The Politics of Luke 8:26-39 | Political Theology Network But notice, even though Jesus permitted them to enter the swine, they were unable to overcome their evil impulses and drove the swine over the cliff to their death. 37 Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them; for they were seized with great fear. 113 According to the Talmud there were four characteristics of madness: walking abroad at night; spending the night on a grave; tearing ones clothes and destroying what one was given. Here is one of the few times that a miracle drove people away, rather than to draw them to Jesus. The commission of our Lord is considerably different from His instructions to the Israelites whom He had delivered. January 2015 Why were the people of Gerasene afraid of the presence of Jesus? COMMENTARY: Atheism is generally the expression of a moral attitude more than a real intellectual conviction based on evidence thought through. December 2017 John 8:32; Matthew 11:28-30), or to be the pawns of Satan (Ephesians 2:1-2). March 2017 What sort of strategies would a medieval military use against a fantasy giant? Daniel 10:13; Ephesians 6:12), whose leader and prince is Satan (Matthew 12:24). When the Gadarenes saw what Christ was capable of, they panicked. If he was a pagan, why did Jesus cast out his demons? March 2021 He felt Jesus' reassuring hand on his shoulder. to men facing fear and death. Like children convinced there are monsters under our beds, the unknown scares us. Jesus heals the Gerasene demoniac in Luke 8 | Psephizo It was significant. . I think that this story is a little bit of an Easter story. Clarify Luke seems to base this fear solely upon what happened to the demoniac, not on the loss of their pigs. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. Nor was it the Jewish population of Galilee. They were sacrificed by being thrown off a cliff. They were afraid and astonished, saying to one another, "Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the sea, and they obey Him?" . 05 /5 Another theory. Gergesa - Wikipedia Why do people like Jesus a lot? By clicking Accept all cookies, you agree Stack Exchange can store cookies on your device and disclose information in accordance with our Cookie Policy. We should know from other Scriptures that our present spiritual experience is one of spiritual warfare. The religious rulers hated Jesus for exposing their hypocrisy and feared the consequences His actions might have with Rome, but they were not afraid of Jesus as a Person. A friend of mine told me later that two students were attempting to cast a demon out of a fellow. You are welcome here. Gadara, though not directly named in Scripture, was part of the Decapolis. 2ff., xvv. Satans most useful instrument is the outstanding, outwardly moral and upright religious man, whose good deeds are done independently of God. Why Darth Sidious Was AFRAID of General Grievous - YouTube or school. And those who had seen it reported to them how the man who was demon-possessed had been made well. He obviously attracted crowds. The word translated windstorm here, and storm in the KJ, is the word lailaps, which is more than just a storm. November 2015 From this point on, Jesus began to speak to the crowds in parables in order to veil or conceal the gospel from those who had blasphemed the Holy Spirit (Mark 4:lff). The before and after descriptions of the demoniac reveal that he was a totally different person under demonic influence. What was it that caused these people to react in such a way? The destructive desires of the demons were dramatically carried out in the drowning of the swine. It was like being attacked by two Hulks. They probably thought of quickly getting aboard ship and pushing off. On the other hand, the scene gains in grandeurhas, so to speak, a fitting backgroundif we suppose the Saviour and His disciples to have landed on the other side late in the evening, when perhaps the silvery moon was shedding her pale light on the weird scene, and laying her halo around the shadows cast upon the sea by the steep cliff down which the herd of swine hurried and fell. . 112 Skeptics and liberals have made much of the differences between the Gospel writers as to the place Jesus landed with His disciples. We're no longer publishing the comic strip 'Dilbert.' Here's why Gerasenes could have had a sense of reference to the entire region (as well as to a city: just as New Yorker can refer to the state or city), and Gadarenes likely was a reference to the most prominent city of the region at the time. Hence there was demon-worship, the worship not necessarily of evil spirits; but of the spirits of those who had existed in the Golden Age. G. Campbell Morgan, The Gospel According to Mark (New York: Fleming H. Revell, 1927), p. 114. May 2021 The region is located east of the Jordan River and southeast of the Sea of Galilee. 