Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you

 

 Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes.  And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains, because he had often been bound with shackles and chains.  And the chains had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces; neither could anyone tame him.  And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones.  When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him.  

 

And he cried out with a loud voice and said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?  I implore You by God that You do not torment me."  For He said to him, "Come out of the man, unclean spirit!"  Then He asked him, "What is your name?"  And he answered, saying, "My name is Legion; for we are many."  Also he begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out of the country.  Now a large herd of swine was feeding there in the mountains.  So all the demons begged Him, saying, "Send us to the swine, that we may enter them."  And at once Jesus gave them permission.  Then the unclean spirits went out and entered the swine (there were about two thousand); and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the sea, and drowned in the sea. 

 

So those who fed the swine fled, and they told it in the city and in the country.  And they went out to see what it was that had happened.  Then they came to Jesus, and saw the  one who had been demon-possessed and had the legion, sitting and clothed and in his right mind.  And they were afraid.  And those who saw it told them how it happened to him who had been demon-possessed, and about the swine.  Then they began to plead with Him to depart from their region.  

 

And when He got into the boat, he who had been demon-possessed begged Him that he might be with Him.  However, Jesus did not permit him, but said to him, "Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you."  And he departed and began to proclaim in Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him; and all marveled. 

 

- Mark 5:1-20 

 

Yesterday we read that, following Christ's preaching in parables, when evening had come, He said to them, "Let us cross over to the other side."  Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was.  And other little boats were also with Him.  And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling.  But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow.  And they awoke Him and said to Him, "Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?"  Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Peace, be still!"  And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.  But He said to them, "Why are you so fearful?  How is it that you have no faith?"  And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, "Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!"

 

  Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes. In Christ's time, the city of Gadara was a part of what is known as the Decapolis, a league of ten cities of Hellenistic culture founded in the period of Alexander the Great.  But at this time, under Rome, Gadara was placed under the rule of Herod, the tetrarch of Galilee.  This is a country of mixed Jews and Gentiles, and dominated by Greek and Roman culture, including worship of the emperor.

 

And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains, because he had often been bound with shackles and chains.  And the chains had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces; neither could anyone tame him.  And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones.  We might pause to notice the entirely chaotic and uncivilized nature of this man with an unclean spirit.   Whatever and whoever this demonic spirit is, it causes him to be uncontrollable, untameable.  He cannot be bound, even with chains, which had often been tried; but he has pulled apart the chains and broken his shackles.  Notably he cannot live in community; he lives in the mountains and in the tombs, among the dead.  Night and day he was crying out and also cutting himself with stones, so we note the self-destructive effects of the demonic afflicting him.  In some sense, he mirrors the chaos of the sea in our previous reading, encountered by the disciples as they crossed over the Sea of Galilee to this place, reflecting traditional images of the chaos and destruction associated with Leviathan.  

 

 And he cried out with a loud voice and said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?  I implore You by God that You do not torment me."  For He said to him, "Come out of the man, unclean spirit!"  Then He asked him, "What is your name?"  And he answered, saying, "My name is Legion; for we are many."  This man is possessed by a legion of demons, in some sense "occupied" by an invading spiritual army and under attack.  A Roma legion consisted of thousands of soldiers; at Christ's time, approximately 6,000.

 

 Also he begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out of the country.  Now a large herd of swine was feeding there in the mountains.  So all the demons begged Him, saying, "Send us to the swine, that we may enter them."  And at once Jesus gave them permission.  Then the unclean spirits went out and entered the swine (there were about two thousand); and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the sea, and drowned in the sea.   This violent death of the swine teaches us about the destructive influence of the demons.  My study Bible says that the destruction of the herd reveals several things.  First, while animals are a venerable part of creation, human beings are of far greater value.  Additionally, Jesus removes a source of sin, for swine-herding was an abomination to the Jews (Deuteronomy 14:8).  Moreover, the demons have no power over creation but are instead subject to the will of God.  They can only enter the swine at the command of Christ (and needed His permission).  Finally, we see that people are protected under God's providence.  Otherwise the demon-possessed man would have come to the same end as the swine.  As we will see, the magnitude of the economic loss of the swine will remain as a sign to the hardhearted people who fled (see the following verse).  A steep place (a cliff) often appears in icons to represent the dangers of sin.

