were the gerasenes gentiles were the gerasenes gentiles

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. Did you know that one of the 7 ingredients in underwater concrete was animal blood? And in Malachi 4:4, why did God say remember the Law of Moses if God had His own law? Gods Law has a law that you cannot change Gods Law. Doesn't Jesus Treat Animals as Property? In York, T.; Alexis-Baker, A.; Bekoff, M.; McLaren, B. Besides this Biblical evidence that Jesus and the woman were within Israels inheritance, there is also a prophesy that God will settle His People in the future in Gilead (a sizeable part of todays Kingdom of Jordan) and in Lebanon too (Zechariah 10:9-10). But they dont prove his point. I love irritating those charlatans who pretend the Law of God is somehow different than the Law of Moses. However, the silversmith was a smart cookie and knew that the more people bought into Pauls line of thinking, Note: Demetrius was angry only because of, Therefore, were those cool-headed pig-farmers really Gentiles? On the other hand, it is unfortunate that the rabbis today dont see the even stronger connection between Genesis 3:3 and Revelation 22:18, because Jews dont read the New Testament all that much. 3 And the sons of Gomer; Ashkenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah. Yet a complete interpretation of Mark 5 needs to clear up one last point: the pigs were forbidden but did they have to be destroyed? He had a new name and he had a new nature to go along with it. And he was the one who said that the Father doesnt miss the falling of a sparrow. Oops. It was like, Read my lips, Saul! Mr. Hippo read Mark 5 and convinced himself that Jesus did not care about swine, or any other animals, and therefore, spread a church doctrine that Christians have no genuine duty to animals. 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. The most plausible reason Jesus chose the pigs was because he regarded people as precious and priceless, But are these good pastors on the right track? Oops! The normally merciful Messiah destroyed the pigs in accordance with Gods Law about clean and unclean meat. (Matthew 8:28; Mark 5:1; Luke 8:26) In Gerasenes in place of Gadarenes. And Jews are forbidden by God and His eternal commands to own pigs. And holiness means salvation, as Paul wrote in two different letter, without holiness no man [or woman] shall see God (Hebrews 12:14 and Romans 6:22). Only this interpretation explains the farmers restrained reaction over the slaughter of the swine, and their tremendous terror of the Messiah. But look at how many times God let it be known in the Law and in very certain terms eating pork was offensive. Deuteronomy 4 and 12 only state that none should add or remove what Moses was commanding, which sounds a little nebulous. Unfortunately, Pastor John is not alone, joking at the expense of this tragedy. Lastly, based on culture, human-nature and most importantly, on specific Scripture passages, we know the demoniac could not have been a Gentile but was most assuredly, Yet a complete interpretation of Mark 5 needs to clear up one last point: the pigs were forbidden but did they, Christ kept kosher and cleaned up the town, I can of Myself do nothing. That is all I know. Now I want to say very quickly, my friends, that there is no power in this universe that can cause a rationale being to sin. 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. Bibliography W. A. Thomson, The Land and the Book (1882), 333-338, 353, 359; C. H. Kraeling, Gerasa, City of the Decapolis (1938); The Westminster Historical Atlas to the Bible (1946), 64, 117; M. F. Unger, Archaeology and the NT (1962), 139-141; E. Lohmeyer, Das Evangelium des Markus (1963), 93f; C. F. Pfeiffer, The Biblical World (1966), 252-254. People of the same race and same religion but they still wanted to do him some serious pain. David was a good example of what Jesus meant by the shepherd gives his life for the sheep. Compared to this, Jesuss behaviour toward the pigs appears extremely callous: giving vile demons permission to slaughter swine is not exactly compassionate. She suffers a more oppressive slavery than ever before not to human rulers but to demons, who are bold enough to enter synagogues on the Sabbat. Peace be to the brethren, and love with faith, from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. The Catholic Church's interpretation of this verse is sheer nonsense, because the weight of Scripture contradicts it, so true Reformers need to re-read their Bibles. What about cattle? He's set free. The last now appears. For you Tolkien fans it reminds me of a character in the trilogy of the Lord of the Rings. Even so, the Bible never puts the worth of animals on the same level as the worth of humanity. (eds.). If you're carrying a sheep, is it still a "piggy" back ride? 