Mark 9:26
And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead.
Original Language Analysis
Historical Context
The violent manifestation and death-like state terrified witnesses, demonstrating the severe oppression the boy endured. Ancient observers seeing someone unconscious after violent seizures might conclude death had occurred. The detail that 'many said, He is dead' emphasizes the crowd's conviction that the boy died in the exorcism. This intensified the miracle's impact when Jesus raised him—not mere healing but resurrection from apparent death. The language 'took him by the hand, and lifted him up' (ἐκράτησεν τῆς χειρὸς αὐτοῦ καὶ ἤγειρεν αὐτόν) uses egeirō (ἤγειρεν, 'raised'), the same verb for Jesus' resurrection, suggesting theological significance beyond physical healing.
Questions for Reflection
- How does the pattern of violent resistance before deliverance reflect spiritual warfare believers experience when being freed from sin's bondage?
- What does the death-and-resurrection imagery in this exorcism teach about the nature of salvation as dying to the old life and rising to new life?
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Analysis & Commentary
The demon's final resistance was violent: 'the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead' (κράξας καὶ πολλὰ σπαράξας ἐξῆλθεν, καὶ ἐγένετο ὡσεὶ νεκρός). The demon's 'cry' (kraxas, κράξας) and violent convulsing (sparaxas, σπαράξας) represent final furious opposition before forced submission. The boy appeared dead (hōsei nekros, ὡσεὶ νεκρός), causing many to say 'He is dead' (v. 26). This resembles death and resurrection—the old life dominated by demons must 'die' before new life emerges. Jesus then 'took him by the hand, and lifted him up' (v. 27), evoking resurrection language (Mark 1:31; 5:41). Deliverance involves dying to bondage and rising to freedom. This pattern prefigures believers' death to sin and resurrection to new life in Christ (Romans 6:3-11).