 

So those who fed the swine fled, and they told it in the city and in the country.  And they went out to see what it was that had happened.  Then they came to Jesus, and saw the  one who had been demon-possessed and had the legion, sitting and clothed and in his right mind.  And they were afraid.  And those who saw it told them how it happened to him who had been demon-possessed, and about the swine.  Then they began to plead with Him to depart from their region.  My study Bible comments that while there are those who teach the presence of the swine indicates that these are Gentiles, it's more likely that they are Jews catering to the Gentile market in this region, and therefore doing what was forbidden in the Law.  Jesus had forbidden his disciples to go to any but the Jews in this time of His public ministry (Matthew 10:6).  They have traveled across the sea to save this lost sheep (the man who was demon-possessed).  The hard-heartedness of these people show in that their care is only for their economic loss of the swine, and not of the healing of this man who is now sitting and clothed and in his right mind.  They respond by simply pleading for Christ to leave their region.

 

 And when He got into the boat, he who had been demon-possessed begged Him that he might be with Him.  However, Jesus did not permit him, but said to him, "Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you."  And he departed and began to proclaim in Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him; and all marveled.  In Tuesday's reading, we read that Jesus said that "whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother" (Mark 3:34-35).  This man who has been saved from the legion of demons occupying him understandably does not want to stay in this place with the people who care nothing for his healing.  In this sense of Christ's family, he wishes to come with Jesus and the disciples.  But Jesus has a better plan, a mission for him, and sends him out to the Decapolis, this mixed region of Jews and Gentiles, to proclaim the good news of Christ, and give glory to God, to "tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you."   And all marveled.

 

 As referenced above, we might very well wonder in the context of today's reading if this forgotten man in the tombs isn't the prime example of Christ's statement when sending out the apostles on their first mission:  "Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."  We couple that together with His statement about His own mission:  "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel" (Matthew 15:24).  When we combine these with Jesus' parable of the Lost Sheep found in St. Luke's Gospel (Luke 15:4-7), it leads us to consider Christ's determined journey across the Sea of Galilee, and through a terrifying storm, to get to this forsaken place of the man who lived in the tombs.  Perhaps taken in this vein and with these other images from the Gospels and Christ's teachings, today's reading about the Gadarene demoniac, possessed by a legion of demons, might well serve as a powerful illustration of the will of God to save even one lost sheep out of one hundred, and to make every effort, to take every risk, to do so.  We pause to wonder why indeed Christ gave the command (see yesterday's reading, above) to His disciples to sail across the sea through the perilous wind and waves.  Certainly today's reading gives us no clue that the rest of the people who populate the story -- the swineherders and villagers who come to Christ only to ask Him to leave -- are those willing to become His disciples or believers in any way.  They reject Him and beg Him to go; they are only frightened by the exorcism that saved the man possessed by the legion of demons.  In the conclusion to the parable of the Lost Sheep, Jesus tells His listeners that "there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine just persons who need no repentance."  Christ's journey across the sea with the disciples to this forlorn man affirms that in the sight of God every effort is worthwhile to save even one.  It tells us of the value of human beings (as my study Bible pointed out, above), and it tells us of our Liberator or Savior, the One who frees this man from his prison among the tombs and held by this legion of demons.  Since today's Gospel reading uses the language of the military, speaking of a legion of "occupying" demons holding this man in spiritual imprisonment, who is literally bound with chains and shackles, it also speaks to us of the spiritual warfare in which our world -- and the souls, hearts, and minds of human beings -- is the battleground.  It assures us that not only is Christ the true Chief Commander of the spiritual world, but that He is also a Deliverer who will spare no effort to rescue us from the things that bind us and imprison us and make us slaves (John 8:34).  Indeed, the world and those who surround us may deter such a journey of liberation at every step, and scoff at Christ's salvation, even reject us when we are healed as do the swineherders and townspeople in today's reading, but nonetheless our salvation is incomparably more valuable than "fitting in" with such neighbors who do not bear our best hope in mind.  Ask any recovering addict, or perhaps those for whom the light of Christ commands any personal change, and we may find a kind of shunning that accompanies such healing.  Let us give thanks for that which is incomparably greater than a neglectful status quo that accepts what ails us as normal, and is frightened by the power of recovery it can't understand.  For we are also told that "the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it" (John 1:5).  There will always be those who prefer the darkness, but Christ will have a new mission, a new life, for each one of His own.  For this is the Lord's compassion, and as far as we know, that is limitless.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?

