Mark 4:1

The Parable of the Sower

4:1 Again he began to teach by the lake. Such a large crowd gathered around him that he got into a boat on the lake and sat there while ¹  the whole crowd was on the shore by the lake.

Mark 5:13

5:13 Jesus ²  gave them permission. ³  So ⁴  the unclean spirits came out and went into the pigs. Then the herd rushed down the steep slope into the lake, and about two thousand were drowned in the lake.

[4:1]  ¹ tn Grk “and all the crowd.” The clause in this phrase, although coordinate in terms of grammar, is logically subordinate to the previous clause.

[5:13]  ² tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:13]  ³ sn Many have discussed why Jesus gave them permission, since the animals were destroyed. However, this is another example of a miracle that is a visual lesson. The demons are destructive: They were destroying the man. They destroyed the pigs. They destroy whatever they touch. The point was to take demonic influence seriously, as well as Jesus’ power over it as a picture of the larger battle for human souls. There would be no doubt how the man’s transformation had taken place.

[5:13]  ⁴ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate a conclusion and transition in the narrative.