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. So He got into the boat and returned. They were wise enough to figure out if Jesus in His authority over them would allow them to exit of their choosing, they would select the black pigs often used in sacrifice to Baal. Pigs, of course, were unclean for the Jews (Lev. He loves our souls. Rabbi, begone! Just like in the Garden, when God judged Adam, he didn't strike him directly, but the ground soil instead. 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. The Greeks were believers in the spirit Most Christians believe Messiah is the Second Person of the Trinity. To feed the spectators who came there purposely to see those crazy chain braking tomb dwelling lunatics! B. vii. He is the freest man in the world. But today, if you said to anybody, Tiger Woods is a slave to his desires, they would recognize it. In other words, they believe the one who killed the pigs with the demons is equal to the Father. Such alternative readings include arguments that the swine were meant to represent the Roman army or "unclean and unfaithful" people; that pigs were considered "unclean", so destroying them might be consistent with care for other animals; and that Jesus did not actually "send" the devils into the pigs. That's what disciples do, they sit at their master's feet. He was clear that His mission was not to the Gentiles and Samaritans, but rather, to the lost tribe of Israel. The Gerasenes, however, was located in the territory of the Decapolis, a group of ten cities with a majority population of Gentiles. Jesus helped a Syrophoenician woman and commended her faith ( Matthew 15:2128 ). The only other commandment with this same specific promise is the command to honour thy mother and father (Exodus 20:12 and Deuteronomy 5:16; c.f., Ephesians 6:2-3 where Paul copies out the entire commandment and the promise). (, Its not clear exactly who is doing more killings, the LORD or Melchizedek, but the picture overall fits the image of Son of God cleaning the land of swine. Lets use his recording to the event as our jumping off point: Every Bible passage is either a historical narrative piece (such as the one we just read), a legal and/or procedural document (the majority of the Five Books of Moses), or it is a poetic passage (like Psalms, Proverbs and much of the Prophets). 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. Yet there was no fury. This verse alone puts an interesting twist on the oft-quoted man was not made for the Sabbath but the Sabbath was made for man because originally Scripture makes the point that the Sabbath is for man and mans animals. However, the silversmith was a smart cookie and knew that the more people bought into Pauls line of thinking, the less theyd be buying his souvenir Diana statues. Thou lovest men, we love swine. He dispatched Lucius Annius with a force of cavalry and an army of foot soldiers, who took the city on the first attack, slaughtering a thousand young men, taking their families captive, plundering and burning the city and the surrounding towns (Jos. After stilling the storm while crossing the Sea of Galilee, Jesus lands with his disciples on the eastern shore of the lake. New International Version (NIV), Encyclopedia of The Bible Gerasa, Gerasenes. Of course not. 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. (Please dont hide behind that sensational dispensational chart. What was the country of the Gerasenes (or Gadarenes) and why (But that may sadly describe a good number of Christians.) If the interpretation from, If a bunch of little children want a ball to play with and I toss them a grenade, am I off the hook if a kid pulls out the pin? Gentile Secondly, the text is written to show Jesus dunnit. In a similar way, we see that Scripture is the same; it doesnt change. Test your knowledge - and maybe learn something along the way. Lots of non-Jews lived there. (Note that Luke omits Jesus journey to Tyre and Sidon, see also Mark 7:24-37). What do you love? They, like the demons, are afraid of Him and they beg Him to leave and He does. It's interesting isn't it Jesus crosses the river, the lake, and no sooner has He set His foot on the other side but this man shows up to meet Him. Add to that that recent studies claim 25% of the world today is antisemitic and ask yourself if racism was better or worse in the past? I wouldn't care to speculate how many demons possessed this man, but the man can only identify himself as a person who is possessed by an almost innumerable host of evil spirits and he doesn't even remember his own name. It's almost like the demons are inexorably drawn to Jesus. This, by the way, is the miracle story that happens in Gentile land. And so this man comes to Jesus, he seeks Him out, and Jesus says to him, What is your name? And the man doesn't know his name. Matt 8:28). This is the Just-believe-and-receive Hypothesis and the advocates thereof like to stretch Jesuss words, I came to fulfill the Law, and make it say that Jesus needed to destroy or replace the nasty Law, but hope to heaven it still sounds Biblical heres an example of stretchy talking from GotQuestions. After all, racism wasnt invented in the 21st century. The Law of God. Either way, dispensational charts ultimately commit both acts against the Word of God. 