Matthew 8:29Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Indeed, tormented and inflamed by merely being in Christ's presence, they suffered profoundly, more so than the turbulent sea. How could anyone approach them? Yet it was Christ Himself who drew near. According to Matthew, the demons voiced their concern, stating, “You have come before the time to torment us.” Additionally, others relate that the demons implored Him, beseeching not to be cast into the abyss. They feared that the moment of their punishment had arrived, and they dreaded being subjected to torment. Unable to deny their sins, they entreated Him not to exact punishment prematurely. Recognizing their extreme wickedness, which led them to inflict distress upon His creation, the demons believed that due to their iniquity, the time of their reckoning would not be postponed. Thus, they begged and entreated Him. Those who could not be restrained by iron chains came bound, those who fled to the mountains came forth into the fields, and those who obstructed others paused upon seeing Him obstructing their path.

However, we must remember that all knowledge possessed by the disciples is derived from their Teacher, thus their understanding of the devil and the demons should be seen as a suspicion of recognizing the Son of God, rather than a definitive knowledge. For no one knows the Father except the Son, and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal Him (Matt. 11:27).

In their deep anguish, they lamented, "You have come to this earth to torment us before the appointed time." They knew from the prophets that Christ would return to earth at the end of days to judge the world and mete out punishment to the demons.

This was made clear by the two apostles as well. Peter wrote, "For if God did not spare the angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell, committing them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment" (2 Pet. 2:4). Similarly, Jude stated, "And the angels who did not stay within their own position of authority, but left their proper dwelling, he has kept in eternal chains under gloomy darkness until the judgment of the great day" (Jude 1:6). Secondly, the anguish is so extreme that even demons, filled with dread of it, would rather endure the company of unclean swine than face this dreadful condemnation, as the subsequent words of the Gospel illustrate:

While the crowds regarded Him merely as a man, as St. Chrysostom observes, the demons came forth to affirm His divinity. Those who remained oblivious during the calming of the storm now heard the demons proclaim what the silent sea had already declared. Their recognition of Christ as the Son of God was not born from reverence; rather, His presence inflicted unbearable torment upon them. St. Chrysostom vividly describes how they were “pierced, inflamed, and invisibly tormented more intensely than the sea.” Through the voices of those they plagued, the demons exposed their animosity, as Chrysostom notes, admitting their sins, recognizing that the time of final judgment and their eternal punishment loomed over them. They reproached the Lord Jesus, lamenting that He was prematurely stripping them of their power to afflict humanity, pleading, “Have you come here to torment us before the appointed time?”

Chrysostom also recounts their desperate pleas, urging Him not to cast them into the abyss, presuming that the moment of their eternal condemnation was upon them. Seeing the Savior confront their dreadful cruelty as they tormented His creation, they feared that He would not delay their punishment. Thus, those who could not be restrained by chains approached bound; those who roamed the mountains emerged into the fields; those who obstructed others’ paths paused upon encountering the One who had come to remove their hold. St. Mark notes that “they asked Him many things, that He should not send them out of that country” (Mk. 5:10), referring to the land of the Gergesenes, where these demons exercised significant authority over the populace. Likewise, St. Luke recounts that the demons begged the Lord not to command them to enter the abyss, the depths of hell, where eternal punishment awaited them. Their fear of such torment illustrates how dreadful the sufferings of hell truly are. These cries and complaints from the demons, alleging that the Lord came to torment them, serve to refute the absurd blasphemy of the Pharisees, who claimed that He expelled demons by the power of the prince of demons.

Luke's account aligns closely with Mark’s, describing how the demon-possessed man fell before Jesus, shouting, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beseech you, do not torment me” (Luke 8:28). Luke also adds that Jesus ordered the unclean spirit to come out (Luke 8:29). Acknowledging the veracity of all three Evangelists' narratives, we can outline the unfolding events as follows: when the men saw Jesus from afar, they called out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus, Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?” Then, one of the two men, whom no one could subdue, ran up, fell before Jesus, and worshipped Him. Jesus commanded, “Come out, unclean spirit, from this man.” The afflicted man then loudly proclaimed, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beseech you by God, do not torment me.”

Having established this sequence of events, we must consider: can we attribute the words and actions of the demon-possessed man to him as a person acting freely? The man, who had long retreated to desolate coastal cliffs, living in caves and isolated from others, would have had no discernment of Christ’s arrival or identity. Yet, upon seeing Him, he addressed Him as Jesus, the Son of God, accusing Him of coming to torment him too soon. He then approached Jesus, fell to his knees in worship, as if pleading for deliverance from some dread.

When Jesus commanded the unclean spirit to depart, the man did not express gratitude but instead shouted, “What do you care for me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I implore you, do not torment me!” This behavior, contradictory to his worship, reveals a conflict within him: he approached Jesus, worshipped Him, and in doing so acted as one seeking salvation from calamity or a fierce adversary. He needed only to articulate his desires and supplications. However, his words conveyed thoughts and wishes entirely contrary to the humble adoration he displayed, suggesting they could not originate from him alone. It becomes clear that the afflicted man was not voicing his own sentiments; rather, he was unwittingly expressing another’s will—someone else’s fears and desires. In essence, another entity was speaking through him, that of the spirit which had driven him to such torment and savagery.

The reality of the man's possession by evil spirits is underscored by Jesus’ command for the unclean spirit to exit him. For those who doubt the existence of such spirits, it is essential to reflect on the incongruity between the man’s words and his actions, alongside the desires he ought to have expressed to Jesus. This contemplation may lead one to recognize that another voice was articulating through the mouth of the demon-possessed man. The pivotal question arises: who was that voice? What answer, apart from the gospel truth, could they provide? Jesus inquired, “What is your name?” Was this question directed at the man prostrate before Him or the evil spirit? Some interpreters contend that the question was meant for the evil spirit, while others suggest it was posed to the man. However, since the evil spirit answered through the afflicted man's lips, we must conclude that the question was directed towards the evil spirit. “Legion is my name, for we are many.” A legion, typically comprising 6,000 soldiers, in colloquial use signifies a vast multitude. The evil spirits possessing the tormented man, upon seeing Jesus from a distance, recognized Him as the Son of God, possessing authority over them. Aware of their impending judgment for their rebellion against God, they likely feared immediate punishment, hence their cry of reproach about Jesus coming to torment them prematurely. Clinging to their belief in an untimely fate, they pleaded with the Lord not to expel them from that region. Further elaborating on Mark’s account, Luke notes that the evil spirits begged Jesus not to send them into the abyss, which represents an endless void devoid of human presence.

Holy Scripture conveys that malevolent spirits in this present age, until the moment of the final reckoning, are not as restrained as they will be afterward. During this interim, they are permitted to tempt and, at times, afflict humanity. However, on the Day of Judgment, they will face ultimate condemnation to everlasting suffering alongside the wicked (2 Pet. 2:4, Jude 1:6). The spirits are aware of their fate and, in essence, express discontent at the prospect of premature torment by Jesus, asking Him not to cast them into the abyss (Luke 8:31), which signifies hell. Blessed Theophylact interprets their plea as a lamentation over being denied the ability to torment humans. Furthermore, the term "before the time" reflects the demons' belief that Christ would not tolerate their intense malice and would hasten their judgment, an outcome that has not yet transpired, as they continue to be allowed to oppose humanity until the culmination of the age.