 

 Then they sailed to the country of the Gadarenes, which is opposite Galilee.  And when He stepped out on the land, there met Him a certain man from the city who had demons for a long time.  And he wore no clothes, nor did he live in a house but in the tombs.  When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and with a loud voice said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?  I beg You, do not torment me!"  For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man.  For it had often seized him, and he was kept under guard, bound with chains and shackles; and he broke the bonds and was driven by the demon into the wilderness. Jesus asked him, saying, "What is your name?"  And he said, "Legion," because many demons had entered him.  And they begged Him that He would not command them to go out into the abyss.  

 

Now a herd of many swine was feeding there on the mountain.  So they begged Him that He would permit them to enter them.  And He permitted them.  Then the demons went out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the lake and drowned.  When those who fed them saw what had happened, they fled and told it in the city and in the country.  Then they went out to see what had happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind.  And they were afraid.  They also who had seen it told them by what means he who had been demon-possessed was healed.  Then the whole multitude of the surrounding region of the Gadarenes asked Him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear. And He got into the boat and returned.

 

Now the man from whom the demons had departed begged Him that he might be with Him.  But Jesus sent him away, saying, "Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you."  And he went his way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him. 

 

- Luke 8:26-39 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus taught, "No one, when he has lit a lamp, covers it with a vessel or puts it under a bed, but sets it on a lampstand, that those who enter may see the light.  For nothing is secret that will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light.  Therefore take heed how you hear.  For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him." Then His mother and brothers came to Him, and could not approach Him because of the crowd.  And it was told Him by some, who said, "Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see You."  But He answered and said to them, "My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it."  Now it happened, on a certain day, that He got into a boat with His disciples.  And He said to them, "Let us cross over to the other side of the lake."  And they launched out.  But as they sailed He fell asleep.  And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water, and were in jeopardy.  And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, "Master, Master, we are perishing!"  Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water.  And they ceased, and there was a calm.  But He said to them, "Where is your faith?"  And they were afraid, and marveled, saying to one another, "Who can this be?  For He commands even the winds and water, and they obey Him!"

 

Then they sailed to the country of the Gadarenes, which is opposite Galilee.  And when He stepped out on the land, there met Him a certain man from the city who had demons for a long time.  And he wore no clothes, nor did he live in a house but in the tombs.  When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and with a loud voice said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?  I beg You, do not torment me!"  For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man.  For it had often seized him, and he was kept under guard, bound with chains and shackles; and he broke the bonds and was driven by the demon into the wilderness. Jesus asked him, saying, "What is your name?"  And he said, "Legion," because many demons had entered him.  And they begged Him that He would not command them to go out into the abyss.  If we take this story part-by-part, we must look at what it presents us with as it unfolds.  We first might observe that the disciples have just rowed across the Sea of Galilee.  Many of them, we know, are seasoned fishermen whose trade depended upon fishing the waters of Galilee; but the windstorm, we know, also terrified them to the point where they feared they were perishing, even with Jesus onboard (see yesterday's reading, above).  Now they have come to this "strange" place, across the Sea, where a man from the city met them, who had demons for a long time.  Now this region would have been one of mixed Gentiles and Jews, and the man is apparently from the city called Gadara (about six miles from the shore of the Sea of Galilee).  But here in this area, the man lives in the wilderness, wearing no clothes, and living in the tombs.  So tormented by the demons is the man that he apparently was often seized apparently with fits of violence, and so kept under guard, bound with chains and shackles; and he broke the bonds and was driven by the demon into the wilderness.  Thus, this is a man drive further away from society in every sense, and into complete disorder.  Jesus' first act was apparently to command the unclean spirits to come out of the man, and so the demons respond through him, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?  I beg You, do not torment me!"  In Matthew's Gospel, the demons not only recognize Jesus, but ask, "Have you come here to torment us before the time?" indicating the time of the final judgment.  They do not wish to go into the abyss, indicating a bottomless place of darkness, an image of being buried alive in a place where one would be completely forgotten.  

