Mark 3:20–21
Out of his mind
Jesus goes home, and the crowd is so great they cannot even eat. When his family hears, they set out to seize him, saying: he is out of his mind.
Easy to miss
His own family misunderstands him before his enemies do.
In one minute: If you only read this much
What happens
Crowds press in so that Jesus cannot even eat. His family comes to take him home, saying he is out of his mind. Scribes say he drives out demons by Beelzebul. Jesus says a divided house cannot stand, and that he has come to tie up the strong man.
Why this Sunday
This Sunday’s readings are about where real power lies. The morning Gospel follows on, with Jesus naming his true family.
Take with you
Calling God’s work evil is the one thing that shuts the door on forgiveness, because it refuses the one who forgives.
Readings for the Seventh Sunday after Pentecost: Eight passages across four services
ഈ ഞായറാഴ്ചയുടെ വായനകൾ
Evening prayer സന്ധ്യാപ്രാർത്ഥന1 readings
- GospelസുവിശേഷംMatthew 12:30–37മത്തായി 12:30–37
A tree is known by its fruit; you will give account for every careless word.
Morning prayer പ്രഭാതപ്രാർത്ഥന1 readings
- GospelസുവിശേഷംMatthew 12:38–50മത്തായി 12:38–50
The sign of Jonah; whoever does my Father’s will is my brother, sister and mother.
Before Qurbana കുർബാനയ്ക്കു മുമ്പ്3 readings
- Old TestamentപഴയനിയമംLeviticus 16:29–34ലേവ്യപുസ്തകം 16:29–34
On the Day of Atonement you will be cleansed from all your sins.
- Old TestamentപഴയനിയമംHosea 5:1–5ഹോശേയ 5:1–5
Hear this, priests: you have been a snare to the people.
- Old TestamentപഴയനിയമംIsaiah 57:15–19യെശയ്യാവ് 57:15–19
I live in the high and holy place, and also with the humble and contrite.
Holy Qurbana വിശുദ്ധ കുർബാന3 readings
- Acts of the Apostlesഅപ്പൊസ്തലപ്രവൃത്തികൾActs 4:32–37അപ്പൊസ്തലപ്രവൃത്തികൾ 4:32–37
The believers are one in heart and soul; Barnabas sells a field and gives the money.
- Pauline Epistleപൗലോസിന്റെ ലേഖനംEphesians 2:11–22എഫെസ്യർ 2:11–22
Christ is our peace; he has broken down the wall of hostility.
- Gospel of the dayസുവിശേഷംMark 3:20–30മർക്കൊസ് 3:20–30
A house divided cannot stand; Jesus binds the strong man. This is the Gospel of the day.
Open in five scenes
The thread through all eight
Leviticus describes the Day of Atonement, when the people’s sins are carried away. Hosea warns leaders who have led the people astray, and Isaiah says God lives with the humble. Acts shows a community of one heart, and Ephesians a wall broken down.
Source
References follow the official lectionary of the Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church. Your parish may read them in a different order.
Mark 3:20–30 explained: Mark 3:20–30 in five scenes
Pick a scene to see what happens in it and what is easy to miss.
Out of his mindMark 3:20–21He has BeelzebulMark 3:22A divided houseMark 3:23–26Tying up the strong manMark 3:27The sin that cannot be forgivenMark 3:28–30
Mark 3:22
He has Beelzebul
Scribes who have come down from Jerusalem say: he is possessed by Beelzebul, and he casts out demons by the prince of demons.
Easy to miss
They do not deny the miracles. They argue about where the power comes from.
Mark 3:23–26
A divided house
Jesus calls them over and speaks in parables. How can Satan cast out Satan? A kingdom divided against itself cannot stand, nor a house divided against itself.
Easy to miss
This is the first time Mark says Jesus spoke “in parables”.
Mark 3:27
Tying up the strong man
No one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder it unless he first ties up the strong man.
Easy to miss
Jesus is describing himself as a burglar who breaks into the devil’s house to set the prisoners free.
Mark 3:28–30
The sin that cannot be forgiven
All sins and blasphemies will be forgiven, but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness. He said this because they said: he has an unclean spirit.
Easy to miss
Mark explains the warning himself in verse 30. It is about calling the Spirit’s work evil, not about a sin people commit by accident.
The verse to keep
“ഒരു വീടു തന്നിൽ തന്നേ ഛിദ്രിച്ചു എങ്കിൽ ആ വീട്ടിന്നു നിലനില്പാൻ കഴികയില്ല.”“If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand.”
Who is in the story, and what their names mean
Jesus’ familyയേശുവിന്റെ ചാർച്ചക്കാർ
Relatives who come to take him home, thinking he is out of his mind.
“—”
The scribes from Jerusalemശാസ്ത്രിമാർ
Teachers of the law sent to investigate him.
“—”
Three phrases worth knowing
- Beelzebul
- A name for the prince of demons, possibly meaning “lord of the house”, which fits Jesus’ picture of a house.
- Parable
- A short story or comparison that makes the listener think. Mark uses the word for the first time here.
- Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit
- Deliberately calling the work of God’s Spirit evil, and so refusing the forgiveness the Spirit brings.
Reflection: A house that stands
നിലനില്ക്കുന്ന ഒരു വീട്
Jesus is surrounded by misunderstanding. His family thinks he has gone mad. Religious experts say he is in league with the devil. He is so busy healing people that he cannot eat. In the middle of it all, he tells a simple story: a house divided against itself cannot stand.
He means that Satan is not fighting himself. Something stronger has arrived. Jesus has come to tie up the strong man and set his captives free. Every healing and every demon driven out is a sign that the house of evil is being emptied.
The saying also applies to our homes. A family divided by grudges, silence or competition struggles to stand. So does a parish. Jesus’ power is not only for driving out demons. It is for healing divisions and bringing people back under one roof. That kind of house can stand.