Matthew 12:25

Matthew 12:25. And knowing their thoughts. He perceived not only that they opposed, but their very thoughts. Their words had been addressed, not to Him, but in reply to the multitudes (Matthew 12:23). The best authorities omit the word ‘Jesus.'

Every kingdom divided against itself. The assertion of the Pharisees assumed that there was ‘an organized kingdom of evil with a personal ruler.' Our Lord uses this assumption, as a terrible fact, which, however, proves the absurdity of the charge made against Himself. This organized kingdom of darkness, because it is only evil, is racked with discords and hatred, but against the kingdom of God (Matthew 12:28) it is a unit. The point of the argument here is: not that discords are fatal, which is not always the case, but that an organization which acts against itself, its own distinctive aims, must destroy itself. Their accusation implied this. The rest of the verse applies the same principle to the smaller organizations of a city and a house.