Chapter # 1 Paragraph # 7 Study # 2
February 12, 2019
Moss Bluff, Louisiana
(048)
1901 ASV
23 And straightway there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out,
24 saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus thou Nazarene? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God.
25 And Jesus rebuked
him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him.
26 And the unclean spirit, tearing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him.
27 And they were all amazed, insomuch that they questioned among themselves, saying, What is this? a new teaching! with authority he commandeth even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.
28 And the report of him went out straightway everywhere into all the region of Galilee round about.
- I. "And Straightway...".
- A. As with the prior uses by Mark, this phrase, in effect, means "And the next most significant thing that occurred was...". Mark uses euthus to highlight what he wants his readers to consider most carefully.
- B. At issue, at this point, is the connection between the previous account regarding the "authority that existed in His teaching" (as opposed to the lack of that authority in the teaching of the scribes). The significance of "authority" is that it demands a response: either a person is going to reject what he/she hears even with the "authority" attached, or he/she is going to stop resisting the truth revealed with authority.
- II. "...A Man With an Unclean Spirit Was in the Synagogue..."
- A. The word order is actually "...was in the synagogue of them a man with a spirit unclean...".
- B. This word order reveals the critical issue: week after week, there was being (imperfect indicative) in their synagogue a representative of the "spirit world" which was "unclean".
- 1. This may indicate that "the spirit that now works in the sons of disobedience" (Ephesians 2:2) had representatives of his dark realm scattered throughout the regions of Jewish worship to keep an eye on the "scribes" as they taught so that they could do what they could to undercut that teaching if there was truth in it.
- a. When the "Holy" Spirit was mentioned (1:8, 10, and 12), the issue was that He would be the motivating force behind the "good" (holy) thing that was about to happen.
- b. Thus we can argue that when the "spirit" is unclean, the issue is still a "behind the scenes motivator of activity", but those activities are morally filthy because the "spirit" is "filthy".
- 2. This does indicate that Mark considered it critical that Jewish "teaching" did not create any heartburn in the unclean spirits.
- a. As long as there is no "authority" in the teaching, "faith" cannot rise to the level of any kind of actual usefulness to God.
- b. The dark realm does not find any teaching objectionable as long as human beings cannot "believe God" and begin to walk in truth. This is the beginning of the policies of the darkness, the ending of which is condemnation by God of the human beings in His creation. Between this "beginning" and "ending" are all manner of painful disasters (body, soul, and spirit) that befall those whose experiences are dominated by "unclean spirits".
- c. That the "unclean spirit" was in the synagogue week by week also indicates that the "spirit world" clearly understands that everything is governed by "the words which express the issues that determine the relationship between God and men".
- 3. Mark is clearly setting this truth forth: Jewish theology and practice was almost completely subverted by this time in human history. This explains the enormous hostility in the "religion" to "John" and "Jesus", both of whom preached the words that teach "forgiveness of sins upon the expression of repentance" by men as a "grace-based" reality in God.
- III. The Unclean Spirit's Scream of Terror.
- A. Mark only used the word translated "cried out" twice and the second use informs the first (6:49) because it is very clear from the second use that there is "terror" behind the "cry". This points us to this use because the words expressed are those of "terror" also.
- B. What the "spirit" said.
- 1. It was "said" as "truth" (lego).
- 2. "What to us and to you?"
- 3. Jesus Nazarene.
- 4. Have you come to destroy us?
- 5. I know You, who You are: the Holy One of The God.
- 6. And Jesus responded in measure to him, saying (lego)...
- a. Be made silent.
- b. Come out of him.
- C. What the "unclean spirit" did.
- 1. He caused the man to convulse.
- 2. He made a loud sound
- 3. He came out from him (as commanded).