]. Theyre written as factual history. We know that two thousand pigs go over the cliff. Do you remember? It's back just a few verses, the answer is back just a few verses. 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. You may unsubscribe from Bible Gateways emails at any time. Amen, and thus ends this reading of God's holy, inspired, and inerrant Word. Thats why there was a herd of two thousand Money Maker Software may be used on two systems alternately on 3 months, 6 months, 1 year or more subscriptions. They were ..ummm ..for producing manure to fertilize crops. p. 102. 2. One unambiguous (but hotly debated) verse that supports this doctrine is, If we agree Messiah wrote the Law of God, we should then wonder, (Please dont hide behind that sensational dispensational chart. Last week, we were crossing over with Jesus to the other side, weathering a fierce storm until he woke up and calmed the sea. That is the exact opposite of other godly men (compare with 1 Samuel 24:24 and 1 Chronicles 21:24). Jesus was upholding all the kosher laws within the Land of Israel it was part of his job description. It all belongs to God. They, like the demons, are afraid of Him and they beg Him to leave and He does. Its all so reminiscent of John MacArthur joking and John Piper giving pat answers because n body wants to be honest with the Word of God and face facts and Jesus killing pigs is one of those uncomfortable contradictions.). The action is no different than Revelation 14:14-15 where we see the Son of Man brandishing a sharp sickle. They had rather have their swine than their Saviour, and so, though they saw the demoniac sitting, clothed, and in his right mind, at the feet of Jesus, they in turn beseech that He should take Himself away. Furthermore, how upset must God get seeing a doctor reach into the womb of a mother and murder her unborn child? As was just so elegantly discussed, the destruction of the herd only makes sense if we remember that God never liked unclean food to begin with. He also wrote the poem Greatheart. It's just 8 or 9 verses before this passage. Plus, these additions by John connect back to other passages in interesting ways. and therefore the good pastor declares the demoniac to be a Gentile since, as everyone also knows, Gentiles are better tomb-dwellers.. Both Gerasa and Gadara were cities to the east of the Sea of Galilee and the River Jordan. Remember the story of Jesus casting demons out of the crazy man in Luke 8? This means that these miracles are especially meant to teach believers something. destroyed) and every perplexing dispensational chart is legit. The modern village Jarash is situated on the hillside above the ruins, built with stones from the ruins. That was a very large farming operation, even by the modern European and North American standards of today which typically do not have such giant herds. 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. In the three Synoptic Gospels and, None of the verses below refute any of the. Why? You can follow him on Twitter. Well that's the first thing we see in this passage. it depends on the text you read, but one of the four Greek words is sometimes neuter, sometimes masculine a big deal in this language and in this verse. "It became one of the proudest cities of Syria." (Question: If God cares about the mother-child relationship in animals, how does He consider that relationship for people? I dont know of any illness that can do that. 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. But Christians miss the joke and think he was being serious. Look at what he first says when Jesus meets him in verse 28 What do you have to do with me, Jesus? 3. When Eve said that she and hubby were not allowed to touch the [Good and Evil Knowledge Tree] or they would die, she was lying (Genesis 3:3 and Jewish explanation). B. vii. WebGerasene: [noun] an inhabitant of the ancient Palestinian town Gerasa. I definitely dont want to be near that doctor on Judgement Day.). 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. Note that Jesus never touched the demon-inhabited individual: He merely spoke to him, commanding the evil to depart. I love irritating those charlatans who pretend the Law of God is somehow different than the Law of Moses. Gods Law has a law that you cannot change Gods Law. 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). And what about trees or rocks? It isnt a long list. 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. 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. Gods Law even has two commands that equate domestic livestock with wild animals. Its all a matter of being logical. Therefore, if Paul had taken a single silver goddess Diana doll and tossed it into the Aegean Sea, what kind of a hornets nest of trouble would the apostle have stirred up for himself? Gergesa is located, with relative certainty, midway along the E bank of the Sea of Galilee; Gadara is six m. SE from the S end of the Sea of Galilee; and Gerasa is some thirty-five m. SE. 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. They had the exact same reaction to Jesus that Bertrand Russell would manifest two thousand years later. The apostles arent having a pig roast anywhere. 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. Because the writer of the story wanted to make sure that everyone would know that the Garasenes were not Jewish. The book ends on that very point. War II. After stilling the storm while crossing the Sea of Galilee, Jesus lands with his disciples on the eastern shore of the lake. Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear. Archeologists identify it with the modern Jarash. Jesus was also a prophet. Before the war it was a Gentile settlement. In Jesus first trip to that Gentile area: They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes (in Gadara). 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)? Try Bible Gateway Plus free today. The demons inhabit the bodies of this herd of pigs and the pigs cast them into the Lake of Galilee. e. 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. Although He encountered and ministered to Gentiles such as the centurion who had a paralyzed servant (Matt. A great deal of the Law applies only to priests (Leviticus 6:3) and to Levites (Numbers 7:9), so how could Jesus, of the tribe of Judah, keep one of those commandments? Deuteronomy 4 and 12 only state that none should add or remove what Moses was commanding, which sounds a little nebulous. It's all Gentile territory, so just bear that in mind. Despite all the dangers to himself, David wouldnt allow any to be hurt. (Matthew 8:28; Mark 5:1; Luke 8:26) In Gerasenes in place of Gadarenes. So why were these pig owners on the east side of the lake afraid? Yet a number of objections immediately spring to mind. So lets not laugh these verses off. And so the demons call out His name Jesus, the Son of the Most High God and it has no effect on Him. Thy powersBring loss to us and ours.Our ways are not as Thine.Thou lovest men, weswine.Oh, get you hence, Omnipotence,And take this fool of Thine!His soul? So he gave them permission. They forget that all scripture is inspired of God and all of it is established in the heavens and none of it can change. This solution is as old as Origen (Commentary on John, VI, 24) who, faced with the textual problem, suggested that the precise site of the healing of Legion was Gergesa, the small town in the territory of Gadara, but hardly in the more remote territory of Gerasa. This city was better known than Gadara or Gergesa; indeed in the Roman age no city of Palestine was The action is no different than, Lets return again to when Jesus cleaned up the Temple courtyard of merchants and merchandise. It's almost like the demons are inexorably drawn to Jesus. He was getting everyone on board with what was started at Sinai. If the pig farmers were Gentile, why would non-Jewish farmers be so gentle with a Jew (who was also an outsider) who was messing around with their farm animals? Sadly, Luther and other Reformed theologians repeat the same theological rubbish, despite Jesus saying he did not come to destroy the Law. Amen. (, David, the son of Jesse, was another selfless, compassionate shepherd. From Jesus's own mouth, we are informed of Gods special love and attention for defenseless animals and we know Jesus has the same heart for the weak. End of story. Seven Forgotten Facts clarify our interpretation, One possible reason the Son of David chose the pigs was that he had, But this view is shocking because it places Gods Son on an equal footing with the unclean spirits and thus flies in the face of the normal presentation of Jesus in the Gospels. Saying God reverses a verdict or compromises a promise soils His Name. All these inescapable facts are so important to getting the right interpretation of Mark 5 and the other gospel records of the same event. Next, what if our imaginary Jew damaged a ton of Gentile property under their very noses. (Sidebar: During the whole Rob Bell Love Wins craze, I had a friend who claimed to believe the Bible, but denied that demons exist. Now it's not a very profound book. One day the prophet Samuel angrily told his king that God would not go back on His decision. So lets have an exquisite examination of Scripture to better appreciate what happened beside the lake and why the pigs ended up in it. Why should this surprise us? War IV. Actually, killing the pigs was also out of his mercy because instead of judging the farmers directly, the Messiah threw his anger against the pigs. We have it all down on paper exactly how gentle Gentiles can get when they get annoyed by a Jew. That is how valuable human life is." New International Version (NIV), Encyclopedia of The Bible Gerasa, Gerasenes. Just as God defeated Pharaohs army at the Red Sea, so Jesus defeats Satans army in the land of the Gerasenes. So these four miracles show Jesus reaching out to Gentiles, either in Galilee or even in even more Gentile territory across the river. 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. Then again, who needs to imagine anything? And opposite to normal flowers, our lovely Scripture-flower will never dry out or wither away (Isaiah 40:8). viii. You received the law as delivered by angels and did not keep it! (Acts 7:53). In 2 Samuel 17 we read of the young boy who would be king risking everything for one lamb. Seven Biblical facts await you that prove Jesus was obliged to love all creatures, except that a higher command forced him to partially judge the Jews who owned the two thousand poor pigs. 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.. Early in the video, he is very factual and seems sure of himself. The best text in Matthew reads Gadarenes, in Mark and Luke it reads Gerasenes, whereas some MSS preserve Gergesenes and Gergustenes (cf. He showed mercy to the men who were possessed and brought judgement on the pig farmers. ___________________________________________________________________. Secondly, theyre forgetting that Jesus also says that people are more important than sparrows.
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