And the spirits besought him, saying: Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them.
και παρεκαλεσαν αυτον παντες οι δαιμονες λεγοντες πεμψον ημας εις τους χοιρους ινα εις αυτους εισελθωμεν
4 Church Fathers comment on this verse
The evil spirits pleaded with the Lord not to cast them out of the region, asking instead to be permitted to enter the swine. He consented to their request. Recognizing that life is a spiritual warfare, the Lord chose not to eliminate the demons from our experience, as their opposition to us strengthens our abilities in the fight of faith.
The demons, eager to linger in that region largely populated by Gentiles, requested permission to possess the pigs grazing nearby. Jesus granted their wish, and the demons entered the swine, which then rushed down a steep slope into the sea, drowning in the waters. This episode raised questions among Gospel interpreters regarding why Jesus allowed such destruction for the pig owners. Trench offers insight, suggesting that for the man tormented by demons, his liberation needed to be confirmed by the demise of the swine; otherwise, he might have doubted that Christ had truly and permanently freed him from the spirits. Additionally, it is important to note that Jesus intended to send the healed man back to his homeland to share his testimony of the miracle.
For this mission, the man needed to be assured that the evil spirits had indeed left him; a visible sign of this was essential. The request of the demons to enter the pigs, followed by the herd's sudden death — occurring simultaneously with the complete restoration of the formerly possessed man — eliminated any possibility of doubt regarding his freedom from demonic influence. When addressing why such harm came to the pig owners, we recall Job's words: "The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away" (Job 1:21). Can we genuinely consider the pigs’ death a loss? This incident drew the residents of the nearby villages and towns to Jesus; without it, they would have missed encountering Him and would not have believed the man who returned home testifying to his deliverance from the power of evil through Christ. The faith gained in Christ, though not instant, holds immeasurable significance for the soul, far outweighing any monetary loss from the pigs. The question surrounding the loss is resolved alongside the previous inquiry, with the additional insight that the demise of the pigs was not directly commanded by the demons. Some scholars suggest that the pigs, responding to an overwhelming and unfamiliar force against the will of their possessors, leaped into the sea. However, we hold that it was God's sovereign will for this to occur.
Upon witnessing the conclusion of their control over the afflicted man, the demons implored Christ to permit them to enter into a sizable herd of swine feeding on the hillside. These pigs were tended by the Gerasenes, likely intended for nourishment for the Roman soldiers stationed nearby or possibly for the local residents who did not adhere closely to the Mosaic law in that distant region.
When the man afflicted by demons caught sight of the Lord from a distance, he ran toward Him, bowed in worship, and exclaimed loudly, “What do we have to do with You, Jesus, Son of God? Have You come here to torment us before our time?” The demons possess a fearful belief and tremble (James 2:19), aware that their ultimate reckoning awaits them at the final judgment (2 Peter 2:4; Jude 1:6). Until that moment arrives, they are free to unleash their wickedness, pleading not to be punished prematurely. As noted by the esteemed Theophylact, the demons understood their own suffering, fearing the Lord would not tolerate them any longer—and thus they anticipated divine punishment.
In commanding the unclean spirit to depart from the man, Jesus inquired, “What is your name?” Overcome by darkness, the demon-possessed man could not assert his own identity; instead, the unholy spirit replied on his behalf, “Legion,” referring to a division of the Roman army made up of around 6,000 soldiers, split between infantry and cavalry. The demons implored Jesus not to cast them out of the region or into the abyss. Nearby, on a hillside, there was a significant herd of pigs, likely belonging to the Gentiles who populated the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee. The malevolent spirits beseeched Christ, “If You drive us out, please permit us to enter the herd of swine.” The Lord Jesus consented immediately, saying, “Go.” According to St. John Chrysostom, He granted the demons' request, not out of persuasion but to demonstrate for the inhabitants of the surrounding areas His sovereign power and to make manifest the wickedness of the spirits that had tormented the man. This display served to illustrate that even the demons could not harm livestock without the permission of the Almighty. Once the unclean spirits exited the man, they entered the pigs, and at once the entire herd, which numbered approximately two thousand, rushed headlong down a steep bank into the lake, drowning in the waters.
Passages read together with this verse.
Greek text, 13 words with lemma, transliteration and Strong’s number. Tap to expand.
THEOSIS