Matthew 8:34 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And behold, all the city came out to meet Jesus, and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their region.

NIV: Then the whole town went out to meet Jesus. And when they saw him, they pleaded with him to leave their region.

NASB: And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus; and when they saw Him, they pleaded with Him to leave their region.

CSB: At that, the whole town went out to meet Jesus. When they saw him, they begged him to leave their region.

NLT: Then the entire town came out to meet Jesus, but they begged him to go away and leave them alone.

KJV: And, behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus: and when they saw him, they besought him that he would depart out of their coasts.

NKJV: And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus. And when they saw Him, they begged Him to depart from their region.

A group of Gentiles who have been tending to pigs came running into town with quite a story to tell. A stranger arrived on shore in a boat with several other men. The stranger got out and the two demon-possessed men who lived in the tombs came out and talked to him. Then the stranger apparently sent the demons from the men into the 2,000 pigs they had been tending. The pigs went crazy and immediately rushed into the sea and were drowned (Mark 5:13; Matthew 8:28–31).

It's no wonder the whole town came out to meet Jesus and hear about what had happened. We know from Mark and Luke that when they got there, they found at least one of the formerly demon-possessed men "sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind, and [the townspeople] were afraid" (Luke 8:35).

Instead of being awed by Jesus' power and drawn to Him, the Gentiles were afraid. They were intimidated by power that could free men who'd suffered for so long under the violent oppression of demons. The disciples may have understood that fear. Mark reported that when Jesus calmed a deadly storm with a single command earlier in the day, they too had been "filled with great fear" (Mark 4:41). They were likely angry, as well, seeing so many valuable animals lost—but when faced by miraculous power, it's reasonable to think fear would override thoughts of revenge.

The difference between the disciples and the Gentiles from that region is that the disciples didn't leave Jesus. They learned to trust Him more. The Gentiles, afraid or not, ask Him to leave. Not only were they afraid of Him and His power, His action had cost someone 2,000 head of pigs. That was a lot of money.

Mark tells us that at least one of the men wanted to go with Jesus and the disciples in the boat as they were leaving. Jesus said no. He told the man to "Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you." The man did exactly that (Mark 5:19–20).

Matthew 8:28–34 describes what happens when Jesus arrives on the other side of the Sea of Galilee in a mostly Gentile region. He is immediately confronted by two demon-possessed men who live in tombs. The demons recognize that Jesus is the Son of God and ask if He has come to torment them. They beg Jesus to cast them into a huge herd of pigs visible in the distance. He does so and the pigs immediately run straight into the sea and drown. The men are freed from the demons, but the people of the region ask Jesus to leave.

Matthew begins a series of stories revealing Jesus' authority over sickness, demons, and even the weather. Jesus heals a humble man with leprosy and great faith. He then heals the servant of a Roman centurion who understands that Jesus does not need to come to his home; He can just speak a word. Jesus praises the Gentile man's amazing faith. After healing many more, Jesus and the disciples get caught in a deadly storm on the Sea of Galilee. Jesus stops the storm with a word. Later, He casts demons out of two men and into a huge herd of pigs.

Matthew 8 follows the conclusion of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:1–2). He turns to telling a series of dramatic stories to show Jesus' power and authority over every kind of disease, over demons, and even over the weather. Jesus also gives brief teachings about the hard road of following Him on earth. He calms a violent storm with a single command and casts demons from two violently possessed men. Matthew will focus mostly on miracles until shifting focus to Jesus' teachings and parables in chapter 11.

The Gospel of Matthew clearly shows the influence of its writer's background, and his effort to reach a specific audience. Matthew was one of Jesus' twelve disciples, a Jewish man, and a former tax collector. This profession would have required literacy, and Matthew may have transcribed some of Jesus' words as they were spoken. This book is filled with references to the Old Testament, demonstrating to Israel that Jesus is the Promised One. Matthew also includes many references to coins, likely due to his former profession. Matthew records extensive accounts of Jesus' teaching, more than the other three Gospels.