Luke 8

The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 8:22-56

A group of miracles. The mother and brethren of Jesus had tried in vain to interfere with the important work in which he was engaged; he clung to his disciples as the real members of his Father's family. And so we find his career as a merciful Miracle-worker continuing. We have here a group of notable miracles; it was, as Godet suggests, the culmination of his miraculous work. Nature, human nature, and death yield to his authority in their order. I. SAFETY IN THE SOCIETY OF ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 8:23

But as they sailed he fell asleep; and there came down a storm of wind on the lake; and they were filled with water, and were in jeopardy. In the three Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, this and the three following incidents are closely united—the lake-storm; the devils sent into the herd of swine; the raising of the little daughter of Jairus; the healing of the woman afflicted with the issue of blood. Although this cycle of acts is always united by the three, yet they do not occupy the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 8:23

The sleep of Christ. "As they sailed he fell asleep" Christ asleep! Christ asleep in the daytime! Christ asleep in the storm! Christ asleep with his disciples in danger and distress! What have we here? I. THE SON OF MAN ASLEEP IN THE HOUR OF HIS OWN BODILY WEARINESS . A hard and long day's work had the Master that day. He had thought much, taught much, wrought much; and each one of these had been laborious and exhausting to One who was what he was and felt as... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 8:26

And they arrived at the country of the Gadarenes. There is a perplexing difference in the reading of the older manuscripts here, but it is simply a question of the precise name of the locality where the great miracle was worked. In the three narratives of Matthew, Mark, and Luke the older manuscripts vary between "Gergesenes," "Gerasenes," and" Gadarenes." Gatiara was a city of some importance, about three hours' journey distant from the southern end of the Lake of Gennesaret. Its ruins... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 8:26-39

The evil spirit in the Gergesene demoniac is dismissed into the herd of swine. read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 8:26-39

The demoniac whose name was Legion. Two miserable creatures are mentioned in Matthew. No sooner has Jesus come forth on the land than they rush towards him. Human, yet without the mental attributes of humanity, shunned by all, left in the lonely place, to rend the air with fearful cries, to clash themselves against stones, wretched beyond all names of wretchedness. One of the two is singled out by St. Luke, and described (verses 27, 29). Observe the effect of Jesus' presence. Instantly... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 8:27

There met him out of the city a certain man ; better rendered, there met him a man of the city. He had been a dweller in Gergesa in old days before the terrible possession began. St. Matthew, in his account, tells us of two demoniacs. SS , Mark and Luke , however, both only mention one, the other for some reason or other had passed out of their thoughts—possibly the malady was much less severe, and the strange dialogue and its results had not taken place in his case. Which had... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 8:28

When he saw Jesus, he cried out, and fell down before him, and with a loud voice ,aid, What have I to do with thee, Jesus? "The sight of Jesus appears to have produced an extraordinary impression upon him. The holy, calm, gentle majesty, the tender compassion, and the conscious sovereignty which were expressed in the aspect of our Lord, awakened in him, by force of contrast, the humbling consciousness of his own state of moral disorder" (Godet). Thou Son of God most high . There... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 8:30

And Jesus asked him; saying, What is thy name? And he said, Legion: because many devils were entered into him The Master vouchsafed no reply to the demons' prayer, but puts a quiet suggestive question to their unhappy victim. The Lord's words, as Dean Plumptre suggests, would serve "to recall to the man's mind that he had once a human name, with all its memories of human fellowship. It was a stage, even in spite of the paroxysm that followed, in the process of recovery, in so far as it... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Luke 8:31

And they besought him that he would not command them to go out into the deep. This time the voice and the request apparently proceed from the terrible presence which had made the soul of the unhappy man their temporary habitation. The direful confusion in the state of the poor demoniac is shown by this request. By whom was it made? The bystanders could discern no difference between the possessed and the spirits dwelling in the afflicted human being. So St. Mark, in his relation, puts these... read more

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