One very strong piece of evidence showing us that the historical Jesus and the authors of the Synoptic Gospels believed in the ontological existence of demons and were not simply using the language of the day (contra Christadelphians) is that of there being supernatural elements in exorcism accounts. Commenting on this, Thomas Farrar, himself a former Christadelphian, wrote:
There are at least three
supernatural elements in the exorcism stories (that is, apart from the
supernatural power wielded by Jesus) that are worth noting. These are
problematic not only for accommodationists but also for proponents of the error
theory, some of whom are not prepared to allow that there was anything
supernatural about Jesus’ exorcisms.
The first element is the
superhuman strength of the Gerasene demoniac which enabled him to tear chains
apart and break shackles in pieces (Mark 5:4). “No one was strong enough to
subdue him,” Mark tells us.
The second element, already
alluded to above, is the transfer of the Gerasene ‘legion’ of demons to the
herd of pigs. Some have tried to construe the pigs’ stampede either as an odd
coincidence or as triggered by the demoniac’s behaviour (the latter view is
taken by Langton). (Langton, Essentials of Demonology: a Study of Jewish and
Christian Doctrine, Its Origin and Development [1949]: 158-159) Sanders,
himself an avowed rationalist, dismisses such explanations:
Some have attempted to explain
this [psychosomatic] explanation to the story of the Gerasene demoniac and the
swine: by mental suggestion Jesus really did cure a 'demoniac', that is, he
brought him back to his right mind. The man went into convulsions, which
alarmed and panicked the swine, who charged over a cliff. I find this
explanation unconvincing, and I doubt that those who have offered it have ever
tried to panic a herd of swine by throwing a fit. The story is not subject to
rational explanation. (Sanders, The Historical Figure of Jesus [1995]:158)
The Gospels indicate that this
surprising turn of events occurred because the demons requested permission to
enter the pigs and Jesus granted it (Mark 5:12-13). That is, the demons had the
initiative and Jesus granted their request; his role was passive. The
accommodationist who affirms the supernatural component of Jesus’ miracles is
left to explain how a mental illness can unilaterally leave a person and enter
into a herd of pigs.
The third supernatural element to
note is the demons’ (or at least the demoniacs’) apparent supernatural
knowledge about Jesus’ identity. Mark records the unclean spirits or demons
habitually recognizing Jesus as the Son of God: “And whenever the
unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and cried out, ‘You are the
Son of God.’” (Mark 3:11). The demoniac in Mark 1:24 declares, “I know who you
are – the Holy One of God.” The Gerasene demoniac cries out, “What have you to
do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God?” (Mark 5:7) Luke similarly
records, “And demons came out of many, crying, ‘You are the Son of God!’ But he
rebuked them and would not allow them to speak, because they knew that he was
the Christ.” (Luke 4:41).
It is not just that one or two of
the demoniacs recognised Jesus’ identity (though that would be significant in
itself). As a rule, the demoniacs knew that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of
God. This is particularly noteworthy in Mark’s Gospel because of his emphasis
on the so-called Messianic secret. Jesus discourages people from revealing his
identity. Moreover, in the Markan narrative, no human being confesses
that Jesus is the Christ until Peter’s confession in Mark 8:29.
No human being (apart from
demoniacs) confesses that Jesus is the Son of God until the centurion at the
cross (Mark 15:39; cf. Mark 14:62). Prior to these confessions, it is only God
(Mark 1:11; 9:7) and the demoniacs who recognise Jesus as the Son of God. While
it may be suggested that the demoniacs surmised from the reports about Jesus
that he was the Son of God, in the Markan narrative context, their knowledge is
unmistakably supernatural. Mark portrays the demons as having supernatural
knowledge. This, position, of course, is not exclusive to Mark: Davies and
Allison state, with reference to Matt. 8:29,
The demons, like the devil, (4.3,
6), have supernatural knowledge: they know Jesus’ true identity without being
told (cf. Mk 3.11; 5.7; Lk 4:41; Acts 16.17). Contrast 9.27, where the
disciples still wonder who Jesus is. (Davies & Allison, Matthew 8-18
[2004]:81)
As Bock states succinctly with
reference to Luke’s Gospel, “The world of spirits knows who Jesus is.”(Bock
19941:438) This is actually another point of continuity with contemporary
demonology, as noted by Keener (commenting on Mark 1:24):
Ancients often recognized that
demons had access to supernatural knowledge; it is not surprising that these
demons perceive Jesus’ true identity, which the people there still do not
recognize. (Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament [1993]:138)
Twelftree, however, argues that
the demoniacs did not possess supernatural knowledge. He states: A case has
been made to show that what the demon(iacs) said in their consternation as they
confronted Jesus, was not the result of supernatural knowledge but what any
demon(iac) might have said when facing a well-known powerful Jewish exorcist.
