This is a challenging sentence as it uses a complex verb tense that isn’t resolved until the next sentence. The scribes from Jerusalem were Pharisees, and heard the stories about Jesus Rebel calling the rebellious fishermen and workers to fight against Rome. They make this observation about the rebels in Jerusalem, and here we see them ‘coming down’ from the Temple mount. We learn in verse 23 that this is at the behest of Jesus Anointed, so the action is being described before the driving impulse is presented.

One thing that makes this whole passage problematic for English readers is that we’ve rolled up pretty much every god form into a singular ochre cartoon figure with horns and a bifurcated tail, wearing a red tuxedo, and holding a hay fork. The tendency to demonize the gods of your enemies is probably universal, and without any better context a naïve reading of the Gospels turns every foreign god into a two-dimensional Satan.

Βεελζεβούλ – “Baelzebul” In most English translations, this name is transliterated Beelzebub, although it’s never presented this way in the Greek. The name derived from Hebrew is composed of the word for Lord בַּעַל “Bael” and the word זְבוּל “zebal” which is translated alternately as dung, filth, fertilizing, and idolatry. From this, we may be able to draw out an earlier meaning for the Canaanites who may have worshiped such a god: e.g. God of Fertility.

In this context, we’re probably not talking about a Canaanite god, but a legendary rebel. In this case, I think it may be a reference Judas of Gamla, who originally formed the Zealot faction in 6 ce, as the “Father of Lies”.

τῷ ἄρχοντι τῶν δαιμονίων ἐκβάλλει τὰ δαιμόνια

“The ruler of the demons casts forth demons.” In most translations, this reads that the daemons are being cast out. But the word translated as “cast out” can also mean “cast from”: ἐκβάλλει has the prefix meaning ‘out’, ‘of’, or ‘from’. In the sense of creating objects from forms, like rods or plates, one might use the same word to say that you created one or discarded another. When this word is used in the next verse, it does have the ‘cast out’ meaning, making a joke for those keen on finding them.

The Zealots were quite active from their formation through to the siege of Jerusalem, so it makes some sense for them to say that, through Judas of Gamla (the Lord of Lies), Jesus Rebel was the prince of devils creating more devils.