They were people who knew him. View our current career opportunities. This software has many innovative features and you can trap a Bull or Bear in REAL TIME! It is now called Jerash and is a deserted ruin. And wild animals are not forget because farmers in the Land of Israel are commanded in Exodus 23:11 to leave parts of their fields for food for wildlife. It was exactly due to his righteousness and his love for God that he killed two thousand pigs. Flower blossoms wither. That is exactly what is happening here. WebScripture exhorts us to care for animals and not to be cruel to them. * And if one doesnt believe demons exist ..same question: why invent a false story to make the point that Jesus has power over demonic creatures that dont exist? 8). 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. destroyed) and every perplexing dispensational chart is legit. It was a leading city of Syria in commerce, culture, and religion. His wisecracks are a distraction. They have therefore made important decisions about the proper treatment of animals. The land of the Gerasenes was on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee. The power and the person of Jesus Christ. Again, these classifications come from God, not man, and show up in Scripture as early as Genesis 7:1-9. You know, a month ago, a month ago, if you had said to anyone, You know, Tiger Woods is in slavery. They would have looked at you and said, You've got to be out of your mind. Search the web and you will find many opinions about why the pigs died. The account occurs in all three Synoptic gospels; in Mark (the shortest gospel) the story is in the longest and most detailed version; Matthew 8.2834 is the shortest, Pliny described it as a city of the Decapolis founded after the Rom. Therefore, as we have seen from the Deuteronomy and Revelation, and Jesuss own words, he was not allowed to adjust the Law of God and he had no intention of doing so. And he is sent out to negotiate with Aragorn and Gandalf, and the others. And John nicely parallels Jesus who said, not the smallest letter nor the smallest comma will pass away from the Law (Matthew 5:18). Mark 5 is truly very simple: being a righteous Jew, the Law commands Jesus to abhor pigs as food. Amen. If you have your Bibles I'd invite you to turn with me to Luke chapter 8 and this great story of the man who was possessed by demons, liberated by the Lord Jesus Christ. We come to understand that the God of the Universe is willing to wait and to stall our own behaviour so as to give mother cows and mother sheep more time together with their babies. 2. The church fathers treated them as literal history. Out of the three, Marks gospel presents the most information about the herd. Therefore, even though folks from the Bishop of Hippo down to our two good California pastors have tried to persuade us that the Creator has shifted His views on pork, God did not, can not, and will not vary or alter or adjust any word spoken about any decision let alone His views on ham sandwiches. After this long, careful study, it should be crystal clear that the heartless Bishop of Hippo was mistaken, as were our two good pastors. Also, He is sometimes more open with outsiders/Gentiles than Jews because the negative reaction by the Jewish leaders would hinder his ministry more than rejection by Gentiles. Now a large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, and they begged Him to let them enter these. The concept of Gentiles is found in the Old Testament. It may well be a picture of the reverse of what happened in the Garden of Eden. ), No matter how you slice it, the Almightys negative view of ham and bacon cant suddenly switch from one day to the next. As regards the first question, it would appear that that section of the country was chiefly inhabited by pagans in the first century, and Gerasa is at any rate included by Schrer among the Hellenistic cities ("Geschichte," ii. Jewish rabbis, when interpreting the Word of God, follow an important principle: no word in Gods Word is superfluous or pointless. What have You to do with me, Jesus, the Son of the Most High God? why do you think there were pigs there?]. From the start, the evil spirits wanted to bring death and destruction, and they finally got their chance. ), his power over blindness (John 9:32) and even over death, as in the case of a three-days dead Lazarus (John 11:1-44). Why did these people respond to Jesus this way? Also, wouldnt that be a type of sin and another example of how he may not have perfectly kept the Law? What care we for his soul?What good to us that Thou hast made him whole,Since we have lost our swine? The miracle referred to took place, without doubt, near the town of Gergesa, the modern Kersa , close by the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee, and hence in the country of Gergesenes. It's back just a few verses, the answer is back just a few verses. Part of the reason for such a short list is due to the fact that Gods People are special (Exodus 19:5-6) and separate (Deuteronomy 7:6) and unique from others on the earth (1 Peter 2:9). That's why Jesus's motivation to kill the herd was more than obvious to the Tedious Twelve and the gospel writers. 