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OET (OET-LV) But if I am_throwing_out the demons by the_spirit of_god, consequently the kingdom of_ the _god came on you_all.
OET (OET-RV) But if I am driving out demons by God’s spirit, then that must mean that God’s kingdom has already arrived among you all.
In this section, Jesus healed a man whom demons had been controlling. The Pharisees said that he did it by the power of Satan. Doing something by the power of Satan is sorcery. Sorcery was punishable by death in the Jewish law. Jesus explained to them why it could not be true that he cast out demons by the power of Satan. He also warned them that they must not look at something he had done by the Holy Spirit’s power and say that Satan gave him the power to do it. This is blaspheming the Holy Spirit (12:31).
Here are some other possible headings for this section:
The Pharisees accuse Jesus of working with Satan
Jesus’ power is greater than Satan’s power
The power of Jesus comes from the Holy Spirit, not from Satan
There are parallel passages for this section in Mark 3:22–30 and Luke 11:14–23.
But if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God,
But, if/since I cast out evil spirits by/using the power of God’s Spirit,
But it is the Spirit of God who gives me the power to cast out demons. This shows/proves that
But: There is a contrast here. The contrast is between what the Pharisees were wrongly saying about Jesus (in 12:27a) and what is the truth (12:28a). The BSB shows this contrast with the conjunction But.
if I drive out demons by the Spirit of God: This clause is parallel to the clause in 12:27a.
27aif I drive out demons by Beelzebul
28aif it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons
Jesus proved his point by using an if-clause in both 12:27a (which is false), and here in 12:28a (which is true). Some languages do not use if-clauses to prove a point that is true. If that is true in your language, you may have to translate this as:
because it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons
when I force out demons by the power of God’s Spirit (CEV)
No, it is not Beelzebul, but God’s Spirit, who gives me the power to drive out demons, which proves that (GNT)
the Spirit of God: This phrase refers to the Holy Spirit. Use the same word for Spirit when translating the Spirit of God as when you translate “Holy Spirit.”
then the kingdom of God has come upon you.
then God’s kingdom has already come/arrived among you(plur).
God has started to rule among you(plur).
the kingdom of God: This phrase refers to God’s activity of ruling and caring for his people as their king. It also refers to the relationship that God has with his people. He leads, protects, and cares for them. They obey, trust, and submit to him as their king. The phrase the kingdom of God does not refer to a land or country that he rules over.
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
As a noun. For example:
the kingdom of God
God’s kingship
God’s rule over people
As a verbal expression. For example:
the way that God rules his people
the way that God cares for his people as king
See how you translated “kingdom of God” in 6:33a. See also kingdom of heaven in the Glossary for more information.
has come upon you: This phrase means that God had already begun to rule among the people to whom Jesus was speaking. God was exercising his authority and power through Jesus. This is why Jesus was able to cast demons out of people.
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
has begun among you
has arrived among you (NLT)
God has begun to rule among you
Note 1 topic: grammar-connect-logic-contrast
δὲ
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: εἰ Δέ ἐν Πνεύματι Θεοῦ ἐγώ ἐκβάλλω τά δαιμόνια ἄρα ἔφθασεν ἐφʼ ὑμᾶς ἡ Βασιλεία τοῦ Θεοῦ)
The word But introduces a contrast with what the Pharisees have said about how Jesus casts out demons. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a word or phrase that introduces this kind of contrast. Alternate translation: [On the other hand,] or [In contrast,]
Note 2 topic: grammar-connect-condition-fact
εἰ & ἐν Πνεύματι Θεοῦ ἐγὼ ἐκβάλλω τὰ δαιμόνια, ἄρα ἔφθασεν ἐφ’ ὑμᾶς ἡ Βασιλεία τοῦ Θεοῦ
if & by ˓the˒_Spirit ˱of˲_God (Some words not found in SR-GNT: εἰ Δέ ἐν Πνεύματι Θεοῦ ἐγώ ἐκβάλλω τά δαιμόνια ἄρα ἔφθασεν ἐφʼ ὑμᾶς ἡ Βασιλεία τοῦ Θεοῦ)
Jesus speaks as if this were a hypothetical situation, but he means that it must be true. If your language does not state something as a condition if it is certain or true, and if your readers might think that what Jesus is saying is uncertain, then you could translate his words as an affirmative statement. Alternate translation: [since I cast out the demons by the Spirit of God, the kingdom of God has come upon you]
Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor
ἔφθασεν ἐφ’ ὑμᾶς ἡ Βασιλεία τοῦ Θεοῦ
came on you_all the Kingdom ¬the ˱of˲_God
Jesus speaks as if the kingdom of God had come upon the Pharisees. He means that God is making where they and Jesus are into part of his kingdom. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a comparable phrase or state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [God is ruling among you] or [this region has become part of God’s kingdom]
12:28 The Pharisees were being confronted with and were rejecting the Kingdom of God itself (see Luke 17:20-21; 1 Jn 3:8). Jesus’ miracles brought the power of the Kingdom into the present reality; its ultimate consummation awaits Christ’s second coming.
OET (OET-LV) But if I am_throwing_out the demons by the_spirit of_god, consequently the kingdom of_ the _god came on you_all.
OET (OET-RV) But if I am driving out demons by God’s spirit, then that must mean that God’s kingdom has already arrived among you all.
Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.
Acknowledgements: The SR Greek text, lemmas, morphology, and VLT gloss are all thanks to the CNTR.
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