Jesus Sends Demons Out of Two Men^(A)

²⁸ Jesus arrived at the other side of the lake in the country of the Gadarene^[a] people. There, two men who had demons inside them came to him. They lived in the burial caves and were so dangerous that no one could use the road by those caves. ²⁹ They came to Jesus and shouted, “What do you want with us, Son of God? Did you come here to punish us before the right time?”

³⁰ Near that place there was a large herd of pigs feeding. ³¹ The demons begged Jesus, “If you make us leave these men, please send us into that herd of pigs.”

³² Jesus said to them, “Go!” So the demons left the men and went into the pigs. Then the whole herd of pigs ran down the hill into the lake, and all were drowned. ³³ The men who had the work of caring for the pigs ran away. They went into town and told the people everything that happened, especially about the men who had the demons. ³⁴ Then the whole town went out to see Jesus. When the people saw him, they begged him to leave their area.

Jesus Frees a Man From Evil Spirits^(A)

5 Jesus and his followers went across the lake to the area where the Gerasene people^[a] lived. ² When Jesus got out of the boat, a man came to him from the caves where the dead are buried. This man had an evil spirit living inside him. ³ He lived in the burial caves. No one could keep him tied up, even with chains. ⁴ Many times people had put chains on his hands and feet, but he broke the chains. No one was strong enough to control him. ⁵ Day and night he stayed around the burial caves and on the hills. He would scream and cut himself with rocks.

⁶ While Jesus was still far away, the man saw him. He ran to Jesus and bowed down before him. ^7-8 As Jesus was saying, “You evil spirit, come out of this man,” the man shouted loudly, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you in God’s name not to punish me!”

⁹ Then Jesus asked the man, “What is your name?”

The man answered, “My name is Legion,^[b] because there are many spirits inside me.” ¹⁰ The spirits inside the man begged Jesus again and again not to send them out of that area.

¹¹ A large herd of pigs was eating on a hill near there. ¹² The evil spirits begged Jesus, “Send us to the pigs. Let us go into them.” ¹³ So Jesus allowed them to do this. The evil spirits left the man and went into the pigs. Then the herd of pigs ran down the hill and into the lake. They were all drowned. There were about 2000 pigs in that herd.

¹⁴ The men who had the work of caring for the pigs ran away. They ran to the town and to the farms and told everyone what happened. The people went out to see. ¹⁵ They came to Jesus, and they saw the man who had the many evil spirits. He was sitting down and was wearing clothes. He was in his right mind again. When they saw this, they were afraid. ¹⁶ Those who had seen what Jesus did told the others what happened to the man who had the demons living in him. And they also told about the pigs. ¹⁷ Then the people began to beg Jesus to leave their area.

¹⁸ Jesus was preparing to leave in the boat. The man who was now free from the demons begged to go with him. ¹⁹ But Jesus did not allow the man to go. He said, “Go home to your family and friends. Tell them about all that the Lord did for you. Tell them how the Lord was good to you.”

²⁰ So the man left and told the people in the Ten Towns about the great things Jesus did for him. Everyone was amazed.