"Then they arrived at the country of country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. And as [Jesus] stepped out on land, there met him a man from the city who had demons; for a long time he had worn no clothes, and he lived not in a house but among the tombs. When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell down before him, and said with a loud voice, "What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beseech you, do not torment me." For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many a time it had seized him; he was kept under guard, and bound with chains and fetters, but he broke the bonds and was driven by the demons to the desert.) Jesus asked him, "What is your name?" And he said, "Legion" for many demons had entered him. And they begged him not command them to depart into the abyss. Now a large herd of swine was feeding there on the hillside; and they begged him to let them enter these. So He gave them leave. Then the demons came out of the man had entered the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned.

When the herdsman saw what had happened, they fled, and told it in the city and in the country. Then people went out to see what had happened, and they came to Jesus, and found the man from whom the demons had gone, sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. And those who had seen it told them how he who had been possessed with demons was healed. Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked him to depart from them; for they were seized with great fear; so he got into the boat and returned. The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him; but he sent him away; saying,"return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you." And he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus had done for him" (Luke 8:26-39).

This is one of the most astonishing stories in the Gospels. I have quoted the gospel according to Luke, but the same account is found also in Matthew and Mark.¹ The story highlights the conflict between Jesus and the demons, a conflict which occupied a prominent place in the ministry of Jesus. The story of the Gerasene demonic contains elements which reflect the popular demonology of Jesus' day. These elements will find further illustration as we proceed with this study of Jesus' encounters with the demons and especially in succeeding studies of the surrounding world in which Jesus lived.

We may mention now some of those common elements: Demons haunted deserted areas (this poor victim "was driven into the desert" --Luke 8:29), ² and they lived in cemeteries (Legion lived "not in a house but among the tombs"--Luke 8: 27).³ Demons could take possession of a person, who showed signs of insanity because a different personality dwelt in him (the demon "seized him" and drove him--Luke 8:29); the demon spoke separately from the man---Luke 8:28, 31; and there was a dramatic difference in behavior before and after the cure--contrast the nakedness and violent, restless movement in Luke 8:27, 29 with sitting clothed and in his right mind in Luke 8: 35).⁴

The demon gave abnormal abilities to the person possessed (in this case unusual strength--he broke chains and fetters--Luke 8:29)⁵ The knowledge of the name gave control over the person (his name was Legion--Luke 8:30).⁶ It was possible to expel the demon or (in this case) demons (Luke 8:29, 31, 33).⁷ And, demons could go from a human being into animals (the unclean spirits entered the herd of unclean animals and caused the same violent , uncontrolled behavior they had in the man and caused them to run down a steep bank into the lake where they drowned---Luke 8:33).⁸ The destiny of the demons is the abyss (Luke 8:31)⁹

Our purpose at the present is not to dwell on these features, for although interesting in different ways, I consider them less important than some other aspects of Jesus' encounter with the demonic. There are also some distinctive elements in this story, some particularly Christian elements; and to these we will pay more attention. Our method of approach will be to examine the accounts of Jesus' dealing with demons and notice what teaching in regard to demons emerges from a comparison of these accounts. I have chosen to follow the accounts of Luke.¹⁰ Luke has more references to demons than either of the other Gospels, and he is somewhat fuller in some of the accounts which he shares in common with Matthew and Mark. But the demons are prominent in Matthew and Mark, as well, and we shall draw passages from them to fill out the discussion.

As preliminary to this examination of particular incidents involving Jesus and demons, I would like to note that in the summaries of Jesus' ministry by different writers the casting out of demons is often mentioned. This shows that is was a prominent activity by Jesus. Thus, Mark 1:39 says, "And he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons." Luke's summary, rather typically, refers to the one devil rather than individual demons: "He went about doing good and healing all that were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him" (Acts 10:38). Matthew contains a characteristically extensive list of the kinds of afflictions which Jesus cured:

And he went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every infirmity among the people. So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with different diseases and pains, demoniacs, epileptics, and paralytics, and he healed them (Matthew 4: 23f).

