For the common people, who had seen the signs but feared the priests and scribes too much to profess My teaching and follow Me, devised a good stratagem. They immediately brought several sick people to the priests and said, ‘Hear us, you high priests and scribes, who by your own account are initiated into all God’s mysteries! The man Jesus of Nazareth performs great wonders such as no one before Him ever performed, and His speech and teaching are like a river of fire that consumes with overwhelming power everything that opposes Him, or sweeps it irresistibly along. Without medicine, by the word alone, He heals every sickness like a god, and is even said to bring the dead to life again by the bare word alone.
When we had convinced ourselves of the truth of all this, a good thought came into our minds. We remembered you and said among ourselves, ‘Why are we so greatly amazed at this? We too have priests and scribes initiated into all God’s mysteries who can surely heal a sick person by the word alone just as well as this Jesus, if only they wish!’ We were already on our way to bring our sick people to the Nazarene, but we remembered circumcision and the covenant, from which we do not wish to turn away so long as it can truly give us what we need in body and spirit. But now that this Jesus performs such tremendous signs, we are threatened with danger unless we confront Him with equal power of signs.
We have therefore brought several sick people here with us and ask you, for your salvation and ours, to heal these sick people, who are not among the gravely ill, by the word alone, through your spiritual power, which by your own account you have directly from God.
With these sick people miraculously healed by you, we will pass through the whole town and proclaim God’s honor and your great fame with a loud voice before every house. The Nazarene will then find little response here and in the end, as people say, will be compelled to make himself scarce in shame, mockery and utter disgrace.’
The priests and scribes, only too conscious of their utter powerlessness, say gravely to conceal it, ‘You fools! What do you demand of us that belongs to God alone? When has a priest or scribe ever performed miracles? Only God and the one high priest in the temple in Jerusalem can do that, when he enters the Holy of Holies. So take your sick people to Jerusalem. There they will receive healing, if you know how to make a proper offering (?!), provided of course that God wills it. But if God does not will it, you will have to accept taking your sick people home again still sick.
We are indeed initiated into the most varied mysteries of God, but not into God’s power, which is holy and which He grants to no mortal.
But whoever nevertheless performs deeds like this Jesus, of whom we too have already heard, either through sorcery or with Beelzebub’s help, is a monster of hell, which is the eternally most damnable dwelling of God’s enemy. And whoever turns to his teaching and signs is then also, toward God and His servants, what such a servant of the devil is himself. That is the fullest truth. Woe to you if you go to Jesus and accept teaching and help from him!’
Those who brought sick people to the priests and scribes say, ‘You are all liars when you speak like that! How can He belong to the devil and be a servant of Beelzebub when He does surpassing good to people, teaches the disciples who travel with Him nothing but love, gentleness and patience, and Himself practices everything He teaches to the fullest extent?
It is you who belong to the devil if you give such testimony about Him; but He belongs to God, since He does God’s will as He teaches it.
You called us fools earlier for asking you, for your own good, to do what you yourselves have claimed a thousand times: that you can do all this through prayer and the divine word. But now, when as never before it is a matter of putting your old, ever-unchanging teaching into practice, you call us fools if we take you at your word. O you wicked servants of Beelzebub! We will light you a light, by whose brilliance you shall all die!’