SCRIPTURE Hebrews 6:4-6 “For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, if they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.”

COMMENTARY The descriptive phrasing here makes it clear that we are talking about believers who have fallen away.  The stated transitional verb (fall away) alone make it clear that they were at one times believer for one cannot fall away from something they were never a part of.  There is a clear conditional here saying what will happen if a believer turns away from the living God.  Furthermore, they were made partakers (Greek metochos) meaning “sharing in or partaking of” the Holy Spirit. Partake is defined as have a share or portion of something (in this case the Holy spirit). The clear implication is these people, especially with the other clues, truly knew the Lord.