But what does Leviticus says about ham? Be this as it may, the district was being the eternal Son of God. (we dont invent stories to let people know Jesus has power over the Tooth Fairy, do we?). One can only imagine the insanity the demoniac suffered at the hands of these evil forces. That is the exact opposite of other godly men (compare with, Lastly, even if Mr. Pipers explanation were true, look what its, The hard-hearted views of the Bishop of Hippo are not biblical because righteous people are obliged by God to be considerate to all animals, even, Are not two sparrows sold for the smallest coin, and yet one of them cannot fall to the earth apart from your Father? Thats really why they were sent. He showed mercy to the men who were possessed and brought judgement on the pig farmers. But when Jesus explained that the commandment was the old one from Leviticus, Love one another, they signed with relief, seeing how he was just underscoring the command that God already gave (Leviticus 19:18). The demons freak out that Jesus is there because its not time for them to be tormented by Him yet. Don Crowe and Nicholas Gentile direct the Oswego Players Scenes of Crime; Section X: Canton downs Heuvelton for repeat Overall Section 10 title; Section X: Lady Wildcats edge Hammond for Section Overall title; PROPERTY SALES; Local pro hockey: Former Wolves player Liarakos paces Mississippi past visiting Watertown borrowed from Anglo-French, borrowed from Medieval Latin galilea, probably after Galilea, Galilaea galilee, from a monastic and clerical comparison of the church porch, where the laity gathered, to biblical Galilee, regarded, in opposition to Judaea, as a country of Gentiles (as in Matthew 4:15) I wonder why?). 10 ) It was the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee, the area of the Decapolis. Amen. This city was better known than Gadara or Gergesa; indeed in the Roman age no city of Palestine was better known. Thus, we are not surprised that there was "a great herd of pigs" feeding near the tombs where the Gerasene demoniac was living (5:11). It is a wonderful fact, but unlike you and I, Gods character is constant and consistent I AM that I AM and understanding His unchanging nature is at the center of forming the right interpretation of Mark 5. In the Book of Acts, Chapter Nineteen, we read about Demetrius, a Greek silver-statue maker, who was connecting a few dots of his own and had reasoned that a certain big-mouthed Jew was bad for business. Yet they tried to throw one of their own off a cliff (Luke 4:29). Also, Johns emphasis do not take away from the words is stronger than Mosess original statement. For you Tolkien fans it reminds me of a character in the trilogy of the Lord of the Rings. It deeply disturbed Bertrand Russell that Jesus allowed a herd of two thousand pigs to be destroyed. WATER DESTROYED HER!!!! Gods Law has a law that you cannot change Gods Law. GotQuestions has three articles alone on the subject: here is their best. Gentile Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear. Indeed, some believe that Jesuss single option was to let Legion loose on the animals. 9 We do not find demons under every pew and under every rock. 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. In delivering the man from his bondage, Jesus restored creations promise. Topical Bible: Gerasenes Gadarenes, Girgesenes, Gerasenes - Smiths Bible Dictionary Something else to ponder about the Son of God is his other title, I am the good shepherd. Echoes of Exodus in the Land of the Gerasenes | Mitchell Lewis May He write its eternal truth upon all our hearts. Gerasa is identified from various sources as a city in Arabia, Decapolis, Gilead, or Perea. 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. What's going on here? View our current career opportunities. Is there actually a real reason why the Gospel accounts shouldnt be taken as factual history? So why did the meek n merciful Son of Man cast countless defiling demons into two thousand piglets, sows and boars? Now what happens in this passage? And you know what the most frightening thing of all is? They are unclean for you. Jesus was wise to use what God gives us, for a teachable moment. That was a very large farming operation, even by the modern European and North American standards of today which typically do not have such giant herds. Lets dwell on that he added no new commands to his disciples. (Matt 15:24). It's all Gentile territory, so just bear that in mind. Am I forgiven by saying, I just allowed the kids to have the grenade? Did Jesus Heal and Preach to Only Jews? No! - NCR The Matthew account mentions two demon-possessed men, while Mark and Luke only mention one. Jesus does not go looking for this demon-possess man, the man comes to Him. If you have any questions, please review our Privacy Policy or email us at privacy@biblegateway.com. Sadly, our two good pastors seem oblivious to the fact that under the Law of Moses, animals have benefits too, and this fact should have bearing on any interpretation of Mark 5. The real-estate on the east side of the lake of Galilee where Jesus met the demons and the swine was also part of Israel-proper. Do you remember at the end of the book, in the sixth book, when the King of Gondor and his captains and the host of Gondor have arrived at the black gates of Sauron Sauron is the evil figure in the book and if you know Tolkien's cosmology, he was actually an apprentice to the Satan figure of Tolkien's writings. 