Matthew 12:22-26

Rachel Workman: ²² Then a demon-possessed man, who was blind and couldn’t speak, was brought to Jesus. He healed the man so that he could both speak and see. ²³ The crowd was amazed and asked, “Could it be that Jesus is the Son of David, the Messiah?”

²⁴ But when the Pharisees heard about the miracle, they said, “No wonder he can cast out demons. He gets his power from Satan,^[d] the prince of demons.”

²⁵ Jesus knew their thoughts and replied, “Any kingdom divided by civil war is doomed. A town or family splintered by feuding will fall apart. ²⁶ And if Satan is casting out Satan, he is divided and fighting against himself. His own kingdom will not survive. I know I've read this before but today it seems like a new passage to me. We should be very careful what we allow to take root in our hearts. Because Satan is not divided and he has set out to destroy. Anything and anyone he can and he uses reasonable logic to do it.

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John Burnett:  ²² Then a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute was brought to ^[a]Jesus, and He healed him, so that the mute man spoke and saw. ²³ All the crowds were amazed, and were saying, “This man cannot be the Son of David, can he?” ²⁴ But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “This man casts out demons only by ^[b]Beelzebul the ruler of the demons.”

²⁵ And knowing their thoughts Jesus said to them, “^[c]Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and ^[d]any city or house divided against itself will not stand. ²⁶ If Satan casts out Satan, he ^[e]is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand? Sin destroys itself.  Satan thought when Jesus was hanging on the cross that he had won the war but all he was doing was guaranteeing his destruction.  Those who worship Satan are worshiping the one who will destroy them.  It makes absolutely no sense.

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Allen Michaels:  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. ²³ All the people were astonished and said, “Could this be the Son of David?”

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

²⁵ Jesus knew their thoughts 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 drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand?

Which condition is worse -- physical blindness or spiritual darkness?  Matthew describes a demonized man who was brought to Jesus so he could be healed.  This man was not just physically unable to see or speak.  He was spiritually oppressed as well.  Fortunately his friends brought him to the one who could set him free from his physical and spiritual affliction. Satan loves to keep people in darkness and in fear.  He will use whatever means possible, whether it be a physical weakness, a mental affliction, some emotional trouble, or an addiction, to lead people into despair and bitterness, so that they end up distrusting God and his love for them.  Jesus has power to set us free from any affliction that might keep us in bondage to fear, sin and despair. Jesus' ability to set people free from crippling infirmities and from spiritual illness amazed those who witnessed his miracles. No one had done such marvelous works before. When they saw what Jesus did, they openly wondered among themselves if this might be the "Son of David", a title for the expected Messiah. The Lord wants us to approach him with the same awe and expectant faith as those who brought the "blind and dumb" and the oppressed to Jesus.

Jesus asserts that no nation, city, or house divided against itself can survive for long. We have witnessed enough strife, genocide, and civil wars in our own time between peoples and nations who cannot tolerate one another or live peaceably side by side. Strife, prejudice and division inevitably lead to disharmony, hostility, and bitter fighting. Jesus said it would not make any sense for Satan to give anyone else the power and authority to undo the chain of allegiance which his armies give solely to him. If Satan lends his power against his own spiritual forces then he is certainly finished and his army is made weak and powerless.