Chapter 3
The following commentary is taken from verse-by-verse notes of Chuck Smith, Andrew Womack, and John Wesley. Also used at the notes of The Passion Translation and the New English Translation.
Verses 1-6.
Then Jesus entered the synagogue again, and a man was there who had a withered hand. 2 They watched Jesus closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they could accuse him. 3 So he said to the man who had the withered hand, “Stand up among all these people.” 4 Then he said to them, “Is it lawful to do good on the Sabbath, or evil, to save a life or destroy it?” But they were silent. 5 After looking around at them in anger, grieved by the hardness of their hearts, he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. 6 So the Pharisees went out immediately and began plotting with the Herodians, as to how they could assassinate him.
TPT notes. *Translates the relevant text in v. 5. “Then looking around at everyone, Jesus was moved with indignation and grieved by the hardness of their hearts and said to the man….” *The hand symbolizes holding, giving, receiving, doing. It was his right hand which brings the added significance of power and righteousness. A crippled right hand means an absence of these two things.
Smith. For according to their interpretation of the law, it was unlawful to heal a person on the Sabbath day. You could save a person's life, do what was necessary to save the life, but do nothing towards healing. Apply a tourniquet, stop the flow of blood to save his life, but don't put a band-aid on or don't wrap it up, don't wash it, don't put any sab on, because that's ministering towards his healing. And you can't do that until the sun goes down. You can't do that until the Sabbath day is over. Nothing to heal a person on the Sabbath day; only to save the life.
The hypocritical religious leaders understood Jesus better than His disciples that Jesus would be interested in helping the man with the withered hand. They knew that Jesus could not face a crippling area in a person's life without desiring to minister to that person and to help them. They knew instinctively that Jesus always sought to heal men when he came face to face with their suffering. And they knew that He would be interested in the man with the greatest need. And so, they watched Him to see if He would heal Him, because it was the Sabbath day. The person that Jesus is always most interested in is the person who has the greatest need.
The religious leaders, because of their traditions, would keep this man from experiencing the power of God in his life. They would keep God from setting him free, healing him would be contrary to their religious traditions, or their theological positions.
For a basic law, the moment you choose to will, to obey the command of Christ, in that very moment He will give you everything necessary for you to obey.
As He faces that blighted area in our life, that thing that has been destroying us and keeping us from real victory: that attitude, that temper, that weakness of our flesh, that area of our failure; and that's the thing that Jesus wants to address Himself to in our lives. Jesus didn't talk to him about his good hand and how well he was able to use the good hand. He was interested in the hand that wasn't working. He's interested in your life those things that aren't working properly. That's the thing that He wants to address Himself to. And He says to you, "Now be free and be delivered from that character and that part of your nature." You say, "Oh, but Lord, you don't know how hard I've tried, and you don't know how long, and you don't know..." Hey, He's not looking for an argument or looking for an excuse. He's telling you to do something. Don't argue with Him. Don't rehearse your past failures. Do it. You say, "But I can't." Of course, you can’t but do it anyhow. For if you will will to obey the command of Christ, He'll give you everything necessary. And the moment that you will do it, you'll say, "I won't do that anymore." Because He said, "Now don't do that again." "Oh, but Lord, I don't want to do it again, but you don't know, Lord." No. He said, "Don't do it again. Will to obey!" "All right, Lord, I won't do it again." And the moment you will obey, He will give you the capacity and the ability to obey.
Womack. Matthew and Luke record this miracle (Matthew 12:9-13; Luke 6:6-11). In Luke 6:6 it was he man’s right hand that was withered.
They were watching Jesus to accuse Him. To catch him doing something “wrong.”
Everyone watched Jesus to see if He would heal this man. So, the man probably knew what Jesus wanted to do. He had some degree of faith.
To meet this man’s need would have been to do good. To fail to meet his need, when Jesus had the power to do so, would have been evil.
Jesus had justifiable anger. He hated sin and hypocrisy, and so should we.
Jesus told the man to do something that he couldn’t do. But as he stepped out in faith to do what the Lord commanded; God’s supernatural power released him from that infirmity. We do what we can, and that releases God’s supernatural ability to enable us to do what we can’t do. Faith without works is dead (James 2:20).
