Lots of non-Jews lived there. Swine there because they could eat pork, just not while it is representing a clean sacrifice, which would be representing Jesus as the real sacrifice not yet available until Jesus actually came and died for all of our sins naturally. Only this interpretation explains the farmers restrained reaction over the slaughter of the swine, and their tremendous terror of the Messiah. 9 This location agrees with the description given by the ancient writers. (, Although the Almightys statement is only one sentence in, For I myself witness truthfully to everyone hearing the words of the prophecy of this book, , Besides Johns cute play on words dont, Also, Orthodox Jews see a clear connection between, 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 , Also, Johns emphasis do not take away from , As a result, our biggest take-away lesson is to never take away from the Word of the Almighty.But dispensational-flavoured pastors ignore this and teach us that Moses and David and even Jesus lived by different rules. John Oxenham1 wrote a poem about this passage. Doesn't Jesus Treat Animals as Property? In York, T.; Alexis-Baker, A.; Bekoff, M.; McLaren, B. The victorious Lord made life good again for one embattled soul. First of all theyre forgetting that Jesus Himself has already said that His Heavenly Father cares even about the sparrows that fall from their nests. After stilling the storm while crossing the Sea of Galilee, Jesus lands with his disciples on the eastern shore of the lake. A Faith Embracing All Creatures: Addressing Commonly Asked Questions about Christian Care for Animals. Further, the conclusion seems warranted that there was confusion in some MSS of Gerasa with the more likely site for the miracle near Gergesa. Do you see how Jesuss Gentiles dont act like Gentiles! They know that Jesus can cast them into the abyss, into the lake of fire, into the bowels of hell, and theyre frightened. How could they say Christians not need be concerned about the welfare of animals or that they have little value, or even laugh about the death of thousands, when such beliefs are set side-by-side with Gods Word? This, Also, this study shows that Jesuss actions in Mark 5 were on the surface contrary to the deep-rooted Jewish respect for domestic and/or wild animals. And not only that, he's about to be a witnessing disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ. Them there pigs were trying to hog Jesus limelight! David ran after the lion that had grabbed his sheep and with just his staff, and his wits, he forced the lion to drop it. 10:31). And Jews are forbidden by God and His eternal commands to own pigs. . The Word of God cant change any more than God can. and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea, (they were about two thousand;) and were choked in the sea. In actual fact, when you stop to think about it, If our faithful, unchanging Heavenly Father God made a straightforward decisive yet divisive decision and repeated it, Fourth Fact: Gods Enduring, Unchangeable Word, As was just so elegantly discussed, the destruction of the herd, Your word, O LORD, is everlasting; it is firmly fixed in the heavens. Just remember the wonderful folks in Jesuss hometown? Well let's pray before we read God's Word together. But there is a message in this for all of us and it is simply this we may not be possessed by demons, but if we are possessed by what we want or by what we have and if what we want or what we have is not God in the Gospel of His dear Son, Jesus Christ, then we are no less in the thrall of sin that this man. GotQuestions has three articles alone on the subject: here is their best. 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. In other words, to paraphrase what Gertrude told Hamlet, Methinks the good pastor doth protest too much. Although the Almightys statement is only one sentence in Deuteronomy 12:32, Jews regard it as two different commandments no additions and no subtractions. And why werent they demanding compensation for their pigs? So He gave them permission. We know that two thousand pigs go over the cliff. They ask Him if they can enter some nearby pigs, and He lets them. 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. viii. It's entitled, Why I Am Not A Christian. And Tolkien puts it this way The Lieutenant of the Tower of Barad-dr he was, and his name is remembered in no tale for he himself had forgotten it and said only, I am the mouth of Sauron.. 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. (Question: If God cares about the mother-child relationship in animals, how does He consider that relationship for people? At the end of the gospel, however, Jesus tactic changes. And opposite to normal flowers, our lovely Scripture-flower will never dry out or wither away (Isaiah 40:8). about a.d. 65. 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. None of the verses below refute any of the Seven Forgotten Facts above. Amen. It seems Jesus allowed the demons to destroy the pigs so that the people could see just what demons are up to when they assault people. It is a wonderful fact, but unlike you and I, Gods character is constant and consistent I AM that I AM and understanding His unchanging nature is at the center of forming the right interpretation of Mark 5. 