The Gerasene Demoniac

Jesus and his disciples arrived by boat at the region of the Gerasenes. As Jesus stepped out of the boat, a man with an unclean spirit immediately met him from among the tombs. This man lived among the tombs, and the text does not say for how long, but no one could bind him even with chains. He had frequently been bound with shackles and chains, but he tore the chains apart and broke the shackles into pieces (Mark 5:1-4). Night and day among the tombs and in the mountains, he was crying out and cutting himself with stones. When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell down before him. He cried out with a loud voice, asking what Jesus had to do with him and adjuring Jesus by God not to torment him, for Jesus had already commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man (Mark 5:5-8).

Jesus asked the spirit for its name, and it replied that its name was Legion, for they were many. The spirits begged Jesus not to send them out of the country. A large herd of swine was feeding nearby on the hillside, and the spirits begged to be sent into them. Jesus gave them permission, and the unclean spirits entered the swine. The herd, numbering about two thousand, rushed down the steep bank into the sea and drowned. The herdsmen fled and reported the event in the city and the country, prompting the people to come and see what had happened (Mark 5:9-14).

When the people arrived, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. Those who had seen it described the event concerning the man and the swine. The people then began to beg Jesus to leave their region. As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been possessed begged to accompany him. However, Jesus did not permit him but told him to go home to his friends and report how much the Lord had done for him and how he had shown him mercy (Mark 5:15-19).