), his power over blindness (John 9:32) and even over death, as in the case of a three-days dead Lazarus (John 11:1-44). In fact, they are afraid of him and beg him to leave. If you eat a swine/hog that has killed eaten a poisonous snake and you eat that hog, you will be poisoned and die. A city in Transjordania, situated about thirty-five m. SE of the S end of the Sea of Galilee, one of the cities of the Decapolis; the inhabitants of the city. Also, this study shows that Jesuss actions in Mark 5 were on the surface contrary to the deep-rooted Jewish respect for domestic and/or wild animals. The site is identified today with the town of Kersa, or Gersa, just below Wadi es-Samak. He was possessed of extraordinary strength but he was aware that there was a man of God in his presence. p. 102. So He gave them permission. The man howled day and night and cut himself with stones. 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. Every creature on land, or in the water, or in the air is classified by either the Hebrew term, (tahor), meaning ritually clean/pure, or by the term, (tameh), unclean/defiling. Sadly, Luther and other Reformed theologians repeat the same theological rubbish, despite Jesus saying he did not come to destroy the Law. Should we accept Mark 5 as literal history? No products in the cart. What do you want? In 2 Samuel 17 we read of the young boy who would be king risking everything for one lamb. 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. Well Ill explain that too, later on. A main street with columns on both sides leads out of the forum. During the time of Christ, the ten cities of Decapolis and the surrounding region were inhabited mostly by Gentiles, not Jews, and the area had a strong Greek influence. ESV - 1 They came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gerasenes. Thou lovest men, we love swine. Doesn't Jesus Treat Animals as Property? In York, T.; Alexis-Baker, A.; Bekoff, M.; McLaren, B. For one, Leviticus 22:28 forbids righteous farmers from killing a cow and its calf on the same day. Another title that didn't make it was Demons, Pigs, and a Request to Leave. Now I think actually that beautifully outlines what happens in this passage, but for a specific reason I've wanted to zero your attention in on this man, this nameless man, who is afflicted by demons and who is liberated by Jesus Christ because there is a Gospel message for all of us. 5 So they came to the other side of the lake, to the region of the Gerasenes. But look at how many times God let it be known in the Law and in very certain terms eating pork was offensive. (Jos. 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. We do not say that to cast the first stone. On the other hand, the Masters usually thick-headed students, the Tedious Twelve, didnt question him about this! In any event, the apparent differences in the texts prob. The Jewish Messiah rid himself of two defiling groups in one blow. 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. But if one cared to examine all of Gods Word, the only possible reason for Jesus to destroy the pigs in the exorcism seems to be connected to Gods opinion about ham. Israel doesnt [need] a savior who can fight off a legion of Roman soldiers. There he meets a man seized with an unclean spirit (Mark) or with demons (Luke). He was incapable of changing his circumstances. She needs someone strong enough to cast a legion of demons into the sea, like Pharaoh and his hosts. Third, I want you to see the change that results in this man after he is not only liberated from these demons, but after he clearly, because of a change of heart, becomes a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. The demons sent the pigs off the banks of the sea and into the water, where they drowned (Mark 5:1213). The Syrians made reprisals, and took many prisoners. This city was better known than Gadara or Gergesa; indeed in the Roman age no city of Palestine was He should know that centuries before the prophet Isaiah spoke against Jews eating pork and hanging around in tombs. It's all Gentile territory, so just bear that in mind. HDB, II, p. 158, 159 for a detailed description.). Jesus helped a Syrophoenician woman and commended her faith ( Matthew 15:2128 ). Yet being part of the Godhead means Messiah cannot not flip-flop his opinions. See more comments below.). They were wise enough to figure out if Jesus in His authority over them would allow them to exit of their choosing, they would select the black pigs often used in sacrifice to Baal. He doesnt want to connect the dots and he doesn't want us to either. It was part of the Greco-Roman region known as the Decapolis, or ten towns. or ten In actual fact, when you stop to think about it, If our faithful, unchanging Heavenly Father God made a straightforward decisive yet divisive decision and repeated it, Fourth Fact: Gods Enduring, Unchangeable Word, As was just so elegantly discussed, the destruction of the herd, Your word, O LORD, is everlasting; it is firmly fixed in the heavens. Its true! Jesus' action also shows the importance of human beings relative to animals. He always followed Gods Law. Be this as it may, the district was WebGenesis 10:5 Context. This software has many innovative features and you can trap a Bull or Bear in REAL TIME! War II. Jesus ministered to and did miracles for the Gentiles there. As a result, our biggest take-away lesson is to never take away from the Word of the Almighty.But dispensational-flavoured pastors ignore this and teach us that Moses and David and even Jesus lived by different rules. Very interesting. Well that's the first thing we see in this passage. The pagan religions continued among the Gentile population as is evidenced by the ruins of the temple of Artemis. And John nicely parallels Jesus who said, not the smallest letter nor the smallest comma will pass away from the Law (Matthew 5:18). The city was large and well planned. 