By submitting your email address, you understand that you will receive email communications from Bible Gateway, a division of The Zondervan Corporation, 3900 Sparks Drive SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49546 USA, including commercial communications and messages from partners of Bible Gateway. The healing of the demoniacs and the repulse of the Healer by the inhabitants are historical, but the incident of the swine is a later figment. For the Christian, there are two extremes which must be avoided with reference to Satanic activity. Girard notes that, in the demoniac's self-mutilation, he seems to imitate the stoning that the local villagers would likely have attempted to use against him to cast him out of their society, while the villagers themselves show by their reaction to Jesus that they are not primarily concerned with the good of the man possessed by demons: Notice the mimetic character of this behavior. The lesson of this passage is that Satan is a defeated foe. For those who are shaken like leaves in the wind at the mention of demons, let us remember from this story that demons cannot even possess pigs without prior permission from our Lord. 22ff. The Lord refused this request and commissioned this delivered man to return to his own people and declare to them what God had done for him. Soon, they gathered around Jesus and the man who had been set free from the demons. William of Tyre calls the city Jarras, and places it 16 miles East of Jordan (Hist, xii, 16). Says he is "the bread of life"; many are stumbled and leave 6:22-71. A small crowd of people was approaching, with the pig herdsmen leading the way. Thank you for your interest in supporting CARM. 111 Edersheim maintains that it must have been late the same night of the storm: Most writers have, indeed, suggested, that the healing of the demonized on the other side took place at early dawn of the day following the storm on the lake. June 15, 2004. A spiritual battle ensued, which ended with Jesus casting a whole legion of demons out of the man and sending them into a herd of pigs. We'd love to keep you up to date with what is happening at CARM. First, the man is hunted, then stoned, and finally he is killed; this is why the possessed lived among the tombs. Perhaps they clenched their fists or picked up driftwood with which to defend themselves. What do I do about calling a priest father at my Catholic University? The typical explanation for the petition of the residents that Christ leave their country is that they were motivated by materialistic considerations. If you are able tosupport usthis month we will invest your gift in making the hope of the gospel freely available to others who are wandering in the tombs of despair. Vote Up Matthew 12:43-45). Acts 16:16), while others were the virtual pawns of these spirits, losing their own identity and autonomy. 8; Mark vi. Then those who had seen what happened told the others how the demon-possessed man had been healed. The Matthew account mentions two demon-possessed men, while Mark and Luke only mention one. This is just five miles from Capernaum, where Jesus had previously been, so it makes sense. Jesus approaches and calls the demon to come out of the man, who replies "What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? This reversal of the scapegoat mechanism by Jesus is central to Girard's entire reading of Christianity, and this reversal is on display in this story as well. Jesus' Power over Demons: The Gerasene Demoniac - Matthew 8:28-34; Mark For the reason why this is so we refer the reader to the introduction preceding the exposition of verses 33-7. Normal relationships are reversed. (3) Spiritual insight. Did Jesus command the demon before he fell on his knees in Mark 5:6? xvii. First of all, I believe Mark was attempting to warn his Gentile readers of the great danger of demonic influence and activity. It is almost 20 miles from Amman (Philadelphia), and 22 from Fahil (Pella). How many men came out to meet Jesus in Gerasene? especially fn. Did the drapes in old theatres actually say "ASBESTOS" on them? You may unsubscribe from Bible Gateways emails at any time. The story of the Gerasene demoniac is surely one of the strangest in the Gospels. Demons are highly organized (cf. A main street with columns on both sides leads out of the forum. But let us return to the gist of the matter: if Christ showed them His Divinity through the reason given above, is it easy to be in the presence of God? It was the terror of the damned. The demoniacs frightened the swine, and the transfer of demons from them to the swine was imagined. The demoniac further evidenced demon activity by the depth of his spiritual insight. These forces plundered Gerasa, Philadelphia, Pella, and others (Jos. As Christians we believe that the Old Testament is constantly foreshadowing Jesus. Our Lord responded sternly by calling this accusation blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, and as such was the one unpardonable sin (verses 28-30). A noise made them all turn back toward the hill. Putting all of these factors together the term demon-possessed inplies too much. So, Jews think that God does not want them to keep pigs. The pleas of Legion were in response to the command of Jesus for the demons to come out of him (verse 8). We tend to think of following Jesus as leaving behind the familiar for the unfamiliar. It is clear that Matthew, Mark, and Luke did not contradict each otherin fact, they complemented each other. No men would have written in this manner but those who were acquainted with the facts (1949, p. 91). In recent years the matter has been getting uncomfortably close to home. The pig tenders reported it far and wide, in city and country (verse 14). Bob was born and raised in a Christian home i More. It is Geldenhuys who gives us the most concise description of demon-possession: in the New Testament demon-possession means that a person is dominated by the spirit of a demon and tormented by him. Image by And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14). Most scholars today would agree with Origen that near Gergesa was the precise site for the healing of Legion. It was a small village about midway along the E shore of the Sea of Galilee. But it was different this time. This agrees with the general description of the site (Mark 5:1; Luke 8:26). Matt 10:5-6; 15:24). Why were the people of Gerasene afraid of the presence of Jesus? Another reason could be as Dr. R.C. Gerasa is mentioned next by Josephus in connection with the Jewish rebellion against the Romans in a.d. 70. Will a professing Christian go to hell if he never shares the gospel? The triumphal arch to the South of the city is almost entire. get to know the Bible better! Then they began to beg Jesus to leave their neighbourhood. CARM |P.O. When addressed, the person was the mouthpiece of the demon (such as Legion, Mark 5:9). Whereas he had been a slave, he was now delivered from demon possession. By your Spirit, help me to welcome you into my life, all of you. As we pass from this section to the next, let us not end on the note of the death of the pigs, but on the deliverance of the demoniac. What is the significance of the blind man seeing tree-like people walking in Mark 8:22-25? Why were the people of Gerasene afraid of the presence of Jesus among them? 13; Luke iv. The presence of a copious spring of sweet water makes it probable that the site has been occupied from olden time; but no trace remains of any ancient city. Robert L. (Bob)Deffinbaugh graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary with his Th.M. His lucid mind mulled over the words, "Son of the Most High God.". There is no contradiction, therefore, in the evangelists. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. Such must have been the response of those with our Lord. This describes the district in which Christ met and healed the . 5 They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes. The precise place where the miracle occurred is not as essential to our understanding of the narrative as is the realization that Christ has control over the spiritual realm (Lenski, 1946, p. 205).
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