Matthew 12:23-29

J.B. Phillips New Testament

^22-23 Then a devil-possessed man who could neither see nor speak was brought to Jesus. He healed him, so that the dumb man could both speak and see. At this the whole crowd went wild with excitement, and people kept saying, “Can this be the Son of David?”

The Pharisees draw an evil conclusion, and Jesus rebukes them

²⁴ But the Pharisees on hearing this remark said to each other, “This man is only expelling devils because he is in league with Beelzebub, the prince of devils.”

^25-29 Jesus knew what they were thinking and said to them, “Any kingdom divided against itself is bound to collapse, and no town or household divided against itself can last for long. If it is Satan who is expelling Satan, then he is divided against himself—so how do you suppose that his kingdom can continue? And if I expel devils because I am an ally of Beelzebub, what alliance do your sons make when they do the same thing? They can settle that question for you! But if I am expelling devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has swept over you unawares! How do you suppose anyone could get into a strong man’s house and steal his property unless he first tied up the strong man? But if he did that, he could ransack his whole house.