The Pharisees to whom Jesus spoke this warning did not themselves believe the charge they brought against Him. There was not one of those dignitaries but had felt drawn toward the Saviour. They had heard the Spirit's voice in their own hearts declaring Him to be the Anointed of Israel, and urging them to confess themselves His disciples. In the light of His presence they had realized their unholiness, and had longed for a righteousness which they could not create. But after their rejection of Him it would be too humiliating to receive Him as the Messiah. Having set their feet in the path of unbelief, they were too proud to confess their error. And in order to avoid acknowledging the truth, they tried with desperate violence to dispute the Saviour's teaching. The evidence of His power and mercy exasperated them. They could not prevent the Saviour from working miracles, they could not silence His teaching; but they did everything in their power to misrepresent Him and to falsify His word…
"Nevertheless among the chief rulers also many believed on him; but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue: For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God."
Both passages discuss the reluctance of some leaders to openly acknowledge Jesus due to fear of social repercussions and a preference for human approval over divine favor. The EGW passage provides a more detailed psychological explanation of this phenomenon in the context of the Pharisees.
"benumbing of the spiritual perceptions, and the second revealing of light is less clearly discerned. So the darkness increases, until it is night in the soul. Thus it had been with these Jewish leaders. They were convinced that a divine power attended Christ, but in order to resist the truth, they attributed the work of the Holy Spirit to Satan. In doing this they deliberately chose deception; they yielded themselves to Satan, and henceforth they were controlled by his power. DA 322.2"
"Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men."
Both passages connect the act of attributing the Holy Spirit's work to Satan with spiritual darkness and a hardening of the heart, ultimately leading to a state where forgiveness becomes difficult or impossible. The EGW passage elaborates on the process by which this occurs.
"And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil."
Both passages address the rejection of light (truth, divine power) and the preference for darkness (deception, evil). The EGW passage illustrates this principle through the example of the Jewish leaders who resisted Christ, while John 3:19 presents it as a general characteristic of those who choose evil.