New International Reader s Version - NIrV - 1996
Mark 5
1
They went across the Sea of Galilee to the area of the Gerasenes.
Reference
Parallel theme
Mark 4:35
3
The man lived in the tombs. No one could keep him tied up anymore. Not even a chain could hold him.
Reference
4
His hands and feet had often been chained. But he tore the chains apart. And he broke the iron cuffs on his ankles. No one was strong enough to control him.
7
He shouted at the top of his voice, "Jesus, Son of the Most High God, what do you want with me? Promise before God that you won't hurt me!"
Reference
Parallel theme
Jude 1:6
Revelation 12:12
References God
Acts 16:17
Mark 3:11
Matthew 4:3
2 Peter 2:4
References Jesus
Matthew 8:29
Matthew 26:63
Acts 19:13
Luke 8:28
9
Then Jesus asked the demon, "What is your name?" "My name is Legion," he replied. "There are many of us."
Reference
People
10
And he begged Jesus again and again not to send them out of the area.
Reference
Parallel theme
Mark 3:22
11
A large herd of pigs was feeding on the nearby hillside.
13
Jesus allowed it. The evil spirits came out of the man and went into the pigs. There were about 2,000 pigs in the herd. The whole herd rushed down the steep bank. They ran into the lake and drowned.
Reference
Parallel theme
Job 2:6
14
Those who were tending the pigs ran off. They told the people in the town and countryside what had happened. The people went out to see for themselves.
15
Then they came to Jesus. They saw the man who had been controlled by many demons. He was sitting there. He was now dressed and thinking clearly. All this made the people afraid.
Reference
Evil
Luke 8:27
Mark 5:18
Parallel theme
Colossians 1:13
2 Timothy 1:7
Mark 5:9
1 Samuel 16:4
Psalm 14:5
Job 13:11
1 Chronicles 15:13
References Jesus
Luke 10:39
16
Those who had seen it told them what had happened to the man. They told about the pigs as well.
18
Jesus was getting into the boat. The man who had been controlled by demons begged to go with him.
Reference
Prayer
Mark 5:17
19
Jesus did not let him. He said, "Go home to your family. Tell them how much the Lord has done for you. Tell them how kind he has been to you."
Reference
20
So the man went away. In the area known as the Ten Cities, he began to tell how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.
Reference
21
Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee in a boat. It landed at the other side. There a large crowd gathered around him.
Reference
Parallel theme
Matthew 9:1
22
Then a man named Jairus came. He was a synagogue ruler. Seeing Jesus, he fell at his feet.
Reference
People
23
He begged Jesus, "Please come. My little daughter is dying. Place your hands on her to heal her. Then she will live."
Reference
24
So Jesus went with him. A large group of people followed. They crowded around him.
Reference
Parallel theme
Mark 5:31
26
She had suffered a great deal, even though she had gone to many doctors. She had spent all the money she had. But she was getting worse, not better.
Reference
Parallel theme
Jeremiah 8:22
27
Then she heard about Jesus. She came up behind him in the crowd and touched his clothes.
Reference
28
She thought, "I just need to touch his clothes. Then I will be healed."
29
Right away her bleeding stopped. She felt in her body that her suffering was over.
Reference
Blood
Leviticus 20:18
Parallel theme
Mark 5:34
Psalm 30:2
Psalm 103:3
Mark 3:10
Psalm 107:20
Psalm 147:3
Exodus 15:26
Luke 7:21
1 Kings 8:37
30
At once Jesus knew that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd. He asked, "Who touched my clothes?"
Reference
31
"You see the people," his disciples answered. "They are crowding against you. And you still ask, 'Who touched me?' "
Reference
Parallel theme
Luke 8:45
32
But Jesus kept looking around. He wanted to see who had touched him.
33
Then the woman came and fell at his feet. She knew what had happened to her. She was shaking with fear. But she told him the whole truth.
34
He said to her, "Dear woman, your faith has healed you. Go in peace. You are free from your suffering."
Reference
Faith
Luke 8:48
Matthew 9:22
Luke 7:50
Luke 18:42
Acts 14:9
Luke 17:19
Mark 10:52
Matthew 9:2
Parallel theme
Mark 5:29
Peace
2 Kings 5:19
35
While Jesus was still speaking, some people came from the house of Jairus. He was the synagogue ruler. "Your daughter is dead," they said. "Why bother the teacher anymore?"
