Markus 5:3-4

5:3 He lived among the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain. 5:4 For his hands and feet had often been bound with chains and shackles, ¹  but ²  he had torn the chains apart and broken the shackles in pieces. No one was strong enough to subdue him.

Markus 5:11-13

5:11 There on the hillside, ³  a great herd of pigs was feeding. 5:12 And the demonic spirits ⁴  begged him, “Send us into the pigs. Let us enter them.” 5:13 Jesus ⁵  gave them permission. ⁶  So ⁷  the unclean spirits came out and went into the pigs. Then the herd rushed down the steep slope into the lake, and about two thousand were drowned in the lake.

[5:4]  ¹ tn Grk “he had often been bound with chains and shackles.” “Shackles” could also be translated “fetters”; they were chains for the feet.

[5:4]  ² tn Grk “and.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[5:11]  ³ tn Grk “mountain,” but this might give the English reader the impression of a far higher summit.

[5:12]  ⁴ tn Grk “they”; the referent (the demonic spirits) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:13]  ⁵ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:13]  ⁶ sn Many have discussed why Jesus gave them permission, since the animals were destroyed. However, this is another example of a miracle that is a visual lesson. The demons are destructive: They were destroying the man. They destroyed the pigs. They destroy whatever they touch. The point was to take demonic influence seriously, as well as Jesus’ power over it as a picture of the larger battle for human souls. There would be no doubt how the man’s transformation had taken place.

[5:13]  ⁷ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate a conclusion and transition in the narrative.