Church Fathers Commentary Matthew 12:29

"Or how can one enter into the house of the strong [man,] and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong [man]? and then he will spoil his house." — Matthew 12:29 (ASV)

St. John Chrysostom: Having concluded the second answer, He brings forward a third, saying, "Or how can anyone enter a strong man's house?" For that Satan cannot cast out Satan is clear from what has been said, and that no other can cast him out until he has first overcome him is plain to all.

In this way, the same point is established even more abundantly. He says that so far is He from having the devil as an ally, that He is instead at war with him and binds him; and in casting out demons this way, He is plundering his goods. Thus, He proves the very opposite of what they were trying to establish. They wanted to show that He did not cast out demons by His own power, but He proves that He has bound not only demons but also the prince of demons, as is shown by what He has done.

For if their prince were not overcome, how could the demons who are his subjects be plundered in this way?

This statement also seems to me to be a prophecy, because He not only casts out demons but will also take away all error from the world and dissolve the devil's craftiness. And He says not "rob," but "plunder," showing that He will do it with power.

St. Jerome: His "house" is this world, which is set in evil—not by the majesty of the Creator, but by the greatness of the sinner. The strong man is bound and chained in Tartarus, bruised by the Lord's foot. Yet we ought not to be careless because of this, for here the Conqueror Himself declares our adversary to be strong.

St. John Chrysostom: He calls him "strong," showing by this his former reign, which arose from our own sloth.

St. Augustine of Hippo: For the strong man held us in such a way that we could not free ourselves from him by our own strength, but only by the grace of God. By "his goods," Christ means all the unbelievers. He has bound the strong man by taking away from him all power to hinder the faithful from following Christ and gaining the kingdom of heaven.

Rabanus Maurus: Therefore, He has plundered his house by setting free from the devil's snares those whom He foresaw would be His own, and has joined them to the Church. Alternatively, He has done so by dividing the whole world among His apostles and their successors for its conversion. By this plain parable, therefore, He shows that He is not engaged in a deceitful alliance with demons, as they falsely accused Him. Instead, by the might of His divinity, He frees people from those demons.