'Hiemal,' 'brumation,' & other rare wintry words. Besides, it was Christmas! The majority admits they are clueless and throw their hands up, stating the herd was just a , The pastors attempts to laugh off the haunting question about the meek and lowly Son of Man killing all the pigs is, Besides the jokes being in poor taste, they make his sermon seem less than professional. I trust the Lord Jesus to know what to do with demons and what ought to be done. --ED.). So how on earth could they dictate to the Son of God where they wished to go? WebMany New Testament manuscripts refer to the "Country of the Gadarenes" or "Gerasenes" rather than. No, I've checked my facts, anticipated the arguments, remembered my own arguments from he past, and now Im ready to present my conclusions for Christians to consider. Therefore, were those cool-headed pig-farmers really Gentiles? May God grant us the liberation through Jesus Christ to become what that nameless man became. Legion Destroys Some Swine | Reformed Bible Studies He also said after much work with people that was possess that most of them dealt in occult practices. This agrees with the general description of the site (Mark 5:1; Luke 8:26). The excavations uncovered what is to date the best preserved Rom. By using our website, you accept our use of cookies. 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. To be honest, all the bad humour honestly makes me believe the pastor is being dishonest. Theories of men that attack statements made by God evolution for example are sadly creeping into the minds of Christian leaders. But look at how many times God let it be known in the Law and in very certain terms eating pork was offensive. (Cf. Most Christians believe Messiah is the Second Person of the Trinity. [Israels] real enemy isnt Rome, which barely figures into the gospel story. They forget that all scripture is inspired of God and all of it is established in the heavens and none of it can change. 3. And it's the glorious picture of the value that He puts on an immortal soul. God never said dont touch. She added that bit. From the readings of the best texts and from the unsuitability of the locality around Gadara it appears that the proper reading should be "Gerasenes" and the place located at Karsa, on the left bank of the Wadi Samak, near the sea of Galilee. Now that's interesting isn't it? Clearly, Luke is telling you this because he wants you to show the amazing power of Jesus Christ, even over demons. We come to understand that the God of the Universe is willing to wait and to stall our own behaviour so as to give mother cows and mother sheep more time together with their babies. 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. Plus, these additions by John connect back to other passages in interesting ways. Although the Almightys statement is only one sentence in Deuteronomy 12:32, Jews regard it as two different commandments no additions and no subtractions. Doesn't Jesus Treat Animals as Property? In York, T.; Alexis-Baker, A.; Bekoff, M.; McLaren, B. He also makes excursions into Gentile territory, such as when he exorcizes the Gerasene/Gadarene demoniac (Mark 5:1-20). Answer: the impurity of the swine. Thats the exodus that Israel needs. The Catholic Church's interpretation of this verse is sheer nonsense, because the weight of Scripture contradicts it, so true Reformers need to re-read their Bibles. WebGERASA, GERASENES (, ). When Eve said that she and hubby were not allowed to touch the [Good and Evil Knowledge Tree] or they would die, she was lying (Genesis 3:3 and Jewish explanation). The pastors precious-people useless-swine principle was previously dreamed up by the 3rd century church father, St. Augustine of Hippo (quoted by Spalde and Strindlund), and he ran with it. The list in the first chapter of Leviticus contains only bovine, sheep, goats and pigeons; all typified later, in Leviticus 11, as clean/pure animals. He's been set free by Jesus. This made them fit for consumption. The thinking behind each chart is contrary to the unity and oneness of God. xviii. Demetrius wasnt afraid to stand up for his rights. That's even more unexpected than not being angry because in Paul's case, it was the other way around. Yet being part of the Godhead means Messiah cannot not flip-flop his opinions. Thy powersBring loss to us and ours.Our ways are not as Thine.Thou lovest men, weswine.Oh, get you hence, Omnipotence,And take this fool of Thine!His soul? Mark and Luke wrote that Jesus /gave the right to them to enter the pigs much stronger wording and more official than allow. Im not saying I totally believed the stories, but I cannot believe that a single other place could not be found to send the legion. But when the pigs need to be explained, he immediately seems lost and turns to heartless comedy. 