Jesus displayed anger and grief, two emotions that are usually associated with sin. Of course, Jesus was without sin (2 Corinthians 5:21, Hebrews 4:15, and 1 Peter 2:22), so these emotions have their place when directed by God (Amos 5:15 and Romans 12:9).
The Pharisees weren’t mad at Jesus because He had healed a man on the Sabbath day. They didn’t care about the man or the Sabbath. They loved themselves, and Jesus had shown them to be hypocrites. They hated Jesus because He wouldn’t play their games. He didn’t play by their rules; therefore, they couldn’t win. It was all about their love for themselves. That’s what persecution is always about.
“Herodians,” composed of “Herod” and the familiar suffix “-ians,” designates partisans of Herod the Great or his dynasty (Herod Antipas). The Herodians were a political party rather than a religious sect. But the Pharisees occasionally “teamed up” with them in attempting to trick or accuse Jesus (Matthew 22:15-16 and Mark 12:13).
One other possibility is that the Herodians supported the Pharisees as “Jewish” nationals against the occupying Roman forces, which would explain the closer union. At any rate, their aversion to Jesus and what He was doing was enough to bring them together in a common cause.
Wesley. And they — The scribes and Pharisees, watched him, that they might accuse him - Pride, anger, and shame, after being so often put to silence, began now to ripen into malice. Is it lawful to save life or to kill? — Which he knew they were seeking occasion to do. But they held their peace — Being confounded, though not convinced. Looking round upon them with anger, being grieved — Angry at the sin, grieved at the sinner, the true standard of Christian anger. But who can separate anger at sin from anger at the sinner? None but a true believer in Christ. The Pharisees going out — Probably leaving the scribes to watch him still: took counsel with the Herodians - as bitter as they usually were against each other.
Verses 7-12.
And Jesus retired with His disciples to the lake, and a great throng from Galilee followed Him. Also from Judea, And from Jerusalem and Idumean and from beyond the Jordan and from about Tyre and Sidon—a vast multitude, hearing all the many things that He was doing, came to Him. And He told His disciples to have a little boat in constant readiness for Him because of the crowd, lest they press hard upon Him and crush Him. For He had healed so many that all who had distressing bodily diseases kept falling upon Him and pressing upon Him in order that they might touch Him. And the spirits, the unclean ones, as often as they might see Him, fell down before Him and kept screaming out, You are the Son of God! And He charged them strictly and severely under penalty again and again that they should not make Him known.
Then Jesus went away with his disciples to the Lake of Galilee, and a great multitude from Galilee followed him. And from Judea, 8 Jerusalem, Idumea, beyond the Jordan River, and around Tyre and Sidon a great multitude came to him when they heard about the things he had done. 9 Because of the crowd, he told his disciples to have a small boat ready for him so the crowd would not press toward him. 10 For he had healed many, so that all who were afflicted with diseases pressed toward him in order to touch him. 11 And whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, “You are the Son of God.” 12 But he sternly ordered them not to make him known.
Brewer. V. 7-8. From Jerusalem to Capernaum is 85 miles and would have taken 4 plus days to walk. From Southern Judea (Hebron) to Capernaum was about 100 miles (5 days walk). Even Northern Idumea (Edom) must have been 125 miles from Capernaum (6-7 days walk). Tyre is about 35 miles from Capernaum (better part of 2 days walk); Sidon is about 50 miles (2.5 days walk) from Capernaum. Galilee is most of modern Northern Israel. The distance from the Trans Jordon region could have been 80 miles to the east of Capernaum. It’s amazing! It’s also interesting. Tyre and Sidon are not Jewish cities. They are descendants of Canaanite. Tyre and Sidon are cities currently located in Jordan.
* Jesus did not permit the demons to make him known because the time for such disclosure was not yet at hand, and such a revelation would have certainly been misunderstood by the people. In all likelihood, if the people had understood him early on to be the Son of God, or Messiah, they would have reduced his mission to one of political deliverance from Roman oppression ( John 6:15). Jesus wanted to avoid, as much as possible, any premature misunderstanding about who he was and what he was doing. However, at the end of his ministry, he did not deny such a title when the high priest asked him (14:61-62).
