(Mark 1:21-28; Luke 4:31-37)Mark 1:21-28 - They (Simon Peter, Andrew, James and John - the newly called disciples) arrived at Capernaum, and on the Sabbath day Jesus walked straight into the synagogue and began teaching. They were amazed at his way of teaching, for he taught with the ring of authority - quite unlike the scribes. All at once, a man in the grip of an evil spirit appeared in the synagogue shouting out, "What have you got to do with us, Jesus from Nazareth? Have you come to kill us? I know who you are - you're God's holy one!"
But Jesus cut him short and spoke sharply, "Hold your tongue and get out of him!"
At this the evil spirit convulsed the man, let out a loud scream and left him. Everyone present was so astounded that people kept saying to each other, "What on earth has happened? This new teaching has authority behind it. Why he even gives his orders to evil spirits and they obey him!"
And his reputation spread like wild-fire through the whole Galilean district.
Luke 4:31-37 - So (after preaching in the synagogue in his home town of Nazareth, and being rejected by the people there) he came down to Capernaum, a town in Galilee, and taught them on the Sabbath day. They were astonished at his teaching, for his words had the ring of authority.
There was a man in the synagogue under the influence of some evil spirit and he yelled at the top of his voice, "Hi! What have you got to do with us, Jesus, you Nazarene - have you come to kill us? I know who you are all right, you're God's holy one!"
Jesus cut him short and spoke sharply, "Be quiet! Get out of him!"
And after throwing the man down in front of them, the devil did come out of him without hurting him in the slightest. At this everybody present was amazed and they kept saying to each other, "What sort of words are these? He speaks to these evil spirits with authority and power and out they come."
And his reputation spread over the whole surrounding district.
(Matthew 12:15-21; Mark 3:7-12; Luke 6:17-19) Matthew 12:15-21 - But Jesus knew of this (the Pharisees desire to get rid of him, especially after healing the man with the shrivelled hand) and he left the place (possibly Capernaum).
Large crowds followed him and he healed them all, with the strict injunction that they should not make him conspicuous by their talk, thus fulfilling Isaiah's prophecy: 'Behold, my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved in whom my soul is well pleased; I will put my Spirit upon him, and he will declare justice to the Gentiles. He will not quarrel nor cry out, nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and smoking flax he will not quench, till he sends forth justice to victory. And in his name Gentiles will trust' .
Mark 3:7-12 - Jesus now retired to the lake-side (of the Sea of Galilee) with his disciples (again after healing the man with the shrivelled hand). A huge crowd of people followed him, not only from Galilee, but from Judea, Jerusalem and Idumea, some from the district beyond the Jordan and from the neighbourhood of Tyre and Sidon. This vast crowd came to him because they had heard about the sort of things he was doing. So Jesus told his disciples to have a small boat kept in readiness for him, in case the people should crowd him too closely. For he healed so many people that all those who were in pain kept pressing forward to touch him with their hands. Evil spirits, as soon as they saw him, acknowledged his authority and screamed, "You are the Son of God!"
But he warned them repeatedly that they must not make him known.
Luke 6:17-19 - Then (again after healing the man with the shrivelled hand, but here, in Luke's account, also after Jesus has chosen the twelve apostles ...) he came down with them and stood on a level piece of ground, surrounded by a large crowd of his disciples and a great number of people from all parts of Judea and Jerusalem and the coastal district of Tyre and Sidon, who had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases. (And even those who were troubled with evil spirits were cured.) The whole crowd were trying to touch him with their hands, for power was going out from him and he was healing them all.
(Matthew 8:28-34; Mark 5:1-20; Luke 8:26-39)
- The different Gospels and various versions of the Bible place this incident in the region of the Gadarenes, the Gerasenes, and the Gergesenes:
(1) The town of Gadara was a few miles southeast of the Sea of Galilee in the Gentile Decapolis. The region of the Gadarenes may well have spread beyond the town to the shoreside;
(2) Gerasa, also in the Decapolis, but much further away, some 30 miles (50 km) from the Sea of Galilee; and
(3) Only Gergesa was on the actual shoreside in the territory of Gaulanitis - the modern Golan.
Whatever the case, it must have been predominantly Gentile to account for the large numbers of pigs or swine. These were forbidden to Jews as food -
Matthew 8:28-34 - When he arrived on the other side (of the Sea of Galilee after calming the storm - which is the Gadarenes' country) he was met by two devil-possessed men who came out from among the tombs. They were so violent that nobody dared to use that road. "What have you got to do with us, Jesus, you Son of God?" they screamed at him. "Have you come to torture us before the proper time?"
