Mark 3:22 Study Bible: And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebul," and, "By the prince of the demons he casts out the demons."

◄ Mark 3:22 ►

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."

Study Bible

And the scribes
The "scribes" were experts in the Jewish Law, often associated with the Pharisees. They were highly respected for their knowledge and interpretation of the Scriptures. In the context of Mark 3:22, these scribes had traveled from Jerusalem, the religious epicenter of Judaism, indicating the seriousness of their mission to confront Jesus. Their presence underscores the growing concern among Jewish leaders about Jesus' influence and the threat He posed to their authority.

who had come down from Jerusalem
Jerusalem was the center of Jewish religious life, home to the Temple and the Sanhedrin, the highest Jewish court. The phrase "come down" reflects the geographical descent from the elevated city of Jerusalem to the lower regions of Galilee. This journey signifies the importance of the mission, as these scribes were dispatched to investigate and challenge Jesus' ministry, which was gaining significant attention and followers.

were saying
The continuous tense of "were saying" suggests that the scribes repeatedly accused Jesus, indicating a persistent effort to undermine His authority and discredit His works. This ongoing accusation reflects their determination to sway public opinion against Jesus and protect their own religious standing.

'He is possessed by Beelzebul,'
"Beelzebul" is a name associated with a Philistine god, later used in Jewish texts to refer to a chief demon or Satan himself. The accusation that Jesus was "possessed by Beelzebul" was a serious charge, implying that His miraculous works were not of divine origin but rather the result of demonic influence. This blasphemous claim was intended to sow doubt among the people about Jesus' true nature and the source of His power.

and, 'By the prince of demons
The "prince of demons" refers to Satan, the leader of demonic forces. By attributing Jesus' ability to cast out demons to Satan, the scribes were attempting to invert the truth, portraying good as evil. This accusation was not only a denial of Jesus' divine authority but also a direct challenge to His mission to bring the Kingdom of God to earth.

He drives out demons.'
The act of driving out demons was a clear demonstration of Jesus' authority over evil. In the Jewish context, exorcism was a sign of divine power and favor. By claiming that Jesus did so by demonic power, the scribes were attempting to negate the evidence of His divine mission. This accusation highlights the spiritual blindness and hardness of heart of the religious leaders, who refused to acknowledge the work of God in their midst.

Persons / Places / Events

1. Scribes
Religious leaders and scholars of the Jewish law who were often in opposition to Jesus. They were influential in Jewish society and were responsible for interpreting the law.

2. Jerusalem
The religious and cultural center of Judaism. The scribes coming from Jerusalem indicates the seriousness of their mission to confront Jesus.

3. Beelzebul
A name used for a demonic figure, often associated with Satan. The name likely derives from a Philistine god, Baal-Zebub, meaning "lord of the flies," and was used by Jews to refer to the prince of demons.

4. Demons
Spiritual beings opposed to God, often causing harm or possession in individuals. Jesus frequently cast out demons as part of His ministry.

5. Jesus
The central figure of the New Testament, whose authority and power over demons are being questioned by the scribes in this passage.

Teaching Points

Understanding Opposition
Recognize that Jesus faced significant opposition from religious leaders, which can be expected for His followers as well. Stand firm in faith despite criticism or misunderstanding.

Discernment of Spirits
Be aware of the spiritual battle and the reality of demonic forces. Seek the Holy Spirit's guidance to discern truth from deception.

Authority of Jesus
Acknowledge Jesus' supreme authority over all spiritual forces. Trust in His power to overcome evil in our lives and the world.

Guarding Against Blasphemy
Understand the seriousness of attributing the work of the Holy Spirit to evil. Guard your heart and speech to honor God.

Unity in the Kingdom
Reflect on Jesus' teaching about a divided kingdom. Strive for unity within the body of Christ to effectively advance His kingdom.

Bible Study Questions

1. What does the accusation by the scribes reveal about their understanding of Jesus' ministry and authority?

2. How does Jesus' response to the scribes in the surrounding verses challenge their perception of His power?

3. In what ways can we discern the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives and avoid the error of the scribes?

