Cute little silver goddess dolls would have sold for the same price as a full-grown boar or sow in those days. Even so, the Bible never puts the worth of animals on the same level as the worth of human p. 102. Again, Gods anointed one faces down an army, one man against thousands. It seems to happen a lot in the gospels. Pig meat, according to Scripture, is as, Suddenly, Mark 5 is clear. Jesus is the lover of our souls. One Bible expositor said the pigs the demons sought refuge in were black. Be this as it may, the district was Owning those defiling animals was illegal and having two thousand head, the farmers were more than flouting the Law that Jesus had not came to destroy but to fulfill (Matthew 5:17). My research shows swine kill poisonous snakes. The Bible doesnt say. Besides, it was Christmas! He should know that centuries before the prophet Isaiah spoke against Jews eating pork and hanging around in tombs. But should you also doubt, my friendly blog reader, read on. So these four miracles show Jesus reaching out to Gentiles, either in Galilee or even in even more Gentile territory across the river. In retaliation for the massacre of the Jews at Caesarea, the Jews sent several raiding parties into the Gentile cities of the Decapolis. And do you believe for one minute that God told us to obey something that He knew full-well we couldnt obey? Nevertheless, the interconnections within Scripture, from the beginning, to the middle, and to the very end, are wonderful to see, just like a beautiful flower. From the brook beside the road he will drink and for this reason, he will lift high his head. Also, the land where the Master walked and the swine were feeding belonged to Israel. The miracle referred to took place, without doubt, near the town of Gergesa, the modern Kersa , close by the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee, and hence in the country of Gergesenes. Do not add upon it and do not reduce it. Lots of non-Jews lived there. That is, they appear contrary, except for one thing: Gods Law forbids righteous people from eating pork. And you can ask yourself a lot of questions Why did Jesus do that? The nearby shepherds were sheep shepherds, not hog herders. (Question: If God cares about the mother-child relationship in animals, how does He consider that relationship for people? WebWhy were there pigs in gerasenes? These ruins date from the 2nd to the 7th centuries and show that the city flourished during this period as a center for religion, culture, and commerce. Israels real enemy is Satan. The Law of God. Any other conclusion, in light of the seven facts just presented, is breathtakingly irresponsible, and we should just laugh it off. The majority admits they are clueless and throw their hands up, stating the herd was just a casualty of war. Another who admits he has no idea why the gentle Jesus jettisoned all those unclean demons unto the swine is John MacArthur. WebRoman Empire Map - Large Map of the Roman Empire in the Early First Century - Click around on the Places. When the herdsmen saw what had happened, they fled and told it in the city and in the country. After all, racism wasnt invented in the 21st century. Why explain something that is as plain as the nose on your face? But this I do know, when people say that because those pigs died it shows that Jesus was not a good and virtuous man theyre forgetting three things. Go be a witness to Me. After stilling the storm while crossing the Sea of Galilee, Jesus lands with his disciples on the eastern shore of the lake. In fact in this passage with the demons naming His name, this was often done in the ancient world, if you knew someone's name you could call out that name as a part of casting a spell on them. We said the last time that we were together that in Luke 8 you begin four miracle stories, all of which either happen in Galilee or in Gentile lands. I think so. Now, if a Jew can be treated so badly by fellow Jews, lets put on our thinking caps and imagine what happens to a Jew walking straight into a big group of Gentiles. in which he transferred the demons afflicting a man to a number of swine, that thereupon I remember my boyhood pastor, Gordon Reed, preaching through a sermon series on the gospel on Mark coming to a passage about demon possession saying, I don't know much about demon possession, but I've read a lot of books about people on demon possession and they don't know much about demon possession either. Well, before you give counsel to Jesus about what He has done in this passage you may want to take stock about how much you know about demon possession. why do you think there were pigs there?]