This list makes it clear, that demon possession is distinguished from physical and mental illness, although belonging to the same general category of disorders. As Mark 1:32 puts it, "They brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons." Luke 6:17f. speaks of those "who came to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured." Or again Luke says, "In that hour he cured many of diseases and plagues and evil spirits, and on many that were blind he bestowed sight" (Luke 7:21). Now, as we shall see, the demons could cause illnesses or effects like an illness, but demon possession was considered different from illness. It was not another way, or a primitive way, of talking about certain illness; nor was every case of illness caused by demons. To be sick did not mean you were demon afflicted, nor did demon possession necessarily mean that your were ill.

The conflict of Jesus with the demons began early in his ministry. In Mark's gospel the first event in Jesus' ministry following his baptism and calling of the disciples is the account of the expulsion of an unclean spirit (Mark 1:21-28). Mark sets at the forefront of his narrative the account of the man with an unclean spirit in the synagogue at Capernaum. This account of driving out a demon is similarly the first recorded miracle performed by Jesus in Luke's gospel. Here is the report:

And he went down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee. And he was teaching them on the Sabbath; and they were astonished at his teaching, for his word was with authority. And in the synagogue there was a man who had the spirit of an unclean demon; and he cried out with a loud voice, "Ah! What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God." But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him." And when the demon had thrown him down in the midst, he came out of him, having done him no harm. And they were all amazed and said to one another, "What is this word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out." And reports of him went out into every place in the surrounding region (Luke 4:31-37).

In this narrative Luke uses an unusual and somewhat clumsy expression, "spirit of an unclean demon"; Mark simply says an "unclean spirit," the phrase he often uses where Luke has "demon." The terminology indicates that the demons are spiritual beings, but evil or impure spirits, not holy spirits or good angles. It is this spiritual nature which permits them to enter a human person. Once more we notice that the demon had his own distinct personality. He was different from the person in whom he dwelled and was able to control the person he possessed to the extent of throwing him down. The demon recognized the distinction of personalities but associated the possessed person with himself to the extent of using the first person plural pronoun,"us," when he said, "What have you to do with us?" (Luke 4:34)

The demon in the Jewish synagogue at Capernaum approached Jesus with the same question as did the demon in the Gentile region of Gerasenes (Luke 8:28), "What have you to do with us [me]?" In both cases the demons had a superhuman knowledge of Jesus' true identity which human beings did not have: in Luke 4 as "the Holy One of God" and in Luke 8 as "Son of the Most High God." The spirit of an "impure demon," an unholy one, stands in contrast to Christ as the "Holy One." Perhaps the use of these titles for Jesus was an effort by the demon to claim power over him, but if so, the demon was defeated in his own realm by a superior power.

The acknowledgment of Jesus is one of the regular features of New Testament references to demons. As spiritual beings, they knew who he was. In Mark 3:11 we read, "And whenever the unclean spirit beheld him, they fell down before him and cried out, "You are the Son of God." But Jesus would not accept testimony from demons. The next verse in Mark (3:12) adds, "And he strictly ordered them not to make Him known." Similarly in the healing of the man in the synagogue at Capernaum, Jesus told the demon, "Be silent, and come out of him!" (Luke 4:35; Mark 1:25). Luke 4:41 declares, "And demons also came out of many, crying, "You are the Son of God." But he rebuked them, and would not allow them to speak, because they knew he was the Christ." Jesus was not ready for His identity to be revealed, and he did not want to be known just as a miracle worker; but another factor in his command of silence in this case was that he did not want to accept testimony from such a source. He did not want the testimony of evil spirits. The apostle Paul had the same attitude. Luke's second volume, the book of Acts, tells the following incident when Paul, Silas, and Luke himself were preaching in Philippi:

As we were going to the place of prayer, we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much gain by soothsaying. She followed Paul and us, crying, "These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation." And this she did for many days. But Paul was annoyed, and turned and said to the spirit, "I charge you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her." And it came out in that same hour" (Acts 16:16-18).

The association of demons with divination and oracles in paganism will be taken up further in the next chapter.

The demons' faith makes them an excellent example of those who know but do not. James 2;19 cites the demons as examples of those who have faith without works: "You believe that God is one: you do well. Even the demons believe and shudder." Their faith in God and recognition of Jesus as God's Son does not lead to obedience; but they are excellently situated to know the facts whereof they speak. But theirs is not a saving faith. They believe but do not obey; they know but do not.