Wesley. He charged them not to make him known — It was not the time: nor were they fit preachers.
Womack. Jesus was aware of the opposition described in Mark 3:6, and He withdrew at this time. His time was not yet come (John 7:1-7). He was not afraid of what the Jews and Herodians could do to Him; just prudent and following the leadership of His Father. Like Jesus, we need to choose our battles and not be forced into one that is not God’s will.
Jesus used miracles like a bell to draw the people unto Him. We should do the same.
“Idumaea” is the Greek form of Edom. It is used five times in the Scriptures ([also spelled Idumea] Isaiah 34:5-6; Ezekiel 35:15, 36:5; and this verse). It is clear from the context of Ezekiel 35:15 that Idumea is the same as Mount Seir, another name for Edom. Edom was another name given to Esau, the son of Isaac, because of the time that Esau sold his birthright to Jacob for some red pottage (Genesis 25:30). The land of Idumaea (Edom, Mount Seir) occupies a very mountainous and rugged country about a hundred miles long, from the southern part of the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Aqaba. This includes the famous city of Petra, which was carved out of the sandstone cliffs.
The name Tyre comes from the Hebrew, “TSOR,” and it means “a rock.” Tyre was a very ancient city, having existed at least 2,750 years before Christ. It originally was built on the mainland but for better defense was moved to a neighboring rocky island. It was a “strong city” in the time of Joshua (Joshua 19:29) and was on the border of the inheritance of the tribe of Asher, although never occupied by Israel. The rulers of the city were friendly with David and Solomon, and they provided some of the materials used in building Solomon’s temple (1 Kings 5:1 and 9:11). The people of Tyre were interested not in war but in manufacturing, trade, and colonization. In fact, a group of colonists from Tyre founded Carthage around 800 B.C., which later became a rival to Rome. The complete destruction of Tyre was prophesied by Ezekiel (Ezekiel 26-28), who called the city “Tyrus.” People from Tyre occasionally came to hear Jesus and see His miracles (Luke 6:17), and Jesus visited their area also (Matthew 15:21; Mark 7:24, and 31). Tyre remained a rather strong and prosperous city until the 13th century A.D. when it was totally destroyed, fulfilling Ezekiel’s prophecy. It has remained mostly in Muslim hands since that time although uninhabited for a good portion of that time. A city still exists in the location in modern times and is called es-Sur.
The name Sidon came from the Hebrew, “TSIYDOWN,” and it means “fishery.” Sidon was on the seacoast of the Mediterranean about twenty-five miles north of Tyre and was the northernmost city of the Canaanites. Like Tyre, it was a very ancient city having existed at least 4,000 years before the time of Christ and was mentioned in the writings of Homer. In the Old Testament, the city was referred to as Zidon and at times was a “thorn in the flesh” to Israel (Judges 10:12). Ezekiel prophesied against Zidon in Ezekiel 28:21-26 right after he prophesied the destruction of Tyre. Over the centuries, the city was ruled by the Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, and, in the time of Jesus, Romans. People from Sidon came to Galilee to hear Jesus’ preaching and to witness His miracles (Luke 6:17). The area or city was also visited by Jesus (Matthew 15:21; Mark 7:24, and 31), but judging from Matthew 11:21, He may not have done any “mighty works” there. The city exists today and is called Saida.
Not many ministers have to deal with being thronged today, because not many ministers operate in the power of God as Jesus did. When people of God are known for the miraculous power of God working through them, they have this same thing happen today. People haven’t changed, just ministers.
No doubt, Jesus was the greatest teacher/preacher the world has ever seen. Yet it was the miracles of Jesus that drew the crowds. If we want the crowds Jesus drew, we need to have miracles too. Those who accurately represent Jesus should have people pressing upon them to be healed too (John 14:12).
Those who flow in the same anointing that Jesus flowed in will have demons cry out as they come into their presence. Jesus didn’t want the publicity of demons. All publicity is not good.
Verses 13-19.
