“Who had his dwelling among the tombs; and no man could bind him, no, not with chains:”
This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, even with a chain — the description of the man's condition is the most detailed account of demon possession in the Gospels. He lives in the tombs — not merely visits but inhabits. No one could bind him — the human community has tried and failed to restrain him. Even with a chain — the detail communicates previous unsuccessful attempts at containment; this is not the first time people have tried to manage his condition through physical restraint.
Church Fathers on Mark 5:3
Those who were in the ship enquired among themselves, 'What manner of man is this?' and now it is made known Who He is by the testimony of His enemies. For the demoniac came up confessing that He was the Son of God. Proceeding to which circumstance the Evangelist says, 'And they came over unto the other side, &c.'
Geraza is a noted town of Arabia, across the Jordan, near mount Galaad, which the tribe of Manasseh held, not far from the lake of Tiberias, into which the swine were precipitated.
Though Matthew says that there were two, Mark and Luke mention one, that you may understand that one of them was a more illustrious person, concerning whose state that country was much afflicted.
Read all 23 entries in the readerCatena Aurea · St. Thomas Aquinas, tr. J. H. Newman · public domain
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