Mark 5::1 -25 - Whom do you serve?

Whom do you serve?

Mark 5

Mark 5:1

Note on Mark 5:1

This deliverance is recorded by Matthew (Matthew 8:28), Mark (Mark 5:1-20), and Luke (Luke 8:27). Matthew 8:28 says there were two demoniacs (see my note at Mark 5:2).
The Gadarenes inhabited the land that was given to the tribe of Gad on the east of the river Jordan (Numbers 32:5 and 29-33).

Life For Today Study Bible Notes

Note 2 at Mark 5:1: The city of Gadara was one of ten cities of the Decapolis (see note 1 at Matthew 4:25). The historian Josephus described it as a strong and wealthy city inhabited mostly by Greeks. Its location was about five and one-half miles southeast of the Sea of Galilee at an elevation that allowed a full view of the sea.
Gadara was the capital of a district called Gadaritis located east of the Jordan River and extending north to the southeastern shore of the Sea of Galilee. Because of the size and importance of this city, those who dwelt on the east side of the Sea of Galilee were called Gadarenes.
Matthew referred to “the country of the Gergesenes” (Matthew 8:28). Origen, an early Christian historian, was told that an old town named Gergesa existed on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee, near a place where the land sloped steeply into the lake. The ruins of a town named Kursi have existed at this site in modern times.
The Revised Version uses the name “Gerasenes” in Mark 5:1; Luke 8:26, and 37. This name was probably derived from “Gerasa,” another city in the area. The ruins of Kursi are opposite Magdala and five miles southeast of where the Jordan River enters the Sea of Galilee. Just a short distance south of these ruins is the only place on the eastern coast where steep hills come close enough to the water to meet the conditions of Matthew 8:32, Mark 5:13, and Luke 8:33.

Mark 5:2

Note on Mark 5:2

Why was this man demon possessed? 1 Peter 5:8 says, “Be sober, be vigilant; because  your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” Satan cannot just devour everyone. What had happened to cause this man to be in such a state? Whatever it was, it didn’t take Jesus long to deal with it and get the demons out. See my note at Isaiah 65:4.
Certainly, there are reasons that things happen, but the approach that some take, where it takes months or years to get to the root of the problem, is not the way Jesus ministered. This case of demon possession was worse than the ones we deal with. Therefore, if this man’s deliverance came in just minutes, we should expect the same.
Matthew’s account of this story records two men who were demon-possessed. Some have tried to use this difference to discredit the Gospels as a whole. But if there were two men, then there was one man. Mark and Luke don’t state that there was only one man. They just focus on one. That is their prerogative and does not contradict Matthew’s account. It’s possible that this one man’s deliverance was so notable, it overshadowed the other man’s deliverance.

Mark 5:3

Note on Mark 5:3

These demons gave this man superhuman strength. See my note at Luke 8:29.
Luke said this man wore no clothes (Luke 8:27).

Mark 5:4

Note on Mark 5:4

If this man was strong enough to break chains, it must have been quite an effort to put those chains on him. And this had happened often. The people had tried to deal with this problem many times before. But all they could do was bind him unsuccessfully. Jesus didn’t bind him. He loosed him. People’s solutions are ways to bind, while God comes to set the captives free (Luke 4:18-19).

Mark 5:5

Note on Mark 5:5

These demons caused this man to cry day and night and cut himself. Satan only steals, kills, and destroys (John 10:10). The devil lies to people that its bondage to serve the Lord, but just the opposite is true.

Mark 5:6

Note on Mark 5:6

Demons don’t worship Jesus. This man, as demon possessed as he was, still had enough control to fall at Jesus’ feet and worship Him. He had gone so far that he couldn’t get free on his own, but he could worship Jesus. There is no demon- possessed person who can’t exert his will enough to make some step toward the Lord for deliverance. Failure to solicit a faith step towards the Lord will keep a demon-possessed person from getting delivered.

Life For Today Study Bible Notes

Note 3 at Mark 5:6: The word “worshipped” is taken from the Greek word “PROSKUNEO,” and it means to “prostrate oneself in homage (do reverence to, adore)” (Strong’s Concordance). The fact that this tormented man ran to Jesus and not away from Him indicates that even “demon-possessed” people have a free will and Satan cannot control people without their consent. Also illustrated in this verse is Philippians 2:10-11 (“every knee should bow...And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord”) and James 2:19 (“the devils also believe, and tremble,” see note 3 at Mark 1:32).