What the demon(iac)s were doing – despite how it was understood later, even by
Mark – was not intentionally declaring Jesus’ messiahship. Instead they were,
through naming and attempting to bind Jesus, trying to defend themselves by disarming
their adversary. (Twelftree, Christ Triumphant: exorcism then and now [1985]:63)
Twelftree notes how this technique of the demons parallels other spiritual
power encounters in ancient literature, and in this respect it is further
confirmation of the continuity between the demonology of the Synoptic Gospels
and that of the broader world. It should be noted that Twelftree acknowledges
that Mark understood the demons to possess supernatural knowledge;
however, he does not regard Mark as historically accurate at this point.
Instead, he thinks that ‘Son’ in Mark 3:11 and 5:7 is a Markan redaction and
that the demoniacs actually addressed Jesus with the less precise ‘holy one of
God’ terminology of Mark 1:24, which he does not consider to be Messianic. In
this writer’s view, it is more likely that the demon(iac)s did address Jesus in
Messianic terms and, in any case, this is what the Synoptic writers portray to
the reader.
Watkins, a Christadelphian
writer, suggests that the demoniacs were compelled by the Spirit of God to make
“elevated utterances.” (Watkins, The Devil – the Great Deceiver: Bible
teaching on sin and salvation 1971:33) However, aside from stating Christ’s
true identity there is nothing elevated about these utterances: “What have you
to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?”
(Matt. 8:29). Moreover, if Jesus recognised that the demoniac’s utterance was
inspired by the Spirit of God, it is unlikely that he would have “rebuked him,
saying, ‘Be silent…’” (Mark 1:25)
It is very difficult to account
for the Synoptic writers’ ascription of supernatural characteristics to the
demon(iac)s if they did not regard demon possession as a supernatural
phenomenon. Hence this feature of the Synoptic accounts creates a major problem
for the accommodation theory (‘When an unclean spirit goes out of a person’: An Assessment of the Accommodation Theory of Demon Possession and Exorcism in the Synoptic Gospels, pp. 39-41)
Another aspect that further strenghtnes
this case is that Jesus trains others to engage in exorcism and accepts
the exorcism of those who, presumably, did hold to the ontological existence of
demons. As Farrar elsewhere noted:
6.7.Training and allowing others
to exorcise
It is this last line of evidence
which helped persuade Langton that the accommodation theory was untenable. He
stated, in words quoted earlier,
Not only did Jesus fail to
correct or deny those beliefs; throughout His ministry, by word and deed, He
also emphasized them, and solemnly conferred upon His disciples the power to
cast out evil spirits. (Langton 1949:160)
Indeed, we read in the Gospels of
two separate occasions on which Jesus sent out his disciples on a mission which
prominently featured exorcism. On the first occasion it was his inner circle of
twelve disciples that he sent out:
“And he called the twelve
together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure
diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal.”
(Luke 9:1-2; cp. Mark 6:7-13; Matt. 10:1ff)
Mark confirms that the disciples
“cast out many demons” (Mark 6:13).
The second mission included
seventy-two (or seventy) others. In this case the instructions did not
explicitly contain an instruction to engage in exorcism. However, the account
of the disciples’ return from the mission shows that, for them, their exorcisms
were the most memorable part of the trip!
The seventy-two returned with
joy, saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!"
And he said to them, "I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold,
I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the
power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice in
this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are
written in heaven." (Luke 10:17-20 ESV)
Jesus’ response demonstrates
that, not only does he fully endorse and celebrate their success in exorcism,
but as noted earlier he adds theological significance by linking it to the
defeat of Satan (cf. the parable of the strong man).
Clearly, Jesus did not merely
tolerate being regarded by others as an exorcist, as he might have done in the
interest of accommodation. He actively encouraged his disciples to exorcize
demons, celebrated when they did so successfully, and even coached them when
they failed (Mark 9:28- 29).
We further need to draw attention
to a surprising exchange between Jesus and John: John said to him
"Teacher, we saw someone casting out
demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following
us." But Jesus said, "Do not stop him, for no one who does a mighty
work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. For the one
who is not against us is for us. (Mark 9:38-40 ESV)
Here we have reference to someone who was apparently not a disciple of Jesus but who was conducting exorcisms in his name. Even if it is alleged (albeit with no evidence) that Jesus had given his own disciples special instructions to the effect that ‘demons’ weren’t really demons and exorcisms weren’t really exorcisms, it is highly unlikely that this ‘someone’ had received such instructions. It is virtually certain that this unknown exorcist believed in demons. In spite of this, Jesus not only endorsed the man’s practice, but described it as a “mighty work”! This is very difficult to explain if Jesus sought only to accommodate belief in demons, and nigh impossible to explain if he sought to subvert belief in demons. (Ibid., 43-44, emphasis in bold added)