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. Why? The prophet Jonah is held up as the merciless messenger of God; not a great title. Yet there was no fury. 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. Something else to ponder about the Son of God is his other title, The Good Shepherd: David, the son of Jesse, was another selfless, compassionate shepherd. And do you believe for one minute that God told us to obey something that He knew full-well we couldnt obey? Also, Demetrius only needed to speak a few choice words against the Jew (compare with Act 19:34), to get the crowd all worked up the silversmith didnt have any real evidence that Pauls preaching was going to slow sales. Ha, ha.. yeah lemme ummm.. tell ya about those pigs.., 2 ) Like any rational redneck, they smelled their Gentile neighbors having a pork BBQ and said DAAAANG, Hoss! There's a total change of nature in this man. The Syrians made reprisals, and took many prisoners. Its a weird story, but its in the Gospels a couple of times, so we have to accept it as truth. Regrettably, what were about to study the Big Pig Splash Down isn't one of them. Don't be surprised if none of them want the spotl One goose, two geese. were badly damaged in major 2 And when Jesus had stepped out of the boat, Isaiah 44:9; Isaiah 44:19 Pigs were the required sacrifice on the altar in the temples of Zeus Olympus (Greek) or Jupiter Capitolinus (Roman), the same supreme god of all Hellenic theology known as the "king of Such a contradiction in character! Jesus is the lover of our souls. Either way, dispensational charts ultimately commit both acts against the Word of God. For the moment, Jesus was just being ironic. Lord God, even as we sing this hymn, cause those who do not know Him to love Him and cause those who love Him to love Him more than anything else in this world. They sort of seek Him out. WebAll three Synoptic Gospels ( Mark 5:120; Luke 8:2639; Matthew 8:2834) mention the swine miracle, although with variations. So lets not laugh these verses off. If ever there was a small and weak proof-text, this is the one. Did Jesus really sacrifice the swine for the man? In a recent online essay on the Gospel of Mark, Peter Leithart wrote. Some of my Christian brothers and sisters see this as coded language referring to a confrontation with the political and military power of Rome. Besides, each of the synoptic gospels quotes the demons saying out loud that Jesus had the power to torture them all at will (Matthew 8:29, Mark 5:7 and Luke 8:28). I am but a man possessed by an innumerable host of demons. For a long time he had been homeless and naked, living in a cemetery outside the town. They were people who knew him. 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). And so the demons call out His name Jesus, the Son of the Most High God and it has no effect on Him. If the interpretation from, If a bunch of little children want a ball to play with and I toss them a grenade, am I off the hook if a kid pulls out the pin? Issues are listed below: we are using four Greek words to eliminate entire chapters of Scripture. That amazing phrase, all of you be holy for I am holy did not start with Peter (1 Peter 1:16), because the apostle is quoting Leviticus. In the three Synoptic Gospels and John 2:15, Jesus forces all the sellers out of the Temple courts. The action is no different than Revelation 14:14-15 where we see the Son of Man brandishing a sharp sickle. Rabbi, begone! David ran after the lion that had grabbed his sheep and with just his staff, and his wits, he forced the lion to drop it. (Quite likely David would have let the lion and the bear free, if not for the fact that they came back at him: 2 Samuel 17:35). So He got into the boat and returned. For one, Leviticus 22:28 forbids righteous farmers from killing a cow and its calf on the same day. Also, the land where the Master walked and the swine were feeding belonged to Israel. You can bet your bottom drachma there is. But the Jews were promised and re-promised their land by God throughout the Law: Genesis 15:7, Leviticus 20:24, Numbers 33:52-53, Deuteronomy 1:8 are just a few examples. His sermon should have given us some point, some excuse, or some logical explanation for it all. Instead of a sling and a stone, Jesus needs only his voice; Jesus commands and the enemy falls. Yet the gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke actually report that the towns people many would have been the owners or friends of the pig owners or people who were connected to the trade in the swine were frightened of the Jewish rabbi. Because they cared more about what they had lost than what that man had gained or what they could gain in Jesus themselves. Gerasenes | Biblical Training Jesus is going to tell him, You can't come with Me, but I do want you to go back and tell them what great things God has done for you. What do you love? It's almost like the demons are inexorably drawn to Jesus. Almost there. To run Money Maker Software properly, Microsoft .Net Framework 3.5 SP1 or higher version is required. The best text in Matthew reads Gadarenes, in Mark and Luke it reads Gerasenes, whereas some MSS preserve Gergesenes and Gergustenes (cf. Demonic forces seem to be territorial; i.e., they have assigned areas of domain. (So much for those latter revelations or new religions arriving centuries later.). WebGerasene: [noun] an inhabitant of the ancient Palestinian town Gerasa. They know that Jesus can cast them into the abyss, into the lake of fire, into the bowels of hell, and theyre frightened. Last week we said the focus was on the power and the person of Jesus Christ. 