The most notable feature of the expelling of the demon from the man in synagogue in Capernaum to those who were present was the manner in which it was done. "What is this word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out" (Luke 4:36). As with the other cases where Jesus drove out a demon, he commanded and the demon had to obey. He accomplished the work simply by speaking an authoritative word. Matthew 8:16 notes that "he cast out the spirits with a word." Thus, Jesus' expulsions of the demons were not technically exorcisms: he did not adjure them or pronounce a formula, to which the word "exorcism" technically refers. The practice (as we know from the magical papyri), was to say, "I adjure you," and invoke a superior power, often with considerable elaboration of names, and the give the command to obey the exorcist. ¹¹ There were also accompanying material means customarily employed, as the mixing of potions, offering sacrifices, and the like. Nevertheless, the word exorcism is used loosely and generally for an act of driving out demons, however performed. In a curious twist, one of the two places in the NT where the formula which exorcists used is employed is in the words of demons addressed to Jesus. Mark quotes the Gerasene demoniac as saying, "I adjure you by God, do not torment me" (Mark 5:7). The demon attempted to adjure Jesus, or exorcise him, but was unable to place Jesus under his power. The one place in the NT where the noun "exorcist" appears and the one other place where a formula of adjuration appears, is in another of Luke's narratives concerning the apostle Paul, this time in Ephesus:

And God did extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul.....Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists undertook to pronounce the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, "I adjure you by theJesus whom Paul preaches." Seven sons of a Jewish high priest named Sceva were doing this. But the evil spirit answered them, "Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?" And the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, mastered them all, and overpowered them, and so they fled out of that house naked and wounded (Acts 19:11-16).

This incident reminds us that there were Jews, and indeed others, who practiced exorcism in the first century world. We will have more to say about such in this chapter and in following chapters, but we many say now that spiritual values emphasized by Christ and Christians were quite different from what was found in contemporary exorcism: instead of expelling demons as an end in itself or for personal gain or notoriety, they did so for moral purposes and to emphasize the power of God and His son, Jesus Christ. Moreover, the effectiveness and the methods were different. Not only did Christ, and Christian healers after him, not use a formula invoking a superior power of the same nature as the demons, but they also avoided material means that could in any fashion be associated with magic.¹²

The NT and early Christian literature indicate that they used only a word of command or prayer. In keeping with this perspective, Luke speaks of Jesus "casting out demons" (Luke 13:32).

There is another reference in Luke's gospel to Jesus' healing those invaded by demons which involves a case of multiple possession. Luke 8:2 refers to "some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons¹³ had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward, and Susanna, and many others." There seems to be no sexual discrimination in demon-possession. Women were fully equal to men in regard to the demonic.

Another healing by Jesus in a synagogue, this time on the sabbath, and another healing of a woman, involves a connection with the demonic.

Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath. And there was a woman who had had a spirit of infirmity for eighteen years; she was bent over and could not fully straighten herself. And when Jesus saw her, he called her and said to her, "Woman, you are freedfrom your infirmity." And he laid his hand on her, and immediately she was made straight, and she praised God. But the ruler of the synagogue became indignant because Jesus had healed on the sabbath and he said to the people, "There are six days on which work ought to be done; come on those days and be healed, and not on the sabbath day." Then the Lord answered him, "You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the sabbath untie his ox or ass from the manger, and lead it away to water it? And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the sabbath day?" (Luke 13:10-16).

The "spirit of infirmity" suggest that a physical ailment caused by a spirit; this this is a healing miracle and not an expulsion or exorcism of an evil spirit. The demons cause illness, but not all illness was caused by them. It is notable that verse 16 attributes the affliction to Satan; what is done by one of his spirits is done by Satan himself. Jesus sees one unified force of evil as oppressing mankind. According to the law of Moses which prohibited work on the sabbath, the practice of medicine and healing were prohibited. Jesus on the other hand, saw the sabbath as an appropriate day for manifesting the work of God. Since the sabbath commemorated the deliverance of Israel from bondage in Egypt¹⁴ it was appropriate on this day to deliver this woman from the oppression of Satan. Since, moreover, the Pharisees allowed an animal to be untied on the sabbath and led to water, how much more was it appropriate to unbind a human bound by Satan and so allow her to praise God.