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 Tabernacle of Ancient Israel - Brief Overview of the Tabernacle of Moses in the Wilderness and the Ark of the Covenant. After stilling the storm while crossing the Sea of Galilee, Jesus lands with his disciples on the eastern shore of the lake. Instead of dead Egyptians washing up on the shore, we see dead pigs, an intentional insult to the minions of Satan. In the end, the good pastors assumptions keep us rolling in the aisles. And if I remember correctly, I think there is some tradition about other Apostles going to Spain. Jesus is equating his commandments which can only be the ones in the Law of Moses, because he gave no commandments in the Gospels with his Fathers commandments in the Five Books of Moses. Many New Testament manuscripts refer to the "Country of the Gadarenes" or "Gerasenes" rather than Who were the gerasenes in the bible? Since all of these areas overlap, one may take the references as meaning the same place. But should you also doubt, my friendly blog reader, read on. His sermon should have given us some point, some excuse, or some logical explanation for it all. Last week we said the focus was on the power and the person of Jesus Christ. But John is more precise, saying none should add or remove words. Something else to ponder about the Son of God is his other title, The Good Shepherd: David, the son of Jesse, was another selfless, compassionate shepherd. I am but a man possessed by an innumerable host of demons. Therefore, I repeat again that I believe the pastors are dishonest for not admitting this fact. 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. were the gerasenes Seven facts why Jesus cast the demons to the pigs in Mark 5, but pastors still miss the point, We usually think of Jesus as the loving, forgiving guy from Galilee, right? War I. iv. Jesus to leave That is exactly what is happening here. Besides, it was Christmas! He does. .hide-if-no-js { Well this is a taste of the profound arguments that you will find in that book. These three verse from John really are earth-shattering. As to the second question, there is no doubt of the illegality, from a ritual point of view, of Jews keeping swine (B. Lets dwell on that he added no new commands to his disciples. Be circumspect. And the good pastor doesnt give any rationale for a slaughter that huge. This picking and choosing is completely unbiblical. I would have wanted a herd of swine had I been an Israelite in the desert. 15:24), but He was concerned for all peoples. 11:78). 9. The Gerasene Demoniac (Mark 5:1-20) | Bible.org conquest of Syria in 65 b.c. Not that I believe my case has holes. Israels real enemy is Satan. Many will rush for cover behind the last four Greek words of this verse, despite all of its textual, translation and interpretation problems. In fact, they are, Yet the gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke actually report that the towns people many would have been the owners or friends of the pig owners or people who were connected to the trade in the swine were, Also, wouldnt that be a type of sin and another example of how he may not have, All in all, after Jesus had trashed the livelihood of so many, we have to agree that they were, Every place the Master went on his travels it was to minister to a Jew, just as Paul said, To the Jew first (, Answering, he said, I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. (, As well, every place the Master went on his travels was inside of the, Scripture makes it clear that Ashers tribal land-boundary ended around the coastal city of Tyre (, Besides this Biblical evidence that Jesus and the woman were within Israels inheritance, there is also a prophesy that God will settle His People in the future in Gilead (a sizeable part of todays Kingdom of Jordan) and in, The real-estate on the east side of the lake of Galilee where Jesus met the demons and the swine was also part of Israel-proper. Paul himself said the doers of the Law will be made righteous (Romans 2:13), and that the Law is holy (Romans 7:12) and that the Law is spiritual (Romans 7:14). The power and the person of Jesus Christ. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. To any Jew, Jesuss actions were crystal clear. That will give us the perfect answer. Top Ten Reasons Why There Were Pigs In Gerasenes viii. You know that because the people tell Him to leave. The pastors precious-people useless-swine principle was previously dreamed up by the 3rd century church father, St. Augustine of Hippo (quoted by Spalde and Strindlund), and he ran with it. 