June 2015 The reference could hardly be to the better known Gerasa (Jerash) between thirty and forty miles southeast from the lake. There was no such danger in Perea, and thus the mercy of the Lord was to be heralded. Luke 8:25 "Where is your faith?" He asked. Frightened and amazed, they We should know from other Scriptures that our present spiritual experience is one of spiritual warfare. ), you also need to understand the significance of this - to the people in Gerasene. 118 H. Finally, there is in demon possession a counterpart to the filling (or control) of the Holy Spirit. Although it is likely that the larger towns of Galilee were predominantly Gentile, as was the Decapolis, the first-century civilian diet did not . in 1971. Dr. Thomson discovered on the eastern shore the ruins of a village called Khersa. They all say country of (in the sense of region, not nation). This supposition would be further confirmed, if the evening when Jesus embarked was what the Jews were wont to call the first evening, that is, the time when the sun was declining in the heaven, but before it had actually set, the latter time being the second evening. For it seems most unlikely that multitudes would have resorted to Jesus at Capernaum after the second evening, or that either the disciples or other boats would have put to sea after nightfall. By clicking Accept all cookies, you agree Stack Exchange can store cookies on your device and disclose information in accordance with our Cookie Policy. My office mate of several years back was interrupted by a young and very zealous new Christian teacher accompanied by a student from whom she wanted my friend to cast out a demon. Gergesa - Wikipedia We see people in other places where he worked miracles, endeavoring to make him their king (Jn 6:15) . 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. Why were the people of Gerasene afraid of the presence of Jesus - Quora The before and after descriptions of the demoniac reveal that he was a totally different person under demonic influence. 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! Romans 9:19-23). A word of clarification is in order here for we must recognize that in this account the dark side of Satan is exposed, but this is perhaps the more unusual side of Satan. 0 Responses Instead of opening themselves up to Jesus and receiving His love and forgiveness, they allowed fear to drive a wedge between them. Thats why also Peter having realized who Christ was, was dreaded and asked Him to leave him for he said to be a sinful man (Luke 5:8). In the wake of new restrictions on the traditional Latin Mass, two American bishops spoke with EWTNs Raymond Arroyo Thursday about how their dioceses have responded. April 2021 Why did the demon-possessed Gadarene bow down before Jesus? Early Christians like St. Polycarp clearly held the Catholic view on salvation. xx. The Man Jesus Renamed | Reformed Theological Seminary He also maintains a popular Facebook page. As He had landed with His disciples He had been confronted with a demon-possessed man - a man that no one had been able to control. Such an entreaty can be addressed by them to only God. Unbelieving men may not rave and carry on like the Gerasene demoniac, but they are nevertheless under Satans control, doing his bidding. Wikipedia states about it: In the second half of the 1st century AD, the city of Jerash achieved great prosperity.. First let us see what the Sacred Texts says: The swineherds ran off and told it in the city and in the country. 123 1. They have three sons and a daughter (all homeschooled) and reside in southeast Michigan. 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. Sign up for 6 Free IssuesTry us out with a free trial subscription. Many New Testament manuscripts refer to the "Country of the Gadarenes" or "Gerasenes" rather than the Gergesenes. Lets learn why. recognizes the military background of the term, pointing out that in the imperial period a legion consisted of 6000 foot soldiers, 120 horsemen and technical personnel. 9. The Gerasene Demoniac (Mark 5:1-20) | Bible.org They would have to trust Jesus. Once naked, he is now clothed. First of all, I believe Mark was attempting to warn his Gentile readers of the great danger of demonic influence and activity. Have we stepped back, in effect asking Jesus to leave us alone, only to discover, as a Gentleman, He did? There is the so-called demon of doubt, of anger, of overindulgence, of drunkenness, laziness and so on. It was greatly influenced by Greek culture.126. She is a graduate of the Divinity School at Wake Forest University and Chicago Theological Seminary. I used to want the longest life, perfect health and happiness, but really it is that feeling that I am so glad that this isnt all there is and that we have heaven to wait for, and that well be with Jesus, and there will be no more tears Amber VanVickle (1982-2023), The headquarters of the charity, which serves as a consecrated family to 46 disabled children, were badly damaged in major flooding near Rio de Janeiro last year. 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. Legion of Demons - NeverThirsty Mark 5:1And they came over unto the other side of the sea, into the country of the Gadarenes. As the servant of Elisha was told, Do not fear, for those who are with us are more than those who are with them (2 Kings 6:16). Have you even been in a service where the Spirit of God was moving and felt fear? And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? 