7). Yet this is exactly what Christians believe; Jesus came to fulfill (but think annul) the Law and then start a whole new religion. Luckily, they didnt find Paul anywhere, but they did haul a number of Pauls colleagues down to city hall. Why should this surprise us? The apostles arent having a pig roast anywhere. Plus, when Jesus chased the sellers out of the Temple courts (Matthew 21:12-13; Mark 11:12-19; Luke 19:45-48; John 12:13-16), there is a small, but wonderful, detail that is in complete harmony with Matthew 10:29. Jesus to leave These authors were Biblical (Peter, James, Paul, Hebrews, etc) and to a lesser extent, non-biblical (Josephus, Pliny, etc). It was part of the Greco-Roman region known as the Decapolis, or ten towns. or ten War III. (For many a time it had seized him. 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. led to the substitute reading Gergesenes, a reading that was suggested by a study of the geography of the area. By Your Holy Spirit, show us our need of grace. The forum, with a semicircle of columns still standing, was paved with large cut stones. 3). All these inescapable facts are so important to getting the right interpretation of Mark 5 and the other gospel records of the same event. War II. Sadly, the rest of the verse is not quoted in GotQuestions best article and preachers rarely preach it, though it reveals more about the true character of the Messiah. Jesus was upholding all the kosher laws within the Land of Israel it was part of his job description. Gergesa is located, with relative certainty, midway along the E bank of the Sea of Galilee; Gadara is six m. SE from the S end of the Sea of Galilee; and Gerasa is some thirty-five m. SE. Ive heard that the apostles and Christ may have traveled to Spain. To all of you who have been liberated from the captivity of your sin by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, receive God's blessing. Can we imagine our Jew receiving a mostly positive reaction or a negative one? Well this is a taste of the profound arguments that you will find in that book. there was never a prophecy that the kosher laws would be removed, so the verse is coming completely from left field. Therefore, when it came to sacrifices on it, the menu was even shorter. In course of time, as the Jews began more and more to pride themselves on their peculiar privileges, it acquired unpleasant associations, and was used as a term of contempt. Those outside of the nation of Israel were considered gentiles. It's a glorious picture of Jesus love for lost souls, even a Gentile. This curse should deter makers of dispensational charts from chopping up Scripture because having my share taken from the Book of Life, or my name wiped out of the Book of Life (Revelation 3:5) doesnt sound very cool. Lots of non-Jews lived there. Wipf & Stock Publishers. This picking and choosing is completely unbiblical. Cute little silver goddess dolls would have sold for the same price as a full-grown boar or sow in those days. On the other hand, the Masters usually thick-headed students, the Tedious Twelve, didnt question him about this! So these four miracles show Jesus reaching out to Gentiles, either in Galilee or even in even more Gentile territory across the river. This means that these miracles are especially meant to teach believers something. We usually think of Jesus as the loving, forgiving guy from Galilee, right? The fact anyone dreamed up dispensationalism, They say, None, but Jesus, kept the Law perfectly. If a bunch of little children want a ball to play with and I toss them a grenade, am I off the hook if a kid pulls out the pin? WebInhabitants of Gadara, known from an alleged miracle of Jesus (Matt. 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. Gergesenes means "those who come from pilgrimage or fight." If the Eternal One, blessed be He, had said just once that pork was unclean and forbidden, that should be enough. The passage appears to be straightforward historical-narrative writing, like the rest of Marks gospel. This now then is our fifth fact in a nutshell. There are echoes of exodus in Marks story, and echoes of Davids battle with Goliath. In fact, the next thing the name did was to take a steel bar, place it in his teeth, and proceed to bend it with his hands and with his teeth. viii. As soon as he saw Jesus, he shrieked and fell down in front of Him. 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. Gerasa was a city situated near the Jabbok River about eighteen m. E of the Jordan, about twenty m. SE of Pella, and twenty m. N of Philadelphia.