Then they brought him a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute, and Jesus healed him, so that he could both talk and see. All the people were astonished and said, “Could this be the Son of David?”
But when the Pharisees heard this, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this fellow drives out demons.”
Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
“Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can plunder his house.
“Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
The Divisions
Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States, used Matthew 12:30 as a basis for his state of the union address, stating that a "House divided against itself cannot stand" (verses a Kingdom). Lincoln was a devoted Christian, with a strong reliance on biblical teachings and principles.
Sometimes families can be divided over something. Maybe the boys want to go to the game, and the girls want a movie night.
Sometimes marriages can be divided, divorce and custody issues can bring division with a family.
The book of Kings describes the story of King Solomon and a disputed baby.
He then gave an order: “Cut the living child in two and give half to one and half to the other.” - 1 Kings 3:25
In the verse, Solomon proposed a solution to determining the true mother of a baby by suggesting they divide the baby in two halves. The real mother of the baby preferred giving up her baby to the other woman, rather than seeing the baby harmed, revealing to everyone in the court her true identity.
This is an extreme case of division, but one nevertheless.
Going back to our parable, we see Jesus casting out a demon from a mute man, explained in more detail in Luke:
"And He was casting out a demon, and it was mute; when the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke; and the crowds were amazed." - Luke 11:14 (LSB)
Historically, Jewish exorcisms was long, drawn-out process Rabbis followed, starting from Solomon being granted the ability to learn "the art against demons for the benefit and healing of human beings" (Josephus, Antiquities 8.45) and handed down to subsequent generations. Sometimes these processes last weeks or months, trying to cast out a single demon. This method entailed involving the name of Solomon and wasn't always successful.
Since Jesus did not follow the process, and simply spoke and casted out demons instantly by His own authority (Mark 1:27), you can understand the skepticism from the Pharisees, and the source of His powers.
Kingdoms and Houses
Jesus says that he couldn't be a bruh of Satan because if he was, it wouldn't make any sense. How can someone who serves Satan cast out of a friend (a demon)? He wouldn't do it. So instead, Jesus says that if "it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you."
Kingdom of God
What did Jesus mean by the "Kingdom of God has come upon you"?
The King was among them, displaying his divine sovereignity. Jesus was able to fact-check himself as an authority by binding Satan and his demons, easily.
He is not with me is against me
Lastly, Jesus mentions that "He who is not with Me is against Me; and he who does not gather with Me scatters." - Matthew 12:30 (LSB)
Jesus was making it clear that demons scatter because they are not a part of His Kingdom.
