22 Then was brought to him one possessed by a demon, blind and dumb, and he healed him, so that the dumb [man] spake and saw. 23 And all the crowds were amazed and said, Is this [man] the Son of David? 24 But the Pharisees, having heard [it], said, This [man] does not cast out demons, but by Beelzebub, prince of demons. 25 But he, knowing their thoughts, said to them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not subsist. 26 And if Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself; how then shall his kingdom subsist? 27 And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, your sons, by whom do they cast [them] out? For this reason they shall be your judges. 28 But if I by [the] Spirit of God cast out demons, then indeed the kingdom of God is come upon you. 29 Or how can any one enter into the house of the strong [man] and plunder his goods, unless first he bind the strong [man]? and then he will plunder his house. 30 He that is not with me is against me, and he that gathers not with me scatters.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Matthew 12:22-30
Commentary on Matthew 12:22-30
(Read Matthew 12:22-30)
A soul under Satan's power, and led captive by him, is blind in the things of God, and dumb at the throne of grace; sees nothing, and says nothing to the purpose. Satan blinds the eyes by unbelief, and seals up the lips from prayer. The more people magnified Christ, the more desirous the Pharisees were to vilify him. It was evident that if Satan aided Jesus in casting out devils, the kingdom of hell was divided against itself; how then could it stand! And if they said that Jesus cast out devils by the prince of the devils, they could not prove that their children cast them out by any other power. There are two great interests in the world; and when unclean spirits are cast out by the Holy Spirit, in the conversion of sinners to a life of faith and obedience, the kingdom of God is come unto us. All who do not aid or rejoice in such a change are against Christ.