. Its not clear exactly who is doing more killings, the LORD or Melchizedek, but the picture overall fits the image of Son of God cleaning the land of swine. Sadly, GotQuestions misses the point, or they lie, saying that being distinct was all important to God. Why explain something that is as plain as the nose on your face? He also said after much work with people that was possess that most of them dealt in occult practices. All you need to know right now, if youre interested in that I'm happy to talk about it until the cows come home, but all you need to know is each of those places the regions of the Gergesenes, the Gadarenes, and the Gerasenes it's all on the other side of the Lake of Galilee. While animal-abuse cases arent normally rampant among church-goers, its no thanks to this bishops official policy. Obviously the man with the demon was Jewish or Jesus would not have gone there. Gods altar was also separate and distinct and holy. So he had to live according to the truth that had already revealed and to get everyone else in line with the program. They cannot cast a spell on Him. He had a new name and he had a new nature to go along with it. (, Therefore you should understand that the LORD your God, Because God is so steady, and doesnt reverse or repeal, He can be trusted to do what He promises; good or, If the Eternal One, blessed be He, had said just, But the Almighty said it so many times. 4 ) As R. Sol Urbin Ohel Moed teaches us, Technically, the greek word for swine is choiros, which many people think means swine, but in the Akkadian, and so with the Syriac, it really refers to an indigenous type of little lamb owned by sea-faring peasants, suitable for pets, grazing, shishkabob and MLT (Mutton, Lettuce and Tomato) sandwiches., 3 ) Pigs?? But now this is an extraordinary case. WebGerasene: [noun] an inhabitant of the ancient Palestinian town Gerasa. Two Sundays ago Take care then, how you hear, for to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he thinks that he has will be taken away. They thought those pigs were theirs. But pay attention to the body count. But isnt it a funny coincidence that pork happens to be on Gods list of forbidden food. The story of the Gerasene demoniac thereby foreshadows the mission to the Gentiles that would begin in full force with the conversion of the Apostle Paul and Peter's ministry to Cornelius (Acts 910). Herod had massive building projects all over Israel. He made a covenant with them and revealed His commandments to them, which they were to live according to. Perhaps even ask who might that future group of individuals be to whom Jesus will say, Depart, I never knew you (Matthew 7:22) because even though they called him, Lord, Lord [and had gone to seminary and made dispensational charts] they somehow were on the wrong path. conquest of Syria in 65 b.c. The best text in Matthew reads Gadarenes, in Mark and Luke it reads Gerasenes, whereas some MSS preserve Gergesenes and Gergustenes (cf. As out-of-place as the pig-assisted exorcism by the Lake of Galilee was, the awful event is actually recorded in three Gospels; in Matthew 8:2834, Mark 5:120 and Luke 8:2639. Asked by: Isidro Boehm V. Score: 4.9/5 to biblical Galilee, regarded, in opposition to Judaea, as a country of Gentiles (as in Matthew 4:15) What was Jairus occupation? Doesn't Jesus Treat Animals as Property? In York, T.; Alexis-Baker, A.; Bekoff, M.; McLaren, B. The hard hearts of those who reject Jesus. Its kinda like the difference between a Disney movie, a TV documentary and/or an infomercial; normally each is dissimilar from the other. Remember the story of Jesus casting demons out of the crazy man in Luke 8? The Gerasenes, however, was located in the territory of the Decapolis, a group of ten cities with a majority population of Gentiles. For a long time he had been homeless and naked, living in a cemetery outside the town. So many beautiful verses and motivating passages are in Scripture. This has been a long blog thanks for sticking with it but because Im going to ruffle feathers, Ive gone the extra mile to explain myself clearly and to plug any holes in my argument. And from what I have heard, preferrably pig blood. When Jesus had stepped out on land, there met Him a man from the city who had demons. Wipf & Stock Publishers. (Matthew 8:28; Mark 5:1; Luke 8:26) In Gerasenes in place of Gadarenes. Since these events were supposedly witnessed by hundreds (and even thousands of people), it would have been very easy for 1st century critics to debunk it as non-historical. If I still had some misgivings, Id be man enough to share them here. He was Jewish and tragically lost. But are these good pastors on the right track? WebThey came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gerasenes. He has authored, co-authored, edited, or contributed to numerous books. He's converted. Indeed, some believe that Jesuss single option was to let Legion loose on the animals. Before the war it was a Gentile settlement. However, the silversmith was a smart cookie and knew that the more people bought into Pauls line of thinking, Note: Demetrius was angry only because of, Therefore, were those cool-headed pig-farmers really Gentiles? (, David, the son of Jesse, was another selfless, compassionate shepherd. The concept of Gentiles is found in the Old Testament. And the unclean spirits came out and entered the pigs; and the herd, numbering about two thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the sea.". For these reasons, the writers of the gospels gave no explanation and the Twelve asked no question about why Jesus destroyed all the swine. 