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. Gergesa (). Lastly, based on culture, human-nature and most importantly, on specific Scripture passages, we know the demoniac could not have been a Gentile but was most assuredly Jewish, living in a Jewish town surrounded by Jewish-owned pigs. Seen in this light, Jesuss actions against the herd were more than appropriate and neither Matthew, Mark nor Luke bothered to explain or rationalize the Masters actions. led to the substitute reading Gergesenes, a reading that was suggested by a study of the geography of the area. (we dont invent stories to let people know Jesus has power over the Tooth Fairy, do we?). And the thing that I love the most is the utter contrast in his attitude toward the Lord Jesus Christ. 1), and apparently occupied these cities with Jewish patriots. Christians never finish reading the chapter. The jokes are a smoke screen. They have therefore made important decisions about the proper treatment of animals. 8:513) and the Syrophoenician woman whose daughter was possessed (Mark 7:2430), the Jews received the bulk of His attention, and He spent most of His time in the predominantly Jewish regions of Galilee and Judea. ix. Next, what if our imaginary Jew damaged a ton of Gentile property under their very noses. The good pastor actually believes that a Jewish man can rationally decide the best sleeping quarters , In the end, the good pastors assumptions keep us, Just remember the wonderful folks in Jesuss hometown? Money Maker Software enables you to conduct more efficient analysis in Stock, Commodity, Forex & Comex Markets. The apostles arent having a pig roast anywhere. Also, He is sometimes more open with outsiders/Gentiles than Jews because the negative reaction by the Jewish leaders would hinder his ministry more than rejection by Gentiles. He prefers we stay laughing so no one can reflect on this coincidence. Gergesenes means "those who come from pilgrimage or fight." The stories in the gospels may or may not have happened but, regardless, they are told in a way that makes a theological point and were never intended to be understood as factual history. Surely He could have demonstrated real power over real demons, right? 8 ) Their pork was kosher, kept out of the camp for 7 days, and circumcised. WebGentiles [N] [T] [B] [S] (Heb., usually in plural, goyim), meaning in general all nations except the Jews. Also in a side note theres a rock with what looks like a human footprint in it, it is said this is Christs footprint. In turn, they would have a vehicle wherewith to stay in their territory. They dont care about about the demon possessed men, they want their pigs back, (My opinion) Jesus was raised with sacrifice so animals were thought of for food, not so much as pets like today. He is a billionaire, he is about to break Jack Nicklaus record, he's married to a model, he has two beautiful children, he has everything that anybody in the world could possibly want to have. The apostle had been busy preaching in Demetriuss hometown of Ephesus and Pauls message about the one true God was catching on. He says that the demon expulsions are just unenlightened men of the first century trying to explain illnesses being healed. It goes like this: These are the people of Gerasene speaking to Jesus Rabbi be gone. Anyway, it was the demons that would have decided where, and if, he slept. Therefore, when it came to sacrifices on it, the menu was even shorter. Gerasa. Is there a connection? (, Field hay dries. He's not only a person extraordinarily under bondage to demonic activity, but he's actually a picture of everyone who is in the thrall of sin. 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. 1. They ask Him if they can enter some nearby pigs, and He lets them. He wrote under his own name, and also as John Oxenham for his poetry, hymn-writing, and novels. Read it for yourself. In a similar way, we see that Scripture is the same; it doesnt change. Inhabitants of Gadara, known from an alleged miracle of Jesus (Matt. * And if one doesnt believe demons exist ..same question: why invent a false story to make the point that Jesus has power over demonic creatures that dont exist? Note: Demetrius was angry only because of speculation of what Pauls preaching might do to business Paul had not physically caused any damage. Besides this Biblical evidence that Jesus and the woman were within Israels inheritance, there is also a prophesy that God will settle His People in the future in Gilead (a sizeable part of todays Kingdom of Jordan) and in Lebanon too (Zechariah 10:9-10). If you have any questions, please review our Privacy Policy or email us at privacy@biblegateway.com. Such a pat answer to such a serious question is as irritating as it is ridiculous. The first two are in the Authorized Version. (Cf. 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? Ellicotts Commentary, for one, believes the four Greek words were a latter addition. Also, Orthodox Jews see a clear connection between Deuteronomy 12:32, do not add, and what happened in the Garden of Eden. One possible reason the Son of David chose the pigs was that he had no choice. In the end, the good pastors assumptions keep us rolling in the aisles. Yes, you read that right. Furthermore, the play-by-play presents no reason to be judged as a parable or an allegory. In Luke 4 and 5, great multitudes are following Jesus Christ when He does His miracles. Our ways are not as Thine. viii. Dictionaries Encyclopedias Lexicons. Why should this surprise us? He's the friend of sinners. 