Beelzebul, Beelzebub

Beelzebul is a name used in the New Testament for Satan, the ruler of demons. Jewish religious leaders accused Jesus of casting out demons by the power of Beelzebul rather than by the power of God (Matthew 12:24; Mark 3:22; Luke 11:15). Jesus answered that accusation by showing that Satan would not work against his own kingdom. The name is generally understood to be related to Baal-zebub, the Philistine god of Ekron mentioned in 2 Kings 1, although the exact origin and meaning of the New Testament form are debated.

By New Testament times, the name appeared as “Beelzebul.” The King James Version uses “Beelzebub.” Some scholars connect the name with a Syriac expression meaning “lord of dung,” though the origin and meaning of the name are debated.

People sometimes used the names of foreign gods as insulting names for evil spirits. In this way, some Jewish people used Beelzebul as a title for the devil, or Satan, whom they called the ruler of demons (Matthew 12:24, 27).

The Pharisees used this title when they accused Jesus of casting out demons by the power of the ruler of demons (Mark 3:22; Luke 11:15). Their accusation was blasphemous because it described the work of God as the work of Satan.

In Matthew 10:25, Jesus tells his disciples, “If the head of the house has been called Beelzebul, how much more the members of his household!” Some interpreters suggest that Jesus may be using a play on words. They connect “Beelzebul” with the meaning “lord of the house.” In this interpretation, “the house” may refer to the temple, the house of God.

The religious leaders used “Beelzebul” as an insult against Jesus. Jesus may have answered them by using the title in a different sense: not “lord of the dung heap,” but “lord of the house.” If this interpretation is correct, the statement points to the authority of Jesus over the house of God.

See also Baal-Zebub.