The Pig Eaters

“I have spread out My hands all day long to a rebellious people, who walk in the way which is not good, following their own thoughts …who sit among graves and spend the night in secret places; who eat pig’s flesh, and the broth of unclean meat is in their pots. Who say, ‘Keep to yourself, do not come near me, for I am holier than you!’ These are smoke in My nostrils, a fire that burns all the day.” – Isa 65:2,4-5

Reading this brought to mind the man who was housing the demonic Legion (see Mark 5:1-17).

I love when the Lord flips a story so we can see the true meaning. This is no longer just a story of deliverance.

The land of the Garasenes was originally the inheritance of Manasseh (a tribe of Israel), which means the laws for clean and unclean food was at one time adhered to in this region. It is true to think that the people living here should not have been eating pigs because under the law they were an unclean animal. The verses above from Isaiah do indeed apply to those who lived in the Garasenes.

Here’s the flip – the man whom Jesus gloriously set free, was a physical representation of the people who lost their pigs (aka Pig Eaters). In reality, it was the Pig Eaters who were in chains living among the tombs – they were full of rebellion, doing their own thing, sleeping during the day, full of secrets, living in a culture of death, and supposedly better than Jesus.

The Lord spread out His hands through the man who had a new life. Jesus gave him a heart for his persecutors, the Pig Eaters.

Read about this Unheard of Evangelist in this post.