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? We gotta git us some!, 1 ) [your turn. 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. He's liberated. Every creature on land, or in the water, or in the air is classified by either the Hebrew term, (, The main reason God limits righteous people to a select group of clean/pure animals is for, Gods altar was also separate and distinct and holy. "It became one of the proudest cities of Syria." All we know now is that the demoniac could have been either: Jew or Gentile. 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. The victorious Lord made life good again for one embattled soul. And Jews are forbidden by God and His eternal commands to own pigs. The most plausible reason Jesus chose the pigs was because he regarded people as precious and priceless, But are these good pastors on the right track? In either case, the theological point is not helped by a fictitious story. For these reasons, the writers of the gospels gave no explanation and the Twelve asked no question about why Jesus destroyed all the swine. evidence), Ye know that when ye were Gentiles ye were, &c. In this and the following verse the Apostle reminds his readers that so far from regarding the marvellous manifestations of the Spirit, such as speaking with tongues and prophesying, as the most wonderful miracles, the Add to that that recent. (Only an amateur Hebraist would claim the latter, frankly.). (, Still, Jesus was not in Gadarenes for judging; he was there, Not contrary, but consistent with Christs Character, Here is a prophesy that Christians love to quote: , The LORD has sworn it and He will not change his mind: You are a priest forever, after the nature of Melchizedek. The LORD is upon your right hand. He's converted. We ask this in Jesus' name. Jesus was upholding all the kosher laws within the Land of Israel it was part of his job description. Scripture makes it clear that Ashers tribal land-boundary ended around the coastal city of Tyre (Joshua 19:29). Echoes of Exodus in the Land of theGerasenes, Wesleys Eschatological Optimism Explains itAll, The Prophet in the Hometown A Pilgrim in Augsburg, The Methodist Million Dollar Appeal in World WarII. The Gerasenes were the people of the district of which Gerasa was the capital. Thats why there was a herd of two thousand Many year later, Messiah went to Israel as a prophet to get the people of Israel back to, The two Johns see more than a hint of what I am talking about in the destruction of the swine and it frightens them so they avoid a serious discussion. Scripture presents us with all we need to know. In his description of the boundaries of Perea, Josephus mentions Gerasa as one of the cities on the eastern boundary between Perea and Arabia, the other border cities being Philadelphia and Sebonitus (Jos. The Psalmist states that God owns the cattle on a thousand hills Because to me belong every beast of the wood, every herd on a thousand hills (Psalm 50:10, and were assuming Jesus the Second Person of the triune God had equal rights to those hills and those cattle.). And so this man comes to Jesus, he seeks Him out, and Jesus says to him, What is your name? And the man doesn't know his name. For heavens sake, why cant the good pastor try to explain the incompatibility of our loving Jesus wiping out hundreds of innocent creatures without a punch line? One was, His Name Was Legion, Not Ligon. I have been confused with Legion all my life and it worries me that it's not just the sound of the name, but I want to make it clear that Legion is not in any way related to Ligon. Gergasa (modern name Kersa) was a small village nearby, and Gadara was the larger region of which the village was a part, with Gerasa as the regional capital. A may also be a combination of two or more genres. The heart set free from sin by Jesus. I say that Christians have turned Jews off because church-goers claim Jesus destroyed the Law and that Jews are blind for following the Law of Moses still. He wouldnt have lived long enough to get to a cross to die. to biblical Galilee, regarded, in opposition to Judaea, as a country of Gentiles (as in Matthew 4:15) What was Jairus occupation? Systems of Transliteration Citation of Proper Names. We pray that he would find liberation in Jesus Christ and see his life and family restored, but my friends, any one of us, any one of us, can be in the same thralldom today. Many of the events are corroborated by other authors. he has the power and the authority to ameliorate both. Now what happens in this passage? And what does the Law say about pigs? 1). The apostle had been busy preaching in Demetriuss hometown of Ephesus and Pauls message about the one true God was catching on. Sadly, GotQuestions misses the point, or they lie, saying that being distinct was all important to God. That's even more unexpected than not being angry because in Paul's case, it was the other way around. Demetrius wasnt afraid to stand up for his rights. The Son of God mercifully cast thousands of defiling demons out of a lost Jew and purposefully launched the legion killers into two thousand defiling swine. What care we for his soul?What good to us that Thou hast made him whole,Since we have lost our swine? If you have your Bibles I'd invite you to turn with me to Luke chapter 8 and this great story of the man who was possessed by demons, liberated by the Lord Jesus