1), and apparently occupied these cities with Jewish patriots. They sort of seek Him out. The Garasenes were not Jewish but the country was close to Galilee and Jesus had been to that side of the sea before. These demons of the Gadarene Demoniac wanted to stay in this territory where worship of Baal was predominant. And then God Himself repeated it five more times in the same book: Leviticus 11:45, Leviticus 19:2, Leviticus 20:2, Leviticus 20:7-8 and Leviticus 20:26! 3). Here is a prophesy that Christians love to quote: You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek (Psalm 110.4) because it connects to Messiah Jesus. In other words, the Roman Catholic Church took four Greek words torn out of mid-sentence and declared them to mean, the end (read, death) of the law [of Moses], although numerous verses declare the fixed, eternal character of Gods Perfect Law. Problem was, not even the pigs could withstand the madness these demonic forces manifested. And wild animals are not forget because farmers in the Land of Israel are commanded in Exodus 23:11 to leave parts of their fields for food for wildlife. Seven facts why Jesus cast the demons to the pigs in Mark 5, but pastors still miss the point, We usually think of Jesus as the loving, forgiving guy from Galilee, right? He was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the desert.) Last week we said the focus was on the power and the person of Jesus Christ. viii. He also wrote the poem Greatheart. Also, Orthodox Jews see a clear connection between Deuteronomy 12:32, do not add, and what happened in the Garden of Eden. He's the friend of sinners. iii. IV. My question is: And it is a shame that the good pastors dont take these relevant Scripture passage into consideration. His wisecracks are a distraction. And repeatedly, these miracles will focus us in on Who is Jesus? and What do His deeds tell us about what He has come to do and the power that He has? And so this passage helps us in this way. Search the web and you will find many opinions about why the pigs died. (Sidebar: During the whole Rob Bell Love Wins craze, I had a friend who claimed to believe the Bible, but denied that demons exist. Mark as quoted by Spalde, Annika; Strindlund, Pelle (2012). Although the Almightys statement is only one sentence in Deuteronomy 12:32, Jews regard it as two different commandments no additions and no subtractions. Sproul writes in his commentary Mark that the compassion of Jesus "drove Him to destroy the pigs for the sake of one human life. Gerasa is mentioned next by Josephus in connection with the Jewish rebellion against the Romans in a.d. 70. .hide-if-no-js { To be honest, all the bad humour honestly makes me believe the pastor is being dishonest. WebApparently Gerasa was rebuilt by the Romans before the revolt began, prob. WebAll three Synoptic Gospels ( Mark 5:120; Luke 8:2639; Matthew 8:2834) mention the swine miracle, although with variations. Because some confusion exists in the gospel MS evidence and perhaps in other source material, absolute certainty cannot be attained; but the following identification seems correct. Mark and Luke call it Gerasenes and some English versions translate it as Gergesenes. It is all the same place. Mark as quoted by Spalde, Annika; Strindlund, Pelle (2012). Jesus does not go looking for this demon-possess man, the man comes to Him. I want you to see a person in the thrall of sin. Originally published in Tabletalk, our daily Bible study magazine. noted the official establishment of Christianity and discontinuance of pagan worship in the 5th cent. Before a shattering, a mans heart is proud (Proverbs 18:12). No cumbered chamber will the Master share,But one swept bare By cleansing fires, then plenished fresh and fairWith meekness, and humility, and prayer.There will He come, yet, coming, even thereHe stands and waits, and will no entrance winUntil the latch be lifted from within. The apostles arent having a pig roast anywhere. (Only an amateur Hebraist would claim the latter, frankly.). It was like, And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor relent for He is not a man that He should relent. We know that two thousand pigs go over the cliff. WebAll three Synoptic Gospels ( Mark 5:120; Luke 8:2639; Matthew 8:2834) mention the swine miracle, although with variations. But this view is shocking