions of the former state of apostates, that they rejected; what they possessed when they were in the good graces of God and fit for ultimate salvation and eternal life in heaven if they were to die:

keeping his commandments and his ordinances and his statutes (Dt 8:11; 1 Sam 11:33)

heart turned [to] the LORD (Dt 29:18; 1 Kgs 11:9; Jer 17:5)

[kept/ followed] the covenant of the LORD (Dt 29:25; 31:16; Ps 78:10; Prov 2:17; Is 24:5; Hos 6:7)

[kept] the way which [God] commanded (Dt 31:29, 1 Kgs 11:10)

following [God] (1 Sam 15:11; Job 34:27)

[possessing the] Spirit of the LORD / Holy Spirit (1 Sam 16:14; Ps 51:11; Gal 3:2-3; Heb 6:4)

[accepted / listened to] the word of the LORD (1 Sam 15:23, 26; Is 5:24)

with the LORD (1 Sam 18:12)

heart wholly true to the LORD (1 Kgs 11:4)

wholly follow[ed] the LORD (1 Kgs 11:6)

walked in [God’s] ways (1 Kgs 11:33; 2 Kgs 21:22)

[did] what is right in [God’s] sight (1 Kgs 11:33)

obey[ed] the voice of the LORD their God [and kept] his covenant (2 Kgs 18:12)

listened [and] obeyed [God] (2 Kgs 18:12)

[followed] the law[s] of the LORD (2 Chr 12:1; Neh 9:26; Is 5:24; 24:5; Hos 4:6; Amos 2:4)

faithful to the LORD (2 Chr 12:2; 29:6; Jer 3:6; Hos 6:7; 2 Cor 13:5; Gal 3:2; Heb 10:39; Rev 2:10)

[kept] the charge of the LORD (2 Chr 13:11)

he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD (2 Chr 25:2; 26:4)

set himself to seek God (2 Chr 26:5)

sought the LORD (2 Chr 26:5; Ezra 8:22)

turned their faces [to] the habitation of the LORD (2 Chr 29:6)

obeyed / obedient (Neh 9:26; Acts 7:39; Heb 3:18; 4:6, 11; 1 Pet 1:14)

had regard for [God’s] ways (Job 34:27)

[in God’s] presence (Ps 51:11)

walk[ed] according to his law (Ps 78:10)

[remembered] what [God] had done (Ps 78:11)

observe[d] [God’s] testimonies (Ps 78:56)

[remembered] the God of [their] salvation (Is 17:10)

remembered the Rock of [their] refuge (Is 17:10)

[obeyed / kept] the statutes (Is 24:5; Amos 2:4; Mal 3:7)

a righteous man turns away from his righteousness (Ezek 18:24; 33:12, 18)

[performed] righteous deeds (Ezek 18:24)

turn[ed] [to God] (Hos 11:7)

the salt of the earth (Mt 5:13)

when they hear the word, receive it with joy (Lk 8:13)

disciples . . . went about with [Jesus] (Jn 6:66)

belief [and] faith (Rom 11:20; Heb 3:12, 19)

continue in his kindness (Rom 11:22)

[accepted / followed the] gospel (Gal 1:6)

c[a]me to know God (Gal 4:9)

known by God (Gal 4:9)

[in] Christ (Gal 5:4)

[in a state of] grace (Gal 5:4; Heb 12:15; 13:9)

running well (Gal 5:7)

obeying the truth (Gal 5:7; 2 Tim 4:4)

[following] conscience (1 Tim 1:19)

enlightened (Heb 6:4)

who have tasted the heavenly gift (Heb 6:4)

tasted the goodness of the word of God (Heb 6:5)

tasted the powers of the age to come (Heb 6:5)

keep their souls (Heb 10:39)

[following] the right way (2 Pet 2:15)

hav[ing] escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Pet 2:20)

known the way of righteousness (2 Pet 2:21)

[following] the holy commandment (2 Pet 2:21)

love [of God] (Rev 2:4)

do[ing] [of good] works (Rev 2:5)

Remember then what you received and heard; keep that, and repent (Rev 3:3)

hold fast what you have (Rev 3:11)

hot [rather than] lukewarm (Rev 3:16)