Jesus not only exercised authority over the demons himself, but he also gave the same authority to his disciples. "And he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal" (Luke 9: 1,2). The activity of the twelve apostles (Luke 9:10) under the limited commission during Jesus' personal ministry prepares us for their broadening work under the great commission after the resurrection. So Luke tells us in Acts 5:16 that "The people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were healed." And later in Acts 8:7 when Phillip, the evangelist, not the apostle Philip, went to Samaria, he preached and performed miracles: "For unclean spirits came out of many who were possessed, crying with a loud voice" (Acts 8:7).

The disciples of Jesus, however, were not always successful in curing the demon possessed. As Jesus along with Peter, James, and John descended from from the mount of transfiguration, there occurred the following incident:

A man from the crowd cried, "Teacher, I beg you to look upon my son, for he is my only child; and behold a spirit seizes him and he suddenly cries out, and will hardly leave him. And I begged your disciples to cast it out, but they could not." Jesus answered,"O faithless and perverse generation, how long am I to be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here." While he was coming, the demon tore him and convulsed him. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed the boy, and gave him back to his father. All were astonished at the majesty of God (Luke 9: 37-43).

Note that the "demon" of verse 42 is the same as "spirit" of verse 39. We encounter again violent behavior, the immediate effectiveness of Jesus' word of rebuke, and the crowd's praise to God. The description corresponds to epilepsy--- either the demon was viewed as causing the illness or behavior like that of an epileptic seizure. We cannot tell. Mark's account (Mark 9:17-29) is much fuller, but only one part of his narrative do we want to pick up here. After the cure, the disciples asked Jesus privately in a house why they could not cast out the demon. Jesus replied, "This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer"(Mark 9:29).¹⁵

In contrast to this failure by the disciples, there follows shortly thereafter in the text a case of apparently successful exorcism in the name of Jesus by someone not in Jesus' inner circle.ⁱ John reported to Jesus, "Master, we saw a man casting out demons in your name, and we forbade him, because he does not follow us." But Jesus said, "Do not forbid him; for he that is not against you is for you" (Luke 9: 49f). We do not know whether this "strange exorcist" as he has been called, was a disciple of Jesus apart from the twelve who had been commissioned by Jesus, a prospective disciple in a stage of transition whom Jesus was encouraging, or a wandering free-lance practitioner who had observed the success of Jesus and his disciples on other occasions and had picked up the name of Jesus (in which case his success may have been allowed by God in order to enhance the reputation and respect for the name of Jesus). Christians employed the name of Jesus in driving out demons, as we shall learn in subsequent studies. We have already noted Paul's banishing of the spirit of divination in the girl at

Philippi with the words," I charge you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her" (Acts 16:18), and we recall the unsuccessful efforts of the Jewish exorcist in Ephesus to capitalize on the name of Jesus (Acts 19:13).

Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord," shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me,"Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name?" And then I will declare to them, "I never knew you; depart from me, you evil doers" (Matthew 7:21-23).

We do not know whether these were those who had no right to use the name of Jesus, or as seems more likely, these were disciples who did not combine full obedience with their other activities in the name of Jesus. It is to be noted that Jesus does not deny their exercise of prophecy or performance of exorcisms and other mighty works. Rather he says that these were not the important things. These persons had not done things with the correct attitude out of obedience to God and dependence on Him. Jesus was always effective because of His perfect submission to the will of the Father. This was also how Jesus met the temptations of the devil---by His complete obedience to the will of God.¹⁶ Humble submission to God is more important than any mighty work, according to Jesus.

These passages indicate that Jesus gave power over demons to other disciples besides the twelve. And such is confirmed by Luke's narrative about the sending out of seventy, two by two, with a similar commission as he had given the twelve (Luke 10:1ff.). Following Jesus' instructions to them, we read:

The seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!" And he said to them, "I saw Satan fall like lightening from the heaven. Behold, I have given authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and noting shall hurt you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you; but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."

