Matthew 12:29

12:29 How ¹  else can someone enter a strong man’s ²  house and steal his property, unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can thoroughly plunder the house. ³ 

Matthew 24:43

24:43 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief ⁴  was coming, he would have been alert and would not have let his house be broken into.

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¹ tn Grk “Or how can.”

² sn The strong man here pictures Satan.

³ sn Some see the imagery here as similar to Eph 4:7-10, although no opponents are explicitly named in that passage. Jesus has the victory over Satan. Jesus’ acts of healing mean that the war is being won and the kingdom is coming.

⁴ sn On Jesus pictured as a returning thief, see 1 Thess 5:2, 4; 2 Pet 3:10; Rev 3:3; 16:15.