Now a herd of many swine was feeding there on the mountain.  So they begged Him that He would permit them to enter them.  And He permitted them.  Then the demons went out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the lake and drowned.  When those who fed them saw what had happened, they fled and told it in the city and in the country.  Then they went out to see what had happened, and came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had departed, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind.  And they were afraid.  They also who had seen it told them by what means he who had been demon-possessed was healed.  Then the whole multitude of the surrounding region of the Gadarenes asked Him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear.  My study Bible comments that some teach that the presence of the swine indicates a Gentile population.   But, since Christ forbade His disciples to go to the Gentiles (Matthew 10:5) and was Himself also reluctant to seek out Gentiles (Matthew 15:24), these are likely to be Jews engaged in a sinful occupation, raising swine for a Gentile market.  It notes that the destruction of the entire herd reveals several things.  First, while animals are a venerable part of creation, human beings are of far greater value.  Second, Christ removes a source of sin, as for Jews swine herding was an abomination (Deuteronomy 14:8).  Moreover, demons have no power over creation, but rather are subject to the will of God.  Clearly here, they could only enter the swine at the command of Christ.   It also shows that people are protected under God's providence; otherwise, the demon-possessed man himself would have come to the same end as the swine.  Finally, the magnitude of the economic loss would remain as a sign for the hardhearted people who fled that region and rejected Christ, asking Him to leave them.

Now the man from whom the demons had departed begged Him that he might be with Him.  But Jesus sent him away, saying, "Return to your own house, and tell what great things God has done for you."  And he went his way and proclaimed throughout the whole city what great things Jesus had done for him.  This interesting final note on this passage has Jesus commanding this man to return to His home (presumably in the city of Gadara), and testify to the great things God has done for him.  It sets an example for all of us.

In a modern world, in what we might call one of the developed countries, there are many people who discount the idea of spiritual beings, such as demons or even angels.  Many would deny the existence of a spiritual evil, such as the devil, and clearly all the tenets of early Christianity are no longer held by many people.  But one thing that we might see as a very common sight in a city in such a "developed" country is a man (or even a woman) who looks like this man in today's reading, who is occupied by a legion of demons.  The effects of the demons are things that we could see on the streets of any one of our large cities today, and maybe even in smaller cities and towns as well.  Whether it is the result of mental illness or of addiction, the crisis of what many would lump under "homelessness" looks so often like this man -- uncontrollable, disordered, even without clothing, ranting, and unable to live in community in the day-to-day sense in which we think of what community means.  In my city, and in my neighborhood, people who bear close resemblance to the demon-possessed man in today's reading are every day sights.  There is no getting around this reality and this presence, especially when violent acts in public places -- such as on a subway, for example -- have become common occurrences filling the daily news.  So what should we make of this coincidental observation?  (Is it even so coincidental?)  Frequently such appearances go hand in hand with addiction crises, as well as mental illness.  Often, those two modern plagues go hand in hand.  It might even be difficult to discern which came first, or which one might be the cause of the other.  In today's story, Jesus directly challenges the demons who are responsible for this man's condition.  Once upon a time, many of our cities had programs that also confronted or challenged such conditions, such as offering a choice of going to jail for vagrancy or to go to a treatment program.  I have anecdotal evidence of such a program working to help people be rehabilitated and to stabilize their lives.  For whatever reason, coincidental or not, commensurate with popular dismissal of once-common spiritual understanding, such sights on our streets have grown.  More often than not, supposed solutions to this problem do not address true causes.  There is little doubt of the overwhelming problem of addiction among the homeless population, and despite protestation among professional healthcare workers, many government bodies are loathe to directly and forcefully target that problem in an effective way.  Perhaps it is coincidental, or perhaps not so coincidental, that our tolerance for such disorder seems to grow with a systematic abandoning of social standards often linked to faith.  Because, after all, aren't our lives essentially going to be ruled and constructed out of whatever it is that we put our faith into?  How else is a social order formed and maintained?  Of what is society, or what we might call civilization, made?  Moreover, how does that process work?  The ancient world into which Christ was born was full of monarchs, kings, emperors and other rulers with absolute power, even those who were revered as gods, and the Gospels contain the stories of saints and martyrs who came into disagreement with such power and its abuses.  How have social systems evolved standards of justice, or lists of human rights, even international courts to guard them?  Does our faith have something to do with that?  Does our Lord's sacrifice on the Cross as the true Innocent have something to do with that?  And how does our definition of what the demonic is and does -- the destructiveness to human life on display in today's reading in this pathetically demon-afflicted man -- affect our own sense of what is ordered and what is disordered in our cities and towns and neighborhoods?  What does it mean that this man was afflicted by a legion of demons?  In the period of time in which this story took place, a Roman legion consisted of approximately 5,800 men, and it was the largest military unit in the Roman army.  So this number of demons is meant to suggest to us an overwhelming force of the toughest, strongest, most disciplined, and well-equipped infantry in existence.  That is an incredible power to think about opposing and afflicting one sole human being.  Consider what he endured, borne out in the sight of the swine who were driven over a cliff by this demonic influence.  When the things we see and experience seem to be crowding our conditions of life, why don't we consider the force capable of disarming such a legion of demonic adversaries and influences?  Why do we not think more readily of Christ who protects and saves this man, and God whose protection afforded this human being a kind of survival that the swine cannot experience?  When we reach a state where we can recognize influences -- or at least effects -- that appear in spiritual stories, why do we not consider what we seem to be losing when we lose tenets of faith as part of our understanding of how our society needs to function in order to be healthy, and to protect the common good?  The tolerance for destruction of human life is evident.  What about our capacity to build our societies and life-giving standards?  Sometimes problems overwhelm a person to the point where they need another level of help and protection, like a legion of troubles and bad influences.  Let us consider the kind of help we need today.

