When Jesus asks the unclean spirit its name, the answer is 'Legion, for we are many.' The spirits enter a large herd of swine, which rushes into the sea. The healed man later asks to accompany Jesus but is instead sent home to tell what has been done for him.
Jesus in Context
Legion, the Swine, and the Healed Man
The Gerasene exorcism combines Roman military vocabulary, a large herd of swine, and Jesus' unusual command that the healed man publicly tell what God has done for him.
Introduction
Historical and Cultural Context
A Roman legion was one of the empire's largest military formations and normally numbered several thousand soldiers, though actual strength varied. The term therefore communicated multiplicity and overwhelming force even without requiring the hearer to calculate an exact number of spirits.
Mark's estimate of about two thousand swine indicates a substantial herd and also places the episode in a cultural setting where pig husbandry was economically possible, unlike normal Jewish dietary practice.
Why It Matters
The story moves from overwhelming bondage to restored personal agency. The man who had lived among the tombs becomes a public witness in his own region. Unlike people whom Jesus sometimes commands to remain silent, this man is specifically told to announce what the Lord has done for him.