The demons were subject to the seventy disciples "in the name" of Jesus.¹⁷ Jesus declared that he had given them authority over the forces of evil, represented by serpents and scorpions here.¹⁸ Jesus refers to the vision which he had, probably to be understood as a prophetic vision. He had seen Satan fall from heaven.¹⁹ This is probably to be taken as an anticipation of the overthrow of Satan at the crucifixion and resurrection or finally at the second coming of Jesus. The success of the disciples foreshadowed the ultimate defeat of Satan. The overcoming of demons was a sign of the fall and defeat of Satan himself. This was the cosmic significance of the conflict of Jesus and his disciples with Satan and his demonic spirits. The final destruction of Satan and his host is certain. In Matthew's account of the healing of the Gerasene demonic a phrase is added to Mark and Luke's account which brings this out: the demoniacs cry out, "Have you come here to torment us before the time?" (Matthew 8:29). There is a time of final destruction determined in God's plan. Jesus in his parable of the great judgment sends away the unmerciful "into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angles" (Matthew 25:41).

The disciples however were not to rejoice in their victory over the demons. For them personally something was of even greater significance: their names were written in heaven. Once more, the religious or spiritual significance is underscored as primary. Thus, Jesus warns against spiritual pride and indicates that spectacular achievements do not count so much with God. Something is of more importance: to be enrolled among God's people and so to be saved. This may be taken as a Lucan parallel to Matthew's words in 7: 21ff. about obeying the will of the Father being more important than casting out demons in Jesus' name.

The fullest amount of teaching is the Gospels on the demons is called forth by Beelzsbul controversy. We read from Luke's account as follows:

Now he was casting out a demon that was dumb; when the demon had gone out, the dumb man spoke, and the people marveled. But some of them said, "He casts out demons by Beelzebul,the prince of demons"; while others, to test him, sought from him a sign from heaven. But he, knowing their thoughts, said to them, "Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and house falls upon house. And if Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul. and if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges. But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come on you.ⁱⁱ When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are in peace; but when one stronger than he assails him and over comes him, he takes away his armor in which he trusted and divides his spoil" (Luke 11:14-22).

The occasion of the controversy was Jesus healing a dumb man. The demon itself is said to be dumb, for it was usual to attribute the infirmity caused by a demon to the demon itself.²⁰ But some (Matthew specifies Pharisees--12:24), perhaps jealous of Jesus' popularity, interpreted Jesus' powers in terms of the popular magical notions of the day. He was in league with a more powerful demon who enabled him to subdue lesser demons. The prince of demons is here named Beelzebul, who is identified with Satan in verse 18. Beelzebul was presumably a name in common use in Jesus' day, but it is unattested prior to the NT.²¹ The accusations that Jesus was himself either demon-possessed, out of his mind, or involved in magic appear to have been rather common.²² The charge had been made against John the Baptist that he also had a demon (Luke 7:33). It appears to have been a stock charge against anyone who acted contrary to the usual norms of behavior.

Jesus makes four arguments in reply to the charge that he was in league with the prince of demons.²³ The first argument (verses 17f) is the logical consideration that Satan would not be conducting civil war in his own kingdom. If Satan is casting out his own subordinates, this is folly and a sign of weakness in the kingdom of evil. Satan is defeating himself.²⁴ The larger consideration represented by Jesus' perspective²⁵ is the essential unity of the kingdom of evil.²⁶

The demons function under a prince or ruler and are his subordinates. Evil may have varied manifestations, but ultimately there is but one principle of evil. Instead of a world dominated by many warring demons (a pagan and polytheistic conception), Jesus says there is one kingdom of Satan. The Jewish exorcists might deal with local manifestations of demonic activity, but Jesus sees his work as demonstrating that whole dominion of evil was being conquered. The demons functioned as part of a larger whole, the dominion of the devil.

Jesus' second argument in response to the charge he was in alliance with Beelzebul was an ad hominen consideration. There were Jewish exorcists going about casting out demons, or at least claiming to do so. "Sons of" means disciples of, and so refers to followers of his critics. By whose power were they working, or claiming to work? Logically, the critics would have to make the same admission about their own wonder-workers, or if these exorcists were working by the power of God, then so was Jesus.

