For a long time he had been homeless and naked, living in a cemetery outside the town. A discussion occurred between Professor Huxley and Mr. Gladstone in "The Nineteenth Century" for 1892 as to the morality of the act, the critical questions being whether (1) Gerasenes were Jews; and (2) if so, was it lawful for them to keep swine? In other words, to paraphrase what Gertrude told Hamlet, Methinks the good pastor doth protest too much. WebThey land in the country of the Gadarenes which is on the North-east shore of the Sea of Galilee about 6 miles southeast across the sea from Capernaum. 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. 3 Jesus is the lover of our souls. And Jews are forbidden by God and His eternal commands to own pigs. Its kinda like the difference between a Disney movie, a TV documentary and/or an infomercial; normally each is dissimilar from the other. And in Malachi 4:4, why did God say remember the Law of Moses if God had His own law? Theres another interesting question in the sidelines: if Jews detested pigs, why were there pigs in the area? 7 ) The pigs werent for eating. So he had to live according to the truth that had already revealed and to get everyone else in line with the program. Fear and selfishness prompted the prayer. Gergesenes means "those who come from pilgrimage or fight." Jesus was also a prophet. Then people went out to see what had happened, and they came to Jesus and found the man from whom the demons had gone, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. The vision had nothing to do with shrimp rings or BLTS. Also, the land where the Master walked and the swine were feeding belonged to Israel. Both of our good pastors assume that the people in Gerasene (Gadarene or Gergesene) were Gentiles in Gentile territory, partially because of the pigs, partially because of the demoniacs and partially because it fits their bias. Christians never finish reading the chapter. 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? Many of the events are corroborated by other authors. And you know what the most frightening thing of all is? It is repeated over and over. Therefore, if Jesus gave no commandment (singular), what is he referring to when he talks about commandments (plural) in the following: The answer: when he says, keep my commandments he means the ones he and the Father gave Israel at Sinai. Jesus to leave were the gerasenes 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. WebThe terrified Gerasenes beseeching Jesus to leave them. They were to teach the Gentiles about Him (Acts 13:4647). The hard hearts of those who reject Jesus. I think so. It's amazing Jesus comes to shore and it's obvious that He has immediately commanded the spirits to leave the man because they remonstrate with Him. Yet they tried to throw one of their own off a cliff (, 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. They have therefore made important decisions about the proper treatment of animals. Answer: the impurity of the swine. Either way, dispensational charts ultimately commit both acts against the Word of God. Gerasa, Gerasenes - Encyclopedia of The Bible - Bible He was clear that His mission was not to the Gentiles and Samaritans, but rather, to the lost tribe of Israel. Flower blossoms wither. Jews don't get the joke either because they don't read the New Testament much given the fact Christians have turned them off of Jesus. 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. Regrettably, what were about to study the, And he answers him, saying, My name is Legion because there are many of us. Also he begs Jesus many times that he'd not send them away, out of the. Instead of Jesus turning water into wine. The most plausible reason Jesus chose the pigs was because he regarded people as precious and priceless, but not swine. However, it is anticipated that the following verses will be thrown up as excuses, as pat answers, and as proof that God has changed, the Law is fulfilled (a.k.a. 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. II. I've ended up, and Ill explain it later, giving the title The Man Jesus Renamed. Now that may peak your interest because in the passage no name is ever given for the man, either before or after his conversion, so you may be wondering why I've named it that. There are echoes of exodus in Marks story, and echoes of Davids battle with Goliath. Demonic forces seem to be territorial; i.e., they have assigned areas of domain. Doesnt Pastor MacArthur know his Bible? Gadarenes, Girgesenes, Gerasenes: (These three names are used indiscriminately to designate the place where Jesus healed two demoniacs. Overall, when it comes to any animal being selected for food or for sacrifice, God sees only two types. And John nicely parallels Jesus who said, not the smallest letter nor the smallest comma will pass away from the Law (Matthew 5:18). Without a doubt, both men know God never came up with the line, Put pork on your fork. We know that two thousand pigs go over the cliff. Im wondering Thats right, Whatever matter I am commanding you right now, it's what you must be careful to observe to do. Also, Johns emphasis do not take away from the words is stronger than Mosess original statement. v. 37) describe Jesus healing of the demoniac Legion and the drowning of the swine in the Sea of Galilee (cf. 