Jesus talks about Satan
20 Then Jesus went into a house. A crowd of people came together there again. There were so many people that Jesus and his disciples were not even able to eat. 21 People told his family what was happening. So they went to take him away with them. They did this because many people were saying that Jesus was crazy.
22 Some teachers of God's Law came from Jerusalem. They said, ‘Jesus has a bad spirit called Beelzebul in him. That is Satan, the one who rules all the demons. This man can send demons out of people because Satan gives him authority.’
3:22Beelzebul is another name for Satan. They are both names for God's greatest enemy.
23 So Jesus spoke to the teachers of God's Law. He used stories to talk to them. He said, ‘Come here and listen to me. Satan would not fight against himself! 24 If armies in the same country start to fight each other, then they will destroy their own country. 25 And if the people in one family start to fight against each other, they will destroy their own family. 26 So Satan would not attack himself. If he did that, he would destroy his own power. That would be the end of him.
27 Nobody can easily go into the house of a strong man to rob him. To do that, he must first tie up the strong man. Then he can take away all that man's valuable things. 28 I tell you this. God can forgive all the wrong things that people do. He can also forgive people who say bad things against him. 29 But God will never forgive people who say bad things against the Holy Spirit. Those people will always be guilty of a terrible sin.’
30 Jesus said that to the teachers of God's Law because they had said, ‘Jesus has a bad spirit in him.’