4. How can we apply the principle of unity in the kingdom of God to our local church community?

5. Reflect on a time when you faced opposition for your faith. How can Jesus' example in this passage encourage you to respond?

Connections to Other Scriptures

Matthew 12:24-32
This passage parallels Mark 3:22 and expands on Jesus' response to the accusation, emphasizing the unforgivable sin of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.

Luke 11:14-23
Another parallel account that provides additional context to the accusation and Jesus' teaching on a divided kingdom.

John 8:48-52
The Jews accuse Jesus of having a demon, showing a recurring theme of misunderstanding and opposition to His divine authority.

Acts 19:13-16
Demonstrates the power of Jesus' name over demons, contrasting the failed attempts of others to cast out demons without true authority.

Sermons

The Mistakes of Christ's Foes and Friends	Alexander Maclaren	Mark 3:22
Retirement	R. Green	Mark 3:7-35
The Saviour Judged by the World	A.F. Muir	Mark 3:20-22
Mistaken Friends and Malignant Foes	J.J. Given	Mark 3:20-30
The Sin Against the Holy Spirit	E. Johnson	Mark 3:20-30
For or Against	C. S. Robinson, D. D.	Mark 3:22-26
Interested Lying	H. R. Haweis, M. A.	Mark 3:22-26
Opposition from Foes and from Friends	E. Stock.	Mark 3:22-26
Satan not Self-Destructive		Mark 3:22-26
Scribes -- a Literal Knowledge of Scripture Vain	G. Petter.	Mark 3:22-26

People

Alphaeus, Andrew, Bartholomew, Beelzebub, Boanerges, Herodians, James, Jesus, John, Judas, Matthew, Peter, Philip, Simon, Thaddaeus, Thomas, Zabdi, Zebedee

Places

Capernaum, Galilee, Idumea, Jerusalem, Jordan River, Judea, Sea of Galilee, Sidon, Tyre

Topics

Baal-zebul, Beelzeboul, Beelzebub, Beelzebul, Be-el'zebul, Cast, Casteth, Casts, Demons, Devils, Driving, Evil, Expels, Jerusalem, Law, Possessed, Power, Prince, Ruler, Saying, Scribes, Sends, Spirits

Dictionary of Bible Themes

Mark 3:22

     2351   Christ, miracles
     4124   Satan, kingdom of
     5202   accusation, false
     5459   prince
     5815   confusion
     7552   Pharisees, attitudes to Christ
     8747   false gods
     8836   unbelief, response
     8843   unforgivable sin

Mark 3:20-22

5401 madness

Mark 3:21-22

2054 Christ, mind of
2545 Christ, opposition to

Mark 3:22-26

2012 Christ, authority
4160 driving out

Mark 3:22-27

3245 Holy Spirit, blasphemy against
7464 teachers of the law

Mark 3:22-30

3045 Holy Spirit, sovereignty
4133 demons, possession by

Library

And Judas Iscariot
AND JUDAS ISCARIOT TEXT: "And Judas Iscariot."--Mark 3:19. There is something about the name of this miserable man which commands our attention at once. There is a sort of fascination about his wickedness, and when we read his story it is difficult to give it up until we have come to its awful end. It is rather significant, it would seem to me, that his name should come last in the list of the Apostles, and the text, "And Judas Iscariot," would suggest to me not only that his name was last, but …
J. Wilbur Chapman—And Judas Iscariot

