Matthew 8:28

The country of the Gergesenes (RV 'Gadarenes')] Gadara was an important Gentile town, the capital of Peræa, situated at least 6 m. from the lake in a south-easterly direction, and separated from it by a broad plain and the gorge of the river Hieromax, a tributary of the Jordan. St. Matthew mentions Gadara as the nearest well-known town. St. Mark and St. Luke state more precisely that the incident took place at Gerasa, to be identified with the ruins of Kersa or Gersa on the E. side of the lake. There are ancient tombs in the vicinity of this place, and about 1 m. S. of it is a steep, even slope, which may be the 'steep place' by which the swine rushed down into the sea. There was another Gerasa in Peræa, but it was fully 35 m. from the lake, and cannot possibly be the one meant.

Out of the tombs] Maniacs are still to be found among the tombs in the East. Warburton writes, 'On descending from these heights (of Lebanon), I found myself in a cemetery. The silence of the night was now broken by fierce yells and howlings, which I discovered proceeded from a naked maniac, who was fighting with some wild dogs for a bone. The moment he perceived me, he left his canine comrades, and bounding along with rapid strides, seized my horse's bridle, and almost forced him backward over the cliff.'