Mark 5:9

Mark 5:9, in plain English

Jesus asks the spirit its name, and the answer is terrifying: 'My name is Legion, because there are many of us.' This man was carrying an army of darkness inside him.

Why it's here

A Roman legion was thousands of soldiers. The name tells you just how heavy a burden this man had been carrying — and how powerful Jesus must be to overcome it.

Who's speaking

Jesus speaks to the demon, and the spirit identifies itself through the man.

Where it sits in the story

The name 'Legion' reveals the horrifying scope of this man's bondage. But here's the amazing thing: even thousands of demons are no match for Jesus. Not even close.

The scholarly reading

Jesus' question 'What is your name?' is not informational but an exorcistic technique — knowing a spirit's name in ancient Near Eastern thought meant having power over it. The reply 'Legion' (Legeon) indicates massive multiple possession, borrowing Roman military terminology for a unit of 4,000-6,000 soldiers.

Language and setting

The Roman military term in this Gentile territory may carry anti-imperial overtones. 'We are many' (hoti polloi esmen) switches from singular to plural, revealing the corporate nature of the possession.

Voice

Jesus interrogates the demon, and the spirit answers through the possessed man.

Significance

Jesus demands the demon's name and receives a chilling answer: 'Legion — for we are many.' The Roman military term reveals the staggering scale of this man's oppression.

7And he shouted in a loud voice, “What do You want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You before God not to torture me!”

8For Jesus had already declared, “Come out of this man, you unclean spirit!”

9“What is your name?” Jesus asked.

10And he begged Jesus repeatedly not to send them out of that region.

11There on the nearby hillside a large herd of pigs was feeding.

Read all of Mark 5 — A man possessed by a thousand demons, a woman who has bled for twelve years, a father whose daughter has just died — all healed in a single chapter.