Mark 3:20–35

A House Divided Cannot Stand

²⁰And he went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they were not even able to eat a meal. ²¹And when^* his family^h heard this,^* they went out to restrain him, for they were saying, “He has lost his mind!”

²²And the scribes who had come down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul!” and “By the ruler of the demons he expels the demons!” ²³And he called them to himself and^* was speaking to them in parables, “How can Satan expel Satan? ²⁴And if a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom is not able to stand. ²⁵And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. ²⁶And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he is not able to stand, but is at an end! ²⁷But no one is able to enter into the house of a strong man and^* plunder his property unless he first ties up the strong man, and then he can thoroughly plunder his house.

²⁸“Truly I say to you that all the sins and the blasphemies will be forgiven the sons of men, however much they blaspheme. ²⁹But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit does not have forgiveness forever,ⁱ but is guilty of an eternal sin”—³⁰because they were saying, “He has an unclean spirit.”

Jesus’ Mother and Brothers

³¹And his mother and his brothers arrived, and standing outside, they sent word to him to summon him. ³²And a crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, “Behold, your mother and your brothers^j are outside looking for you.” ³³And he answered them and^* said, “Who is my mother or^k my brothers?” ³⁴And looking around at those who were sitting around him in a circle, he said, “Behold, my mother and my brothers! ³⁵For whoever does the will of God, this person is my brother and sister and mother.”