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. In addition, Matthew includes the comment, Have You come here to torment us before the time? (Matthew 8:29). Thanks for contributing an answer to Biblical Hermeneutics Stack Exchange! What they were not willing to accept was the frightening power that could cure him. It is very appropriate that these two incidents . where something similar occurs) is a demon-possession mentioned, and that outside the Gospels it is referred to only twice in the New Testament (Acts xvi. The demons in the man recognize Jesus and the man bows before him. November 2017 So who was afraid? Order Bulk SubscriptionsGet a discount on 6 or more copies sent to your parish, organization In the King James Version it is called the country of the Gadarenes in Mark and Luke, and of the Gergesenes in Matthew. "I am afraid of Trump on a very personal level because I don't think he likes me. They found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting at Jesus' feet, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. In this context, however, he insists that legion has nothing of its usual Roman military overtones, but is the designation of numerous powers which oppose themselves to Jesus as the embodiment of the power of God. Lane, Mark, fn. To subscribe to this RSS feed, copy and paste this URL into your RSS reader. rev2023.3.3.43278. July 2015 Why is that. Jesus had freed the man and for a reason known only to Himself, He had granted the demons request to go into a nearby herd of pigs rather than go into the Abyss [bottomless pit]. Once a menace to society, now a messenger with words of deliverance and healing. The house that is left swept and clean is a likely target for Satanic influence (cf. The confrontation of Jesus and the Gerasene demoniac made it clear that Jesus was no servant of Satan. Sermon for July 26, 2020: Why Were They So Afraid: Mark 5:1-20. Those who had seen what had happened to the demoniac and to the swine reported it. At their request, He left. It hit them hard in the pocketbook. Top Ten Reasons Why There Were Pigs In Gerasenes Remember the story of Jesus casting demons out of the crazy man in Luke 8? In any event, they were not Israelites, as indicated by the fact that a herd of swine was being kept nearby, which would have been forbidden by the Mosaic Law, since swine were unclean animals (Leviticus 11:7-8). I would like to invite you to return to where we left off a few weeks ago in our studies in the gospel of Mark. 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. August 2015 There is, as we know, the world, the flesh, and the Devil. April 2016 The entrance of the term into colloquial speech indicates that the Roman occupation was a heavy burden. He pleaded with Jesus not to be tormented. Why were the Romans afraid of the Christians? They look forward to their future with great dread. Its ruins include two amphitheaters, a basilica, temple, a hippodrome, aqueducts and colonnades, showing its importance and stature. 7 After he had finished all his sayings in the hearing of the people, b he entered Capernaum. February 2016 He said he had come to the house of Israel, not to the gentiles. French Monastery Survives War and Famine After 885 Years, the Basilica of St. Ambrose in Milan, and More Great Links! Jesus had been performing miracles in Gods nation - Israel. How Satan blinds our minds! The man looked out on the Tiberius. He brought up the story of Jesus casting out demons and sending them into pigs, which promptly ran over a cliff into the sea. No matter what men attempted to bind him with, he broke loose. 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. So he got into a boat and returned. . May 2020 No! If anything, that would have made them angry. March 2020 Those who had seen what had happened to the demoniac and to the swine reported it. Reproduction of material from this website without written permission, or unlicensed commercial use or They came to Jesus and saw the demoniac sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, the very man who had had the legion; and they were afraid. They became as afraid of Jesus as the demons were. Other demoniacs described in Scripture were bent on self-destruction as well (cf. Smiths Bible Dictionary provides what I find to be a quite plausible explanation (not special pleading at all), and analogous to how we still use place names today: These three names are used indiscriminately to designate the place where Jesus healed two demoniacs. . Now they were delivered and ready to be productive members of society. The people (nations) were divided up, and boundaries allocated' and the sons of god were put over these nations. November 2015 What were the women in Mark 16:8 afraid of? He was also humorous in his answers. Jude 6), no longer to afflict men or resist God. December 2017 "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. Both Gerasa and Gadara were cities to the east of the Sea of Galilee and the River Jordan. So the devils besought him, saying, If thou cast us out, suffer us to go away into the herd of swine . When the pigs were sent into the sea, the people of Gadara lost money. What was it that caused these people to react in such a way? People who have no appr They were among North Korea's elite, but they fled anyway. Here's why 2 And when Jesus had stepped out of the boat, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit. In Jewish thinking, spirit beings were assigned to certain geographical territories.120. No! He was a totally safe Person. Sometime after the Lord Jesus miraculously calmed the storm, the ship landed, perhaps late in the evening,111 on the other side of the lake in the country of the Gerasenes.112 If, indeed, it was late at night, the scene must have been an eerie one, with the nerves of the disciples already worn thin by the terrifying experience of the storm. October 2018 The New Testament speaks of those who had a spirit, or a demon, or demons, or an unclean spirit, or the spirit of an unclean demon, but chiefly of persons who were demonised. Edersheim, Life and Times, I, p. 479.

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