Mark 5:7

Note on Mark 5:7

This man made a step towards God by falling down and worshiping Jesus. But he was so demon possessed that he couldn’t speak independently of the demons that possessed him.

Mark 5:8

Note on Mark 5:8

In Luke’s account of this same incident (Luke 8:29), it says, “For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man.” So in Mark 5:7, these demons were saying these things in response to Jesus’ command. Therefore, we can see that the demons didn’t leave immediately. They argued with Jesus for a while, seeking some concession.

Mark 5:9

Note on Mark 5:9

A Roman legion consisted of 6,000 troops. Therefore, it is supposed that this man had somewhere around 6,000 demons.

Life For Today Study Bible Notes

Note 4 at Mark 5:9: Mark and Luke recorded Jesus asking the demon his name, but Matthew did not. In 1 John 4:1-3, we are told to try (test, discern, examine) the spirits to see if they are of God. Discerning of spirits is one of the manifestations of the Spirit mentioned in 1 Corinthians 12:10.
According to Mark’s and Luke’s accounts of this passage, Jesus’ command of “come out of the man” was not met with a quick response, as in other cases of deliverance (Mark 1:25-26; Luke 4:33-35, 9:42, and 13:11-13). It appears that finding the “spokesman” for the demons (who identified himself as “Legion”) was important in this case. Once the “strong man” (Matthew 12:29) of the group was exposed by identifying himself at Jesus’ command, the other demons, whose power would have been less than their leader, followed him as he left the man’s body.
Whether Jesus actually did not discern the legion of demons or if He did but chose to use this incident as a means to teach His disciples, the demons still knew Him and His authority; the demoniac was delivered. Jesus gave that same authority to His disciples (Matthew 10:1, 8; and Luke 10:1-20).

Mark 5:10

Life For Today Study Bible Notes

Note 5 at Mark 5:10: Scripture implies that once evil spirits have found an individual, a family, or an area in which to dwell, they are unwilling to leave. Examples are iniquities of fathers being passed on to the third and fourth generations (Exodus 34:7 and Deuteronomy 5:9), the spirit gone out of a man seeking to return (Matthew 12:43-45 and Luke 11:24-26), and the fact that demonic “princes” or “kings” of an area exercised spiritual authority over that area (Ezekiel 28:2-19, 38:2-3, 39:1; Daniel 10:12-13, 20; Ephesians 1:21, 6:12; Colossians 1:16, and 2:15). Luke said this man had the devils a “long time,” and Mark said they implored Jesus not to send them “out of the country.” They may have had hopes that after Jesus had gone, they could once again enter the demoniac. Matthew and Luke warned of this possibility (Matthew 12:43-45 and Luke 11:24-26), and the demons may have reasoned that if Jesus permitted them to enter the swine, they would not have to leave the area. People delivered of demons must fill themselves with the presence and power of God to stay free (see note 4 at Matthew 12:44).

Mark 5:11

Note on Mark 5:11

Swine were unclean to the Jews (Leviticus 11:7-8 and Deuteronomy 14:8). So if these swine belonged to Jews, they were being raised in violation of God’s commands.

Mark 5:12

Note on Mark 5:12

This illustrates how demons need a physical body to exert any influence. They are spirits, and only people or even animals with physical bodies have authority to operate on this earth. Therefore, Satan or demons can’t do anything to us without our consent and cooperation. Even a pig has more authority than a demon.

Mark 5:13

Note on Mark 5:13

Pigs are smarter than demon-possessed people. People will often brag about their demons; pigs are so ashamed they kill themselves.

Life For Today Study Bible Notes

Note 6 at Mark 5:13: As incredible as it may seem, this demoniac may have been possessed with as many as 2,000 demons based on the fact that 2,000 swine apparently became insane when the demons entered the herd. This shows that the demonic spirits are either very small or, because they do not have physical bodies, are able to occupy the same physical space simultaneously with other spirits. This verse also shows that the same demons that caused insanity in the demoniac caused insanity and self-destruction in the swine. (Swine kill themselves when they become demon-possessed. Many people brag about their demon possession.)
The financial loss on these 2,000 swine must also have been very substantial. If each were worth one day’s wages ($30.00 modern purchasing equivalent), the loss would be at least $60,000. The loss at today’s prices could exceed $150,000.

