Luke 8

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:27

And when he was come forth upon the land, there met him a certain man out of the city, who had demons; and for a long time he had worn no clothes, and abode not in any house, but in tombs.Reference is made to the parallel accounts of this wonder in both Matthew and Mark and to the comments concerning it in my Commentary on Matthew and my Commentary on Mark. Luke added the detail of the man's wearing no clothes.In this series, several dissertations on demon possession have already been written,... read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:28

And when he saw Jesus; he cried out, and fell down before him, and with a loud voice said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of the Most High God? I beseech thee, torment me not.It is rather fruitless to seek learned reasons why this demon-possessed man behaved as he did, especially from commentators who insist today there are no authentic cases of such a thing! Whatever happened here was real; and the three historical records of it contained in the holy Gospels are unimpeachable.... read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:29

For he was commanding the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For oftentimes it had seized him: and he was kept under guard, and bound with chains and fetters; and breaking the bands asunder, he was driven of the demons into the deserts.The demon ... It is not clear why the possessing demons were referred to in the plural (Luke 8:27), but in the singular afterward, unless, as revealed a little later, there was a principal demon, the spokesman for all, and in some sense their leader. This... read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:30

And Jesus asked him, What is thy name? And he said, Legion; for many demons were entered into him.What is thy name ...? Jesus had already commanded the demon to come out (Luke 8:29); and the command was not repeated. Therefore we must disagree with Barclay that Jesus failed, at first, to cast him out.[15] The request of the demons that they should be permitted to enter the swine shows that they recognized the absolute necessity of doing what Jesus commanded. The question regarding the name of... read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:31

And they entreated him that he would not command them to depart into the abyss.As Ash observed:The demons recognized that when Jesus commanded they must obey, and that the abyss was the fate for which they were destined (cf. Revelation 9:1-11; 11:7; 17:8; and Revelation 20:1-3). The ABYSS symbolized the chaos in opposition to which the world was fashioned (Genesis 1:2).[17] read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:32

Now there was there a herd of many swine feeding on the mountain; and they entreated him that he would give them leave to enter them. And he gave them leave.The servile condition of the demoniac world was never more apparent than in this plea that the Son of God should permit them to enter a herd of hogs. Not even THAT could they do without the Lord's permission. Contrary to all that might have been anticipated, Jesus readily permitted it, demonstrating that even a demon's petition God will... read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:33

And the demons came out from the man, and entered the herd of swine: and the herd rushed down the steep into the lake, and were drowned.The ethical question raised by the Lord's permitting the destruction of this property is raised by some who wish to cast a reflection upon our Lord, but there is really no honest objection that may be raised. It is not necessary to suppose that the swine were illegally held, Jews not being permitted to own them; and, besides, this was Gentile territory; nor to... read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:34

And when they that fed them saw what had come to pass, they fled, and told it in the city and in the country.Naturally, the destruction of such a considerable herd of swine would have been a prime topic of conversation; and thus the demons inadvertently advertised as extensively as possible the power and authority of Jesus. It is also understandable that people who were not inclined to seek spiritual truth would have reacted with hostility and rejection; nor may such a reaction be justified.... read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:35

And they went out to see what had come to pass; and they came to Jesus, and found the man, from whom the demons had gone out, sitting, clothed and in his right mind, at the feet of Jesus: and they were afraid.In the presence of one who could so heal such a victim of Satan, the people should have been able to overcome their displeasure at the property loss; but, alas, they were not able.They were afraid ... As Ash noted, "All four miracle stories in this chapter of Luke note the idea of... read more

James Burton Coffman

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:36

And they that saw it told them how he that was possessed with demons was made whole.The eyewitnesses of the wonder described all that had taken place to the assembled villagers who had gathered to view the spectacle afforded by the erstwhile madman sitting clothed and in his right mind at the feet of Jesus, with strong emphasis, it seems, on the death of those swine. Oh yes, the herd of hogs; how easily are men diverted from that which is most important to that which is secondary! read more

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:27

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:28

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:29

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:30

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:31

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:32

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:33

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:34

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:35

Coffman Commentaries on the Bible - Luke 8:36

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