The Pharisees Rebuked

22 (A)Then a (B)demon-possessed man who was blind and unable to speak was brought to [a]Jesus, and He healed him so that the man who was unable to speak talked and [b]could see. 23 And all the crowds were amazed and were saying, “This man cannot be the (C)Son of David, can he?” 24 But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “This man (D)casts out demons only by [c]Beelzebul the ruler of the demons.”

25 (E)And (F)knowing their thoughts, Jesus said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and no city or house divided against itself will stand. 26 And if (G)Satan is casting out Satan, he [d]has become divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand? 27 And if (H)by [e]Beelzebul I cast out the demons, (I)by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore, they will be your judges. 28 But (J)if I cast out the demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29 Or, how can anyone enter the strong man’s house and carry off his property, unless he first ties up the strong man? And then he will plunder his house.

The Unpardonable Sin

30 (K)The one who is not with Me is against Me; and the one who does not gather with Me scatters.

31 (L)Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. 32 (M)And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in (N)this age or in the age to come.

Words Reveal Character

33 “Either [f]assume the tree to be good as well as its fruit good, or [g]assume the tree to be bad as well as its fruit bad; for (O)the tree is known by its fruit. 34 (P)You [h]offspring of vipers, how can you, being evil, express any good things? (Q)For the mouth speaks from that which fills the heart. 35 (R)The good person brings out of his good treasure good things; and the evil person brings out of his evil treasure evil things. 36 But I tell you that for every [i]careless word that people [j]speak, they will give an account of it on the (S)day of judgment. 37 For [k]by your words you will be justified, and [l]by your words you will be condemned.”

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 12:22 Lit Him
  2. Matthew 12:22 Lit saw
  3. Matthew 12:24 Or Beezebul; meaning uncertain, perhaps lord prince, referring to Satan
  4. Matthew 12:26 Lit was
  5. Matthew 12:27 See note v 24
  6. Matthew 12:33 Lit make
  7. Matthew 12:33 Lit make
  8. Matthew 12:34 Or brood
  9. Matthew 12:36 Or useless
  10. Matthew 12:36 Lit will speak
  11. Matthew 12:37 Or in accordance with
  12. Matthew 12:37 Or in accordance with

Jesus and Beelzebul(A)

22 Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see.(B) 23 All the people were astonished and said, “Could this be the Son of David?”(C)

24 But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul,(D) the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.”(E)

25 Jesus knew their thoughts(F) and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. 26 If Satan(G) drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? 27 And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul,(H) by whom do your people(I) drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. 28 But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God(J) has come upon you.

29 “Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can plunder his house.

30 “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.(K) 31 And so I tell you, every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.(L) 32 Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age(M) or in the age to come.(N)

33 “Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit.(O) 34 You brood of vipers,(P) how can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks(Q) what the heart is full of. 35 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. 36 But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. 37 For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”(R)

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19 and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.

20 And He *came [a](A)home, and the (B)crowd *gathered again, (C)to such an extent that they could not even eat [b]a meal. 21 And when (D)His own [c]people heard about this, they came out to take custody of Him; for they were saying, “(E)He has lost His senses.” 22 The scribes who came down (F)from Jerusalem were saying, “He [d]is possessed by [e](G)Beelzebul,” and “(H)He casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons.” 23 (I)And so He called them to Himself and began speaking to them in (J)parables: “How can (K)Satan cast out Satan? 24 And if a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 If a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. 26 And if (L)Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but [f]he is finished! 27 (M)But no one can enter the strong man’s house and plunder his property unless he first ties up the strong man, and then he will plunder his house.

28 (N)Truly I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons and daughters of men, and whatever blasphemies they commit; 29 but (O)whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin” 30 because they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”

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Footnotes

  1. Mark 3:20 Lit into a house
  2. Mark 3:20 Lit bread
  3. Mark 3:21 Or family
  4. Mark 3:22 Lit has Beelzebul
  5. Mark 3:22 One early ms Beezebul; some early ancient versions Beelzebub
  6. Mark 3:26 Lit he has an end

19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

Jesus Accused by His Family and by Teachers of the Law(A)(B)

20 Then Jesus entered a house, and again a crowd gathered,(C) so that he and his disciples were not even able to eat.(D) 21 When his family[a] heard about this, they went to take charge of him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.”(E)

22 And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem(F) said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul!(G) By the prince of demons he is driving out demons.”(H)

23 So Jesus called them over to him and began to speak to them in parables:(I) “How can Satan(J) drive out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. 26 And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come. 27 In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house without first tying him up. Then he can plunder the strong man’s house.(K) 28 Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.”(L)

30 He said this because they were saying, “He has an impure spirit.”

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Footnotes

  1. Mark 3:21 Or his associates