And the scribes which came down from Jerusalem said, He hath Beelzebub, and by the prince of the devils casteth he out devils.
Parallel translations
- WEB The scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, “He has Beelzebul,” and, “By the prince of the demons he casts out the demons.”
- BSB And the scribes who had come down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and, “By the prince of the demons He drives out demons.”
- NKJV And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, “He has Beelzebub,” and, “By the ruler of the demons He casts out demons.”
- NASB The scribes who came down from Jerusalem were saying, “He is possessed by Beelzebul,” and “He casts out the demons by the ruler of the demons.”
- NLT But the teachers of religious law who had arrived from Jerusalem said, “He’s possessed by Satan, the prince of demons. That’s where he gets the power to cast out demons.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Scribes from Jerusalem accuse Jesus of casting out demons by the prince of demons. It matters because it is a grave attempt to credit Christ's holy work to Satan.
Overview
Unable to deny Jesus' power, the religious authorities attribute it to Beelzebul rather than to God. This slander turns the truth upside down, calling the work of the Holy Spirit the work of the devil. Jesus' response will expose the absurdity and the deadly seriousness of such willful blindness to God's evident work.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Matt 15:1Then came to Jesus scribes and Pharisees, which were of Jerusalem, saying,
- Matt 10:25It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household?
- Matt 12:24But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils.
- Matt 9:34But the Pharisees said, He casteth out devils through the prince of the devils.
- John 7:20The people answered and said, Thou hast a devil: who goeth about to kill thee?
- John 8:48Then answered the Jews, and said unto him, Say we not well that thou art a Samaritan, and hast a devil?
- Matt 11:18For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a devil.
- Mark 7:1Then came together unto him the Pharisees, and certain of the scribes, which came from Jerusalem.
- Luke 11:15But some of them said, He casteth out devils through Beelzebub the chief of the devils.
- John 8:52Then said the Jews unto him, Now we know that thou hast a devil. Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and thou sayest, If a man keep my saying, he shall never taste of death.
- Luke 5:17And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching, that there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, which were come out of every town of Galilee, and Judaea, and Jerusalem: and the power of the Lord was present to heal them.
- Ps 22:6But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people.
- John 10:22And it was at Jerusalem the feast of the dedication, and it was winter.
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Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'
How Mark 3:22 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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