And He appointed twelve to continue to be with Him, and that He might send them out to preach, as apostles or special messengers. And to have authority and power to heal the sick and to drive out demons: They were Simon, and He surnamed him Peter; James’s son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, and He surnamed them Boanerges, that is, Sons of Thunder. And Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew (Nathaniel), and Matthew, and Thomas, and James’s son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus (Judas, not Iscariot), and Simon the Cananaean, also called Zelotes, And Judas Iscariot, he who betrayed Him.
Wesley. He calleth whom he would — With regard to the eternal states of men, God always acts as just and merciful. But with regard to numberless other things, he seems to us to act as a mere sovereign. Luke 6:12. He surnamed them sons of thunder — Both with respect to the warmth and impetuosity of their spirit, their fervent manner of preaching, and the power of their word.
TPT notes. The apostles (sent ones) were: 1) Simon Peter (Rock); 2) James and 3) John, sons of Zebedee who have gave the surname Boanerges (sons of thunder-passionate ones); 4) Andrew; 5) Philip; 6) Bartholomew (could be Nathaniel). Son of Tolmai (discipline): 7) Matthew; 8) Thomas; 9) Jacob, the son of Alphaeus; 10) Thaddaeus (or Lebbaeus); 10) Simon the Nationalist (Simon the Zealot or Simon the Cananaean); and 10) Judas Iscariot.
Womack. Luke’s account reveals that Jesus spent all night in prayer before He ordained these twelve disciples.
Jesus had many disciples. On another occasion, He appointed seventy disciples to go before Him into each city that He was planning to visit (Luke 10:1). These men, however, were set aside as “apostles” (Luke 6:13) and became the leaders of Christ’s church. There were other apostles besides these twelve: Barnabas and Paul (Acts 14:14); James, the brother of the Lord (Galatians 1:19); Silvanus (Silas) and Timotheus (Timothy) (1 Thessalonians 1:1 with 1 Thessalonians 2:6); Andronicus and Junia (Romans 16:7); and others (1 Corinthians 15:5-7).
The term “twelve” was descriptive of this group and was applied to them even after Judas hung himself, leaving only eleven of the original apostles (John 20:24 and 1 Corinthians 15:5). The term “eleven” is used more frequently after Judas’ death, however (Matthew 28:16; Mark 16:14; Luke 24:9, 33; Acts 1:26, and 2:14).
The New International Version translation of this verse says, “And to have authority to drive out demons.” It completely omits the mention of healing sickness, yet it’s there in the Greek. God gave this authority to us. We can’t ask Him to do what He gave us authority to do. The Lord didn’t tell us to go pray for the sick; He told us to go heal the sick (Matthew 10:8). The reason more sick people aren’t healed is because more ministers haven’t taken this authority and used it.
Most of us can relate to Peter. He was outspoken; sometimes the only time he opened his mouth was to change feet. Jesus rebuked Peter for allowing satan to speak through him (Matthew 16:23 and Mark 8:33). All the disciples of Jesus forsook Him and fled (Matthew 26:56 and Mark 14:50), but Peter’s three denials were given special prominence in Scripture (Matthew 26:69-75; Mark 14:66-72; Luke 22:55-62; John 18:15-18, and 25-27). The angels at the tomb made special mention to the women on Resurrection morning to let Peter know Jesus was alive (Mark 16:7). Eventually, Peter became a pillar of the Jerusalem church (called Cephas in Galatians 2:9).
The Greek word “BOANERGES” means “sons of commotion” (Strong’s Concordance), but it is rendered “sons of thunder” here.
Bartholomew is mentioned four times in Scripture - in the four listings of the apostles. It is possible that Bartholomew was Nathanael’s surname. This assumption is based on two things: (1) In three out of the four listings, Philip and Bartholomew are listed together, reminiscent of Philip bringing Nathanael to Jesus (John 1:43-51). (2) In John 21:2, Nathanael is mentioned as being present with six “other of his disciples,” suggesting that Nathanael was one of the Twelve. However, since Nathanael is not listed in any of the four lists of apostles, that could mean that he was also known by another name, as was Judas. It is not possible to be authoritative about the link between Bartholomew and Nathanael when the Scripture isn’t.