And that leads to the third consideration urged by Jesus. If it was indeed only by the power of God that demons could be cast out, then the kingdom or rule of God was being manifested. The phrase "finger of God" is an illusion to Exodus 8:19 where the miracles of Moses in connection with the Exodus were attributed to the finger of God in contrast to the wonders of the Egyptian magicians which were worked by magic. Jesus was accomplishing a new deliverance, by the same power which worked through Moses. Matthew's account (12: 28) uses the phrase "Spirit of God"; the two phrases are equivalent in meaning, and Matthew may be understood as interpreting the phrase used by Luke. Jesus' defeat of the demons by the power of God was proof that the kingdom, which means the rule or power of God, was present in Him and His ministry. That was also a demonstration that the full establishment of the kingdom and the complete overthrow of Satan's rule was to be effected. Jesus would presumably not allow the same significance, at least in its fullness, to the activity of the Jewish exorcist. This was a debating situation and not a matter of absolute truth and consistency, but even in a limited sphere any success by the Jews in the name of God in driving out demons was a sign of the power of God's kingdom and a defeat for the kingdom of Satan. But the person of Jesus himself gave his works a greater significance than comparable works by others.

The person of Jesus and why he was able to do his mighty works may be the clue for understanding the fourth part of Jesus' response to his critics. The parable of the strong man may be seen as a striking affirmation of the power of Jesus and a meaningful illustration of the significance of His ministry in general and his exorcisms in particular. Luke's version of the parable employs the imagery of warfare and a military campaign against a fortified stronghold; Matthew 12:29 and Mark 3:27 employ the imagery of robbery. The teaching is the same in both cases. Satan is the strong man, dwelling in a fortified place.

Satan as its ruler has a fortress to protect his ill-gotten possessions. But there comes one stronger than he. The conqueror liberates the fortress, takes away Satan's power and takes over his possessions for his own use. Christ as the "one stronger" than the strong man has invaded Satan's stronghold, driven away his guards (the demons), and liberated humanity in bondage to him. The demons, and Satan himself, have no power in the presence of Jesus. Verse 23, "He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters" emphasizes there can be no neutrality in the conflict between Christ and Satan.²⁷

Luke places next to the account of the Beelzebul controversy another teaching of Jesus relative to unclean spirits which serves to emphasize Jesus' priorities and spiritual values which are uttermost.

When the unclean spirit has gone out of a man he passes through waterless places seeking rest; and finding none he says, "I will return to my house from which I came." And when he comes he finds it swept and put in order. The he goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state is worse than the first (Luke 11:24-26).

This is a warning that exorcism by itself may do more harm than good. Something is much more significant than a mighty work driving out demons, and for a person delivered from demons something is more important than their departure. The reference to "waterless places" brings us back to another item of popular belief. It seems to be widely held, across centuries and cultures, although not universally, that ghosts and the like cannot cross a body of water.

The dominant spirit, however, that haunts this enchanted region, and seems to be commander-in-chief of all powers of the air, is the apparition of a figure on horseback without a head. It is said by some to be the ghost of a Hessian trooper, whose head had been carried away by a cannon-ball...during the revolutionary war.... [Brom Bones] affirmed that, on returning one night from the neighboring village...he had been overtaken by this midnight trooper; that he had offered to race with him for a bowl of punch, and should have won it too, for [his horse] beat the goblin horse all hollow, but, just as they came to the church bridge, {across a brook}, the Hessian bolted and vanished in a flash of fire......

Ichabod Crane then had a fearful encounter with the headless horsemen as he rode home about midnight. His old horse could not outrun the ghostly apparition:

An opening in the trees now cheered him with hopes that the church bridge was at hand. The wavering reflection of a silent star in the bosom of the brook told him that he was not mistaken----He recollected the place where Brom Bone's ghostly competitor had disappeared. "If I can but reach the bridge," thought Ichabod, "I am safe."

Of course the story as a strange turn, as you know. This belief about ghosts not crossing water may have something to do with the early church's doctrine about baptism freeing one from the power of demons.²⁸

However, there is some Jewish thought that demons seem to prefer water, especially stagnant water, and the reason the demon could not find rest was that the region was waterless; so it is those influenced by demons who move on elsewhere. Be that as it may, Jesus was not concerned with items of popular belief. The notice of "waterless places" is incidental to the moral teaching of the story.