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! Jesus then asked him, What is your name? And he said, Legion, for many demons had entered him. It seems to happen a lot in the gospels. I asked him how could it be that Jesus carried on an intelligent, protracted, two-way conversation with an illness after the illness was excised out of the man. What about sheep? See more comments below.). No, the Gentiles are not simply non-Jews. Gentiles are loved by God and redeemed by Jesus. This location agrees with the description given by the ancient writers. We have seen that God Almighty loves animals as much as humans, so Jesus randomly killing two thousand swine seems senseless, unless we remember God has commanded righteous people to avoid defiling food, such as pork. Such a conclusion will annoy a lot of people, even funny, leaky dispensationalists like John MacArthur. --ED.). 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. That fact must be kept in mind in our ethical discussions. What pigs?? WebApparently Gerasa was rebuilt by the Romans before the revolt began, prob. 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. Notice how Gods, Plus, when Jesus chased the sellers out of the Temple courts (. I agree the counter-arguments look flawless on the surface and that will be partially exposed now. JESUS DIDNT SEND THE DEMONS INTO THE DEEP; That is, they appear contrary, except for one thing: Gods Law forbids righteous people from eating pork. WebGERASA, GERASENES (, ). Furthermore, the play-by-play presents no reason to be judged as a parable or an allegory. There he meets a man seized with an unclean spirit (Mark) or with demons (Luke). ]. Go be a witness to Me. 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. What is the significance of Decapolis in the Bible? It pains them to admit that Jesus was/is a Jewish Messiah and not a Christian one. In turn, they would have a vehicle wherewith to stay in their territory. Kursi - The Gerasene Site of Jesus' Miracle on the East Side of Lake 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? So he had to live according to the truth that had already revealed and to get everyone else in line with the program. Playing with the plain truths of Gods eternal Scriptures means one is playing with fire and such actions will bring unfortunate consequences. Mark 5:1 Commentaries: They came to the other side of the sea, Cute little silver goddess dolls would have sold for the same price as a full-grown boar or sow in those days. Basically, a vision told Peter three times to eat defiling animal meat (at least that was how it seemed to him) so Peter logically replied that he had never eaten anything , Once more, we have half of an unclear verse, that people use to make up a, Gods Word has to agree with Gods Word. Any other conclusion, in light of the seven facts just presented, is breathtakingly irresponsible, and we should just laugh it off. 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? Two thousand pigs dead for one person to live is not an even tradeand that is the point. WebRoman Empire Map - Large Map of the Roman Empire in the Early First Century - Click around on the Places. Gergasa (modern name Kersa) was a small village nearby, and Gadara was the larger region of which the village was a part, with Gerasa as the regional capital. Ba-dum-tsss.). Scripture exhorts us to care for animals and not to be cruel to them. Sadly, the rest of the verse is not quoted in GotQuestions best article and preachers rarely preach it, though it reveals more about the true character of the Messiah. Now the big-mouth irking this Greek artisan was our good friend, the Apostle Paul. All four gospel writers repeatedly testify to Jesuss power over storm, waves and. Such a statement is irresponsible because the Law was not written for a single person. What need have we of further witnesses? 3. Anyway, it was the demons that would have decided where, and if, he slept. IV. We said the last time that we were together that in Luke 8 you begin four miracle stories, all of which either happen in Galilee or in Gentile lands. Did Jesus Heal and Preach to Only Jews? No! - NCR Gentiles Without a question, if Jesuss pig-farmers had been Gentiles, there would have been bloodshed. http://archive.ligonduncan.com/mp3/12.13.2009_Dr_J_Ligon_Duncan_The_Man_Jesus_Renamed_Luke_8_26-39.mp3. He also said after much work with people that was possess that most of them dealt in occult practices. And lastly, because the herd was within the Land of Israel and owned by Jews (the joke about Gentiles owning them is cleared up below), the unclean swine had to go and the unclean demons did the work. Although the Almightys statement is only one sentence in Deuteronomy 12:32, Jews regard it as two different commandments no additions and no subtractions. The majority admits they are clueless and throw their hands up, stating the herd was just a , The pastors attempts to laugh off the haunting question about the meek and lowly Son of Man killing all the pigs is, Besides the jokes being in poor taste, they make his sermon seem less than professional. Pretty quickly the whole city was in an uproar. In his description of the boundaries of Perea, Josephus mentions Gerasa as one of the cities on the eastern boundary between Perea and Arabia, the other border cities being Philadelphia and Sebonitus (Jos.