Christ. What are you doing here, man of God? And then he attempted to intimidate him. The account occurs in all three Synoptic gospels; in Mark (the shortest gospel) the story is in the longest and most detailed version; Matthew 8.2834 is the shortest, But this is not the full explanation or the main one. The bottom line is, I don't know why Jesus did that and neither do you and neither does anyone else. The excavations uncovered what is to date the best preserved Rom. 2 And when he had stepped out of the boat, immediately a man out of the tombs with an unclean spirit met him. destroyed) and every perplexing dispensational chart is legit. Just as God defeated Pharaohs army at the Red Sea, so Jesus defeats Satans army in the land of the Gerasenes. Its flesh you must not eat. These demons of the Gadarene Demoniac wanted to stay in this territory where worship of Baal was predominant. 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. All four gospel writers repeatedly testify to Jesuss power over storm, waves and. The power and the person of Jesus Christ. At best, Malachi 4:4 should read as, Remember the Law of Moses, but mine's better. In some of your Bibles, it may say Gergesenes or Gadarenes in the parallel passages in the gospels. If I still had some misgivings, Id be man enough to share them here. e. For you Tolkien fans it reminds me of a character in the trilogy of the Lord of the Rings. And was the Master doing the right thing sacrificing someone elses pigs. SO Jesu said later in the NT, that meats going in the mouth does not defile because we excrete it out in the draught, solid and liquids, so physically our body cleans itself if there were toxins, and It is whatever comes out of the mind, is what taints a person, whatever he or she thinks. The lectionary reading for Trinity 1, Year C, is Luke's version of Jesus meeting and healing the demon-possessed man in the 'region of the Gerasenes' (Luke 8.2639). Not that I believe my case has holes. 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. I think Jesus was trying to give to all the sight to see the wrong things in this world we can overcome by walking with Him and His Way of life. Lastly, based on culture, human-nature and most importantly, on specific Scripture passages, we know the demoniac could not have been a Gentile but was most assuredly, Yet a complete interpretation of Mark 5 needs to clear up one last point: the pigs were forbidden but did they, Christ kept kosher and cleaned up the town, I can of Myself do nothing. Therefore, hiding behind a few vague statements like the pat answer verses listed here is not sound. Well, this happens in the gospel with Jesus. This, by the way, is 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. As well, every place the Master went on his travels was inside of the Land of Israel; he never went to Gentile territory. 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. 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. Dr. R.C. New International Version (NIV), Encyclopedia of The Bible Gerasa, Gerasenes. 15:24), but He was concerned for all peoples. The next allusion to Gerasa concerns its capture during Vespasians campaign. So lets not laugh these verses off. Why explain something that is as plain as the nose on your face? It all belongs to God. Those people were Jews in Nazareth. Compared to the accounts of the same event in Matthew and Luke also written in simple narrative prose some details vary. War III. WebThey came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gerasenes. Matthew 12:43 and Luke 11:24 mention demons going to a dry place. And what about just sending the killers into the air (Ephesians 2:2)? View our current career opportunities. There's nothing that they can do to restrain His mighty arm. Learn a new word every day. (eds.). : A similar remark came from Mosess lips when he described God as eternally faithful and then connected Gods faithfulness to His faithful love. 10 ) It was the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee, the area of the Decapolis. 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.) When Jesus had stepped out on land, there met Him a man from the city who had demons. Luke doesn't think that it's an every day occurrence for a person to be possessed by a host of demons. You know that because the people tell Him to leave. Sproul also agrees with this preference of people over pigs when he writes, a man is worth more than 2,000 pigs.. and therefore the good pastor declares the demoniac to be a Gentile since, as everyone also knows, Gentiles are better tomb-dwellers.. Scripture exhorts us to care for animals and not to be cruel to them. Notice how Gods, Plus, when Jesus chased the sellers out of the Temple courts (. This town is not to be confused with either Gerasa or Gadara. He is utterly sovereign. And was the Master doing the right thing sacrificing someone elses pigs. founders day speech by students were the gerasenes gentiles. 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 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. Its all a matter of being logical. Derek Thomas was reminding me this morning that Ridderbos, in his famous book, The Coming of the Kingdom, records seventeen different interpretations that he had found of this particular parable. If they did, they would not see the chapter attacking the research in this blog post, theyd see a defense for it! 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. In other words, to paraphrase what Gertrude told Hamlet, Methinks the good pastor doth protest too much.
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