10). Who Were The Gerasenes In The Bible? - Mastery Wiki September 2015 117 so that, by their own confession, a time is coming when there shall be an entire victory of the kingdom of light over that of darkness (Rev. This story is a little bit of an Easter story. Thus an economic lose of revenue was involved. Why did Jesus not allow demons to proclaim his name, Archaeological or Historical Support for the Gerasene Pigs. Thanks for contributing an answer to Biblical Hermeneutics Stack Exchange! How Satan blinds our minds! Sign-up for E-NewsletterGet Register Updates sent daily or weeklyto your inbox. In Luke 2:8 it is applied to the city of Bethlehem; in Acts 18:23 to Galatia and Phrygia. Although Gadarenes and Gergesenes are derived from a different Greek word, they are essentially referring to the same area. August 2015 NET Bible Then all the people of the Gerasenes and the surrounding region asked Jesus to leave them alone, for they were seized with great fear. Others are absolutely controlled (hooked) by the drug and totally dependent upon it. Many New Testament manuscripts refer to the "Country of the Gadarenes" or "Gerasenes" rather than the Gergesenes. David Noel Freedman, The Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary (New York: Doubleday, 1992), 991. When Jesus and his disciples come to the mostly-Gentile region of the Gerasenes, they are met by a man whose life has been destroyed by demonic infestation. The people were more terrified of Jesus and His authority than they were of this crazed and demonized man living among the tombs. Jesus was saying, (demonstrating) that He had all authority, in any land. July 2017 Is lock-free synchronization always superior to synchronization using locks? Matthew 8:4; Luke 8:56). The pigs had been driven mad and rushed down a steep slope plunging into the lake and drowning. 14). (2) Pork was a food forbidden to Jews, and as such, those who raised these pigs may have done so knowingly in violation of divine injunction. Luke 8:37 Then all the people of the region of the Gerasenes asked Neither is it only a kind of physical disease, although spiritual and physical disease often accompany it (e.g. He said unexpected things and lived by a high ethical standard. Although the Gospels give us little information as to how individuals become targets of Satanic control, I would suggest for your consideration that they sometimes do so by leaving themselves open to Satanic influence. This man demonstrated all four characteristics. Lane, Mark, p. 182, fn. Will they be condemned like unclean animals? Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers. Understand the meaning of Luke 8:37 using all available Bible versions and commentary. Gadara is about six miles from the sea. No! February 2016 Events that are important to our Church Community, Mark 5:1-20 Jesus Heals the Gerasene Demoniac. Spam. We should be warned that fooling with these Satanic fronts is like experimenting with drugs. 7. Acts 19:16). As C. S. Lewis aptly put it: There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. As always, we must begin with the principle: Interpretation is one, application is many. I have always wondered what my Christian brothers had to say to the police officers by way of explanation. Therefore, Jesus Christ for demons is God and thus even demons inadvertently reveal themselves as being better theologians than Arians and their modern day heirs - Jehovawitnesians and all different breeds of Unitarians - their name being legion! Earles comments are helpful: The difference in names for the destination on the east side of the take has caused considerable comment. Their influence and control leads to untold agony and destruction. 3); they are reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day (Jude 6); and what the unclean spirits deprecate here, is the bringing in, by anticipation, of that final doom. R. C. Trench, Notes on the Miracles of Our Lord (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1949), p. 100. March 2015 Based on all the evidence we have seen over the past four months with regards to ChatGPT and how it can be manipulated or even how it will lie . seen it told them how the demon-possessed man had been healed. Jesus showed to the local population the inferiority of pagan life. Wasn't the answer obvious? There seems to be no excuse here for the charge of contradiction. As I have been studying this account through the week, it has seemed to me a rather bizarre and remote situation, the liberation of this Gerasene demoniac. He was a totally safe Person. That is why the inhabitants of the area are referred to variously in different Bible manuscripts as Gergasenes, Gadarenes, or Gerasenes. to sign up for our free Water Of The Word newsletter at the top of any page! 31. The Demonized Man of the Garasenes (Luke 8:26-39) - JesusWalk And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? Site design / logo 2023 Stack Exchange Inc; user contributions licensed under CC BY-SA. Well, it is because atheists, in their zealous rush to make fun of Christians, Christianity, and the Bible, start to lose their logical rigor and rationality, leading them to contend for implausible things: as presently. The Gadarenes' Rejection | Reformed Bible Studies & Devotionals at Jesus had been performing miracles in Gods nation - Israel. Men and women (as well as children) were demonized in that they fell under the influence of these unclean spirits. October 2020 13ff.). Luke 7 - And blessed is the one who is not offended by me." | ESV.org Yet, conversely, the known can be just as scaryif not more. Why are you Afraid? | Mark 4:35 - 5:20 | RayStedman.org They had been unable to control these two men [Luke only mentions one man, but Matthew tells us there were two]. Luke 8:37Then the whole multitude of the country of the Gadarenes round about besought him to depart from them: for they were taken with great fear: and he went up into the ship, and returned back again. 