Mark 5:12 - Printer Friendly

ESV: and they begged him, saying, "Send us to the pigs; let us enter them."

NIV: The demons begged Jesus, "Send us among the pigs; allow us to go into them."

NASB: And the demons begged Him, saying, 'Send us into the pigs so that we may enter them.'

CSB: The demons begged him, "Send us to the pigs, so that we may enter them."

NLT: Send us into those pigs,' the spirits begged. 'Let us enter them.'

KJV: And all the devils besought him, saying, Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them.

NKJV: So all the demons begged Him, saying, “Send us to the swine, that we may enter them.”

Jesus is expelling a legion of demons from an afflicted man, but before the demons leave, they would like clarification as to where they should go. They beg Jesus not to send them to the Abyss—to the bottomless pit of torment for demons with particularly grievous sins—before their time (Matthew 8:29; Luke 8:31). So, they present a counter-offer of entering into a herd of pigs on a nearby mountainside.

The act of demons leaving a human and entering a pig had cultural precedence. In the Babylonian rite of exorcism, the demon was supposed to be transferred to a lamb, a pig, or a bird which was then destroyed in an attempt to keep the gods' attention on the demon and off the victim.

Neither is this the first occurrence of an evil force working in concert with an animal. We still don't know the exact relationship between Satan and the serpent in the garden of Eden, whether Satan took the form of the serpent or used a snake as a ventriloquist's dummy, but Mark 5:13 shows that it's very possible Satan actually possessed the animal.

The question as to why the demons considered moving on to the pigs a good idea has never been answered. It may be that their long-running destructive force needed a powerful outlet before they could move on to different things.

Mark 5:1–13 describes Jesus' encounter with a man possessed by a vast number of demonic spirits. Jesus has shown His authority over storms during the turbulent crossing of the Sea of Galilee. In a cemetery on the eastern shore of the lake, He and the twelve meet a wild, dangerous man controlled by a ''legion'' of demons. Jesus allows the fleeing evil spirits to enter a herd of pigs which promptly run into the sea and drown. The man is grateful. The locals, either startled by Jesus' power or afraid for their livestock, promptly ask Jesus to leave. This account is also found in Luke 8:26–33 and possibly Matthew 8:28–32 which mentions two possessed men.

Jesus arrives on the other side of the Sea of Galilee and heals a man afflicted by a ''legion'' of demons. In the aftermath of this event, Jesus once again crosses the waters within this region, known as the Decapolis. There, He is approached by a synagogue leader, begging Him to come and save a dying girl. In the midst of this trip, Jesus stops the crowd to identify a woman who attempted to covertly touch his robes; her faithful act results in healing. Jesus then continues on to the home of the synagogue leader and resurrects his recently-deceased child.

Mark 4:35—5:43 sees an increase in the scope of Jesus' miracles. He has just calmed a violent storm on the Sea of Galilee. Now, He expels a legion of demons, heals a woman without overtly acting, and brings a girl back to life. All three situations—related to tombs, blood, and death—show Jesus bringing healing to unclean circumstances. In chapter 6, the tone of His ministry will develop. He will be rejected by those who should know Him best, He will send out His followers to do His work, and His direct link to the Old Testament prophets will be explained.

The Gospel of Mark emphasizes both Jesus' servanthood and His role as the promised Messiah: the Son of God. This is done through a concise, action-packed style. Mark provides relatively few details, instead focusing on actions and simple statements. This relates to the Gospel's authorship, which is believed to be based on the memories of the apostle Peter. These include many of Jesus' miracles, in contrast to other Gospels which include many more of Jesus' teachings and parables. Mark also makes frequent mention of Jesus' ministry being misunderstood by others.