Matthew 12:26

12:26 So if ¹  Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand?

Matthew 12:28

12:28 But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God ²  has already overtaken ³  you.

Matthew 21:44

21:44 The one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, and the one on whom it falls will be crushed.” ⁴ 

Matthew 27:25

27:25 In ⁵  reply all the people said, “Let his blood be on us and on our children!”

[12:26]  ¹ tn This first class condition, the first of three “if” clauses in the following verses, presents the example vividly as if it were so. In fact, all three conditions in these verses are first class. The examples are made totally parallel. The expected answer is that Satan’s kingdom will not stand, so the suggestion makes no sense. Satan would not seek to heal.

[12:28]  ² sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong.

[12:28]  ³ tn The phrase ἔφθασεν ἐφ᾿ ὑμᾶς (efqasen ef’ Juma") is quite important. Does it mean merely “approach” (which would be reflected in a translation like “has come near to you”) or actually “come upon” (as in the translation given above, “has already overtaken you,” which has the added connotation of suddenness)? Is the arrival of the kingdom merely anticipated or already in process? Two factors favor arrival over anticipation here. First, the prepositional phrase ἐφ᾿ ὑμᾶς (ef’ Jumas, “upon you”) in the Greek text suggests arrival (Dan 4:24, 28 Theodotion). Second, the following illustration in v. 29 looks at the healing as portraying Satan being overrun. So the presence of God’s authority has arrived. See also L&N 13.123 for the translation of φθάνω (fqanw) as “to happen to already, to come upon, to come upon already.”

[21:44]  ³ tc A few witnesses, especially of the Western text (D 33 it sy^s Or Eus^syr), do not contain 21:44. However, the verse is found in א B C L W Z (Θ) 0102 Ë^1,13 Ï lat sy^c,p,h co and should be included as authentic.

[27:25]  ⁴ tn Grk “answering, all the people said.” This construction is somewhat redundant in English and has been simplified in the translation.