This Simon was called Simon the Canaanite to differentiate him from Simon Peter. The term “Canaanite” came either from being a native of Cana in Galilee or from the Hebrew word “QANA’” meaning “zealous” (Strong’s Concordance). His name appears four times in Scripture. In Matthew 10:4 and this verse, he is called Simon the Canaanite, while in Luke 6:15 and Acts 1:13, he is called Simon Zelotes (Greek - “ZELOTES”–“a Zealot” [Strong’s Concordance]). Although there was a fanatical party of patriotic Jews, called Zelotes, who rebelled against the Romans at this time, Scripture does not indicate that Simon Zelotes was involved with this party. At any rate, he was chosen by Jesus as one of the twelve apostles. Tradition says he may have been a brother of James, Matthew, and Judas and that he was martyred in Persia.
The name Iscariot means “inhabitant of Kerioth” (Strong’s Concordance), a place in Judea. Judas Iscariot is mentioned twenty-two times in Scripture: five times in Matthew, three times in Mark, four in Luke, eight in John, and two in Acts, nearly all of which mention him in his role as the betrayer of Jesus.
Several Old Testament scriptures deal prophetically with Judas, most notably Zechariah 11:12-13, which prophesies Jesus being sold for thirty pieces of silver. Other Old Testament scriptures that could be applied to Judas are Psalms 41:9, 69:25, and 109:8 (see Acts 1:16-20). Judas was the son of a man named Simon (John 6:71) and, like the other disciples, just an ordinary man. Not only was he chosen by Jesus as one of the twelve apostles, but he was also given the power to work miracles (Matthew 10:5-20; Mark 3:14-15, 6:7-13; Luke 9:1-10; and Acts 1:17) and apparently was very successful at it (Mark 6:12-13 and Luke 9:10). He was the treasurer of the disciples (John 13:29) but was also a thief (John 12:6).
All four Gospels contain the account of the betrayal of Jesus by Judas. Matthew 27:3-4 says that when Judas saw that Jesus was condemned, he “repented himself” and went to the chief priests, saying, “I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood.” Full of remorse when the chief priests would not listen to him (Matthew 27:4), he left the temple and hanged himself (Matthew 27:5). Jesus referred to Judas as being “lost” and as the “son of perdition” (destruction) in John 17:12. Jesus said, “It had been good for that man if he had not been born” (Matthew 26:24, see also Mark 14:21).
Verses 20-27.
Then He went to a house [probably Peter’s], but a throng came together again, so that Jesus and His disciples could not even take food.
21 And when those who belonged to Him (His kinsmen) heard it, they went out to take Him by force, for they kept saying, He is out of His mind – that is, beside Himself or deranged!
22 And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, He is possessed by Beelzebub, and, By the help of the prince of demons He is casting out demons.
23 And He summoned them to Him and said to them in parables (illustrations or comparisons put beside truths to explain them), How can Satan drive out Satan?
24 And if a kingdom is divided and rebelling against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
25 And if a house is divided, that is, split into factions and rebelling, against itself, that house will not be able to last.
26 And if Satan has raised an insurrection against himself and is divided, he cannot stand but is surely coming to an end.
27 But no one can go into a strong man’s house and ransack his household goods right and left and seize them as plunder unless he first binds the strong man; then indeed he may thoroughly plunder his house.
NET notes. V. 22. He has Beelzebub.” Beelzebul is another name for Satan. So, some people, particularly here the experts in the law, recognized Jesus’ work as supernatural, but called it diabolical.
Womack. When we accurately represent Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit with miracles and signs as well as the preaching of the Word, we will be hard-pressed to even have time to eat.
These were not the scribes and Pharisees. These were Jesus’ friends (family?) who thought He was out of His mind. These were people who knew Him well. They were friends, but they only knew Him on the outside. No doubt, Jesus was a wonderful person to know in the physical realm. But they didn’t know who He really was. They knew Him after the flesh but not after the spirit. 2 Corinthians 5:16 says “Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more.”
Taken in context, when Jesus’ friends and family heard of Him ordaining twelve disciples (Mark 3:14-19) that they “laid hold on Him.” These “friends” had probably not agreed before but had been able to restrain themselves. However, when Jesus ordained twelve apostles to train and to minister with Him, it was perceived the height of arrogance and brought about their wrath. Indeed, it would have been a prideful act had Jesus not been the Messiah (Mark 6:3-4).