The demon of Jesus' story returned to the person from whom he had departed. Nature abhors a vacuum; and so does the spiritual world. Since there was nothing to had filled up the vacancy left by the departure of the demon he re-occupied the house, the human heart, from which he had gone out.²⁹ Not only that, but he brought seven other spirits more evil than himself, expressive of the more complete and intense surrender to evil.³⁰ The text does not expressly make an application but it seems to me one is readily at hand. Not only must evil be banished from one's life but that life must be filled with good. Self will power alone is not enough when resisting Satan. Probably the real answer to how to defeat Satan is found in the teachings that precede the Beelzebul controversy.

In the section pertaining to asking God for help, we are told to ask God for the "Holy Spirit" (see Luke 11:13) as a aid to defeating Satan. The Indwelling of the Holy Spirit is our first line of defense (see Acts 2:38).

1. Jesus accepted demons as real, and there is no indication he was just accommodating popular superstition.

3. But, the demons are presented as impure and evil spirits, or spiritual beings in rebellion against God.

4. Human beings were at the center of the struggle between Jesus and the demons. The demons could and did invade and take possession of persons. For the most part, possession was not treated as a moral disorder but as an illness.

5. The demons were acting under the direction of Satan and were part of his Kingdom.

6. Jesus has authority over demons. The fact that Jesus was able to exorcise and defeat Satan and his kingdom says that Christ established the kingdom of God.

8. Jesus gave his disciples authority over demons. But we know that where we find the Holy Spirit, there is no room for demons.

9. There are religious and spiritual matters more important than casting out demons i.e. our relationship with Jesus and the Father.

1For this chapter I am particularly indebted to G. B. Caird, Principalities and Powers: A Study in Pauline Theology (Oxford, 1956); Heinrich Schlier, Principalities and Powers in the New Testament (New York: Herder and Herder, 1961); and others to many to mention.

4bErubin 41b, "Three things deprive a man of his senses and of a knowledge of his creator, viz., idolaters, an evil spirit, and oppressive poverty." cf. Philostratus, Life of Apollonius IV.20 for a parallel to the demon possessions of the Gospels. Juan B. Cortes, S.J. and Florence M. Gatti, The Case against Possession and Exorcism (New York: Vantage Press, 1975) in their reaction against modern sensational stories argue that there were never demons, only the devil and his angels, and so the exorcisms of the Gospels were not actually casting out demons but cures of "internal" diseases and daimonizomai should not be translated "possessed by demons" but "afflicted by evil or malignant powers or forces." Although modern sensationalism may read unfortunate ideas into the text, I have retained the conventional translation "possessed by," while understanding it in the sense "afflicted by." Modern perspectives should not lead to a denial that the biblical text reflected the beliefs of its time about demons.

10For a similar study based on the demon narratives in Mark see J. Ramsey Michaels, "Jesus and the Unclean Spirits, "Demon Possession, ed. J.w. Montgomery, (Minneapolis: Bethany Fellowship, 1976), pp, 41-57.

15Some witnesses to the text add "fasting," which was an accompaniment to prayer on serious occasions in the life of the early church, so this reading may reflect early practice. Matthew 17:20 attributes the disciples' failure to little faith.

21beelzebul is usually derived from Baalzebub (2 Kings 1:2). This word was a Hebrew pun ("lord of the flies") on the name of a Canaanite god. Beelzebul is apparently the same as Belial (Beliar), met in the intertestamentl Jewish literature--see Chapter III and cf. 2 Corinthians 6:15

22For the charge that Jesus had a demon, see John 7:20; 8: 48-52; that he was mad, see John 10: 20f. ; Mark 3:21; that the present episode implies the use of magic, and the charge was made explicit later--cf. Origen, Against Celsus I.6 and references to note 11.

23CF. Eusebius, Treatise Against Life of Apollonius by Philostratus 26, "For Apollonius, as they say, drives out one demon with the help of another." The idea was common in magic.

24No consideration is given to the possibility that Satan was acting in pretense in order to perpetrate a greater deception by getting the people to follow an impostor. Exactly this consideration was urged by some Christian apologist later against the wonders and cures performed by pagans: i.e. the demons enabled magicians and charlatans to do certain things in order to deceive people. E.g. Origen, Against Celus II. 49-51

29Josephus, Antiquities VIII. 45, Solomon "left behind forms of exorcisms with which those possessed by demons drive them out never to return"; Eleazer, "adjured the demon never to come back into" a cured man. That demons require a home, see Aelian, Characteristics of Animals XI. 32.