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. Israel was to be a nation of priests, prophets, and missionaries to the world (Exodus 19:46). The Spectators probably from all over the world! Youll notice at the beginning of the passage that they go across the lake to the east side and that puts them outside the bounds of Galilee and outside the bounds of Israel and over into Gentile territory on the other side. You may simultaneously update Amibroker, Metastock, Ninja Trader & MetaTrader 4 with MoneyMaker Software. The Matthew account mentions two demon-possessed men, while Mark and Luke only mention one. Scripture also makes it abundantly clear that God Almighty cannot change, and no one, not even the Lord's Anointed Messiah can change the Law which they both wrote. founders day speech by students were the gerasenes gentiles. WebRoman Empire Map - Large Map of the Roman Empire in the Early First Century - Click around on the Places. I beg you, do not torment me. And then the demons beg not to be cast into the abyss. Nothing we have belongs to us. This passage is fundamentally about Jesus. This made them fit for consumption. Pig meat, according to Scripture, is as, Suddenly, Mark 5 is clear. WebAll three Synoptic Gospels ( Mark 5:120; Luke 8:2639; Matthew 8:2834) mention the swine miracle, although with variations. WebWho were the gerasenes in the bible? The excavations uncovered what is to date the best preserved Rom. Two thousand pigs together is quiet unimaginable. 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. Dont demons like sheep? Jesus then asked him, What is your name? And he said, Legion, for many demons had entered him. He is the freest man in the world. But today, if you said to anybody, Tiger Woods is a slave to his desires, they would recognize it. Knowing the correct genre of what you are studying is a major step toward getting a correct message or interpretation. But once the door is open, well, we see in this story what can happen when you give in, what can happen when the demonic takes over. biblegateway.com The last point to tidy up Jesus allowed the demons to kill the pigs or Jesus did it? When Jesus said, A new commandment I give unto you (John 13:34), he instantly had the undivided attention of the Tedious Twelve disciples because they knew changing the Law was forbidden. Why doesn't the good pastor entertain that avenue of possibility or is he too busy making one-liners to connect any dots? He stabbed in the day of his wrath the kings. In, David was a good example of what Jesus meant by , 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 Man Jesus Renamed | Reformed Theological Seminary The Gadarenes Rejection | Reformed Bible Studies & Devotionals And it's very clear that theyre in Gentile territory because they find themselves in a country where there is a huge, huge herd of pigs. were the gerasenes gentiles They, like the demons, are afraid of Him and they beg Him to leave and He does. With these, The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with Him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you. And he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus had done for him.. WebScripture exhorts us to care for animals and not to be cruel to them. I love irritating those charlatans who pretend the Law of God is somehow different than the Law of Moses. He was constrained to act just like the other prophets before him. The most likely answer is to the country of the Gerasenes: i.e., Gerasa, a Greek town thought to be the same as the similarly-named Kersa on the east shore of Lake Tiberias. Did you know that one of the 7 ingredients in underwater concrete was animal blood? The Tabernacle of Ancient Israel - Brief Overview of the Tabernacle of Moses in the Wilderness and the Ark of the Covenant. Such alternative readings include arguments that the swine were meant to represent the Roman army or "unclean and unfaithful" people; that pigs were considered "unclean", so destroying them might be consistent with care for other animals; and that Jesus did not actually "send" the devils into the pigs. (Only an amateur Hebraist would claim the latter, frankly.). Gentiles take a dump and be cleaned.lol. He is utterly sovereign. 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. The fact anyone dreamed up dispensationalism, They say, None, but Jesus, kept the Law perfectly. 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. I want you to see a person in the thrall of sin. Kursi - The Gerasene Site of Jesus' Miracle on the East Side of Lake [Israels] real enemy isnt Rome, which barely figures into the gospel story. The good pastor John MacArthur assumes in his video Dominating Powers, Part 2 (Mark 5:1-20), that Jesus must have been in Gentile territory because, as everyone knows, Jewish men and women dont hang around tombs even if they are demon possessed! WebHealing of a Demoniac. He's set free. 2 The sons of Japheth; Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras. Since all of these areas overlap, one may take the references as meaning the same place. 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. Before the war it was a Gentile settlement. Its the exodus that Jesus has come to lead, an exodus from slavery to the prince of this world. We gotta git us some!, 1 ) [your turn. Also, Orthodox Jews see a clear connection between Deuteronomy 12:32, do not add, and what happened in the Garden of Eden. The good pastor actually believes that a Jewish man can rationally decide the best sleeping quarters Tomb or no tomb? were