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 This food is unclean and defiling for you. And there's a lesson in each of these things for all of us. "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.' Both of our good pastors assume that the people in Gerasene (Gadarene or Gergesene) were Gentiles in Gentile territory, partially because of the pigs, partially because of the demoniacs and partially because it fits their bias. In this immediate area, steep hills come down to the shoreline and fit the story of the swine rushing headlong into the sea. Now what happens in this passage? As the Philistine dead were strewn from Gaza to Ekron, so thousands of Satans dead fell in their own territory. OS Supported: Windows 98SE, Windows Millenium, Windows XP (any edition), Windows Vista, Windows 7 & Windows 8 (32 & 64 Bit). And so the fact that youre in a country with a herd of pigs lets you know that youre in Gentile territory and that's part of the point of the story. Instead, his conscious act of casting the demons into the swine resulted in the entire herds destruction. Am I forgiven by saying, I just, The Land of Israel is/was no place for two thousand pigs. Web(2) Ye know that ye were Gentiles.--Better (according to the weight of MSS. Theyre written as factual history. Dont demons like sheep? Legion probably comes from the fact that Roman legions had four to six thousand men in them and this name, Legion, indicates that he is possessed by a host of demons. Sadly, GotQuestions misses the point, or they lie, saying that being distinct was all important to God. Be this as it may, the district was Diana (Artemis) of Ephesuslovely without a nose! But with all this talk about tenderness, what on Earth could have changed Jesuss tune and made him treat the swine the way he did? There are echoes of exodus in Marks story, and echoes of Davids battle with Goliath. Will the demons come back? Heavenly Father, we thank You that the name of Jesus is sweet in the ears of believers, but we know, O Lord, that those who love this world do not know the sweetness of the sound of His name. Being teachable is a great avenue for learning! 3 But now this is an extraordinary case. (, But MacArthurs logical is funny for another reason. In other words, the Roman Catholic Church took four Greek words torn out of mid-sentence and declared them to mean, the end (read, death) of the law [of Moses], although numerous verses declare the fixed, eternal character of Gods Perfect Law. Fear and selfishness prompted the prayer. Thus, in him, God found a man after His own heart (1 Samuel 13:14 and 1 Samuel 16:1). Gerasa is identified from various sources as a city in Arabia, Decapolis, Gilead, or Perea. Obviously the man with the demon was Jewish or Jesus would not have gone there. 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 was interesting that Palmer had gone out without any announcement but this man knew who he was and he was obviously disturbed that he was there and he began to make threats. He's converted. 1), and apparently occupied these cities with Jewish patriots. Demonic forces seem to be territorial; i.e., they have assigned areas of domain. Both of our good pastors assume that the people in Gerasene (Gadarene or Gergesene) were Gentiles in Gentile territory, partially because of the pigs, partially because of the demoniacs and partially because, The good pastor John MacArthur assumes in his video, [I stretch my hand out to the Jews] who sit by the graves and lodge over night in the tombs, who eat the flesh of pigs and the broth of corrupted meat from their pots. Ptolemy says Gerasa was a city in Coele-Syria, thirty-five travel m. from Pella. I think so. That sure does smell good! In a pigs eye. Its one thing to understand that He personally never changes. Well let's pray before we read God's Word together. It pains them to admit that Jesus was/is a Jewish Messiah and not a Christian one. So I figure we could speculate a little and see where this goes. Such a contradiction in character! The story is about the power of Jesus and, even his name, to rid humans of demons and also to show that his power was for Gentiles as well. Incredible. If you're carrying a sheep, is it still a "piggy" back ride? The Gospels tell us that Jesus did most of His work among the Jewish people. It all belongs to God. I cannot offer you a proof-text for this observation. Well this is a taste of the profound arguments that you will find in that book. Reading the Word of God is wonderful. WebThe terrified Gerasenes beseeching Jesus to leave them. in which he transferred the demons afflicting a man to a number of swine, that thereupon Instead of recklessly freeing the doves into the air (as erroneously shown in The Jesus Film and other Bible movies), Scripture records with precise detail that Jesus only knocked over the chairs of the pigeon owners, and/or told them to take their feathered property and leave (Matthew 21:12; Mark 11:15; John 2:16) he didnt use his whip on the birds or fling them into the air to be attacked by falcons or eagles. Try Bible Gateway Plus free today. What about cattle? 