Matthew 12:14-28

Matthew 12:14-28 NIV

But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus. Aware of this, Jesus withdrew from that place. A large crowd followed him, and he healed all who were ill. He warned them not to tell others about him. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: 

“Here is my servant whom I have chosen, the one I love, in whom I delight; 
I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations.
 He will not quarrel or cry out; no one will hear his voice in the streets.
 A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he has brought justice through to victory.
 In his name the nations will put their hope.”

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. All the people were astonished and said, “Could this be the Son of David?” But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.”
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. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.

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After Jesus had healed the man with the deformed hand at the synagogue, the religious leaders began to plot His death. Jesus left the area but crowds followed Him. He had compassion and healed them all, but His opponents said that He drove out demons by the power of the prince of demons, Beelzebul.

An alternate version of the name is Beelzebub. Some scholars consider the name to be a variation of a Ekronite god, meaning Lord of Dung or Lord of Flies. blueletterbible.com renders the meaning Lord of the House.

Strong's Definitions:

Βεελζεβούλ (Beelzeboúl, beh-el-zeb-ool'); of Chaldee origin; dung-god; Beelzebul, a name of Satan:—Beelzebub.

Basically the Pharisees were saying Jesus exorcises demons in the name and authority of Satan. In other words Jesus is an imposter, a false prophet, performing illusions with the power of evil.

Jesus reasoned that a kingdom divided will fall. So if Satan drives out his own demons, then the rule of Satan over this earth will end. That is in itself an ironic prophecy, for that is exactly what is happening. The kingdom of Christ is destroying the kingdom of darkness.

Colossians 1:13; 2:15 NIV

For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves...
And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.

Jesus' point is hard to argue, although one could reason that Satan allowed miracles and exorcism against his own minions to fool the people. He will do so through the Antichrist.

2 Thessalonians 2:9 NIV

The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with how Satan works. He will use all sorts of displays of power through signs and wonders that serve the lie,

Matthew 24:24 NIV

For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.

But we know Jesus is no false prophet, nor a worker of evil. The conclusion the Pharisees should draw is a happy one. The messiah has come, for He has performed yet another messianic sign, the healing of a deaf mute through exorcism. This is more evidence surrounding the ministry of Jesus that the kingdom of God has come.

When Matthew uses the phrase kingdom of heaven, it's the same meaning as kingdom of God, which he uses in this passage almost uncharacteristically. The leading theory, about Matthew being the only place you will see the phrase kingdom of heaven in the New Testament, is that He is honoring the Jewish tradition to exchange the name of God for something else, so as not to misuse the divine name in any way. This is confusing for modern readers. When we see the word heaven we immediately think of the happy ever after. That is not what Jesus is taking about. He is talking about the righteous and just reign of God upon the earth.

In the Lord's Prayer, we pray, "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven". Therefore heaven is where God's will is done. And wherever on earth God's will is done, there is a little slice of heaven.

The good news is that the kingdom, or rather the good government of God, is here now through those who pursue and carry out His will through the leadership and empowerment of the Holy Spirit. More about Him tomorrow.

May the Lord always lead you to do His will on earth. And if you are bedeviled such that you cannot hear the truth about Jesus, if you are unable to witness to His name, then may the power of the Holy Spirit overshadow you and birth faith in Christ in you, so that you too may be healed and liberated from the madness that is tearing apart humanity.