because it places Gods Son on an equal footing with the unclean spirits and thus flies in the face of the normal presentation of Jesus in the Gospels. Ba-dum-tsss.). If the pig farmers were Gentile, why would non-Jewish farmers be so gentle with a Jew (who was also an outsider) who was messing around with their farm animals? The pastors attempts to laugh off the haunting question about the meek and lowly Son of Man killing all the pigs is pathetic. Then they sailed to the country of the Gerasenes, [Let me just pause right there. I could have come up with better arguments against Christianity than Bertrand Russell, but in the course of this book in one of the chapters, he says it is this story that led him to the conclusion that Jesus was neither the best nor the most virtuous of men. were badly damaged in major Since all of these areas overlap, one may take the references as meaning the same place. Executive Committee of the Editorial Board. So if you have the ears to hear, the Father and the Son both wrote the Law and gave it to 630,000 men (and women and children) at Mt. The only other commandment with this same specific promise is the command to honour thy mother and father (Exodus 20:12 and Deuteronomy 5:16; c.f., Ephesians 6:2-3 where Paul copies out the entire commandment and the promise). Its odd that dispensationalist preachers dont preach this obvious, permanent truth. See more comments below.). He's no longer under the domination of demons or his own sin. the obscure phrase, (declaring all food clean), is magically transformed by the New International Version into, In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean, or into even lovelier prose like, By saying this, he declared that every kind of food is acceptable in Gods eyes, by the New Living Translation (talk about making silk purse out of a sows ear). (But that may sadly describe a good number of Christians.) Post the Definition of Gerasene to Facebook, Share the Definition of Gerasene on Twitter, More than 250,000 words that aren't in our free dictionary, Expanded definitions, etymologies, and usage notes. And low and behold, two gospels specify that Jesus didnt go into Tyre (part of modern Lebanon), but that he was only in the vicinity of the city (Matthew 15:21; Mark 7:24 and Mark 7:31). He was totally dominated by these demonic forces. God designated the descendants of Abraham, the Israelites, as His chosen people. Only this interpretation explains the farmers restrained reaction over the slaughter of the swine, and their tremendous terror of the Messiah. Looking back over the entirety of Gods Word, we do indeed notice many plagues rained down on the wicked in other books. So why were these pig owners on the east side of the lake afraid? (. 2 The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. WebGerasa, Gadara or Gergesa (Luke 8;26, 37) As Jesus was climbing out of the boat, a man who was possessed by demons came out to meet Him. If you eat a swine/hog that has killed eaten a poisonous snake and you eat that hog, you will be poisoned and die. Neither common sense, nor the text, let Jesus off the hook. The opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not necessarily represent the opinions or policies of any other person, religious organization or governmental entity. Obviously, they were Jewish pig farmers seeing judgement for flagrant disobey Gods Word and keeping and eating pig meat. If the Eternal One, blessed be He, had said just once that pork was unclean and forbidden, that should be enough. All four gospel writers repeatedly testify to Jesuss power over storm, waves and. They belonged to God. As the Philistine dead were strewn from Gaza to Ekron, so thousands of Satans dead fell in their own territory. Show us the sins of our hearts that we are captive to. Such a conclusion will annoy a lot of people, even funny, leaky dispensationalists like John MacArthur. By Your Holy Spirit, show us our need of grace. But with all this talk about tenderness, what on Earth could have changed Jesuss tune and made him treat the swine the way he did? The heart set free from sin by Jesus. You can bet your bottom drachma there is. Demons do not care about the person they possess hence all the cutting and harm the man did to himself. 