Reference
36
But Jesus didn't listen to them. He told the synagogue ruler, "Don't be afraid. Just believe."
Reference
38
They came to the home of the synagogue ruler. There Jesus saw a lot of confusion. People were crying and sobbing loudly.
39
He went inside. Then he said to them, "Why all this confusion and sobbing? The child is not dead. She is only sleeping."
Reference
40
But they laughed at him. He made them all go outside. He took only the child's father and mother and the disciples who were with him. And he went in where the child was.
Reference
41
He took her by the hand. Then he said to her, "Talitha koum!" This means, "Little girl, I say to you, get up!"
Reference
People
42
The girl was 12 years old. Right away she stood up and walked around. They were totally amazed at this.
Reference
43
Jesus gave strict orders not to let anyone know what had happened. And he told them to give her something to eat.
Reference
Parallel theme
Matthew 8:4
Mark 1:43
Mark 7:36
Matthew 9:30
Mark 3:12
Matthew 17:9
John 5:41
Luke 8:56
Luke 5:14
Summary of Mark 5
Mark 5 begins immediately after Jesus and His disciples cross the Sea of Galilee, when they arrive in the region of the Gerasenes and encounter a man whose life has been devastated by a powerful spiritual oppression.
The man lives among the tombs, cannot be restrained even with chains, cries out constantly, and harms himself with stones, presenting one of the most disturbing pictures of human suffering in the Gospel.
When Jesus approaches, the unclean spirits recognize Him as the Son of the Most High God, and Jesus commands them to leave the man, revealing that the spiritual powers controlling him have no authority equal to that of Jesus.
The spirits identify themselves as Legion, indicating that many demons are involved, and they beg Jesus to send them into a nearby herd of pigs rather than out of the region.
Jesus permits this, and the approximately two thousand pigs rush down the hillside into the lake and drown, creating a dramatic visible demonstration of the destructive power that had previously dominated the man's life.
When local people arrive, they discover the formerly possessed man sitting calmly, dressed, and in his right mind, and instead of rejoicing, they become afraid and ask Jesus to leave their region.
The restored man wants to accompany Jesus, but Jesus gives him a different mission, telling him to return home and tell his family what the Lord has done and how He has shown mercy.
The man then travels through the Decapolis, telling people what Jesus has done for him, turning his personal restoration into a public testimony that spreads throughout the surrounding region.
When Jesus returns across the lake, another desperate situation awaits Him, as Jairus, a synagogue leader, falls at His feet and begs Him to heal his dying twelve-year-old daughter.
Jesus agrees to go with him, but the journey is interrupted by a woman who has suffered from bleeding for twelve years, spending everything she has on medical treatment without receiving relief.
Believing that touching Jesus' clothing will make her well, the woman reaches through the crowd and touches Him, and her bleeding immediately stops.
Jesus recognizes that healing power has gone out from Him and asks who touched His clothes, eventually bringing the trembling woman forward so that she can openly tell Him what has happened.
Jesus then assures her that her faith has made her well and sends her away in peace, demonstrating that His concern extends beyond simply removing physical symptoms to restoring dignity, confidence, and peace.
At that moment, messengers arrive from Jairus' house announcing that his daughter has died, making the situation appear beyond any possibility of recovery.
Jesus nevertheless tells Jairus not to be afraid but to believe, and He takes Peter, James, and John with Him into the house.
There they encounter the sounds of mourning, and Jesus tells the people that the child is not permanently lost but is like someone sleeping, causing them to laugh because they believe her death is final.
Jesus then enters the room with the girl's parents and His three disciples, takes the child by the hand, and commands her to get up.
Immediately the twelve-year-old girl rises and walks, leaving everyone completely astonished and demonstrating Jesus' authority over death itself.
Jesus then tells the family not to spread the news and instructs them to give the girl something to eat, ending an extraordinary miracle with an ordinary act of parental care that confirms her restoration to normal life.
Mark 5 therefore contains three interconnected stories of restoration: a man enslaved by spiritual oppression, a woman devastated by chronic illness, and a child overcome by death.
