A House Divided Cannot Stand^(A)

^22 (B)Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the ^[a]blind and mute man both spoke and saw. ²³ And all the multitudes were amazed and said, “Could this be the ^(C)Son of David?”

^24 (D)Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, “This fellow does not cast out demons except by ^[b]Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.”

²⁵ But Jesus ^(E)knew their thoughts, and said to them: “Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand. ²⁶ If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? ²⁷ And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges. ²⁸ But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, ^(F)surely the kingdom of God has come upon you. ^29 (G)Or how can one enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house. ³⁰ He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad.

The Unpardonable Sin^(H)

³¹ “Therefore I say to you, ^(I)every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, ^(J)but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men. ³² Anyone who ^(K)speaks a word against the Son of Man, ^(L)it will be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come.

A Tree Known by Its Fruit^(M)

³³ “Either make the tree good and ^(N)its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit. ^34 (O)Brood^[c] of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? ^(P)For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. ³⁵ A good man out of the good treasure ^[d]of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things. ³⁶ But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. ³⁷ For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.”

The Peril of Not Progressing

6 Therefore, ^(A)leaving the discussion of the elementary principles of Christ, let us go on to ^[a]perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from ^(B)dead works and of faith toward God, ^2 (C)of the doctrine of baptisms, ^(D)of laying on of hands, ^(E)of resurrection of the dead, ^(F)and of eternal judgment. ³ And this ^[b]we will do if God permits.

⁴ For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted ^(G)the heavenly gift, and ^(H)have become partakers of the Holy Spirit, ⁵ and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, ^6 [c]if they fall away, to renew them again to repentance, ^(I)since they crucify again for themselves the Son of God, and put Him to an open shame.

⁷ For the earth which drinks in the rain that often comes upon it, and bears herbs useful for those by whom it is cultivated, ^(J)receives blessing from God; ^8 (K)but if it bears thorns and briers, it is rejected and near to being cursed, whose end is to be burned.

A Better Estimate

⁹ But, beloved, we are confident of better things concerning you, yes, things that accompany salvation, though we speak in this manner. ¹⁰ For ^(L)God is not unjust to forget ^(M)your work and ^[d]labor of love which you have shown toward His name, in that you have ^(N)ministered to the saints, and do minister. ¹¹ And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence ^(O)to the full assurance of hope until the end, ¹² that you do not become ^[e]sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience ^(P)inherit the promises.

God’s Infallible Purpose in Christ

¹³ For when God made a promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no one greater, ^(Q)He swore by Himself, ¹⁴ saying, ^(R)“Surely blessing I will bless you, and multiplying I will multiply you.” ¹⁵ And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the ^(S)promise. ¹⁶ For men indeed swear by the greater, and ^(T)an oath for confirmation is for them an end of all dispute. ¹⁷ Thus God, determining to show more abundantly to ^(U)the heirs of promise ^(V)the ^[f]immutability of His counsel, ^[g]confirmed it by an oath, ¹⁸ that by two ^[h]immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to ^(W)lie, we ^[i]might have strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope ^(X)set before us.

¹⁹ This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, ^(Y)and which enters the Presence behind the veil, ^20 (Z)where the forerunner has entered for us, even Jesus, ^(AA)having become High Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.