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. March 2020 (it should be added that Plummer himelf does not hold to any of these views.). 2,8) who can possess men and animals. December 2020 And they were afraid. 120 The request is in both cases the same; for, according to Jewish notions, certain countries being assigned to evil as well as to good spirits, whose limits they were unable to overpass, to be sent out of their own country, no other being open to them, implied being sent into the abyss, or bottomless pit, since that remains for them alone. Trench, Miracles , p. 101. They look forward to their future with great dread. It is ironic that while the demons didnt want to leave the country, the dwellers of that land didnt want the Messiah to stay. When Jesus asked the demoniac his name, it was not without significance for He was, I believe, asking the demons to reveal their identity. 7 After he had finished all his sayings in the hearing of the people, b he entered Capernaum. Another indication of demonic control is the fact that this man was continually doing harm to himself by gashing himself with stones (verse 5). art thou come hither to torment us before the time? Like it or not, demons and demonic activity are likely to become much more of a concern to you in days to come. At first we may deceive ourselves into thinking that we are controlling them, but the ultimate likelihood is that they will master us. Connect and share knowledge within a single location that is structured and easy to search. As the world's top superpower, how unsure of itself can the US be to . SubscribeStart your Register subscription today. "Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them; for they were seized with great fear." (Luke 8:37a) Fear plagues us. How much more sinful than Peter were the Geraseneans, who because of love of money did not shun even to engage in a non-Jew business of herding swine; how much more unbearable and dreadful must have been for them the Lords presence! It didnt take long for the word to spread quickly. It would seem that these people had no Messianic expectations, and therefore wanted nothing to do with One Who had such awesome power, a power over which they had no control. Why did Jesus have the authority to forgive sins, why did the scribes take it as a blasphemy, and was this authority also given to men in general? The people who witnessed this are . December 2022 The passage in Daniel especially suggests specific geographical boundaries within which spirit beings must abide. It hit them hard in the pocketbook. The most likely answer is to the country of the Gerasenes: i.e., Gerasa, a Greek town thought to be the same as the similarly-named Kersa on the east shore of Lake Tiberias. The reference could hardly be to the better known Gerasa (Jerash) between thirty and forty miles southeast from the lake. May 2018 Although it is often claimed that Christians were persecuted for their refusal to worship the emperor, general dislike for Christians likely arose from their refusal to worship the gods or take part in sacrifice, which was expected of those living in the Roman Empire. Horoscopes and astrological predictions are found in most major newspapers. In this account we, by inference, learn much about the demonic spirits. On several occasions, when Jesus forgave someone, He specifically said, Go and sin no more. That only works for people who are sick of their sin and want to change. For example, He didnt condemn a prostitute for her actions, He saw a daughter of God who was valuable beyond measure and only needed genuine love and forgiveness. . Another reason they may have been afraid of Jesus was the realization that if they accepted Him, it would mean a radical change of lifestyle. 1, pp. If Jesus had that kind of power, then He could not be controlled. Will they be rejected? In the past several weeks, there has come to light the case of a man arrested for various crimes who has several of the symptoms of demon possession, including multiple personalities, even multiple IQs. Bob was born and raised in a Christian home i More, The Net Pastors Journal, Eng. Robert L. (Bob)Deffinbaugh graduated from Dallas Theological Seminary with his Th.M. Slain Los Angeles auxiliary bishop was remembered at the Mass of Christian burial as friend of Jesus Christ and of Mary, our Blessed Mother.. How Can a Person Get Rid of Evil Spirits. The Lord, in an act of great mercy, freed the Gadarenes' man by casting the demons out of him and allowing them to enter a nearby herd of pigs. Gergesenes means "those who