In each story, Jesus enters a situation that appears beyond human ability to resolve, and in each case He brings restoration where ordinary human solutions have failed.
The chapter also highlights the importance of faith, because the restored man becomes a witness, the suffering woman approaches Jesus in faith, and Jairus is specifically instructed to continue believing even after receiving the news of his daughter's death.
The central message is that Jesus possesses authority over spiritual evil, chronic suffering, social isolation, and death, while His response to people in desperate circumstances is marked by both extraordinary power and deep compassion.
Mark 5 ultimately presents Jesus as the One who restores people whom society cannot restore and situations that human strength cannot overcome, showing through deliverance, healing, and resurrection that God's kingdom reaches even into the darkest places of human suffering and brings hope where there appears to be none.
The man lives among the tombs, cannot be restrained even with chains, cries out constantly, and harms himself with stones, presenting one of the most disturbing pictures of human suffering in the Gospel.
When Jesus approaches, the unclean spirits recognize Him as the Son of the Most High God, and Jesus commands them to leave the man, revealing that the spiritual powers controlling him have no authority equal to that of Jesus.
The spirits identify themselves as Legion, indicating that many demons are involved, and they beg Jesus to send them into a nearby herd of pigs rather than out of the region.
Jesus permits this, and the approximately two thousand pigs rush down the hillside into the lake and drown, creating a dramatic visible demonstration of the destructive power that had previously dominated the man's life.
When local people arrive, they discover the formerly possessed man sitting calmly, dressed, and in his right mind, and instead of rejoicing, they become afraid and ask Jesus to leave their region.
The restored man wants to accompany Jesus, but Jesus gives him a different mission, telling him to return home and tell his family what the Lord has done and how He has shown mercy.
The man then travels through the Decapolis, telling people what Jesus has done for him, turning his personal restoration into a public testimony that spreads throughout the surrounding region.
When Jesus returns across the lake, another desperate situation awaits Him, as Jairus, a synagogue leader, falls at His feet and begs Him to heal his dying twelve-year-old daughter.
Jesus agrees to go with him, but the journey is interrupted by a woman who has suffered from bleeding for twelve years, spending everything she has on medical treatment without receiving relief.
Believing that touching Jesus' clothing will make her well, the woman reaches through the crowd and touches Him, and her bleeding immediately stops.
Jesus recognizes that healing power has gone out from Him and asks who touched His clothes, eventually bringing the trembling woman forward so that she can openly tell Him what has happened.
Jesus then assures her that her faith has made her well and sends her away in peace, demonstrating that His concern extends beyond simply removing physical symptoms to restoring dignity, confidence, and peace.
At that moment, messengers arrive from Jairus' house announcing that his daughter has died, making the situation appear beyond any possibility of recovery.
Jesus nevertheless tells Jairus not to be afraid but to believe, and He takes Peter, James, and John with Him into the house.
There they encounter the sounds of mourning, and Jesus tells the people that the child is not permanently lost but is like someone sleeping, causing them to laugh because they believe her death is final.
Jesus then enters the room with the girl's parents and His three disciples, takes the child by the hand, and commands her to get up.
Immediately the twelve-year-old girl rises and walks, leaving everyone completely astonished and demonstrating Jesus' authority over death itself.
Jesus then tells the family not to spread the news and instructs them to give the girl something to eat, ending an extraordinary miracle with an ordinary act of parental care that confirms her restoration to normal life.
Mark 5 therefore contains three interconnected stories of restoration: a man enslaved by spiritual oppression, a woman devastated by chronic illness, and a child overcome by death.
In each story, Jesus enters a situation that appears beyond human ability to resolve, and in each case He brings restoration where ordinary human solutions have failed.
The chapter also highlights the importance of faith, because the restored man becomes a witness, the suffering woman approaches Jesus in faith, and Jairus is specifically instructed to continue believing even after receiving the news of his daughter's death.
The central message is that Jesus possesses authority over spiritual evil, chronic suffering, social isolation, and death, while His response to people in desperate circumstances is marked by both extraordinary power and deep compassion.
Mark 5 ultimately presents Jesus as the One who restores people whom society cannot restore and situations that human strength cannot overcome, showing through deliverance, healing, and resurrection that God's kingdom reaches even into the darkest places of human suffering and brings hope where there appears to be none.