Luke 8:27

27 And when He stepped out on the land, there met Him a certain man from the city who had demons for a long time. And he wore no clothes, nor did he live in a house but in the tombs.

Luke 8:27 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 8:27

And when he went forth to land
The Persic and Ethiopic versions read,

when they went forth to land;
when Christ and his disciples came out of the ship, and went ashore:

there met him out of the city a certain man;
or rather, there met him a certain man of the city; that is, one that belonged to, and was an inhabitant of Gadera, or some city thereabout; who had been born and brought up, and had lived there; for certain it is, that he did not now come out of the city, but out of the tombs, as in ( Matthew 8:28 ) ( Mark 5:2 ) and to which agrees the account of him that follows here; in the Vulgate Latin version, these words, "out of the city" are omitted; which the interpreter not understanding, might leave out, as carrying in it a seeming contradiction to the accounts of him:

which had devils long time.
The Vulgate Latin, Syriac, Persic, and Arabic versions, read in the singular number, which had a devil: and which agrees with ( Luke 8:29 ) for though more are after mentioned, yet the many might be under one head, and chief of them; but in all the copies, it is read in the plural number, "devils"; and to this agrees the name of legion, for there were many devils in him, and they had a possession of him a long time which aggravates the miserable condition of this man, and illustrates the power of Christ in freeing him from them:

and wore no clothes;
but went naked, and when any were put upon him, would tear them in pieces:

neither abode in any house,
but in the tombs; (See Gill on Mark 5:3).

Luke 8:27 In-Context

25 But He said to them, "Where is your faith?" And they were afraid, and marveled, saying to one another, "Who can this be? For He commands even the winds and water, and they obey Him!"

26 Then they sailed to the country of the Gadarenes, which is opposite Galilee.

27 And when He stepped out on the land, there met Him a certain man from the city who had demons for a long time. And he wore no clothes, nor did he live in a house but in the tombs.

28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out, fell down before Him, and with a loud voice said, "What have I to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me!"

29 For He had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For it had often seized him, and he was kept under guard, bound with chains and shackles; and he broke the bonds and was driven by the demon into the wilderness.

Footnotes

• [a]. NU-Text reads who had demons and for a long time wore no clothes.