Luke 8v22 56 bible study

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The Gospel of Luke Chapter 8:22-56 Stilling the Storm 8:22 One day Jesus got into a boat with his disciples and said to them, "Let's go across to the other side of the lake." So they set out.

It is perhaps worth noting that since we are in a section (as far as Luke 9:48) which Luke shares in common with both Matthew and Mark (with only minor detail changes). So by comparing the three accounts we can get a more complete picture of what was happening. Mark 4:35 tells us that it was at the close of the same day in which he had spoken the parable of the sower that Jesus got into a boat with His disciples and told them to go over to the other side of the sea of Galilee.

8:23 And as they sailed he fell asleep. Now a violent windstorm came down on the lake, and the boat started filling up with water, and they were in danger.

As they sailed, Jesus fell asleep and as he slept a windstorm swept down on the lake. Soon the boat began to fill with water and they were in danger of drowning. The word used for ‘windstorm’ was originally plural- ‘winds’ came at them from all points of the compass; hence the Amplified Bible translates ‘whirlwind’.

8:24 They came and woke him, saying, "Master, Master, we are about to die!" So he got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waves; they died down, and it was calm.

The disciples woke Jesus up with terrified shouts of ‘we are all going to die!’ But Jesus did not share their terror. He calmly got up, rebuked the winds and the sea, and seemingly at once the storm gave way to what must have been something very unusual for the fishermen to witness, a calm which they described as a great or ‘mega’ calm.

8:25 Then he said to them, "Where is your faith?" But they were afraid and amazed, saying to one another, "Who then is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him!"

Jesus then rebuked his disciples for their lack of faith, which at first may seem a strange thing to do for they would surely had never seen such a reversal at sea before. Yet they had Jesus with them,

and had already seen him perform great miracles, which in Jesus mind at least meant they should have trusted. The disciples’ reaction to the miracle they had witnessed was one of fear and amazement; they questioned among themselves what kind of man could command the winds and the waves to obedience.

Deliverance of a Demoniac 8:26 So they sailed over to the region of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee.

Following the stilling of the wind and the sea, the boast landed at a point in the region of Gadara which is on the other side of Galilee from Capernaum.

8:27 As Jesus stepped ashore, a certain man from the town met him who was possessed by demons.

For a long time this man had worn no clothes and had not lived in a house, but among the tombs.

The moment that Jesus stepped out of the boat a man who had once lived in the town of Gadara came to meet him. This man had not lived in the town for a long time; having become completely possessed and under the control of demons he was driven to living naked among the tombs.

8:28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before him, and shouted with a loud voice, "Leave me alone, Jesus, Son of the Most High God! I beg you, do not torment me!"

As soon as the man saw Jesus he fell before Him and started screaming. In effect he said ‘you haven't any business with me and I have none with you, we have nothing in common!’ He also begged Jesus not to torment him.’ I have been pondering carefully whether it was the man himself or the demons who were shouting these things, and I have come to an uncomfortable conclusion. It may well have been that both the man and the demons had reason for saying these things. Firstly, the man himself was a depraved sinner, and the presence of Jesus may have convicted him, tormenting his soul with guilt for his sin. Of course, Jesus had the answer for that torment – the accepting love of God and the forgiveness of sins. Also, the demons recognised the presence of the Supreme Being and were tormented by his holiness and feared the coming of everlasting judgement.

8:29 For Jesus had started commanding the evil spirit to come out of the man. (For it had seized him many times, so he would be bound with chains and shackles and kept under guard. But he would break the restraints and be driven by the demon into deserted places.)

Whatever the case, the man was not in control of himself. Jesus had already commanded the evil spirit to some out of the man. Luke describes just how powerful this spirit was, as if to contrast it with Jesus’ power. This spirit had often taken over him so powerfully that even though he had been guarded and heavily chained he had broken loose and was driven by the demon into the wilderness.

8:30 Jesus then asked him, "What is your name?" He said, "Legion," because many demons had entered him.

