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Luke 8:26–39
“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” (vv. 38–39).
After crossing the Sea of Galilee, Jesus and the disciples were in the region of the Gerasenes, as today’s passage indicates (Luke 8:26). We noted in our last study that this area was east and southeast of Galilee, and it was also a largely gentile area containing the Decapolis, a league of ten Greek cities that had been established after Rome took control of the Holy Land in 63 BC. That the region of the Gerasenes was a gentile area explains why a large herd of pigs was present there (Luke 8:32–33). Because the law of Moses identifies the pig as an unclean animal (Lev. 11:7–8), no Jew would be raising pigs in the first century.
Not long after landing in the Gerasene territory, Jesus encountered a man possessed by demons. His condition was truly tragic, for he went about naked, living among the tombs as an outcast from society (Luke 8:27). The parallel account in Mark’s gospel tells us that he would cry out and cut himself (Mark 5:5). Others had tried to bind the man with chains, presumably to keep him from hurting himself and others, but the demons gave him enough strength to break his bonds (Luke 8:29). Here was a man in the worst condition imaginable: under the control of Satan and his minions, ostracized from friends and family, and forced to live in a ritually unclean space. (Coming into contact with the dead, as one does among tombs, renders one unclean according to Numbers 19:11–19.)
The demons recognized Jesus as the Son of God and begged Him not to torment them (Luke 8:28). Jesus asked for the name of the evil spirits, and they gave it as “Legion” (Luke 8:30), indicating their submission to Him because in that day to give your name to someone who demanded it was to submit to that person’s authority. The word legion referred to a contingent of about 5,600 Roman troops, and although this does not necessarily mean that this exact number of demons possessed the man, it clearly means that a large quantity of evil spirits tormented him. This legion of demons, however, was no match for Jesus, who effortlessly drove them into a herd of pigs nearby. The demons then destroyed the pigs, forcing them to drown (Luke 8:31–33).
Just as the disciples feared Jesus when He calmed the storm, the people of the Gerasenes feared Him when He sent the demons into the pigs. Yet while the disciples stayed with Jesus, the residents who learned of the exorcism begged Him to leave. They did not respond in faith to the presence of salvation (Luke 8:34–39).
Coram Deo Living before the face of God
Matthew Henry comments on today’s passage: “O what a comfort is this to the Lord’s people, that all the powers of darkness are under the check and control of the Lord Jesus! He has them all in a chain. He can send them to their own place, when he pleaseth.” Jesus is Lord over evil powers, and they cannot finally succeed. Let that encourage us in this present evil age.
for further study
- Zephaniah 3:15
- Malachi 4:1–3
- Matthew 8:28–34
- Mark 5:1–20
the bible in a year
- 2 Samuel 15–16
- Luke 20:27–47