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InterlinearVerse GEN EXO LEV NUM DEU JOB JOS JDG RUTH 1 SAM 2 SAM PSA AMOS HOS 1 KI 2 KI 1 CHR 2 CHR PROV ECC SNG JOEL MIC ISA ZEP HAB JER LAM YNA (JNA) NAH OBA DAN EZE EZRA EST NEH HAG ZEC MAL LAO GES LES ESG DNG 2 PS TOB JDT WIS SIR BAR LJE PAZ SUS BEL MAN 1 MAC 2 MAC 3 MAC 4 MAC YHN (JHN) MARK MAT LUKE ACTs YAC (JAM) GAL 1 TH 2 TH 1 COR 2 COR ROM COL PHM EPH PHP 1 TIM TIT 1 PET 2 PET 2 TIM HEB YUD (JUD) 1 YHN (1 JHN) 2 YHN (2 JHN) 3 YHN (3 JHN) REV
Mark C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16
Mark 3 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V7 V8 V9 V10 V11 V12 V13 V14 V15 V16 V17 V18 V19 V20 V21 V22 V23 V24 V25 V27 V28 V29 V30 V31 V32 V33 V34 V35
OET (OET-LV) And if the Satan rose_up against himself and was_divided, he_is_ not _able to_stand, but is_having an_end.
OET (OET-RV) So if Satan attacked himself and was split, he couldn’t possibly be powerful, but his time would be over.
It is good to translate this section before you decide on a heading for it.
Here are some other possible headings for this section:
Jesus is stronger than Satan
Jesus sends evil spirits away by defeating Satan
Do not insult the Holy Spirit
There are parallel passages for this section in Matthew 12:22–32 and Luke 11:14–23; 12:10.
In the previous paragraph, Jesus’ family decided that it was time to bring him home and restrain him. This paragraph continues Mark’s theme of people opposing Jesus. Here, Jesus’ enemies did not want to admit that Jesus was doing miracles by God’s power. So they accused him of using Satan’s power instead. Jesus had a good answer to give to them.
At this point, Jesus applied what he had just said about countries and families to Satan’s rule over his followers. Jesus’ point was that Satan would not oppose himself. Therefore, when Jesus forced demons to leave people, it was not Satan who gave him the power to do it.
To say this forcefully, Jesus used an “if” followed by imaginary situation to prove that it could not be true. For some other ways to translate an imaginary situation that cannot be true, see the General Comment 3:26a–c following 3:26c.
And if Satan is divided and rises against himself,
And if Satan is against himself and fights against himself
So if it is true that Satan is fighting against his own followers/helpers,
And: The Greek conjunction that the BSB translates as And is a common connector. Here it connects the truth in 3:24–25 to the way Jesus compared this truth to what the teachers of the law had said about him. The GNT and CEV say:
So
It could also be translated as:
Likewise
if: The conditional word if introduces a situation that is untrue. Jesus did this in order to show the teachers of the law that what they accused him of is also untrue.
Satan is divided: The Greek verb that the BSB translates as is divided is the same verb as in 3:24a and 3:25a. It refers to a situation in which Satan’s followers are opposing and fighting each other.
rises against himself: The Greek phrase that the BSB translates as rises against himself here indicates that Satan works against himself by fighting his own demons. It implies that the two sides were originally together and have become enemies.
Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:
has rebelled against himself (NJB)
fights against himself (CEV)
fights against his own demons/spirits
3:26b and 3:26c are saying the same thing. In some languages it will be more natural to combine these two statements into one. For example, the CEV says:
that will be the end of him
he cannot stand;
he cannot continue to exist.
he will destroy/ruin himself.
he cannot stand: The Greek word that the BSB translates as cannot stand is the same word as in 3:24b and 3:25b. It means “he will not endure” or “he will not continue.” Satan will be destroyed/defeated. For example, the NCV says:
he cannot continue
his end has come.
That will be the end/ruin/destruction of him.
