Matthew 12:22–45

Jesus and Beelzebul

12:25–29pp—Mk 3:23–27; Lk 11:17–22

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

²⁴But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul,^s the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.”^t

²⁵Jesus knew their thoughts^u and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. ²⁶If Satan^v drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? ²⁷And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul,^w by whom do your people^x drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. ²⁸But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God^y 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.^{z 31}And so I tell you, every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.^{a 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^b or in the age to come.^c

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.^{d 34}You brood of vipers,^e how can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks^f what the heart is full of. ³⁵A 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. ³⁶But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. ³⁷For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”^g

The Sign of Jonah

12:39–42pp—Lk 11:29–32 12:43–45pp—Lk 11:24–26

³⁸Then some of the Pharisees and teachers of the law said to him, “Teacher, we want to see a sign^h from you.”ⁱ

³⁹He answered, “A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.^{j 40}For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish,^k so the Son of Man^l will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.^{m 41}The men of Ninevehⁿ will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah,^o and now something greater than Jonah is here. ⁴²The Queen of the South will rise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for she came^p from the ends of the earth to listen to Solomon’s wisdom, and now something greater than Solomon is here.

⁴³“When an impure spirit comes out of a person, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. ⁴⁴Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean and put in order. ⁴⁵Then it goes and takes with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that person is worse than the first.^q That is how it will be with this wicked generation.”