Through the Bible: Mark 4–5
And those who had seen it described to them what had happened to the demon-possessed man and to the pigs. And they began to beg Jesus to depart from their region.
Mark 5:16-17 ESV
Mark 5 records one of the most dramatic deliverances in the entire Bible. While in Gentile territory, Jesus encounters a man possessed by a legion of demons. He’s naked, screaming, and living among the tombs.
He’s got scars all over his body from where the demon has made him cut himself.
No one could bind him. No one could help him. No one could even get near him.
And maybe no one wanted to. The only interaction with the people in the town that Mark mentions is their attempts to bind and shackle the man.
Perhaps the villagers looked at him the way we tend to look at the homeless people we pass on street corners. We stop seeing them as people and instead just see them as an annoyance.
Then Jesus steps onto the shore.
He doesn’t just see the man. He has a conversation. He asks the man’s name.
Unfortunately, the demon won’t even let the man speak. So, undaunted, Jesus has a conversation with the demon.
The demons negotiate with Jesus. They beg Jesus to let them enter a herd of pigs instead of leaving the country.
Jesus gives them permission, and in one stroke Jesus delivers the man and invents deviled ham at the same time.
By verse 15, the man is clothed, sitting, and in his right mind.
This should be the greatest revival the region has ever seen.
Instead, they ask Jesus to leave. Why?
Was it Because of the Pigs?
Mark adds a detail Matthew doesn’t:
“Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man and told about the pigs as well.”
“And the pigs” is not a throwaway phrase.
Two thousand pigs had just drowned. That’s a massive economic loss—likely shared by multiple families, maybe the whole community.
Jesus had set a man free, but He also disrupted their economy. Deliverance came at a cost.
Jesus sent the demons away, but the people sent Jesus away. Because sometimes we prefer the pigs.
Possessed by Possessions
The pigs were worth more to the townsfolk than the man. They would rather keep the screaming man in the tombs than lose their predictable, profitable way of life.
They would rather keep their demons than lose their livestock.
They saw freedom, and chose familiarity.
They saw Jesus, and chose comfort.
There’s really two stories of possession in this story.
The man was possessed by demons.
The villagers were possessed by their pigs.
Sometimes we prefer the pigs.
What the Demon Got that the People Didn’t
Notice something shocking:
The moment the demon saw Jesus, he ran and fell at His feet and confessed that Jesus was the Son of God (one of only two times in Mark that Jesus is called by this title. The other one is the Roman centurion at the foot of the cross—see Mark 15:39).
In contrast, the moment the villagers see Jesus, they beg Jesus to leave the region (v. 17).
It seems the demons were more eager to draw near to Jesus than they were.
Let that sink in.
What This Reveals About Us
We read this story and think, “How could they do that?”
But if we’re honest, we do it too.
- We say “Jesus, change my life”… but not if it costs my comfort.
- We ask Him to set people free… but not if it disrupts how we do things.
- We want revival… but not if it touches our money, our schedule, or our reputation.
We say we want what Jesus can give us, as long as He doesn’t take anything away from us.
The Saddest Sentence in the Story
“And he got into the boat and left…” (v. 18).
Jesus will not force Himself where He is not wanted. That may be the scariest answered prayer of all: When we ask Jesus to leave us alone… and He does.
Grace Wasn’t Done Yet
If the story ended there, it would be terrifying.
BUT IT DOESN’T.
The healed man begs to go with Jesus. For once—Jesus says NO.
“Go home to your friends and tell them how much the Lord has done for you…” (v. 19)
The first missionary Jesus ever sends to the Gentiles was a former demoniac.
And verse 20 says:
“Everyone marveled.”
The people who begged Jesus to leave will soon welcome him back (see Mark 7). Maybe because one man wouldn’t stop talking about all Jesus had done for him.
Grace pursued the very people who pushed Jesus away.
What About You?
- Is there something in your life Jesus needs to send over the cliff?
- Is there an area where you are resisting His freedom because you love our comfort?
- A habit you won’t surrender?
- A relationship we won’t examine?
- Is there a person in your community that you see more as an inconvenience and a problem?
Sometimes we prefer the pigs.
But Jesus prefers people.
And He will always value one broken soul more than a thousand pigs.
Lord Jesus…
Free me from the things I cling to. Expose my idols. Help me value people over possessions.
Help me welcome Your presence, even when it costs me.
And thank You, that even when I send You away, You still pursue me with grace.
Do not leave our region.
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