It happened that in the distance there was a large herd of pigs feeding. So the devils implored him, "If you throw us out, send us into the herd of pigs!"
"Then go!" said Jesus to them.
And the devils came out of the two men and went into the pigs. Then quite suddenly the whole herd rushed madly down a steep cliff into the lake and were drowned.
The swineherds took to their heels, and ran to the town. There they poured out the whole story, not forgetting what had happened to the two men who had been devil-possessed. Whereupon the whole town came out to meet Jesus, and as soon as they saw him implored him to leave their (Gentile) territory.
Mark 5:1-20 - So they arrived on the other side of the lake in the country of the Gerasenes (again after calming the storm). As Jesus was getting out of the boat, a man in the grip of an evil spirit rushed to meet him from among the tombs where he was living. It was no longer possible for any human being to restrain him even with a chain. Indeed he had frequently been secured with fetters and lengths of chain, but he had simply snapped the chains and broken the fetters in pieces. No one could do anything with him. All through the night as well as in the day-time he screamed among the tombs and on the hill-side, and cut himself with stones. Now, as soon as he saw Jesus in the distance, he ran and knelt before him, yelling at the top of his voice, "What have you got to do with me, Jesus, Son of the most high God? For God's sake, don't torture me!"
For Jesus had already said, "Come out of this man, you evil spirit!"
Then he asked him, "What is your name?"
"My name is legion," he replied, "for there are many of us."
Then he begged and prayed him not to send "them" out of the country.
A large herd of pigs was grazing there on the hill-side, and the evil spirits implored him, "Send us over to the pigs and we'll get into them!"
So Jesus allowed them to do this, and they came out of the man, and made off and went into the pigs. The whole herd of about two thousand stampeded down the cliff into the lake and was drowned. The swineherds took to their heels and spread their story in the city and all over the countryside. Then the people came to see what had happened. As they approached Jesus, they saw the man who had been devil-possessed sitting there properly clothed and perfectly sane - the same man who had been possessed by "legion" - and they were really frightened. Those who had seen the incident told them what had happened to the devil-possessed man and about the disaster to the pigs. Then they began to implore Jesus to leave their district. As he was embarking on the small boat, the man who had been possessed begged that he might go with him. But Jesus would not allow this.
"Go home to your own people," he told him, "And tell them what the Lord has done for you, and how kind he has been to you!"
So the man went off and began to spread throughout the Ten Towns the story of what Jesus had done for him. And they were all simply amazed.
Luke 8:26-39 - They sailed on to the country of the Gerasenes (after calming the storm) which is on the opposite side of the lake to Galilee. And as Jesus disembarked, a man from the town who was possessed by evil spirits met him. He had worn no clothes for a long time and did not live inside a house, but among the tombs. When he saw Jesus, he let out a howl and fell down in front of him, yelling, "What have you got to do with me, you Jesus, Son of the most high God? Please, please, don't torment me."
For Jesus was commanding the evil spirit to come out of the man. Again and again the evil spirit had taken control of him, and though he was bound with chains and fetters and closely watched, he would snap his bonds and go off into the desert with the devil at his heels. Then Jesus asked him, "What is your name?"
"Legion!" he replied. For many evil spirits had gone into him, and were now begging Jesus not to order them off to the bottomless pit. It happened that there was a large herd of pigs feeding on the hill-side, so they implored him to allow them to go into the pigs, and he let them go. And when the evil spirits came out of the man and went into the pigs, the whole herd rushed down the cliff into the lake and were drowned. When the swineherds saw what had happened, they took to their heels, pouring out the story to the people in the town and countryside. These people came out to see what had happened, and approached Jesus. They found the man, whom the evil spirits had left, sitting down at Jesus' feet, properly clothed and quite sane. That frightened them. Those who had seen it told the others how the man with the evil spirits had been cured. And the whole crowd of people from the district surrounding the Gerasenes' country begged Jesus to go away from them, for they were thoroughly frightened. Then he re-embarked on the boat and turned back. The man who had the evil spirits kept begging to go with Jesus, but he sent him away with the words, "Go back home and tell them all what wonderful things God has done for you."
So the man went away and told the marvellous story of what Jesus had done for him, all over the town.