. We are all responsible for our sins and so no demonic force can take control of a human life and make you sin unless you allow it. In this immediate area, steep hills come down to the shoreline and fit the story of the swine rushing headlong into the sea. Mark 5 is truly very simple: being a righteous Jew, the Law commands Jesus to abhor pigs as food. The city was large and well planned. 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. They are out to steal, kill, and destroy, so we dare not trifle with evil spirits. "Now a great herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, and they begged [Jesus], saying, 'Send us to the pigs; let us enter them.' The conversation showed that the illness had a will, a coherent sense of past, present and future, knowledge of the supremacy and authority of Jesus Christ, and a compulsion to worship Jesus. (Note that Luke omits Jesus journey to Tyre and Sidon, see also Mark 7:24-37). The best text in Matthew reads Gadarenes, in Mark and Luke it reads Gerasenes, whereas some MSS preserve Gergesenes and Gergustenes (cf. 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. Just as God defeated Pharaohs army at the Red Sea, so Jesus defeats Satans army in the land of the Gerasenes. Jesus is equating his commandments which can only be the ones in the Law of Moses, because he gave no commandments in the Gospels with his Fathers commandments in the Five Books of Moses. Who were the gerasenes in the bible? Here, it may well be that a herd of unclean animals has been used to take thousands of demons to their doom in the lake in anticipation of the final judgment. The textual evidence shows that the MSS preserve three variant spellings of the name in each gospel. Kursi - The Gerasene Site of Jesus' Miracle on the East Side of Lake Once more, we have half of an unclear verse, that people use to make up a grand doctrine, all with the hopes it will magically annihilate one hundred clear, unambiguous verses which say the Law is permanent. There is no captivity that you can be captive to that is not captive to Jesus Christ for He has ascended on high and led captivity captive and He makes a sport and a spoil of the forces of darkness which are arrayed against God and against heaven. Jesus was wise to use what God gives us, for a teachable moment. The mountainside has caves and hewn tombs where, according to Mark and Luke, the demoniac had taken shelter. Later, Leviticus 11 explains to His Chosen People that He had chosen only ritually clean/pure animals for them to eat. a Gentile and What Does the Bible Say about He's the friend of sinners. Inhabitants of Gadara, known from an alleged miracle of Jesus (Matt. His fellow citizens tried to restrain him in chains a horrible way to treat mental illness, by the way but he always broke free. The action is no different than, Lets return again to when Jesus cleaned up the Temple courtyard of merchants and merchandise. And you can ask yourself a lot of questions Why did Jesus do that? Good Pastor John MacArthur's funny option, The real Author(s) of the Law and the Commandments. Worse yet, dont trust one who says Scripture evolves. And he was the one who said that the Father doesnt miss the falling of a sparrow. Oops. Interested in joining the Ligonier team? (So much for those latter revelations or new religions arriving centuries later.). Pig meat, according to Scripture, is as unclean as the demons that Jesus sent into the swine. It's all Gentile territory, so just bear that in mind. They even allowed themselves to go ballistic on the Sabbath, which shows how angry they really were. And did the Gospels writers believe the explanation was so obvious they didn't need to write one? His poetry includes Bees in Amber: a little book of thoughtful verse (1913) which became a bestseller. 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. display: none !important; Therefore they should be taken as such. I wonder why?). They belonged to God. Pretty quickly the whole city was in an uproar. Lets re-examine the event in the light of seven important Scriptural facts. What are you doing here, man of God? And then he attempted to intimidate him. In the three Synoptic Gospels and, None of the verses below refute any of the. *sigh*). Mark Driscoll also generated some chuckles when he callously said the death of the pigs created a bacon famine.. viii. and what Jesus showed here was a love and a grace towards a man in captivity to sin who didn't deserve to be freed and didn't deserve to be forgiven, but Jesus did it anyway. Gods Law even has two commands that equate domestic livestock with wild animals. And Jews are forbidden by God and His eternal commands to own pigs. While foretelling death and doom was often part of a prophets job description, the real task of each true prophet was to be an example to the people and to get everyone on board, or back on board, with the Law of God. (Jos. Therefore, as we have seen from the Deuteronomy and Revelation, and Jesuss own words, he was not allowed to adjust the Law of God and he had no intention of doing so. No products in the cart. Why do I say that book? WebGadarenes. I listen to a pyschiatrist that said he never believed in demon possession until a exorcist ask him to work with him. War I. iv. ), No matter how you slice it, the Almightys negative view of ham and bacon cant suddenly switch from one day to the next. 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. This software has many innovative features and you can trap a Bull or Bear in REAL TIME! 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). Can we imagine our Jew receiving a mostly positive reaction or a negative one? Did Jesus Heal and Preach to Only Jews? No! - NCR The Feeding of the Four Thousand | Catholic Answers They ask Him if they can enter some nearby pigs, and He lets them. These pastors have added to Scripture that the God of the Old Testament is different in the New and taken away from it Mosess 613 commandments are now reduced to 2. It all belongs to God. Pliny described it as a city of the Decapolis founded after the Rom. Besides, it was Christmas! 