Mark 9:14-29

The Casting Out of the Deaf And Dumb Spirit (9:14-29).

This incident provides a fitting climax to this section of the Gospel. It is the final example of Jesus acting to cast out evil spirits. That was a work in which He was involved from the beginning (Mark 1:23) and had become a permanent aspect of His ministry (Mark 1:32; Mark 1:34; Mark 3:11; Mark 3:22; Mark 5:1) and of the ministry of His disciples (Mark 6:7). Now at the end of His Galilean ministry He faces a final challenge. In the chiasmus of the section from Mark 4:35 to Mark 9:33 a it parallels the healing of the Gadarene demoniac, and this is very fitting for both cases presented peculiar characteristics. Both represented unusually difficult cases. It is doubtful if the disciples would have been able to cope with the Gadarene demoniac, and they were certainly unable to cope with the unclean spirit here. The Gadarene demons tried to prevent Jesus' success by weight of numbers, the unclean spirit here did it by being deaf and dumb so that it could not be ‘attacked', and had thus prevented the disciples from being successful. The Gadarene demons destroyed their host swine in water, the unclean spirit here had constantly tried to destroy its host in the same way, although up to this point had failed (Mark 9:22). Thus we must not underestimate the authority that Jesus reveals here. But it was an indicator that no demon, however astute, could resist His awesome power. It was a fitting finale to His revelation as the Messiah and His transfiguration on the mountain.

The passage also brings out the limitations of the disciples. They had been given authority over unclean spirits (Mark 6:7) but here they had come across a case in which they had failed miserably. They could not cope with the subtlety of this unclean spirit. Their failure was, however, a salutary lesson, for as the later evidence reveals, they were beginning to feel a little superior to others. Considering what was happening in their lives it was not surprising. Their being sent out to preach in order to pass on the teaching of Jesus, the ability bestowed on them by Jesus to heal and cast out evil spirits, and the respect that would be paid to them by the masses who came to hear Jesus would be enough to cause many a person to feel inordinately proud. It was something that had to be tempered by careful warnings. And there is no better warning than the kind of failure that they suffered here.

On descending from the mountain Jesus and his three disciples found that a man had brought along his son who was possessed by a dumb spirit, and that none of the disciples had been able to cast it out. It was clearly a more powerful spirit than they had previously dealt with. Indeed we note how Jesus had to bid it not to return (Mark 9:25). But Jesus cast it out permanently and demonstrated once again His unique power and authority. The account is very vivid and suggests an eyewitness to the final stages of the ministry, which we need have no doubt was Peter.

Analysis of 9:14-29.

a And when they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd about them, and Scribes questioning with them (Mark 9:14).

b And immediately all the crowd, when they saw Him, were greatly amazed, and running to Him saluted Him, and He asked them, “What do you question with them?” (Mark 9:15).

c And one of the crowd answered Him, “Teacher, I brought to You my son, who has a dumb spirit” (Mark 9:17).

d And wherever it takes him, it dashes him down, and he foams, and grinds his teeth, and pines away, and I spoke to Your disciples that they should cast it out, and they could not” (Mark 9:18).

e And He answers them and says, “O faithless generation, how long shall I be with you? how long shall I bear with you? Bring him to Me” (Mark 9:19)..

f And they brought him to Him, and when he saw Him, immediately the spirit tore him grievously, and he fell on the ground, and wallowed foaming (Mark 9:20).

e And He asked his father, “How long time is it since this has come to him?” And he said, “From a child” (Mark 9:21).

d “And often it has cast him both into the fire and into the waters, to destroy him, but if You can do anything, have compassion on us, and help us” (Mark 9:22).

c And Jesus said to him, “If you can! All things are possible to him who believes”. Immediately the father of the child cried out, and said, “I believe, you help my unbelief” (Mark 9:23).

b And when Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to him, “You dumb and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him, and enter no more into him”, and having cried out, and torn him much, he came out, and the boy became as one dead, insomuch that the majority said, “He is dead”. But Jesus took him by the hand, and raised him up, and he arose (Mark 9:25).

a And when He was come into the house, His disciples asked Him privately, “How is it that we could not cast it out?” And he said to them, “This kind can come out by nothing, except by prayer” (Mark 9:28).

Note that in ‘a' the disciples were being questioned because of their failure, and in the parallel they question Jesus because of His success. In ‘b' the crowd run together and welcome Him, and are amazed, and in the parallel the crowd run together and see Him heal the boy, and we are left to imagine that they are amCommentary on The Gospel of Mark (Mark 9:5)