Verse Lens · Expanded explanation
Luke 11:23 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 23. 23He that is not with me is against me: and he that gathereth not with me scattereth.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Luke 11:23 demands decision in this exorcism controversy without contradicting the different team-boundary issue in Luke 9:50.
A mute man speaks, and a divided kingdom cannot explain it
This verse is one part of that explanation in Luke 11:14–11:23. The complete section carries the connected meaning and how it should shape life.
Read It With
- Luke 11:14–11:23
Read Luke 11:23 with 11:14–11:23. In isolation, this contribution—demands decision in this exorcism controversy without contradicting the different team-boundary issue in Luke 9:50—can be detached from its speaker, audience, scene or teaching sequence, and outcome. The complete unit establishes: After an exorcism some attribute Jesus' power to Beelzebub; Jesus answers that a divided kingdom falls, exposes inconsistent accusers, claims God's finger signals the kingdom, and pictures a stronger victor.
Follow the Context
- Identify the actors, setting, and initiating speech or action in Luke 11:14–11:23.
- After an exorcism some attribute Jesus' power to Beelzebub; Jesus answers that a divided kingdom falls, exposes inconsistent accusers, claims God's finger signals the kingdom, and pictures a stronger victor.
- Hold this material interpretive limit in view: The accusation belongs to ancient demonological controversy. 'Whoever is not with me' has a different situational force from 9:50 and must not become a slogan against all difference.
What This Verse Is Not Saying
This verse does not detach its specific contribution—demands decision in this exorcism controversy without contradicting the different team-boundary issue in Luke 9:50—from the complete unit or override the unit's explicit boundary: The argument does not authorize diagnosing dissent as demonic, unsafe exorcism, political enemy language, or rejecting medical care.
What Remains True
Luke 11:23 demands decision in this exorcism controversy without contradicting the different team-boundary issue in Luke 9:50. Read inside Luke 11:14–11:23, this contribution supports the unit's proportionate truth: After an exorcism some attribute Jesus' power to Beelzebub; Jesus answers that a divided kingdom falls, exposes inconsistent accusers, claims God's finger signals the kingdom, and pictures a stronger victor. Its use remains accountable to affected people and the unit's explicit boundary.
Continue in Context
Read the complete section for the connected explanation and how it should shape life. This verse is a doorway into that passage, not a saying that stands alone.
Read Luke 11:14–11:23 — Jesus Answers the Beelzebub Charge with Kingdom LogicSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? probable
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and coverage.
Exact location: Luke 11:14–11:23, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Open source ↗Greek textual evidence
The Greek New Testament: SBL Edition
Michael W. Holmes, editor; Society of Biblical Literature and Logos
Society of Biblical Literature and Logos Bible Software, 2010
Supports: Greek wording and sentence relations; the edition is not treated as a complete apparatus.
Exact location: Faithlife SBLGNT official repository, data/sblgnt/text/Luke.txt, 11:14–11:23
Open the Luke Greek text file ↗open translation and translator notes
NET Bible First Edition Notes: Luke
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, 2006
Supports: Verse-level translation, syntax, KJV-language clarification, historical notes, Synoptic parallels, and textual alternatives.
Exact location: NET Bible First Edition Luke PDF, exact tn/tc/sn entries attached to Luke 11:14–11:23
Open source ↗