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? The real irritation is people saying the Law was impossible to obey, when Scripture says the opposite it true. 10:31). Therefore, when it came to sacrifices on it, the menu was even shorter. My research shows swine kill poisonous snakes. If there was a difference, why do they read the Law of Moses but call it the Law of God in Nehemiah 8:8? Jesus was Jewish and He said He came for the lost sheep of Israelthe 10 cities of Decapolis were Roman cities but also contained some Jews who were most likely not keeping the Torah or mixing paganism with Judaism..Romans had many pagan gods and sacrifice pigs especially a certain black pig..I believe the man with the unclean spirits was a Jew.a Jew would never hang out in a tomb because that would make him unclean according to Jewish law..satan probably got a kick out of a Jew being forced by his demons to live in one.interesting that unclean spirits went into a unclean animal according to Judaismwhat a sight to see and then told by to go and tell what happened to you and to those pigs to your fellow Jewish friends and family who may not be keeping the Torah..just my opinion. Luke 1:6 says, [Zachariah and Elisabeth] were both righteous before God, walking in all of the commandments and judgements of the LORD, guiltless. Sound like perfect obedience to me. Am I forgiven by saying, I just allowed the kids to have the grenade? Of course not. But this is not the full explanation or the main one. Its architecture was of the Corinthian order, quite lavish and imposing, with columns from three to four ft. in diameter and about thirty ft. high. They do not bother mentioning Scriptures emphasis on being holy before God. This story is a technicolor picture of Luke 8:18, and my friends, there don't have to be demons around for us to be facing the same challenge. Why are there two demon-possessed men in the Gerasene tombs in Now the big-mouth irking this Greek artisan was our good friend, the Apostle Paul. And the good pastor doesnt give any rationale for a slaughter that huge. Now a large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, and they begged Him to let them enter these. Instead of dead Egyptians washing up on the shore, we see dead pigs, an intentional insult to the minions of Satan. Studying these Scripture passages show us that Jesus only ever walked in the land that God had promised to Abraham, Isaac and Israel and Moses. But let me just suggest that one thing that might be happening here is a picture of Jesus future judgment on the demonic forces that are arrayed against God. I beg You, do not torment me. Then, if you look in verse 38, he begs Jesus that he might be with him. R.C. 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). Demetrius wasnt afraid to stand up for his rights. I would think that it shows that demons would enter anything that could be unclean including a human being. Now not only did the Jewish people not eat bacon, and not only were they forbidden by Moses to eat bacon, but they were not allowed to raise bacon even to sell it to the Gentiles. And because these repeated commands are at the end of the Christian Bible, but the original commands are at the beginning of the Hebrew Bible, we get the impression that no new commands are allowed in the whole of Scripture, and no more books either. Although the Almightys statement is only one sentence in Deuteronomy 12:32, Jews regard it as two different commandments no additions and no subtractions. Are you seeing this? So why do Christians say no one can when these two did? 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. Deuteronomy 4 and 12 only state that none should add or remove what Moses was commanding, which sounds a little nebulous. What happened to the demons when the pigs died? Jesus is saying that Jesuss commandments are the same as the Fathers. There's nothing that they can do to restrain His mighty arm. WebGentiles [N] [T] [B] [S] (Heb., usually in plural, goyim), meaning in general all nations except the Jews. Rabbi, begone! Gods Law even has two commands that equate domestic livestock with wild animals. So how on earth could they dictate to the Son of God where they wished to go? Unfortunately, Pastor John is not alone, joking at the expense of this tragedy. Mark and Luke call it Gerasenes and some English versions translate it as Gergesenes. It is all the same place. Regrettably, what were about to study the Big Pig Splash Down isn't one of them. Over the years, Ive had to prove all this to myself first, and it took soul-searching and tons of Scripture research. 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. 1). In light of these facts, Jesus' ministry in the Gerasenes reveals the Lord's remarkable concern not only for the Jews but also for the Gentiles. No, the Gentiles are not simply non-Jews. Gentiles are loved by God and redeemed by Jesus. Yet being part of the Godhead means Messiah cannot not flip-flop his opinions. Wed also have to confess that the farmers were not Gentile. And sadly, neither of the two Johns considered Gods extreme love for His Creation when giving their interpretations. They had the exact same reaction to Jesus that Bertrand Russell would manifest two thousand years later. The distinction between the two is clear (now). 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.
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