They begged him that he would not command them to go into the abyss.
Parallel Translations
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They begged him that he would not command them to go into the abyss.
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And they besought him that he wolde not commaunde the to goo out into the depe.
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And they besought him, that he would not commaund them to goe out into the deepe.
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Contradictions (1)
Questions where the Bible appears to say two different things, with the passages on each side set together.
Cross-references (12)
Passages linked to Luke 8:31 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Matthew 25:41 Then he will say also to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels;
- Job 1:11 But stretch out your hand now, and touch all that he has, and he will renounce you to your face.”
- Job 2:5 But stretch out your hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will renounce you to your face.”
- Luke 8:28 When he saw Jesus, he cried out, and fell down before him, and with a loud voice said, “What do I have to do with you, Jesus, you Son of the Most High God? I beg you, don’t torment me!”
- Philippians 2:10-11 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
- Revelation 9:1-2 The fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star from the sky which had fallen to the earth. The key to the pit of the abyss was given to him. He opened the pit of the abyss, and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke from a burning furnace. The sun and the air were darkened because of the smoke from the pit.
- Revelation 9:11 They have over them as king the angel of the abyss. His name in Hebrew is “Abaddon”, but in Greek, he has the name “Apollyon”.
- Revelation 11:7 When they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up out of the abyss will make war with them, and overcome them, and kill them.
- Revelation 17:8 The beast that you saw was, and is not; and is about to come up out of the abyss and to go into destruction. Those who dwell on the earth and whose names have not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world will marvel when they see that the beast was, and is not, and shall be present.
- Revelation 19:20 The beast was taken, and with him the false prophet who worked the signs in his sight, with which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur.
- Revelation 20:1-3 I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key of the abyss and a great chain in his hand. He seized the dragon, the old serpent, which is the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole inhabited earth, and bound him for a thousand years, and cast him into the abyss, and shut it, and sealed it over him, that he should deceive the nations no more, until the thousand years were finished. After this, he must be freed for a short time.
- Revelation 20:14-15 Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. If anyone was not found written in the book of life, he was cast into the lake of fire.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (8 sources)
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 31 And they besought him that he would not…
31 And they besought him that he would not command them to go out into the deep.
Ver. 31. To go out into the deep] i.e. Hell, that bottomless deep, Rev 20:3; 2Pe 2:4, where they could do no more hurt: which would be another hell unto them. Augustus, consulting Apollo’s oracle, was told, that a Hebrew child had stopped his mouth, and sent him with a mittimus {a} to hell, &c. (Pucer de Orac.)
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{a} A warrant under the hand and seal of a justice of the peace or other proper officer, directed to the keeper of a prison, ordering him to receive into custody and hold in safe-keeping, until delivered in due course of law, the person sent and specified in the warrant. ŒD
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And there was there an herd of many swine,....…
And there was there an herd of many swine,.... About two thousand, Mar 5:13,
Feeding on the mountain; See Gill on Mar 5:11.
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And they besought him that he would suffer them to enter into them; which they could not do, without his leave:
and he suffered them: See Gill on Mar 5:12, Mar 5:13
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain The abyss - That is, the bottomless pit.
The abyss - That is, the bottomless pit.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 31. And they besought him that he would…
Verse 31. And they besought him that he would not command them to go out into the deep.] In the Chaldaic philosophy, mention is made of certain material demons, who are permitted to wander about on the earth, and are horribly afraid of being sent into abysses and subterranean places. Psellus says, De Daemonibus: "These material demons fearing to be sent into abysses, and standing in awe of the angels who send them thither, if even a man threaten to send them thither and pronounce the names of those angels whose office that is, it is inexpressible how much they will be affrighted and troubled. So great will their astonishment be, that they cannot discern the person that threatens them. And though it be some old woman or little old man that menaces them, yet so great is their fear that they depart as if the person who menaces had a power to kill them." See Stanley's Chaldaic Philosophy.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 31. they besought] If parekalei be the right reading,…
31. they besought] If parekalei be the right reading, it should be rendered “he besought Him,” for the plural is used in the next verse.
to go out into the deep] The ‘abyss’ (Hebrew tehom) intended is perhaps the prison of wicked spirits (Rom_10:7; Judges 6; Rev_20:3).
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St Mark says “that He would not send them out of the country.”
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (31) To go out into the deep.—Better, into the…
(31) To go out into the deep.—Better, into the abyss. The word is not found in the other Gospels, and it clearly means, not the deep waters of the Galilean lake, but the pit, the “bottomless pit” of Rev_9:1-2; Rev_9:11. The man, identifying himself with the demons, asks for any doom rather than that.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain And they besought him that he would not command…
And they besought him that he would not command them to go out into the deep. This time the voice and the request apparently proceed from the terrible presence which had made the soul of the unhappy man their temporary habitation. The direful confusion in the state of the poor demoniac is shown by this request. By whom was it made? The bystanders could discern no difference between the possessed and the spirits dwelling in the afflicted human being. So St. Mark, in his relation, puts these words into the demoniac"s mouth, "And he besought him much that he would not send them away out of the country;" apparently here partly conscious of his own personal being, and partly identifying himself with the demoniac forces which were afflicting him. The request is a strange one, and suggests much anxious thought. What is the abyss these rebel-spirits dreaded with so great a dread? It would seem as though, to use Godet"s thought, that for beings alienated from God, the power of acting on the world is a temporary solace to their unrest, and that to be deprived of this power is for them just what a return to prison is for the captive. St. Mark"s expression here is a curious one. He represents the spirits requesting Jesus "not to send them away out of the country." The two accounts put together tell us that these spirits were aware, if they were driven out of the country whatever that expression signified, this earth possibly they must go out into the deep, the abyss, what is called "the bottomless pit" in Rev_9:1, Rev_9:2, Rev_9:11. Any doom seemed to these lost ones preferable to that. The whole train of thought suggested by the incident and the words of the Lord is very terrible. We see at least one reason why the first preachers of the Word have selected this exorcism. It indeed lifts a bit of the curtain which hangs between us and the night of endless woe!
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 8:31 the bottomless pit: The Greek word abussos means…
8:31 the bottomless pit: The Greek word abussos means “bottomless” and often refers to the underworld prison of evil spirits or fallen angels (Rev 9:1-2, 11; 11:7; 17:8; 20:1, 3; cp. 2 Pet 2:4). The metaphor is taken from the apparently bottomless depth of the ocean (the ancients had no means for sounding the ocean depths, so to them it was bottomless).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.