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? Excavations at the modern Jarash (by the British and American Schools of Oriental Research and Yale University) clearly show that Gerasa was a large and important city already in Jesus time. John 13:34 was the one single, solitary time that the Master told his disciples, I give you a new commandment. However, the commandment wasnt a new commandment. Maybe it was because they were unclean animals. Now you understand what sitting at the Savior's feet means? Here is a prophesy that Christians love to quote: You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek (Psalm 110.4) because it connects to Messiah Jesus. Ive not heard that theory before. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. 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. As I hear, I judge and My judgment is righteous because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me. Gods Everlasting Word is not something evolving or morphing into a strange new unusual thing, like some rose turning into a radish, or a carrot into a carnation. Download Microsoft .NET 3.5 SP1 Framework. 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. Lastly, even if Mr. Pipers explanation were true, look what its application could mean. The Gemara on the passage gives a historical foundation for the practise in the times of Aristobulus. They belonged to God. Don't be surprised if none of them want the spotl One goose, two geese. 5 So they came to the other side of the lake, to the region of the Gerasenes. Its flesh you must not eat. In course of time, as the Jews began more and more to pride themselves on their peculiar privileges, it acquired unpleasant associations, and was used as a term of contempt. He's been set free by Jesus. Gerasa was a city situated near the Jabbok River about eighteen m. E of the Jordan, about twenty m. SE of Pella, and twenty m. N of Philadelphia. We usually think of Jesus as the loving, forgiving guy from Galilee, right? 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. In the story of the Gerasene demoniac, Jesus invades enemy territory and defeats a powerful army to deliver people from bondage. Without a question, if Jesuss pig-farmers had been Gentiles, there would have been bloodshed. when hes rolling around with a thousand killer-demons inside. From the start, the evil spirits wanted to bring death and destruction, and they finally got their chance. Matthew tells us there were two demoniacs, while Mark and Luke only He said, If you love me, keep my commandments (John 14:15). Early in the video, he is very factual and seems sure of himself. Jesus was also a prophet. End of story. 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)? Suddenly, Mark 5 is clear. Does he really believe Mark 5 is Biblical material just for laughs? But are these good pastors on the right track? 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 list in the first chapter of Leviticus contains only bovine, sheep, goats and pigeons; all typified later, in Leviticus 11, as clean/pure animals. Do not add upon it and do not reduce it. And he was the one who said that the Father doesnt miss the falling of a sparrow. Oops. At this distance from the Sea of Galilee, Gerasa could not have been the site of the healing of Legion. It is doubtful that Jesus ever visited it. Just as God defeated Pharaohs army at the Red Sea, so Jesus defeats Satans army in the land of the Gerasenes. Am I forgiven by saying, I just, The Land of Israel is/was no place for two thousand pigs. Why did these people respond to Jesus this way? The forum, with a semicircle of columns still standing, was paved with large cut stones. Living in rural Central Africa villages for ten years, I heard many stories from locals about demon spirits living in streams and trees and boulders. 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). Therefore we know that when Jesus helped the Syrophoenician woman (not a Jewess, but she came to him), he and the woman were both in Israeli territory. Isnt this what hes paid for? War IV. Yes, you read that right. Secondly, theyre forgetting that Jesus also says that people are more important than sparrows. If our faithful, unchanging Heavenly Father God made a straightforward decisive yet divisive decision and repeated it over and over and over, then why cant the good pastors connect the dots and figure out Jesuss real relationship to the pigs? "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.' WebWhy were there pigs in gerasenes? Years earlier, when the ancient Israelis came to the border of the Promised Land, part of the eastern shore was controlled by the Geshurites (and the Maakathites) but Joshua told Israel to possess their land (Joshua 13:11-13). War II. Sinai. 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. Jesus helped a Syrophoenician woman and commended her faith ( Matthew 15:2128 ). It was like, And also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor relent for He is not a man that He should relent. If you watch the short clip (above) and compare it to the one hour source video Dominating Powers, Part 2 (Mark 5:1-20) you will notice how MacArthurs speaking style changes as soon as he addresses the matter of the pigs. In a, If Paul got himself into hot water because of a Gentile, To top it off, Jesuss farmers see Jesus and see their property floating belly up in the surf, but they dont throw him after them! Cute little silver goddess dolls would have sold for the same price as a full-grown boar or sow in those days.