A familiar Bible saying, checked in context
A house divided against itself cannot stand
Altered wording
Mark 3:25 says “if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand”; the popular wording changes the opening.
By @The..Mustard..Seed · Updated
Read the relevant KJV passage
Mark 3:25And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand.
Compare the evidence
Matthew says a city or house divided against itself shall not stand, giving another KJV form of Jesus’ reply.
Matthew 12:25And Jesus knew their thoughts, and said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand:
Luke says a divided kingdom is brought to desolation and “a house divided against a house falleth,” a related KJV form of Jesus’ reply.
Luke 11:17But he, knowing their thoughts, said unto them, Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation; and a house divided against a house falleth.
What the context adds
In Mark 3, Jesus answers an accusation that his exorcisms were done by the power of Beelzebub. His question about a divided house is part of a reply about Satan opposing himself, not originally a slogan about any disagreement in a family or nation. Matthew and Luke preserve related forms of the argument with different words. The modern political resonance is also traceable in Abraham Lincoln’s 1858 speech, which deliberately invoked the biblical image while discussing a nation divided over slavery. That later use helps explain why readers recognize the wording even if their memory does not match Mark exactly.
A source for the saying
Abraham Lincoln used this biblical image early in his June 16, 1858 “House Divided” speech while discussing the future of slavery in the United States. Read Lincoln’s House Divided speech ↗
A question to carry forward
What accusation is Jesus answering, and how does that change the purpose of the divided-house image?
Keep reading
Read Mark 3:22–30 and identify the accusation that leads to the house image.
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