And when the unclean spirits saw Him, they fell down before Him and cried out, “You are the Son of God!”
Parallel translations
- WEB The unclean spirits, whenever they saw him, fell down before him, and cried, “You are the Son of God!”
- KJV And unclean spirits, when they saw him, fell down before him, and cried, saying, Thou art the Son of God.
- NKJV And the unclean spirits, whenever they saw Him, fell down before Him and cried out, saying, “You are the Son of God.”
- NASB And whenever the unclean spirits saw Him, they would fall down before Him and shout, “You are the Son of God!”
- NLT And whenever those possessed by evil spirits caught sight of him, the spirits would throw them to the ground in front of him shrieking, “You are the Son of God!”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Unclean spirits fall before Jesus and confess him as the Son of God. It matters because even demons recognize his true divine identity.
Overview
The evil spirits, encountering Jesus, are forced to acknowledge his authority and his identity as God's Son. Their terrified recognition contrasts sharply with the blindness of the religious leaders. Mark shows that Jesus' divine sonship is undeniable even in the spiritual realm, though it must be confessed in faith, not mere fear, to bring salvation.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Luke 4:41Demons also came out of many people, shouting, “You are the Son of God!” But He rebuked the demons and would not allow them to speak, because they knew He was the Christ.
- Luke 8:28When the man saw Jesus, he cried out and fell down before Him, shouting in a loud voice, “What do You want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You not to torture me!”
- Mark 1:23–24Suddenly a man with an unclean spirit cried out in the synagogue:
- Matt 8:29“What do You want with us, Son of God?” they shouted. “Have You come here to torture us before the appointed time?”
- Jas 2:19You believe that God is one. Good for you! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.
- Matt 4:3The tempter came to Him and said, “If You are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”
- Acts 16:17This girl followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation!”
- Matt 4:6“If You are the Son of God,” he said, “throw Yourself down. For it is written: ‘He will command His angels concerning You, and they will lift You up in their hands, so that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.’”
- Matt 8:31So the demons begged Jesus, “If You drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs.”
- Acts 19:13–17Now there were some itinerant Jewish exorcists who tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those with evil spirits. They would say, “I bind you by Jesus, whom Paul proclaims.”
- Mark 5:5–6Night and day in the tombs and in the mountains he kept crying out and cutting himself with stones.
- Matt 14:33Then those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God!”
- Mark 1:1This is the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'
How Mark 3:11 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.