In my pastoral ministry, I have often been asked about two strange passages in Luke’s Gospel: the casting of many demons (“Legion”) into a herd of pigs (Luke 8:26–39), and the saying about seven more demons entering and dwelling in a “house” (Luke 11:24–26). By considering the theme of demonic activity in Luke’s Gospel, we can better understand the meaning and purpose of these two passages.
Demonic Activity in Luke’s Gospel
Demonic activity is a major theme in Luke’s Gospel, especially during the ministry of Jesus in Galilee. In Luke 4, Satan, “the prince of demons” (Lk. 11:15), personally tempts Jesus. Then, Jesus begins his ministry, “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 that he was the Christ” (Lk. 4:41). Luke 8:2 says that some of the women who followed Jesus had been delivered from evil spirits, including “Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out” (Lk. 8:2). When Jesus sent out his disciples, he gave them “power and authority over all demons” (Lk. 9:1), and when they returned, they rejoiced, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” (Lk. 10:17). Luke 13:32 is a fascinating verse, since Jesus refers to casting out demons as a characteristic act of his ministry: “Go and tell that fox [Herod], ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course.”
Luke 11:20 is arguably the most important verse on demonic activity in Luke’s Gospel. After debunking the ridiculous and blasphemous accusation that he casts out demons by the power of Satan, Jesus explains instead, “If it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you” (Lk. 11:20). In this verse, the power of Jesus over demons is explicitly connected with another major theme (arguably the major theme) of Luke’s Gospel: the inauguration of the kingdom of God. The power of Jesus over demons is best understood as a sign that God’s reign has broken into the world through the Messiah, the Son of God, driving back the kingdom of Satan.
This may also help to explain why there is so much demonic activity in the Gospels. Some people read the Gospels and then begin looking for a demon around every corner. But although Satan and demons continue to be active in the world (2 Corinthians 4:4; 1 Peter 5:8; 1 Timothy 4), there is comparatively little said about them in the rest of the New Testament. In fact, when we look at the Bible as a whole, we do not see a consistent pattern of dramatic or observable demonic activity. Instead, we see “bursts” of demonic activity at key moments in the biblical story. Satan is always working through his demonic “army” in subtle ways to tempt and deceive, but it is best to view the demonic activity in Jesus’s day as an unusual, dramatic onslaught in response to the coming of God’s Messiah. The point of demonic activity in the Gospels is not (at least primarily) to alert us to pervasive demonic activity in our own day, but to highlight the superior power of Jesus over demons, and assure us that God’s kingdom has indeed arrived in him.
Demons Into Pigs (Luke 8:26–39)
With this in mind, let’s consider the first of the two strange passages mentioned above. First, consider Luke 8:26–39, where Jesus casts many demons into a herd of pigs. The story begins with a key detail that is easily overlooked: it takes place opposite Galilee, in the Gerasenes, which is Gentile country. That’s why there are pigs, animals which were unclean and repulsive to the Jews. Then, verse 27–30 describe the horrible control that demons had over a man from the city. Many demons possessed him and called themselves “Legion” (the largest unit of the Roman army, which was 6,000 soldiers at full strength). The demons often seized the man, gave him extraordinary strength to break shackles that others used to restrain him, and drove him into the deserts and to live naked among the tombs. Most surprising is verse 29: Jesus commanded the demons to leave him, but they did not obey! Mark’s account of the story implies that Jesus commanded them repeatedly over a period of time, as if fighting with them (5:8). Obviously, Jesus was allowing them to disobey and resist for a time, but all these details work together to highlight the great power of the demonic forces at work.
Lest we think that the demons are a match for Jesus, in verse 31 “they begged him not to command them to depart into the abyss.” Matthew 8:29 records that they also said, “What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?” The “Legion” knew, like the demons in Luke 4:41, that they were at the complete mercy of the all-powerful Son of God. The word “abyss” means “the deep place” or “the unfathomable depth,” and is a way of referring to the underworld in general or (in this case) to God’s “prison” for evil spirits in particular (1 Peter 3:19). It’s not exactly clear what the demons were afraid of. We read in 2 Peter 2:4 that “God did not spare angels when they sinned, but cast them into hell and committed them to chains of gloomy darkness to be kept until the judgment.” And yet, being “chained” in hell until the judgment evidently does not mean that the disobedient angels (demons) can never “roam” the earth while they await their final fate—“the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41). Perhaps these demons were concerned that Jesus would perpetually confine them to the abyss in such a way that they could never again “go abroad” on earth, and thus be imprisoned to experience nothing but a foretaste of their eternal torment.
