Matthew 12:25-27
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
25 (A)But he knew what they were thinking and said to them,[a] “Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste, and no town or house divided against itself will stand. 26 And if Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself; how, then, will his kingdom stand? 27 And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your own people[b] drive them out? Therefore they will be your judges.
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- 12:25–26 Jesus’ first response to the Pharisees’ charge is that if it were true, Satan would be destroying his own kingdom.
- 12:27 Besides pointing out the absurdity of the charge, Jesus asks how the work of Jewish exorcists (your own people) is to be interpreted. Are they, too, to be charged with collusion with Beelzebul? For an example of Jewish exorcism see Josephus, Antiquities 8:42–49.
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