Jesus, having begun his public ministry in his home environment of Galilee, eventually directed his attention eastward to the Decapolis region on the other side of the Sea of Galilee (Matt. 4:25; Mark 5:20; 7:31). The ten cities of the Decapolis were established as Greek municipalities following the 4th-century-BC conquests of Alexander the Great, at various times controlled and influenced by the Greek Ptolemies, the Greek Seleucids, the Hellenized Hasmoneans, and finally the Romans. In the early 1st century AD this was a predominantly Gentile territory comprised of Hellenistic centers in a Greco-Roman environment.1
Unfamiliar Surroundings
Recounted in all three Synoptic Gospels (Matt. 8:28-34; Mark 5:1-20; Luke 8:26-39), fairly early in his ministry Jesus and his disciples ventured to the eastern coast of the Sea of Galilee in mid-western Decapolis to a place his fellow-Jews would have considered unclean, with unclean animals and unclean people tormented by unclean spirits. Upon exiting the boat they were immediately encountered by two extremely fierce demon-possessed men (Matt. 8:28). One of them, apparently more dominant, vocal, or notorious and eventually humble and receptive, is singularly featured in the accounts of Mark and Luke.2
A Seemingly Insurmountable Challenge
While both men were demon-possessed, the main character was inflicted by a plurality of “demons” (Mark 5:12; Luke 8:27, 35, 38), identified as “the unclean spirit” and “the demon” (Mark 5:2, 8; Luke 8:29), but also “the unclean spirits” (Mark 5:13) and “many demons” (Luke 8:30). The plural-singular variation is probably indicative of multiple spirit beings with a chief spokesman operating through a single host.3
The term “legion” [λεγεών] (Mark 5:9, 15; Luke 8:30) is descriptive of a division of the Roman army of approx. 3,000–6,000 soldiers, probably used here hyperbolically (“a large number”) and therefore not intended as an exact figure. It is also possible that the evil spirits were employing the exaggerated expression and its military implications as a desperate attempt to intimidate Jesus and the disciples.
The Impact of the Lord’s Presence
The demoniacs lived among the tombs, at least one of whom exhibited supernatural strength and barbaric behavior. He was “from the city,” perhaps Gergesa or one of the larger Decapolis cities,4 and “wore no clothes” (Luke 8:27). To describe his reaction to Jesus, Mark employs the verbal προσκυνέω (Mark 5:6), sometimes rendered “worship” (ASV, N/KJV). The only other occurrence of this word in Mark’s Gospel depicts insincere “worship” done mockingly (Mark 15:19). The prospect of authentic devotion is precluded by Luke’s parallel description using the verbal προσπίπτω (Luke 8:28): he merely “fell down before” Jesus evidently out of fear rather than genuine reverence (contrast Matthew 14:33).
Jesus is recognized as “Son of the Most High God” (Luke 8:28). These satanic forces understood Christ’s power to “torment” or “afflict” or “punish” [βασανίζω] them (Matt. 8:29; Mark 5:7b),5 i.e., to send them into the “abyss” or “unfathomable deep” [ἄβυσσος] far away from the natural world (Luke 8:31).6
The Problem Resolved
That a verbal exchange ensued after Jesus had ordered the demons out indicates stubborn resistance. Just as there are different types of people (cf. Mark 4:15-20), apparently there were different kinds of evil spirits, some of which were more obstinate than others and much more defiant (cf. Mark 9:17-18, 26, 29). Knowing they could not withstand the Lord’s power, to avoid the fate of disembodiment the demons requested reassignment to a nearby herd of pigs.
Only Mark gives the number of swine, “about 2,000” (Mark 5:13). These were unclean animals according to the Jewish Law and forbidden as a food source (Lev. 11:7-8; Deut. 14:8). Whether those who owned and herded the pigs were nominal Jews, violating the law to which they were amenable,7 or more likely Gentiles, they were not only exposing themselves and others to heightened health risks8 but were disregarding the religious and cultural sensibilities of their conservative Jewish neighbors. Moreover, the Greeks regarded pigs to be among the more cost-efficient sacrifices in their cultic rituals (remember the profane pig sacrifice of Antiochus IV Ephiphanes that led to the Maccabean revolt).