Whatever the case, the demons come up with a strange alternative: They beg Jesus to cast them into a herd of pigs that was feeding at some distance from them (Lk. 8:22–23). Jesus gives them permission, but when they enter the pigs, the herd rushes down the steep bank into the lake and drowns! The strangeness of this event, and the fact that there is nothing else like it in the rest of Scripture, suggests that it is deeply symbolic. First, it’s significant that they went into pigs. This sent a clear message, especially to Jesus’s Jewish disciples, but also to the Gentiles (who would have known how a Jewish Rabbi like Jesus viewed pigs), that the spirits were unclean and acting contrary to God’s will. Second, it’s worth considering a connection between the abyss and the lake. Bodies of water, because of their depth and darkness, are a kind of abyss. As early as Genesis 1:2, the waters are called “the deep.” When the great fish carried Jonah deep into the water, he spoke of being in “the belly of Sheol … the deep … the heart of the seas” (Jonah 2:2–4). It’s at least possible that Jesus—not the demons—caused the pigs to drown in the sea, and that it was a sign of their future destruction in the abyss. In other words, Jesus agreed to allow the demons to continue to “roam the earth,” but when he cast them out, he plunged them into a symbolic “abyss” as a clear sign to everyone around of their eventual fate. Demons may be permitted for a time, but the arrival of God’s kingdom in Jesus guarantees the eventual defeat of all evil forces in the world.
Verse 34 highlights what a dramatic impact this scene had on the herdsmen, who saw the whole thing go down and immediately fled into the city to tell everyone about it. If Jesus had quietly sent the demons away, causing them to invisibly depart to the abyss, it would have had a much less dramatic impact on those around—and as we have seen, a key goal of Jesus in delivering from demons was to be a noticeable sign of the arrival of God’s kingdom. The kingdom of God was thus testified to in a powerful way in Gentile country. Verse 37 says, “all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked him to depart from them, for they were seized with great fear.” The man who was delivered from the demons tried to go with Jesus, but Jesus said, “‘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.”
Seven More Demons Enter the House (Luke 11:24–26)
Another strange passage about demons in Luke’s Gospel is Luke 11:24–26. This passage comes directly after the account in which Jesus is accused of casting out demons by the power of Satan (Luke 11:14–23). Jesus says,
24 “When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and finding none it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ 25 And when it comes, it finds the house swept and put in order. 26 Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and dwell there. And the last state of that person is worse than the first.”
Jesus speaks of a demon being cast out. Then, Jesus describes the demon as roaming around or going abroad (as we discussed above), looking for someone else to afflict. The demon is said to go through “waterless places,” which is a way of referring to the desert (recall that the “Legion” drove the man in the Gerasenes to the desert, and that Satan tempted Jesus in a desert). Deserts are symbolic of spiritual dryness and death, and so a fitting place for demonic activity.
When the demon doesn’t find someone else to afflict, Jesus describes it as returning to his “house” from which he came—which refers to the person from which he was cast out, not to a physical building. (There is nothing in Scripture that speaks of demons or “ghosts” haunting houses!) The demon finds it “swept and put in order” (empty of a demon, since the demon was cast out). But evidently the person who was set free from the demon did not take the necessary steps to protect themselves against future demonic attacks, because Jesus describes the demon bringing seven other spirits more evil than itself to enter and dwell “there” (in the man). Recall that Mary Magdalene is said to have had seven demons (Lk. 8:2), seven being a number associated with completion, and thus a full demonic onslaught. Jesus concludes, “The last state of that person is worse than the first.” The passage is thus meant as a warning: If the kingdom of God drives back the power of Satan in your life, be careful to believe in Jesus and follow him, or Satan will regain control over you, and you’ll end up worse than before!
Conclusion
In conclusion, here are a few takeaways from our study of demonic activity in Luke’s Gospel:
- Demons are real and powerful forces in the world. We struggle against spiritual forces (Ephesians 6:12).
- Demons in the Gospels are sometimes the cause of people’s physical or psychological problems, but most times they are not, and we should never assume a connection!
- We shouldn’t look for demons around every corner, or expect to see the same kind of visible demonic activity as was on display in Jesus’s day.
- Demons don’t live in houses, they look for people to bring under Satan’s influence. The idea of “ghosts” haunting houses is inconsistent with Scripture.
- Demons are powerless compared to Jesus, so we don’t need to fear them. They fear our God! (James 2:19).
- The kingdom of God, which powerfully arrived in Jesus, is overcoming and will one day fully drive back the kingdom of Satan.
- Demons are destined for the abyss—eternal destruction.
- We should continue in faith and put on the armor of God so that Satan doesn’t deceive us or again get a foothold in our lives (Ephesians 6:10–20).
- “There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is to disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same delight” (C. S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters).