'He is Beside Himself'
'And when His friends heard of it, they went out to lay hold on Him: for they said, He is beside Himself'--Mark iii. 21. There had been great excitement in the little town of Capernaum in consequence of Christ's teachings and miracles. It had been intensified by His infractions of the Rabbinical Sabbath law, and by His appointment of the twelve Apostles. The sacerdotal party in Capernaum apparently communicated with Jerusalem, with the result of bringing a deputation from the Sanhedrim to look into …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Christ's Relations
'Whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is My brother, and My sister, and mother.'--Mark iii. 35. There was a conspiracy to seize Jesus because He is 'mad,' and Mary was in the plot! I. The example for us. (1) Of how all natural and human ties and affections are to be subordinated to doing God's will. Obedience to Him is the first and main thing to which everything else bows, and which determines everything. If others compete or interfere, reject them. Out of that common obedience new ties …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Anger and Grief of Jesus
He looked round about on them with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts.'--Mark iii. 5. Our Lord goes into the synagogue at Capernaum, where He had already wrought more than one miracle, and there He finds an object for His healing power, in a poor man with a withered hand; and also a little knot of His enemies. The scribes and Pharisees expect Christ to heal the man. So much had they learned of His tenderness and of His power. But their belief that He could work a miracle did not …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Mistakes of Christ's Foes and Friends
'And the scribes which came down from Jerusalem said, He hath Beelzebub, and by the prince of the devils casteth He out devils. 23. And He called them unto Him, and said unto them in parables, How can Satan cast out Satan? 24. And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25. And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand. 26. And if Satan rise up against himself, and be divided, he cannot stand, but hath an end. 27. No man can enter into a strong man's …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Christ's Kindred
'There came then His brethren and His mother, and, standing without, sent unto Him, calling Him. 32. And the multitude sat about Him; and they said unto Him, Behold, Thy mother and Thy brethren without seek for Thee. 33. And He answered them, saying, Who is My mother, or My brethren? 34. And He looked round about on them which sat about Him, and said, Behold My mother and My brethren! 35. For whosoever shall do the will of God, the same is My brother, and My sister, and mother.'--Mark iii. 31-35. …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Ambassadors for Christ
'And the Pharisees went forth, and straightway took counsel with the Herodlans against Him, how they might destroy Him. 7. But Jesus withdrew Himself with His disciples to the sea: and a great multitude from Galilee followed Him, and from Judaa 8. And from Jerusalem, and from Idumaa beyond Jordan; and they about Tyre and Sidon, a great multitude, when they had heard what great things He did, came unto Him. 9. And He spake to His disciples, that a small ship should wait on Him because of the multitude, …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Necessity of Divine Influences. [*Continued]
Luke xi. 13.--"If ye, then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children; how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him." In expounding the doctrine of these words, in the preceding discourse, the argument for the necessity of Divine influences had reference to the more general aspects of man's character and condition. We were concerned with the origin of seriousness in view of a future life, and the production of a sense of moral corruption and …
William G.T. Shedd—Sermons to the Natural Man

Jesus Angry with Hard Hearts
But I must not let imagination mislead me: they did nothing of the kind. Instead of this, they sat watching the Lord Jesus, not to be delighted by an act of his power, but to find somewhat of which they might accuse him. When all came to all, the utmost that they would be able to allege would be that he had healed a withered hand on the Sabbath. Overlooking the commendation due for the miracle of healing, they laid the emphasis upon its being done on the Sabbath; and held up their hands with horror …
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 32: 1886

Mutual Help.
(Female Friendly Society.) S. MARK iii. 35. "Whosoever shall do the Will of God, the same is My brother, and My sister, and My mother." There are just two points which I want to put before you to-day. First, what you as Christian women ought to be. Secondly, how you can help each other to be so. On the first point I would ask you to remember the glory and dignity of womanhood. You get this dignity from Jesus Christ, who was born of a woman, and who said, "Whosoever shall do the Will of God, the …
H. J. Wilmot-Buxton—The Life of Duty, a Year's Plain Sermons, v. 2

The Eccentricity of Religion
"They said, He is beside Himself,"--MARK iii. 21. THE most pathetic life in the history of the world is the life of the Lord Jesus. Those who study it find out, every day, a fresh sorrow. Before He came it was already foretold that He would be acquainted with grief, but no imagination has ever conceived the darkness of the reality. It began with one of the bitterest kinds of sorrow--the sorrow of an enforced silence. For thirty years He saw, but dared not act. The wrongs He came to redress were there. …
Henry Drummond—The Ideal Life

The Hardening Operation of Love.
"Being grieved for the hardness of their heart."--Mark iii. 5. Love may also be reversed. Failing to cherish, to uplift, and to enrich, it consumes and destroys. This is a mystery which man can not fathom. It belongs to the unsearchable depths of the divine Being, of which we do not wish to know more than has been revealed. But this does not alter the fact. No creature can exclude itself from the divine control. No man can say that he has nothing to do with God; that he or any other creature exists …
Abraham Kuyper—The Work of the Holy Spirit