“It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household?” (Matthew 10:25). If we do Jesus’ works, we will experience the same criticisms He experienced. Notice that it was the scribes who led this attack. It will be religious leaders who lead the charge to say we are of the devil.
Beelzebub means “lord of the flies” (Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon) and was a name for Satan. See 2 Kings 1:2.
The Scriptures refer to people leaving Jerusalem going “down from Jerusalem” no matter what direction they went. This may seem strange to westerners who are used to saying, “going north” or “down south,” but “down from Jerusalem” was in reference to the altitude of that city. Jerusalem was built upon four mountains, so nearly any place in the land of Israel was “down” from Jerusalem.
Charges that a person is of the devil are subjective. How can we know what is true? Jesus says that you can tell true servants of God by the fruit they produce. Satan will never use someone to destroy his kingdom. Those who are seeing people delivered and set free from the devil are not of the devil. This is also recorded in Matthew 12:24-37.
Unity, or oneness, is a godly force. Lack of unity will always bring that endeavor to ruin. The principal Jesus was giving is true on the national level all the way down to individual families.
This was all said in response to their accusations that Jesus was casting out devils by the power of the devil. He was showing that Satan won’t cast out devils. How could his kingdom survive if he did that? No! It was God’s power that enabled Him to cast out devils. It’s the same today. Demons don’t cast out demons. Anyone who casts out devils is doing so by the power of God (Mark 9:38-39 and Luke 9:49-50).
This same instance is recorded in Matthew 12:29. A similar instance is recorded in Luke 11:17-22, although it occurred at a different time.
We can’t plunder Satan’s kingdom until we recognize and use the power and authority that Jesus gives us.
Smith. And the scribes which came down from Jerusalem said, He hath Beelzebub, and by the prince of the devils casteth he out 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 a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand. And if Satan rise up against himself, and be divided, he cannot stand, but hath an end. No man can enter into a strong man's house, and spoil his goods, except he will first bind the strong man; and then he will spoil his house. Verily I say unto you, All sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies wherewith soever they shall blaspheme: but he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation: [and this was] because they said, He hath an unclean spirit (Mar 3:22-30).
Now, their declaration, "He has an unclean spirit; He's doing this by the power of the devil," they were attributing the works of God's Holy Spirit to Satan. This was not the unpardonable sin. This was a sign that they were getting close to the unpardonable sin. The unpardonable sin, the sin for which there is no forgiveness, is the sin of rejecting Jesus Christ. Jesus said, "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believed in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. And he that believes is not condemned. But he that believes not is condemned already, seeing he hath not believed on the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light came into the world, but men would not come to the light" (John 3:16-19).That's the unpardonable sin. A man's failure to come to the light, to receive God's provision for his sins. God has made only one provision for man's sins, and that is the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son. If you refuse to come to that, then you are committing the unpardonable sin. If you do not receive Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, there's no other forgiveness in this world or in the world to come. God has provided one way for man to be saved. For you to reject that, there's no other way. That's unpardonable.
Now, when a person has rejected Jesus over and over and over again, and he is faced with the indisputable evidence that Jesus is indeed the Son of God, you have to somehow explain away the miracles and the power in the life of Jesus Christ. And so, people in explaining it away, say, "Ah, He's doing that by hypnosis or something else." And that's just as bad as anything else, you see. That is an indication that you are trying now to rationalize against the plain facts that you can see. You're trying to, with irrational arguments, destroy the evidence concerning Jesus Christ. And that you are doing because you have set your position and your heart against Jesus, "I will not believe in Him; I will not receive Him." And you set your heart and your position, but now you've got to explain away the evidence. And any time a man starts to, by irrational argument, set aside Jesus Christ, that man is close to committing the unpardonable sin, because he's not even believing his own intellect at this point.
Wesley. The scribes and Pharisees, Matthew 12:22; who had come down from Jerusalem - Purposely on the devil’s errand. And not without success. For the common people now began to drink in the poison, from these learned, good, honorable men! He hath Beelzebub - at command, is in league with him: And by the prince of the devils cast he out devils - How easily may a man of learning elude the strongest proof of a work of God! How readily can he account for every incident without ever taking God into the question. Matthew 12:24; Luke 11:15.