 

 

Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you

 

 Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes.  And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains, because he had often been bound with shackles and chains.  And the chains had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces; neither could anyone tame him.  And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones.  When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him.  And he cried out with a loud voice and said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?  I implore You by God that You do not torment me."  For He said to him, "Come out of the man, unclean spirit!"  Then He asked him, "What is your name?"  And he answered, saying, "My name is Legion; for we are many."  Also he begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out of the country.  

 

Now a large herd of swine was feeding there near the mountains.  So all the demons begged Him, saying, "Send us to the swine, that we may enter them."  And at once Jesus gave them permission.  Then the unclean spirits went out and entered the swine (there were about two thousand); and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the sea, and drowned in the sea.  

 

So those who fed the swine fled, and they told it in the city and in the country.  And they went out to see what it was that had happened.  Then they came to Jesus, and saw the one who had been demon-possessed and had the legion, sitting and clothed and in his right mind.  And they were afraid.  And those who saw it told them how it happened to him who had been demon-possessed, and about the swine.  Then they began to plead with Him to depart from their region.  

 

And when He got into the boat, he who had been demon-possessed begged Him that he might be with Him.  However, Jesus did not permit him, but said to him, "Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you."  And he departed and began to proclaim in Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him; and all marveled.

 

- Mark 5:1-20 

 

Yesterday we read that on the same day that Jesus had taught the multitudes by the sea with parables, when evening had come, He said to the disciples, "Let us cross over to the other side."  Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was.  And other little boats were also with Him.  And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling.  But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow.  And they awoke Him and said to Him, "Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?"  Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Peace, be still!"  And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.  But He said to them, "Why are you so fearful?  How is it that you have no faith?"  And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, "Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!"

 

  Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes.  My study Bible explains that the country of the Gadarenes was in Galilee, in an area with many Gentiles who lived among the Jews (see Matthew 4:15).  Gadara is the name of a city which was in the Decapolis, a Greek name meaning "ten cities."  We can look at a map and see its area was across the Sea of Galilee south of Capernaum.  As the area was mixed with Gentiles, and strong Greco-Roman influenced, it was not considered a genuinely Jewish land, although many Gentile residents had converted to Judaism during the Maccabean period.  Because many of the Jews in this region had been influenced by the Greek culture and customs, they were generally considered second-class citizens by Jews of Judea.  In today's reading, we can see some of the Gentile influence in the raising of swine, which was forbidden by the Law (Deuteronomy 14:8).

And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no one could bind him, not even with chains, because he had often been bound with shackles and chains.  And the chains had been pulled apart by him, and the shackles broken in pieces; neither could anyone tame him.  And always, night and day, he was in the mountains and in the tombs, crying out and cutting himself with stones.  When he saw Jesus from afar, he ran and worshiped Him.  And he cried out with a loud voice and said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?  I implore You by God that You do not torment me."  For He said to him, "Come out of the man, unclean spirit!"  Then He asked him, "What is your name?"  And he answered, saying, "My name is Legion; for we are many."  Also he begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out of the country.   Let us notice the setting:  this man tormented by demons lives apart from the city among the tombs, in complete disorder and untamed; crying out and cutting himself with stones.  Here the demons recognize Jesus as Son of the Most High God, and they fear torment just as they have tormented this man.  Although the malice of the demons is great, my study Bible says, they can do nothing against the will of God. 

