3:27

Jesus’ second parable is in 3:27. Jesus used this parable to explain how he was able to free people from evil spirits. Jesus compared Satan to a strong man. He compared himself to an even stronger man. He compared freeing people from evil spirits to robbing Satan’s house. Jesus implied that he could release people controlled by Satan or his evil spirits because he was stronger than Satan.

In some languages, 3:27 will be more natural if its parts are reordered. See the General Comment on 3:27a–d at the end of 3:27d for some examples of how to reorder the verse.

3:27a

Indeed: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as Indeed is literally “but” (as in the Revised Standard Version). This conjunction contrasts what Jesus said (in 3:27) with the wrong thinking of these teachers of the law. They were wrong about Jesus getting power from Satan to force demons out of people. In this illustration/parable, Jesus tells what was really happening.

Some English versions do not translate this conjunction. You should connect 3:27 to the rest of this passage in a way that is natural in your language.

no one can enter a strong man’s house: In this context, the phrase no one can enter implies going into the strong man’s house uninvited, to rob him. You may want to use a stronger word like “invade” or “break into” to express this idea.

strong man’s house: The words strong man refer to someone who has physical strength and power.

Here Jesus compared Satan to a strong man who owns a house.

3:27b

to steal his possessions: The phrase to steal his possessions means “loot” or “pillage” things from the house. This represents Jesus casting out demons to free people.

3:27c

unless: The conjunction unless introduces an exception to the rule in 3:27a–b that no one can carry off the possessions of a strong man.

Here is another way to translate this:

except if
-or-
until

first: The conjunction first indicates the order of events. He must first tie up the strong man before he can enter the strong man’s house and steal his things.

ties up the strong man: The phrase ties up the strong man implies that someone stronger than the strong man must first overpower him in order to tie him up.

General Comment on 3:27c

There is implied information here that you may need to make explicit in your translation. For example:

unless he is strong enough to overcome/defeat the strong man and tie him up

3:27d

Then: The conjunction Then marks the order of the events in the illustration. First someone stronger than the strong man must overpower him and tie him up. Then the stronger man can rob the strong man.

he can plunder his house: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as plunder was also used in 3:27b and translated as “carry off.” The phrase he can plunder his house means “he can steal/take from the house everything he wants.” In other words: he can loot or pillage the house. The Contemporary English Version says:

Then he can take everything.

he: The pronoun he refers to the stronger man. This man represents Jesus.

his: The pronoun his refers to the strong man who is being robbed. This man represents Satan.

General Comment on 3:27a–d

In some languages, it will be more natural to change the order of some of the clauses in 3:27. For example:

27cIn fact, a person must first tie up a strong man. 27aOnly then can he enter his house, 27btake his possessions, 27dand rob his house.

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