Chapter # 3 Paragraph # 5 Study # 1
November 12, 2019
Moss Bluff, Louisiana
(Download Audio)
(121)
Thesis: The "official decision" of "Judaism" was that Jesus' power to cast out demons came from "The Lord of Dung".
Introduction: Thus far in our studies of the responses people gave to the question of Jesus' identity, we have seen that "disciples" considered Him to be a Legitimate Disciple-Maker (at a minimum), or a Legitimate Spokesman for God Who had authority to forgive sins (
2:10) and determine the meaning (proper interpretation and application) of The Law as "Lord of the Sabbath" (
2:28). The record of this "decision" by people is cast under the concept of the King of God's Kingdom selecting His "under-lords" for that Kingdom.
We have also seen the introduction of the response of those who were supposedly "alongside of Jesus", but were, rather, willing to deny His identity under the thesis that He was mentally unstable (He was "beside Himself" is tied to the fact that they were supposed to be "beside" -- "alongside of" -- Him).
This evening we come to the "official decision of Judaism".
- I. That It Is The Official Decision is Mark's "Point".
- A. Those communicating this "decision" were "the scribes".
- 1. These were those characteristically known to be "without authority" as to their "teaching" (1:22), but to be feared because they were not "without authority" as to whether, or not, a person would be allowed to have hope of eternal life through participation in the synagogue.
- 2. These were those whose "character" was that of a "glory-seeker" who sought that "glory" through "exhaustive studies" (i.e., "intellectualism") as revealed in John 5:39, but were "gutless" when it came to letting their attitudes be known when they were surrounded by "Jesus-enthusiasts" and had no "formal" standing (Mark 2:7; 11:18, 32, and 12:12).
- 3. They had even attempted to drive a wedge between Jesus and His disciples in 2:16 by decrying Jesus' "hob-nobbing" with Levi's friends.
- B. Those communicating this "decision" came down from Jerusalem to deliver it.
- 1. This makes their "decision" the "official determination of the national leadership" with the background of "Jerusalem" in clear view.
- 2. But there is a subtle irony presented by Mark in this light.
- a. Those "came down" from Jerusalem with the pontification that Jesus was in league with "Beelzebub", the "ruler of the demons", also known as "unclean spirits".
- b. But Mark had already presented Jesus as being empowered by God's (Holy) Spirit as that Spirit "came down" from the "opened heavens" (1:10) and immediately drove Jesus into the wilderness to confront "Satan".
- c. This "subtlety" consists of Mark's first use of the verb "to come down" in 1:10 and his very next use of the same verb is in our current text (3:22) and Mark's first reference to "satan" is in 1:13 and his very next reference is 3:23.
- 1) The "point" is that the true "blasphemers" in the 2:7 context were those imposters who claimed to have "come down from Jerusalem as the representatives of God's truth".
- 2) Visible, physical, Jerusalem had been transformed by these false scribes into "the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, [but is the city] where also our Lord was crucified" (Revelation 11:8).
- II. This "Official Decision" as to its Content.
- A. Jesus, say they, "hath Beelzebub".
- 1. "Beelzebub" is actually a flawed transliteration, not a translation.
- a. It is flawed because the Greek is transliterated as Beelzeboul.
- b. The root of this flawed transliteration is to be seen in the actual Hebrew as it shows up in 2 Kings 1:2, 3, 6, and 16.
- c. Baalzebub was "the god of Ekron and was known as "the Lord of the Fly" because he was supposed to be able to compel the flies to leave a wound alone so that it could heal without infection (thus, Ahaziah sends to "the god of healing" for a prognostication regarding his illness).
- 2. "Beelzeboul" was the "scribal" twist on the name "Baalzebub".
- a. Beelzeboul means "Lord of Dung".
- b. This was the Jewish way of scoffing and deriding Baalzebub.
- 3. This way of saying "Jesus has Beelzeboul" actually means "Beelzeboul has Jesus": the issue is "whose power is actually being exercised?" [We say "demon-possessed" more often than "possessing a demon" because we understand that the idea is that the human involved has completely been taken over by another "spirit".]
- B. Jesus, say they, "casts out demons by the ruler of the demons".
- 1. In high contrast to the "family's" decision that Jesus is simply mentally unstable, these scribes realize that "mental instability" does not communicate the power of exorcisms (or of healings).
- 2. Thus, the real issue is whether Jesus is "possessed" by a Holy Spirit or by an Unclean Spirit, and the "official decision" is that His is "an unclean spirit".