2023. Basically, a vision told Peter three times to eat defiling animal meat (at least that was how it seemed to him) so Peter logically replied that he had never eaten anything ritually impure or defiling (Acts 10:14). Coincidentally, three Gentiles showed up for lunch, and the following day, he met a Roman convert when finally Peter figured it out and declared the Lords view of Gentile believers, But God has shown me that I should not call ritually impure or defiling any man (Acts 10:28). . It was part of the Greco-Roman region known as the Decapolis, or ten towns. It was Gentile territory, the land of foreign gods, a place of idolatry. Years earlier, when the ancient Israelis came to the border of the Promised Land, part of the eastern shore was controlled by the Geshurites (and the Maakathites) but Joshua told Israel to possess their land (, Last Fact: The coming Judgement Jews First, We have seen that God Almighty loves animals as much as humans, so Jesus randomly killing two thousand swine seems senseless, unless we remember God has commanded righteous people to avoid defiling food, such as pork. Twice he is described this way look at verse 35, the man from whom the demons had gone out and then again the man from whom the demons had gone and then in verse 38, the man from whom the demons had gone. When Jesus had asked him, What's your name? The first time he had answered, I'm the man possessed by a countless host of demons. Now, he's the man from whom those demons have gone out. Pigs, of course, were unclean for the Jews (Lev. GERASA, GERASENES (, ). Diana (Artemis) of Ephesuslovely without a nose! The fact that Matthew places the healing of Legion in the country of the Gadarenes whereas Mark and Luke place it in the country of the Gerasenes may be harmonized on the historical grounds that geographical boundaries overlapped, and on the exegetical consideration that country embraced a wide area around the cities. He showed mercy to the men who were possessed and brought judgement on the pig farmers. Do you remember? The three passages that describe the incident with the demoniacs in the country of the Gerasenes, also called Gadarenes, are Matthew 8:28-34, Mark 5:1-20, and Luke 8:26-39. The real irritation is people saying the Law was impossible to obey, when Scripture says the opposite it true. All of us may be so concerned with our own livelihoods that we fail to serve other people and help those in desperat He was possessed of extraordinary strength but he was aware that there was a man of God in his presence. The victorious Lord made life good again for one embattled soul. I beg You, do not torment me. Then, if you look in verse 38, he begs Jesus that he might be with him. Of course not. That is all I know. Now I want to say very quickly, my friends, that there is no power in this universe that can cause a rationale being to sin. The apostle had been busy preaching in Demetriuss hometown of Ephesus and Pauls message about the one true God was catching on. Look at what he first says when Jesus meets him in verse 28 What do you have to do with me, Jesus? Most Christians believe Messiah is the Second Person of the Trinity. Theyre written as factual history. If you watch the short clip (above) and compare it to the one hour source video Dominating Powers, Part 2 (Mark 5:1-20) you will notice how MacArthurs speaking style changes as soon as he addresses the matter of the pigs. One unambiguous (but hotly debated) verse that supports this doctrine is, If we agree Messiah wrote the Law of God, we should then wonder, (Please dont hide behind that sensational dispensational chart. I wouldn't care to speculate how many demons possessed this man, but the man can only identify himself as a person who is possessed by an almost innumerable host of evil spirits and he doesn't even remember his own name. But the sad thing I want you to see at the end is the reaction of the majority of his countrymen, because unlike him, they do not beg to be with Jesus. Scripture makes it clear that Ashers tribal land-boundary ended around the coastal city of Tyre (Joshua 19:29). The Word of God cant change any more than God can. Somewhere I read that that region actually raised pigs and worshipped them or considered them as idols so study about the region and style of worship for that region. This Priceless People Interpretation comes from another sunny California pastor, John Piper. This mother-baby law actually takes priority over another command which requires all first-born calves and lambs to be offered up to God on His altar (Numbers 18:17; Deuteronomy 15:19.) Christ's primary focus was on "the lost sheep of the house of Israel" (Matt. 4 And the sons of Javan; Elishah, and Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim. 3 And the sons of Gomer; Ashkenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah. It was interesting that Palmer had gone out without any announcement but this man knew who he was and he was obviously disturbed that he was there and he began to make threats. Lots of non-Jews lived there. GotQuestions has three articles alone on the subject: here is their best. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he had not lived in a house but among the tombs. May He write its eternal truth upon all our hearts. All four gospel writers repeatedly testify to Jesuss power over storm, waves and gravity (Matthew 8:22-27, Mark 4:3541 and Luke 8:2225, passages immediately before the pig-demon accounts!