Jesus freed the demoniac, his colleague, and the community of this horrific affliction, while purifying the entire area by casting unclean spirits in an unclean place into unclean animals that all drowned in the Sea of Galilee (cf. Isa. 65:1-7). The demonic forces appear to have been responsible for the destruction of these animals, perhaps a last-ditch effort to shift the blame to Jesus and impede his ministry by turning the community against him. If such a large number of swine were needed for pagan sacrifices, the cruel and sacrilegious ritual was dealt a crushing blow.
The Aftermath
Word quickly spread and a crowd of curious spectators soon gathered to find their infamous neighbor “sitting [at Jesus’ feet], clothed, and in his right mind” (Mark 5:15; Luke 8:35). Rather than relieved and appreciative, however, they were afraid and pleaded with Jesus to leave their vicinity (Mark 5:15-17; Luke 8:37a). They apparently preferred pork, profit, and evil over compassion and spiritual redemption.
The Lord respected their wishes and departed, but not before making another attempt to reach their souls. He was not ready to give up on these unreceptive, albeit confused, people. Instead, he leaves behind an unlikely missionary, the one who had for a long time been terrorizing the region as a tomb-dwelling, chain-breaking, unclothed, demon-possessed wild man (Mark 5:18-20; Luke 8:38-39). Even though he had no theological training or evangelistic experience, he did have a story to tell. The Lord had monumentally changed his life, so he simply proclaimed throughout the city and surrounding region “how much Jesus had done for him” (Mark 5:20; Luke 8:39).
Despite the initial rejection, Jesus later returned to the Decapolis region to do many good works. This time the people warmly received him “and they glorified the God of Israel” (Matt. 15:29-31; Mark 7:31-37). What made the difference?
Conclusion
Jesus had led his disciples well beyond their comfort zone to unfamiliar surroundings where his message of repentance and hope was needed just as much as in their home environment. He showed compassion to a couple of social outcasts and freed them from the clutches of Satan, and at least one of them was grateful. But the rest of the community proved to be unreceptive and resistant. Nevertheless, Jesus still cared. He left behind a missionary, not a religious professional but one of their own, living proof of the Lord’s transformative power. And Matthew would later report that among Christ’s many followers were those of “the Decapolis” (Matt. 4:25).
Lessons to Learn
· Jesus has authority and power over the forces of evil.
· Jesus offers love and compassion to those who are otherwise unlovable and seemingly undeserving.
· The Lord does not passively wait for sinners to come to him; he takes the initiative.
· Humans have been created with free-will agency and are not forced by their Creator to accept and submit to his will.
· Those resistant to the gospel still deserve a chance to hear it, some even more than once.
· Sharing my faith can be as simple as telling others what the Lord has done for me.
--Kevin L. Moore
Endnotes:
1 S. Thomas Parker, “The Decapolis Reviewed,” JBL 94.3 (Sept. 1975): 437-41.
2 Unless otherwise noted, scripture quotations are the author’s own translation. See K. L. Moore, “Synoptic Confusion: Matthew’s ‘Two’ vs. Mark and Luke’s ‘One’?” Moore Perspective (2 Jan. 2019), <Link>.
3 This may also demonstrate the incongruent tension between physical and malevolent spiritual realities.
4 See
5 Cf. 2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6; Rev. 20:10.
6 Cf. Rev. 9:1, 2, 11; 20:1-3.
7 These were the kind of Jews the Pharisees would have regarded as “sinners” (Matt. 9:10-13; 11:19; Mark 2:15-17; Luke 5:30-32; 7:34; 15:1-2), also subject to Paul’s indictment, “through the transgression of the law you dishonor God, for, as it is written, ‘through you the name of God is blasphemed among the nations’” (Rom. 2:23b-24). In Jesus’ parable of the prodigal son, feeding pigs was the absolute rock bottom, which, incidentally, was in “a distant land” (Luke 15:13, 15). Note also Isa. 66:3, 17; Matt. 7:6; 2 Pet. 2:22.
8 Trichinosis is a parasitic disease caused by eating undercooked meat, particularly pork. There are also a number of pork-related food poisonings caused by bacterial contamination.
Related Posts: Demons & Demon Possession; Geographical Confusion: Land of Demon-Possessed Pigs; Beyond the Jordan: an Ethnogeographical Study
Image credit: adapted from <https://www.ucg.org/bible-study-tools/booklets/what-does-the-bible-teach-about-clean-and-unclean-meats/a-telling-event-from-jesus-christs-ministry>
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