come from pilgrimage or fight.". It was not the loss of their property or investment that caused them to be afraid of Jesus. Holy Communion From the Chalice Reintroduced in the UK: What About the US? The price tag of possession was high, for those who fell victim to the demons agonized in constant torment. . Crazy question or.? To subscribe to this RSS feed, copy and paste this URL into your RSS reader. That is why he was living in the solitude of the tombs, away from civilization. On the other hand, Gadara is only six miles from the southern tip of the lake and could easily have given its name to the district. Bible-believing Christians have always accepted the fact of demons and their activity in New Testament times, but most of us are inclined to relegate demonic activity in these days to pagan lands and missionary experiences. The Gospels use different names for the place where this occurred: This is supposedly a contradiction. Gerasa is (as we know) some 30-35 miles southeast of the Sea of Galilee, but may have also been the name of the larger region. Lets face it, we all like to be in control. rev2023.3.3.43278. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he had not lived in a house but among the tombs. of the region of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them, because they were So he got into the boat and left. When addressed, the person was the mouthpiece of the demon (such as Legion, Mark 5:9). Although demon-possession after that time no longer occurs on such a devastating and noticeable scale, the absolute form of demon-possession will appear at the end of the age in the Antichrist and in his followers (2 Thess. They had dealt with Legion (I suspect) by forcing him from their presence. The Gadarene: When Following Jesus Means Going Home print and digital media outlets, dedicated to reporting the truth in light of the Gospel and the Those who had seen what had happened to the demoniac and to the swine reported it. But the distance is so short that, even making allowance for the delay by the tempest, the passage could scarcely have occupied the whole night. July 2022 May 2016 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? 4, p. 102. The conduct of this pathetic individual was obviously anti-social. The city of Gadara and its surrounding area are referred to as the Gadarenes. On the other hand, it may be correct to understand that although there were many demons, they had combined as one force to possess this man.119 While Mark records Legions request as one of not being sent out of the country (verse 10), Luke adds a significant explanation by interpreting the meaning behind this request: And they were entreating Him not to command them to depart into the abyss (Luke 8:31). Gergesa may have been a variant spelling of Gerasa. Ralph Earle, The Gospel According to Mark (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1957), p. 70. And Jesus, being a Gentleman, was not about to force Himself on them. He said he had come to the house of Israel, not to the gentiles. Pigs were specifically set aside as the animal used in sacrifices to their god. 23, 24, viii. And, behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus: and when they saw him, they besought him that he would depart out of their coasts. You can flip a coin hoping for heads, but you know that tails is a very real probability. What did we miss because we allowed fear instead of faith to drive our lives? 16ff., xix. The Lord granted the only request of these residents, which was for Him to leave. August 2022 We will examine two incidents -- the stilling of the storm on the sea of Galilee, and that which follows immediately, the healing of the demoniac. His animal-like shrieks must have sent chills up the spines of any who were nearby. And the people there were scared, they recognised this, but more, they realised the significance of this. Commentator R. C. H. Lenski states: The distance of these cities from the lake is immaterial for the narrative since this deals with the region that is near the lake and not with the vicinity of either of the cities to the lake.. July 2015 He shivered at the disturbing memory. 35Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. Is there any archaeological evidence for Joshua entering Israel and conquering cities in the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age? The ego is so impaired that the spirits speak through him. June 2021 Why did Jesus allow the demons to enter the herd of pigs? xx. 4, p. 180. All of us may be so concerned with our own livelihoods that we fail to serve other people and help those in desperat We see the first reaction to this in the storm MARK 4:7 And a great windstorm arose [snip]. You might be thinking back to Easter and not recall very many hogs showing up except for at Easter supper. July 2021 (5) Torment. To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers. Pig carcasses were washing ashore and drifting out to sea. It is amazing to think that people could be fearful of Jesus. Definition of Gadarenes (Gergesenes) in the Bible - Bible Study
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