Life and Character of John
"Volat avis sine meta, Quo nec votes nec propheta Evolavit altius: Tam implenda quam impleta, Numquam vidit tot secreta Purus homo purius. (Adam of St. Victor.) The Mission of John. Peter, the Jewish apostle of authority, and Paul, the Gentile apostle of freedom, had done their work on earth before the destruction of Jerusalem--had done it for their age and for all ages to come; had done it, and by the influence of their writings are doing it still, in a manner that can never be superseded. Both …
Philip Schaff—History of the Christian Church, Volume I

Whether the Sin against the Holy Ghost is the Same as the Sin Committed through Certain Malice?
Objection 1: It would seem that the sin against the Holy Ghost is not the same as the sin committed through certain malice. Because the sin against the Holy Ghost is the sin of blasphemy, according to Mat. 12:32. But not every sin committed through certain malice is a sin of blasphemy: since many other kinds of sin may be committed through certain malice. Therefore the sin against the Holy Ghost is not the same as the sin committed through certain malice. Objection 2: Further, the sin committed through …
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica

The Great Schism
If a house be divided against itself.--Mark iii, 25. From such a revival as that of the Great Awakening, parties must of necessity arise. Upon undisciplined fanaticism, the Established church must frown. But when it undertook to discipline large numbers of church members or whole churches, recognizedly within its embracing fold and within their lawful privileges, a great schism resulted, and the schismatics were sufficiently tenacious of their rights to come out victorious in their long contest for …
M. Louise Greene, Ph. D.—The Development of Religious Liberty in Connecticut

The Abrogation of the Saybrook Platform
That house cannot stand.--Mark iii, 25. The times change and we change with them.--Proverb. The omission of all persecuting acts from the revision of the laws in 1750 was evidence that the worst features of the great schism were passing, that public opinion as a whole had grown averse to any great severity toward the Separatists as dissenters. But the continuance in the revised statutes of the Saybrook Platform as the legalized constitution of the "Presbyterian, Congregational or Consociated Church," …
M. Louise Greene, Ph. D.—The Development of Religious Liberty in Connecticut

The Apostle Judas
"And Judas Iscariot, which also betrayed Him." MARK 3:19 (R.V.) THE evidential value of what has been written about the apostles will, to some minds, seem to be overborne by the difficulties which start up at the name of Judas. And yet the fact that Jesus chose him -- that awful fact which has offended many -- is in harmony with all that we see around us, with the prodigious powers bestowed upon Napoleon and Voltaire, bestowed in full knowledge of the dark results, yet given because the issues of …
G. A. Chadwick—The Gospel of St. Mark

The Withered Hand
"And He entered again into the synagogue; and there was a man there which had his hand withered. And they watched Him, whether He would heal him on the sabbath day; that they might accuse Him. And He saith unto the man that had his hand withered, Stand forth. And He saith unto them, Is it lawful on the sabbath day to do good or to do harm? to save a life, or to kill? But they held their peace. And when He had looked round about on them with anger, being grieved at the hardening of their heart, He …
G. A. Chadwick—The Gospel of St. Mark

Characteristics of the Twelve
"And He appointed twelve, that they might be with Him, and that He might send them forth to preach, and to have authority to cast out devils: and Simon He surnamed Peter; and James the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James; and them He surnamed Boanerges, which is, Sons of thunder; and Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddeaus, and Simon the Cananean, and Judas Iscariot which also betrayed Him." MARK 3:14-19 (R.V.) THE pictures …
G. A. Chadwick—The Gospel of St. Mark

Christ and Beelzebub
"And the multitude cometh together again, so that they could not so much as eat bread. And when his friends heard it, they went out to lay hold on Him: for they said, He is beside Himself. And the scribes which came down from Jerusalem said, He hath Beelzebub, and, By the prince of the devils casteth He out the devils. And He called them unto Him, and said unto them in parables, How can Satan cast out Satan? And if a kingdom be divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if an house be …
G. A. Chadwick—The Gospel of St. Mark

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