Verses 28-30.
28 I tell you the truth, people will be forgiven for all sins, even all the blasphemies they utter. 29 But whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven but is guilty of an eternal sin” 30 (because they said, “He has an unclean spirit”).
Womack. Paul blasphemed the Holy Ghost but was forgiven because he did it ignorantly in unbelief (1 Timothy 1:13). Therefore, we can conclude that this unpardonable blasphemy has to be done with the knowledge of what is being done and its consequences. This verse describes someone who just says the wrong thing out of frustration or ignorance. The lost dead are currently in hell, which is a place of fire and torment. At the second return of Jesus and at the Great White Throne of Judgment (Revelation 19:11-20:15), all of the enemies of God, including those who are now in hell, will be judged and banished to the lake of fire. As revealed in this verse and other verses (Matthew 3:12, 18:8, 25:41, 46; Mark 9:44; Hebrews 6:2; Jude 7; Revelation 14:10-11, 20:10, and 15), this lake of fire will be a place of eternal judgment. There will be no second chance, not even in the world to come (Matthew 12:32). The blasphemy that Jesus was specifically addressing in these scriptures was the scribe’s (Mark 3:22) statements about Jesus using the power of the devil to cast out devils. So, attributing the works of the Holy Spirit to the devil is blasphemy.
Verses 31-35.
Then[a] Jesus’[b] mother and his brothers[c] came. Standing[d] outside, they sent word to him, to summon him. 32 A crowd was sitting around him and they said to him, “Look, your mother and your brothers[e] are outside looking for you.” 33 He answered them and said, “Who are my mother and my brothers?”[f] 34 And looking at those who were sitting around him in a circle, he said, “Here[g] are my mother and my brothers! 35 For whoever does the will of God is[h] my brother and sister and mother.”
Wesley. Because they said, He hath an unclean spirit — Is it not astonishing, that men who have ever read these words, should doubt, what is the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost? Can any words declare more plainly that it is "the ascribing those miracles to the power of the devil which Christ wrought by the power of the Holy Ghost?" Then come his brethren and his mother — Having at length made their way through the crowd, so as to come to the door. His brethren are here named first, as being first and most earnest in the design of taking him: for neither did these of his brethren believe on him. They sent to him, calling him - They sent one into the house, who called him aloud, by name. Matthew 12:46; Luke 8:19. Looking round on them who sat about him — With the utmost sweetness; He said, Behold my mother and my brethren - In this preference of his true disciples even to the Virgin Mary, considered merely as his mother after the flesh, he not only shows his high and tender affection for them, but seems designedly to guard against those excessive and idolatrous honors, which he foresaw would in after ages be paid to her.
Womack. After this instance (possibly one year later), Jesus’ brothers hadn’t believed on Him yet (John 7:5). They mocked Him in John 7:2-4. So, this probably wasn’t a positive meeting they were seeking. Just a few verses before this, Jesus’ friends had come to tell Him He had gone mad when He chose twelve disciples (Mark 3:21). Jesus’ ministry was expanding rapidly, and those who thought He was wrong were becoming increasingly more outspoken. I suspect they were up to no good.
Jesus’ family thought they should have special access to Him, but Jesus drew nigh to those who drew nigh to Him (James 4:8). Jesus’ mother and brothers could have been part of the crowd that was sitting around Jesus hearing His words, but they weren’t. Those who think they should have special access to God because of who their fathers, mothers, brothers, or sisters are, are wrong. God doesn’t have any stepchildren or cousins. All people who come to God must have their own special, personal relationship with the Lord.
Jesus didn’t dishonor His mother or His brethren; He simply elevated those who kept His Word to a greater position. Jesus wasn’t just human; He was God manifest in the flesh, sent to all mankind. We aren’t just human either. Although we are not supposed to ignore or harm family members, we have to recognize that our spiritual family is more important. Matthew 10:37 says, “He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.”
This is not a demotion for Jesus’ mother and brethren but rather a promotion for all the rest of us. This kills any worship of Mary as being any more than the rest of us.