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? They sort of seek Him out. God told Jonah that it was not just all the people, but also so much livestock (Jonah 4:11). Gadarenes, Girgesenes, Gerasenes: (These three names are used indiscriminately to designate the place where Jesus healed two demoniacs. It's this man who is in bondage to these demons. Be circumspect. Don Crowe and Nicholas Gentile direct the Oswego Players Scenes of Crime; Section X: Canton downs Heuvelton for repeat Overall Section 10 title; Section X: Lady Wildcats edge Hammond for Section Overall title; PROPERTY SALES; Local pro hockey: Former Wolves player Liarakos paces Mississippi past visiting Watertown .hide-if-no-js { 2 Just as Jesus was getting out of the boat, a man with an unclean spirit came No, at the very best, Scripture is a dazzling lily that started out as a small flower bud, grew and expanded overtime, until finally it opened to show us all its beauty, a beauty that there inside the bud since the beginning, but not fully shown. The opinions expressed are solely those of the author, and do not necessarily represent the opinions or policies of any other person, religious organization or governmental entity. A discussion occurred between Professor Huxley and Mr. Gladstone in "The Nineteenth Century" for 1892 as to the morality of the act, the critical questions being whether (1) Gerasenes were Jews; and (2) if so, was it lawful for them to keep swine? Some will respond to my rhetorical question, Why on earth would Jesus come to earth, by giving me the usual pat answer. He didnt give any new commandment. Yes, you read that right. You understand that Legion is not his name. 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. No Jewish farmer would keep swine, and no Jewish region would tolerate the presence of pigs, let alone two thousand of them (Mark 5:13). I beg You, do not torment me. For He (that is, Jesus) had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. Download Microsoft .NET 3.5 SP1 Framework. And it's the glorious picture of the value that He puts on an immortal soul. absolutely anne..there are a few scenarios..nothing more exciting than digging into the Word of God!! Jews don't get the joke either because they don't read the New Testament much given the fact Christians have turned them off of Jesus. 6 ) There were lots of laws they didnt keep. At best, Malachi 4:4 should read as, Remember the Law of Moses, but mine's better. We do not find demons under every pew and under every rock. The Word of God cant change any more than God can. We are pleased to launch our new product Money Maker Software for world's best charting softwares like AmiBroker, MetaStock, Ninja Trader & MetaTrader 4. The good pastor basically believes that in Jesuss mind, one mans peace, preservation and freedom from unclean spirits is worth the sacrifice of a couple thousand pigs. 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. Is there actually a real reason why the Gospel accounts shouldnt be taken as factual history? 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. It's in Luke chapter 8, verse 18. The land of the Gerasenes was on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee. We have it all down on paper exactly how gentle Gentiles can get when they get annoyed by a Jew. We usually think of Jesus as the loving, forgiving guy from Galilee, right? That is, they appear contrary, except for one thing: Gods Law forbids righteous people from eating pork. It was like, Read my lips, Saul! While animal-abuse cases arent normally rampant among church-goers, its no thanks to this bishops official policy. There he meets a man seized with an unclean spirit (Mark) or with demons (Luke). He specifically banned pig in. People of the same race and same religion but they still wanted to do him some serious pain. 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. Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced searchad free! When people start putting a value on animal life equal to or higher than the value they put on human life, something is seriously wrong with the culture. In some of your Bibles, it may say Gergesenes or Gadarenes in the parallel passages in the gospels. None of the verses below refute any of the Seven Forgotten Facts above. And he sends out his representative, a man who is known only as the Lieutenant of the Tower of Barad-dr, the black gate. And then you see in this passage the change of a heart set free. Sproul also agrees with this preference of people over pigs when he writes, a man is worth more than 2,000 pigs.. The action is no different than Revelation 14:14-15 where we see the Son of Man brandishing a sharp sickle. Jesus was upholding all the kosher laws within the Land of Israel it was part of his job description. Wipf & Stock Publishers. He was totally dominated by these demonic forces. This, by the way, is the miracle story that happens in Gentile land. Pingback: The Prophet in the Hometown A Pilgrim in Augsburg. One day the prophet Samuel angrily told his king that God would not go back on His decision. WebThey land in the country of the Gadarenes which is on the North-east shore of the Sea of Galilee about 6 miles southeast across the sea from Capernaum. An inscr. And what about commands for married people (Exodus 21:10), or the command that a man gives his wife a bill of divorce (Deuteronomy 24:1)? If you eat a swine/hog that has killed eaten a poisonous snake and you eat that hog, you will be poisoned and die. HDB, II, p. 158, 159 for a detailed description.). Both Johns could conveniently connect the dots between the Law of God which outlaws the swine and the destructive action which Jesus took against the herd, but it would be too inconvenient for their religious views. Demetrius had to do something with the Jew or go bust. Learn a new word every day. (Question: If God cares about the mother-child relationship in animals, how does He consider that relationship for people? He's the friend of sinners. Sproul writes in his commentary Mark that the compassion of Jesus "drove Him to destroy the pigs for the sake of one human life. The heart set free from sin by Jesus. I wonder why?). This is the only sensible interpretation which remains consistent with all Scripture. Pig meat, according to Scripture, is as, Suddenly, Mark 5 is clear. And based roughly on current prices, Jesus caused hundred of thousands of dollars in damages. Show us the only hope of deliverance from those sins and teach us these things from this passage. Very interesting. the obscure phrase, (declaring all food clean), is magically transformed by the New International Version into, In saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean, or into even lovelier prose like, By saying this, he declared that every kind of food is acceptable in Gods eyes, by the New Living Translation (talk about making silk purse out of a sows ear). The fact anyone dreamed up dispensationalism in the first place shows how some attentive folk saw contradictions within traditional interpretations of Scripture, but were unwilling to admit to them directly, but instead they desperately concocted those nonsense charts. 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. 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). Now we see the missing puzzle piece: God had plainly prohibited pork as food, making it clear that holy people should not eat it all of you be holy for I am holy (Leviticus 11:44-45) and therefore, Gods normally merciful Messiah destroyed an entire herd in total agreement with the commandment. His soul, what care we for his soul? The stories in the gospels may or may not have happened but, regardless, they are told in a way that makes a theological point and were never intended to be understood as factual history. The following Scripture wont disprove Gods love for all animals, deny the Almightys unalterable character, declare the commandments null and void, nor claim all meats clean (kosher). Additionally, it would have been foolish for the Apostles to claim hundreds and thousands of witnesses (1 Cor 15:1-6). Perhaps a tenth, or a quarter, or a half of the 613 commandments were fulfilled by Jesus, but not all. And from what I have heard, preferrably pig blood. In actual fact, when you stop to think about it, because God denounced pork in Leviticus, and then Jesus destroyed two thousand, and that event is thrice repeated by Matthew, by Mark, by Luke it all adds up to a big confirmation of the fact that God doesn't change. James Gibson. Also, the land where the Master walked and the swine were feeding belonged to Israel. How and why did this happen in the first place? Thus, we are not surprised that there was "a great herd of pigs" feeding near the tombs where the Gerasene demoniac was living (5:11). And so the demons call out His name Jesus, the Son of the Most High God and it has no effect on Him. (we dont invent stories to let people know Jesus has power over the Tooth Fairy, do we?). Doesn't Jesus Treat Animals as Property? In York, T.; Alexis-Baker, A.; Bekoff, M.; McLaren, B. Mark and Luke call it Gerasenes and some English versions translate it as Gergesenes. It is all the same place.
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