Matthew 12:22-45

221Then a 2demon-possessed man who was blind and mute was brought to 3Jesus, and He healed him, so that the mute man spoke and saw. 23All the crowds were amazed, and were saying, “This man cannot be the 4Son of David, can he?” 24But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “This man 5casts out demons only by 6Beelzebul the ruler of the demons.”

257And 8knowing their thoughts Jesus said to them, “9Any kingdom divided against itself is laid waste; and 10any city or house divided against itself will not stand. 26If 11Satan casts out Satan, he 12is divided against himself; how then will his kingdom stand? 27If I 13by 14Beelzebul cast out demons, 15by whom do your sons cast them out? For this reason they will be your judges. 28But 16if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29Or how can anyone enter the strong man’s house and carry off his property, unless he first binds the strong man? And then he will plunder his house. 3017He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters.

31“18Therefore I say to you, any sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven people, but blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven. 3219Whoever 20speaks a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whoever 21speaks against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, either in 22this age or in the age to come.

33“Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for 23the tree is known by its fruit. 3424You brood of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak 25what is good? 26For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart. 3527The good man brings out of his good treasure 28what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure 29what is evil. 36But I tell you that every 30careless word that people 31speak, they shall give an accounting for it in 32the day of judgment. 37For 33by your words you will be justified, and 34by your words you will be condemned.”

38Then some of the scribes and Pharisees said to Him, “Teacher, 35we want to see a 36sign from You.” 39But He answered and said to them, “37An evil and adulterous generation craves for a 38sign; and yet no 39sign will be given to it but the 40sign of Jonah the prophet; 40for just as 41Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will 42the Son of Man be 43three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 4144The men of Nineveh will stand up with this generation at the judgment, and will condemn it because 45they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, 46something greater than Jonah is here. 4247The Queen of the South will rise up with this generation at the judgment and will condemn it, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, 48something greater than Solomon is here.

43“49Now when the unclean spirit goes out of a man, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and does not find it. 44Then it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came’; and when it comes, it finds it unoccupied, swept, and put in order. 45Then it goes and takes along with it seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there; and 50the last state of that man becomes worse than the first. That is the way it will also be with this evil generation.”