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And when He had come out of the boat, immediately there met Him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit,
Mark 5:2 · New King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB When he had come out of the boat, immediately a man with an unclean spirit met him out of the tombs.
  • KJV And when he was come out of the ship, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit,
  • BSB As soon as Jesus got out of the boat, He was met by a man with an unclean spirit, who was coming from the tombs.
  • NASB When He got out of the boat, immediately a man from the tombs with an unclean spirit met Him.
  • NLT When Jesus climbed out of the boat, a man possessed by an evil spirit came out from the tombs to meet him.

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

A man controlled by an unclean spirit immediately meets Jesus among the tombs.

Overview

Mark portrays the man's desperate condition, dwelling among the dead and dominated by an evil spirit. The unclean spirit recognizes Jesus at once, as the powers of darkness always do. This encounter sets up a striking display of Christ's authority to deliver the most hopeless captive.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 9

  • Mark 1:23Immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, and he cried out,
  • Isa 65:4who sit among the graves, and spend nights in secret places; who eat pig’s meat, and broth of abominable things is in their vessels;
  • Mark 5:8For he said to him, “Come out of the man, you unclean spirit!”
  • Luke 9:42While he was still coming, the demon threw him down and convulsed him violently. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, and healed the boy, and gave him back to his father.
  • Mark 3:30— because they said, “He has an unclean spirit.”
  • Mark 4:1Again he began to teach by the seaside. A great multitude was gathered to him, so that he entered into a boat in the sea, and sat down. All the multitude were on the land by the sea.
  • Mark 1:26The unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him.
  • Luke 8:27When Jesus stepped ashore, a certain man out of the city who had demons for a long time met him. He wore no clothes, and didn’t live in a house, but in the tombs.
  • Mark 7:25For a woman, whose little daughter had an unclean spirit, having heard of him, came and fell down at his feet.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (2)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Mark videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Mark 5:2YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on MarkMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

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 5:2 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.