Here again is a very difficult verse. Was Jesus asking the man or the demon for his name? In either case, surely Jesus would have known the answer? The only other occasion where God asks someone their name is when sinful Jacob is confronted at the brook Jabok and blessed by God as a result of his yielding. Was Jesus probing into the heart of the man or was he condescending to enter a

conversation with the demons? One thing we can learn from all this is that however possessed a person might be, in there somewhere is a precious human soul whom Jesus came to save. The reply of the man, inspired by the demons, was ‘Legion’ because there were many demons that possessed the man (Mark 5:9). Again Luke offers this detail in order to present a challenge to Jesus’ authority – not only are the demons powerful but there was an army of them in this man! Luke does this so that we might see more clearly the power of Jesus to defeat the whole army with a word.

8:31 And they began to beg him not to order them to depart into the abyss.

These demons implored Jesus not to send them to the Abyss (Rev. 9:1-2, Rev. 11:7 and Rev. 20:3).

8:32 Now a large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, and the demonic spirits begged Jesus to let them go into them. He gave them permission.

A large herd of pigs were feeding on the mountainside and the demons begged Jesus to send them into the pigs instead of into the Abyss; and he gave them permission to do so. Luke wants us to know that they could not have done so if Jesus had not permitted them to; which serves as another indicator of Jesus’ absolute authority.

8:33 So the demons came out of the man and went into the pigs, and the herd of pigs rushed down the steep slope into the lake and drowned.

The demons left the man and entered into the pigs and the whole herd rushed down the mountainside over the cliff and into the lake and were drowned. We cannot be sure what this meant for the demons; some commentators believe that they were rendered powerless by being committed to the dead bodies of the pigs.

8:34 When the herdsmen saw what had happened, they ran off and spread the news in the town and countryside.

When the herdsmen who had been guarding the pigs saw what had happened they fled and told it in the city and countryside.

8:35 So the people went out to see what had happened, and they came to Jesus. They found the man from whom the demons had gone out, sitting at Jesus' feet, clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid.

The people went out to see for themselves and found the man from whom the demons had been cast out of sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. Hence Jesus had not only cast out the demons but had also healed the man of all cuts and other and which the demons had caused in his body, soul and spirit. At the sight of this supernatural power the people were filled with a great fear.

8:36 Those who had seen it told them how the man who had been demon-possessed had been healed.

Those who had witnessed what Jesus had done told the people who had come out of the city all that they had seen.

8:37 Then all the people of the Gerasenes and the surrounding region asked Jesus to leave them alone, for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and left.

The great fear which seized the people of Gadara because of the unknown supernatural power of God manifested in Jesus, caused them to overlook the good miracle done to the formerly possessed man. As a result, they asked Jesus to leave their region. Perhaps they were also worried lest they should lose more pigs; or perhaps they preferred the company of demons to that of Jesus Christ.

People who are in darkness can prefer it to the light (John 3:19-20). Nevertheless, Jesus never hangs around where he isn’t wanted: he got into the boat and left.

8:38-39 The man from whom the demons had gone out begged to go with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, "Return to your home, and declare what God has done for you." So he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole town what Jesus had done for him.

As Jesus was leaving the man whom he had delivered begged to go with Him; but Jesus had other plans for him. He told him to go back to his home and family and tell them what mighty things God had done for him. The man was faithful to his calling and did exactly what Jesus had asked of him; in fact, he all over town telling people what Jesus had done for him, he simply could not keep it to himself. We bear in mind that Jesus already had followers from this area (Matthew 4:25), rather than starting something new, this messenger of Christ was building on what had already begun.

Just a Touch of His Garment and Jairus' Daughter Raised from the Dead 8:40 Now when Jesus returned, the crowd welcomed him, because they were all waiting for him.

Jesus returned to the other side of the lake of Galilee and the crowds who had been waiting welcomed Him back.

8:41 Then a man named Jairus, who was a ruler of the synagogue, came up. Falling at Jesus' feet, he pleaded with him to come to his house.

As He walked and talked with the people a man called Jairus who was a ruler in the synagogue came and fell at His feet and begged Jesus to come to his house.

8:42 Because he had an only daughter, about twelve years old, and she was dying. As Jesus was on his way, the crowds pressed around him.

He had an only daughter who was twelve years old who was dying. As He went the people were pressing close to him.