 

 Now a large herd of swine was feeding there near the mountains.  So all the demons begged Him, saying, "Send us to the swine, that we may enter them."  And at once Jesus gave them permission.  Then the unclean spirits went out and entered the swine (there were about two thousand); and the herd ran violently down the steep place into the sea, and drowned in the sea.   As we commented above, the swine are an indication of the Gentile presence in this region.  Some assume that those who raise them are Gentiles, but it is more likely that these are Jews who are engaged in a sinful occupation, as Christ forbade His disciples to go to the Gentiles (Matthew 10:5).  My study Bible comments that although the malice of the demons is great, they can do nothing against the will of God, and therefore can only enter the swine at Christ's command.  It says that the immediate destruction of the herd shows that the men had been protected by God's care; otherwise, they would have perished under the demonic influence.  It also reinforces that swineherding was not lawful for the Jews.  Most importantly, it shows the incomparable value of human beings, whose salvation is worth every sacrifice.

So those who fed the swine fled, and they told it in the city and in the country.  And they went out to see what it was that had happened.  Then they came to Jesus, and saw the one who had been demon-possessed and had the legion, sitting and clothed and in his right mind.  And they were afraid.  And those who saw it told them how it happened to him who had been demon-possessed, and about the swine.  Then they began to plead with Him to depart from their region.   Those who fed the swine respond to the loss of the swine, and the sight of the healed man -- now sitting and clothed in his right mind -- by being afraid.  They plead with Jesus to depart from their region as they do not rejoice over the healing of the man, but are sorrowed at the loss of their swine.  They prefer things the way they were, and fear Christ's influence.

And when He got into the boat, he who had been demon-possessed begged Him that he might be with Him.  However, Jesus did not permit him, but said to him, "Go home to your friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He has had compassion on you."  And he departed and began to proclaim in Decapolis all that Jesus had done for him; and all marveled.  This man is not one of the chosen Twelve, but Christ makes a way for him, and a new life.  He is to go home to his friends, and tell them what great things the Lord has done for him, and how He had compassion on him. 

It's very important that we notice the difference between the unclean spirits and the nature of God as imaged in the Lord Jesus Christ.  The demons oppress and torment.  They beg Jesus not to be sent out of this country where they have a refuge beyond the reach of the influence of Jewish worship and the God of Israel.  The context is important here, because we see the vast difference between the God of compassion, whom Jesus tells the healed man to extol to his friends at home with his testimony -- and the oppression and enslavement of the demons, whose influence kept this man away from life, and captive among the tombs.  It is this contrast that is important for us to understand, for in the possessed man we also see what can be a common image on our streets of people enslaved to addiction of all kinds, a hopelessness where there is no kindness nor mercy nor compassion, where predators may pass freely among those who are for some reason incapacitated or helpless.  There is a correspondence, at least in effects and appearance, between the enslavement of addiction or the problems of mental illness, and the oppression of the demons who keep this man in complete disorder and unable to live in the place of his home.  We might keep in mind the image of influences that keep out our God of compassion and the "good things" that God will do for us, in favor of those whose lives ascribe to force and coercion and have no time for mercy.   What does not fit with the "law of the streets" is that it is the Lord of mercy and compassion who is the greater power and the stronger man here, who can command the demons and they have to obey Him, and of whom the demons are afraid.  They can use their malice on weak human beings, and malice may terrify us at the hands of others who are ruthless, but their malice cannot bind nor stop the power of Jesus Christ who is the Lord who gives us good things.  It puts us in mind of Christ's words at the Last Supper to His disciples:  "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world" (John 16:33).  Let us remember that Jesus deliberately set sail through a chaotic storm into this hostile place of unlawfulness and demonic influence, seemingly just to rescue and save this man.  It tells us the truth, that to God a human life is worth every effort to save and to heal, and it is this that Christ teaches the disciples through this episode.  There will always be people who reject, who simply respond with fear to our faith, and there will also be those who are hostile and under the influence of a spirit that is antagonistic to the peace of Christ we seek in our faith.  Possibly we have experiences in our own lives in which we are surrounded by those who cannot share in our faith, even those who oppress us with hostility to it.  Sometimes this is not overt, but in a very real way becomes a spiritual problem for us to face.  But today's reading shows us that, nevertheless, the good things of God are present for us, even if everyone else does not embrace them; even when we are alone or abandoned in a deserted place where no one else cares.  Let us take to heart the new mission of the healed man, who may proclaim the good things the Lord has done for him, and how He had compassion on him, because we find such in our faith as well.