Mark 5:14

Note on Mark 5:14

It took a period of time for these messengers to run into all these areas and tell the people what had happened. When they arrived where Jesus and the recently-delivered man were, it was at least an hour or two after the fact. During this time, Jesus’ disciples clothed the man, and it’s reasonable to believe that Jesus was giving him instructions on how to stay free.

Mark 5:15

Note on Mark 5:15

This was an instant change in this man’s actions and mental state. It was not a renewing of his mind. Some people experience massive changes instantly because they call out to the Lord and get deliverance. When the devil leaves, they are instantly changed. But other people are dealing with the flesh and an unrenewed mind. In those cases, change comes progressively as they renew the way they think and believe.

Mark 5:16

Note on Mark 5:16

Notice that Jesus and His disciples didn’t publicize this miracle. Others did that for them. The really great miracles of God stir this kind of response. Lord, help me to release Your power to the degree that even unbelievers talk about it.

Mark 5:17

Note on Mark 5:17

Jesus had done a wonderful thing, and yet they wanted him to leave. This is amazing! But it is often the case that a real manifestation of God’s power causes fear in those who observe it. It brings to light their own weaknesses and unbelief and disturbs their paradigm. Rather than change, they want just to escape back to their old way of doing things, even though it isn’t getting the same miraculous results.

Mark 5:18

Note on Mark 5:18

This is amazing! Jesus taught that when people are cleansed of demons, the demons will return seeking to resume their place, and if they aren’t prepared, those people will become demon possessed seven times worse than they were (Matthew 12:45). This would lead to the thinking that it’s irresponsible to minister deliverance without taking the newly-delivered person under your wing for discipleship. But that’s not what Jesus did.
Anyone who has truly been set free wants to be with Jesus.

Mark 5:19

Note on Mark 5:19

This is what the Lord wants all of us to do. Notice that the focus of his testimony was not to be about how he had been delivered of demons, but it was all about God’s great love for him. Our testimonies should always draw people’s attention to the goodness and love of God.

Mark 5:20

Note on Mark 5:20

What a testimony this must have been! These people had seen this man totally demon possessed, and now he is completely normal and proclaiming Jesus as the one who set him free.

Mark 5:21

Note on Mark 5:21

Jesus had been rejected by the Gadarenes, but here were the people on the other side of the sea to receive Him in large numbers and great enthusiasm. There is a lesson here for us. If one group of people rejects us, move on (Matthew 10:23). There are others who will receive our witness (Luke 9:52-56).

Mark 5:22

Note on Mark 5:22

This instance with Jairus was also recorded in Matthew 9:18-19 and 23-26 and in Luke 8:41-42 and 49-56.
Jairus couldn’t get his miracle in the synagogue, of which he was one of the leaders. He had to go outside the church to where the Person was with the miracle-working power. Many people miss their miracles because they think God can only work in a church.

Mark 5:23

Note on Mark 5:23

This synagogue ruler’s faith wasn’t as strong as the Roman centurion’s (Matthew 8:8-12). The centurion didn’t need Jesus to personally come and heal his servant. All he needed was Jesus to speak the word of deliverance. Yet, Jesus didn’t rebuke Jairus for having a weaker faith than the centurion. He met him where his faith was.

Mark 5:24

Note on Mark 5:24

Robertson’s New Testament Word Pictures says, “The only example of (here and in verse 31) this compound verb in the N.T., common in old Greek. Were pressing Jesus so that he could hardly move because of the jam, or even to breathe.”

Mark 5:25

Note on Mark 5:25

This woman touching the hem of Jesus’ garment is also recorded in Matthew 9:20-22 and Luke 8:43-48. Luke 6:19 also implies this happened on other occasions too.
It is very possible that Jairus, the ruler of the synagogue, knew this woman. She would have been one of his parishioners. Jairus was in a tremendous hurry. His daughter was at the point of death, and as related later in this chapter, she did die before Jesus got to his house. I’m sure Jairus was upset with this delay, but he had the wisdom not to say anything.

Andrew Wommack's Living Commentary.