8:43 Now a woman was there who had been suffering from a hemorrhage for twelve years but could not be healed by anyone.

There was a woman on the outskirts of the crowd who had been suffering with chronic (prolonged) bleeding for the past twelve years. She had spent every penny she had on doctors’ bills but none of the doctors had provided a cure for her disease.

8:44 She came up behind Jesus and touched the edge of his cloak, and at once the bleeding stopped.

She somehow managed to get through the crowd to Jesus in order to touch the border of his cloak (Numbers 15:38). Since this would have been near the ground, we can imagine that the woman was kneeling. The moment she touched it her bleeding stopped.

8:45 Then Jesus asked, "Who was it who touched me?" When they all denied it, Peter said, "Master, the crowds are surrounding you and pressing against you!"

As soon as the woman was healed, Jesus stopped. He knew that someone had touched him in faith and received healing virtue from him. Looking around, he asked whoever it was to make themselves known. The disciples denied having touched him, and Peter pointed out that with such a multitude pressing around him it could have been anyone or everyone!

8:46 But Jesus said, "Someone touched me, for I know that power has gone out from me."

Jesus, of course, knew the difference between someone just brushing up against Him and someone reaching out in faith and receiving the healing power which had gone out from Him. 8:47 When the woman saw that she could not escape notice, she came trembling and fell down before him. In the presence of all the people, she explained why she had touched him and how she had been immediately healed.

When the woman realized that what she had done could not be hidden she came trembling and falling down before Him, confessing in front of all the people why she had touched Jesus and how she had been completely healed. This would not have been an easy thing to confess, especially since women with continuous bleeding were regarded as religiously unclean and were not allowed to mix with others (Leviticus 15:25). Her confession might have got her into trouble with the religious authorities.

8:48 Then he said to her, "Daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace."

But now the problem which had made her unclean was resolved, there was nothing to fear. Jesus sets her mind at rest by calling her daughter—because of her faith—and instructs her to go in peace since her faith had made her well.

8:49 While he was still speaking, someone from the synagogue ruler's house came and said, "Your daughter is dead; do not trouble the teacher any longer."

While Jesus we was still talking to the woman, someone from Jairus' house came to tell him that his daughter had died and there was no longer any need for Jesus to come—there was nothing he could do.

8:50 But when Jesus heard this, he told him, "Do not be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed."

On hearing this Jesus told Jairus not to be afraid but to have faith and believe that despite of this news, his daughter would be made well. Perhaps the incident with the woman helped to strengthen Jairus’ faith for this huge challenge.

8:51 Now when he came to the house, Jesus did not let anyone go in with him except Peter, John, and James, and the child's father and mother.

When they came to Jairus' house, Jesus would not let anyone except Peter, James and John and the father and mother to go in with him to see the girl.

8:52-53 Now they were all wailing and mourning for her, but he said, "Stop your weeping; she is not dead but asleep." And they began making fun of him, because they knew that she was dead.

The people who had come to show their sorrow and sympathy were crying and wailing. But when Jesus told them to stop, for she was not dead but only asleep they laughed him to scorn for they knew that she had died.

8:54 But Jesus gently took her by the hand and said, "Child, get up."

The NET (Above) omits the detail that Jesus first put all the mourners outside of the girl’s room before taking hold of her hand and saying "Child, get up".

8:55 Her spirit returned, and she got up immediately. Then he told them to give her something to eat.

At the words of Jesus the spirit of the girl returned to her and she immediately got up. Jesus knew that the only remnant from the illness which had caused her death was that—since she had not eaten—she would be hungry. So he told her parents to give her something to eat.

8:56 Her parents were astonished, but he ordered them to tell no one what had happened.

Her mother and father were overwhelmed by this miracle, but Jesus told them not to let anyone know the details of what had happened; for it could not be hidden that He had raised the girl from the dead. © Derek Williams & Mathew Bartlett 2014. Bible Studies Online UK www.biblestudiesonline.org.uk You may copy, print or distribute our studies freely in any form, just so long as you make no charges. Sign up today for our FREE monthly Bible study magazine “Living Word” Scriptures taken from the NET Bible www.bible.org