How Can Satan Drive Out Satan? – Brad Jersak

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Jesus makes a good point.

Fresh after his baptism (about age 8?), my firstborn was immediately inspired to dive into the Scriptures. With curiosity and devotion, he read through all of the Gospel of Matthew in two evenings. I remember hearing him down the hallway, tucked in his bed, chuckling out loud. When I popped my head in his room to ask what he was chortling about, he said,

“Jesus makes a good point. ‘Satan can’t drive out Satan,’ [chuckle chuckle]. Good point!” [chuckle, chuckle].

He sure does, son. Here’s the Evangelist Mark’s version with a little more context:

Mark 3

22 And the teachers of the law who came down from Jerusalem said, “He is possessed by Beelzebul! By the prince of demons he is driving out demons.”

23 So Jesus called them over to him and began to speak to them in parables: “How can Satan drive out Satan?24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. 26 And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come. 27 In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house without first tying him up. Then he can plunder the strong man’s house. 28 Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter, 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.”

30 He said this because they were saying, “He has an impure spirit.”

Immediate Context

In Matthew’s version (chapter 12), Jesus had just cast a demon out of a man who had been blind and mute, restoring his sight and his voice. The Pharisees were attributing Jesus’ works of power to Beelzebul, the prince of demons.

Jesus catches them in their silly contradiction. “Why would Satan drive out Satan? That makes no sense.” In other words, Jesus’ question is rhetorical. How can Satan drive out Satan? Answer: Can’t and doesn’t.

He then reveals the fact of the matter. As ‘Son of David’ (the Messiah), Jesus has come to bind the strongman (Beelzebul/Satan), enter his house (the kingdom of darkness, including Hades, the place of the dead), and plunder his goods (all those in bondage to dread, doom, and death). This is what’s going on in every one of Jesus’ healings, exorcisms, and most of all, his descent to the dead through Easter weekend.

Rene’s Girard Sees Satan Fall

In Rene Girard’s classic work, I See Satan Fall Like Lightning, he plays with the question, “How can Satan drive out Satan?” moving beyond the rhetorical question to think about the cycles (or the contagion) of violence. Satan / the world system / empires / principalities and powers sell the idea that wherever disorder and violence are escalating, civilized rulers must respond and restore order… through necessary, tragic, glorious, sacrificial violence. In the very short term, the sword might even appear to work, but Girard’s point is that violent order and violent disorder are still both ‘the satan’ (Satan alleging to drive out Satan)—and the ‘peace’ Satan wages through violence-upon-violence is a lie.

Rene Girard –

Girard goes on to show how the Gospels expose sacrificial violence as a lie, the darkness as darkness, especially as mob pressure coalesces into the murder of John the Baptist and then Jesus. From that point on, wherever the gospel takes root, sacrificial violence must lose ground to concern for the victim. Even while violence and tyranny continue, compassion for the downtrodden has became a nearly universal ethical standard. Still, it’s disturbing to see concern for those most vulnerable to oppression and injustice, poverty and health challenges being undermined today… (the so-called ‘sin of empathy’)—particularly by streams that identify as ‘Christian.’ Go figure.

Wars & Rumours of War

Global wars and rumours of war continue to careen through our news feeds at a whiplash pace. The violence visited on civilian neighborhoods—on innocent children—is now viewable live and way-to-close on my smartphone 24-7. It’s infuriating and I’m easily tempted (by Satan?!) to presuming to sort out the good guys from the bad guys, the sheep from the goats, and choose a side to ‘cheer for’ as if these are sports franchises. Pick a war—who are you rootin’ for?

No, says Jesus. How can Satan cast out Satan?

While celebrity pastors overtly tout ‘End Times’ justifications to trigger Armageddon and ‘holy hierarchs’ use their influence to promote militarist Christian nationalism, I’ve heard the voice of Jesus through Pope Leo in recent days:

Pope Leo XIV

“Today more than ever, humanity cries out and pleads for peace.”

“Stop the tragedy of war before it becomes an irreparable abyss.”

“War does not solve problems. On the contrary, it amplifies them and causes deep wounds in the history of peoples—wounds that take generations to heal. No military victory can ever compensate for a mother’s pain, a child’s fear, or a stolen future.”

“Let diplomacy silence the weapons! Let nations shape their future with works of peace, not through violence and bloody conflicts!”

Amen. Satan cannot drive out Satan.

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