But *he*, knowing their thoughts, said to them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation and a house set against a house falls;
Jesus has just driven out a demon, and some in the crowd say He does it by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons. His reply is not an outburst but an argument: whatever fights itself destroys itself.
They spread the charge among the crowd instead of bringing it to His face. He answered it anyway.
He openly proved their suggestion wrong, though it seems they had not the courage to say it in front of Him. There are times when one may leave an objection unnoticed. We see an example of this in Mark 3:21, where the Lord's friends said He was out of His mind. Of that it appears He took no notice. But there are other times when the enemy must be met boldly, and his suggestions or accusations clearly proved wrong. … Making this plain was enough to refute it completely. Yet it needed to be done, for experience teaches how easily the crowd is led away by sound without substance — that is, by foolish statements which will not stand up to examination.
Notice how He knew what to answer.
So He reads their very thoughts — a miracle in itself, which should have startled them.
He points to something any listener could confirm from ordinary life.
All worldly experience proves that division and rivalry in a community lead to break-up. It is a universal rule that unity is strength. A kingdom or a household divided against itself cannot last. And if Satan had turned against himself, as the words of the scribes implied, he could not continue; he would have to destroy himself.
Put the charge beside that rule and it falls apart. It needs an enemy who is busy wrecking his own power.
Man had already been tested by power. Anyone who could credit the casting out of Satan to Satan himself stood self-condemned. It would make Satan more foolish than the most foolish man, for it is a universal principle that a kingdom divided against itself cannot stand. Can it be thought that Satan deliberately destroys his own kingdom and himself? Is he really suicidal? The Jews then showed how far they had fallen when they attributed to Satan the power that cast out demons.
The argument only works if the enemy really is a ruler with something to lose.
It is inconceivable that the Devil could supply the power to destroy his own kingdom, which he controls. The passage is full of meaning apart from the argument it contains. He who knows all things in perfect knowledge tells us that Satan is a person and a king. He has a kingdom over which he rules. The demons are in his kingdom, one with the head in thought and purpose. (The translation "devils" is not correct. There is one devil, but the fallen angels are demons.)
Ruling out one explanation leaves the true one.
The compassionate Saviour stooped to reason with His evil critics. … The true position was this. Satan, as the strong one, had long kept his captives in peace. Now a Stronger had come, with power to overcome him and divide the spoils. … He has met the enemy in his last stronghold — death — and has defeated him, putting away sin as He did so. Every child of Adam can be set free from Satan's grip at once by appealing to the Saviour's grace. Souls in distress over sin need not trouble themselves with the ways and criticism of quarrelsome religious people. The Saviour is their true resource; let them cast themselves on Him.
- Known — They muttered the charge behind His back. He answered their thoughts before they became words.
- Reasoned — He met slander with plain logic: what fights itself falls, whether it is a kingdom or a household.
- Absurd — If Satan drove out Satan, he would be wrecking his own rule. That makes him more foolish than the most foolish man.
- Real — The argument assumes a real ruler with a real kingdom. There is one devil, and many demons, united under their head.
- Stronger — The enemy was not defeating himself. Someone stronger had come, and He still breaks that grip today for anyone who appeals to His grace.
and if also Satan is divided against himself, how shall his kingdom subsist? because ye say that I cast out demons by Beelzebub.
The crowd muttered that Jesus drove out demons by the ruler of the demons, but no one said it to His face. His reply is simple: a kingdom at war with itself falls, so Satan driving out Satan would be destroying himself.
He did not let the charge pass. Some objections can be ignored; this one could not.
He openly refuted their suggestion, which it seems they had not the courage to make in front of Him... There are occasions when one may leave objections unnoticed... But there are times when one must boldly meet the enemy and plainly refute his suggestions or accusations. So the Lord now showed the folly of these people. There is no folly people will not stoop to in opposing the work of God!... For experience teaches how easily a crowd follows words that sound impressive but say nothing, that is to say, foolish statements which do not stand up to examination.
"Beelzebub" was their title for the head of the demons, and its origins are debated.
The meaning of this word is much disputed. Some connect it with BAAL-ZEBUB, "lord of the fly," in the Old Testament. Others believe it is a term of contempt, meaning "lord of dung." The Jews, who blasphemously charged the Lord with casting out demons by Beelzebul (the correct spelling), call him "the prince of the demons." They meant that the head of those demons gave the Lord the power to cast them out. The Lord shows the folly of supposing that the same evil one who was seeking to build up a kingdom should at the same time be the means of pulling it down. He also denounces the dreadful blasphemy of saying that the work done by the Holy Spirit was done by the influence of Satan. This blasphemy against the Holy Spirit was the sin that should never be forgiven.
The Lord's question exposes what the accusation would require of Satan.
The Lord discerned the working of their minds and showed them their inconsistency. Satan claimed that the Lord is using his own (Satan's) power to cast out demons, but if this were the case Satan's kingdom would be divided against itself. It could not possibly stand: it would ruin itself immediately. Satan is certainly not going to use his power deliberately against himself.
Notice what the words take for granted. To speak of a kingdom is to speak of a ruler and of subjects under him.
The passage is full of meaning apart from the argument it contains. He who knows all things in perfect knowledge tells us that Satan is a person and a king, for he has a kingdom over which he rules. The demons are in his kingdom, one with the head in thought and purpose. (The translation "devils" is not correct. There is one devil, but the fallen angels are demons.) How little we know of his awful power, of his kingdom and the agencies at his command to destroy body and soul! We need not know it all. It is enough to know that he is a defeated enemy. The victor has plundered his kingdom. He has annulled the one who had the power of death, that is, the Devil.
He quotes their own sentence back to them, and it collapses under its own weight.
Man is put to the proof here again. He had already been tested by power. The man who could credit Satan with the very thing that cast out Satan condemned himself. It would make Satan more foolish than the most foolish man. A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand — that rule holds everywhere. Can it be thought that Satan deliberately destroys his own kingdom and himself? Is he really suicidal?
The argument does not stop here. Someone stronger than the strong man must have entered his house.
The very style in which He conducts the argument has a beauty and an order. He begins with the gentler argument and then goes on to the stronger... Then He gives the parable of the strong man to show that it was by the finger of God He cast them out. The strong man only gets his house robbed by someone stronger than himself. God alone is stronger than Satan... Satan is not afraid of us, but he has more than his match in the Son of God. He is bold as a lion when he comes to you and me, but he trembles in the presence of Christ.
- Accusation — They muttered the charge behind His back. He answered it openly, because some attacks on God's work cannot be left alone.
- Absurdity — Their theory asks us to believe that Satan demolishes his own kingdom. No ruler works for his own ruin, so the explanation destroys itself before it can destroy Christ.
- Kingdom — Satan is a real person and a real king. The demons are one with him in purpose: one devil, many demons.
- Verdict — Their own words judge them. To credit Satan with the power that broke Satan is to condemn yourself, and to call the Spirit's work Satan's work is the sin that is never forgiven.
- Stronger — Only someone stronger can plunder the strong man's house. Satan is a beaten enemy: bold with us, but trembling before Christ.