He cannot continue to rule.
his end has come: The Greek phrase that the BSB translates as his end has come here means “Satan’s power is destroyed/finished.” The CEV and GW say:
that will be the end of him
Verse 3:26 is talking about something that cannot be true. In some languages it will sound more natural to translate this verse without the conditional “if.” For example:
Obviously Satan will not want to fight against his own demons and destroy his own power.
Will Satan want to destroy himself by fighting against himself? Will he force his own demons out of people? Of course not!
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / hypo
εἰ ὁ Σατανᾶς ἀνέστη ἐφ’ ἑαυτὸν καὶ ἐμερίσθη, οὐ δύναται στῆναι, ἀλλὰ τέλος ἔχει
if ¬the Satan rose_up against (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί εἰ ὁ Σατανᾶς ἀνέστη ἐφʼ ἑαυτόν καί ἐμερίσθη οὒ δύναται στῆναι ἀλλά τέλος ἔχει)
Here Jesus uses an imaginary situation to help explain what would happen if Satan rose up against himself and was divided. Use a natural method in your language for introducing an imaginary situation. Alternate translation: [imagine that Satan rose up against himself and was divided. In that case, he would not be able to stand, but he would have an end]
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / synecdoche
ὁ Σατανᾶς ἀνέστη ἐφ’ ἑαυτὸν καὶ ἐμερίσθη
¬the Satan rose_up against (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί εἰ ὁ Σατανᾶς ἀνέστη ἐφʼ ἑαυτόν καί ἐμερίσθη οὒ δύναται στῆναι ἀλλά τέλος ἔχει)
Jesus is using Satan to represent Satan and his demons. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use an equivalent expression from your culture or state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [Satan and the demons that obey him rose up against themselves and were divided]
Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / parallelism
ἀνέστη ἐφ’ ἑαυτὸν καὶ ἐμερίσθη
rose_up against (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί εἰ ὁ Σατανᾶς ἀνέστη ἐφʼ ἑαυτόν καί ἐμερίσθη οὒ δύναται στῆναι ἀλλά τέλος ἔχει)
The phrases rose up against himself and was divided mean similar things. Jesus is using the two phrases together for emphasis. If it would be clearer for your readers, you could express the emphasis with a single clause. Alternate translation: [was divided against himself]
Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / activepassive
ἐμερίσθη
˓was˒_divided
If your language does not use this passive form, you could express the idea in active form or in another way that is natural in your language. Alternate translation: [attacked himself]
Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / parallelism
οὐ δύναται στῆναι, ἀλλὰ τέλος ἔχει
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί εἰ ὁ Σατανᾶς ἀνέστη ἐφʼ ἑαυτόν καί ἐμερίσθη οὒ δύναται στῆναι ἀλλά τέλος ἔχει)
The clauses he is not able to stand and he has an end mean similar things. The first clause states the meaning negatively, and the second clause states the meaning positively. Jesus is using the two phrases together for emphasis. If it would be helpful to your readers, you could connect the clauses with a word other than and in order to show that the second clause is repeating the first one, not saying something additional. Alternatively, you could combine the two clauses. Alternate translation: [he is not able to stand; yes, he has an end] or [he has his end]
Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor
οὐ δύναται στῆναι
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Καί εἰ ὁ Σατανᾶς ἀνέστη ἐφʼ ἑαυτόν καί ἐμερίσθη οὒ δύναται στῆναι ἀλλά τέλος ἔχει)
Here, the phrase is not able to stand means that Satan will not have authority or power much longer. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a comparable phrase or state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [he will no longer have power] or [he will not remain in control]
Note 7 topic: figures-of-speech / explicit
τέλος ἔχει
˓an˒_end ˓is˒_having
Here, the word end refers to a time when Satan no longer has power and authority. If it would be helpful in your language, you could make that idea more explicit. Alternate translation: [his rule ends] or [his authority fails]
OET (OET-LV) And if the Satan rose_up against himself and was_divided, he_is_ not _able to_stand, but is_having an_end.
OET (OET-RV) So if Satan attacked himself and was split, he couldn’t possibly be powerful, but his time would be over.
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.