The Exorcism of the Gerasene demoniac is one of the miracles of Jesus attested in the Gospels. It is recorded in the three Synoptic Gospels, specifically in Mark 5:1-20, Matthew 8:28-34, and Luke 8:26-39.[1][2][3] All accounts involve Jesus exorcising demons, identified collectively as Legion in Mark and Luke.
According to these accounts, Jesus exorcised a demonic man in the area of Gerasenes (now Jerash). Matthew reports two men, but Mark and Luke report just one man, possessed by a demon called Legion, for it represented many demons at once.
Another notable divergence with Matthew's account is the location where this event takes place. In Matthew, the location is Gadarenes, rather than Gerasenes, and Jesus no longer meets the demon-possessed man right after he exits his boat. Gerasenes does not border the Sea of Galilee, yet the authors of Mark and Luke place it there. The author of Matthew probably had a better understanding of the geography of the region than the other gospel writers, and therefore altered the location to Gadarenes because it is closer to the Sea of Galilee.
The Gospel of Mark reports the miracle as taking place when Jesus went across the lake to Gerasenes. There a man possessed by an evil spirit came from the caves to meet him. No one could bind this man anymore, not even with a chain, for no one was strong enough to subdue him. Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones.
When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him. He shouted at the top of his voice, "What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? In God's name don't torture me!" For Jesus had said to him, "Come out of this man, you evil spirit!"
And he begged Jesus again and again not to send them out of the area.
A large herd of pigs was feeding on the nearby hillside. The demons begged Jesus, "Send us among the pigs; allow us to go into them." He gave them permission, and the evil spirits came out and went into the pigs. The herd, about two thousand in number, rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned.
Those tending the pigs ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, and the people went out to see what had happened. When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man—and told about the pigs as well. Then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region.
This story is likely drawn from Isaiah 65:4, with parallels to graves and swine.[4]
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