The kingdom of heaven has been subject to violence: The Greek verb can mean either that the kingdom suffers violence (negative) or that it forcefully advances (positive). In Luke 16:16, a different verb (“preached”) makes the statement clearly positive.
the violent lay claim to it: This phrase can also have either a negative or positive sense. Negatively, it may point to those who opposed John (see Matthew 11:2; 14:1–12) and persecuted the kingdom’s messengers. Positively, it may refer to people “forcing their way in” (see Luke 16:16), urgently pressing into the kingdom through radical trust and obedience.