What Does Matthew 8:32 Mean in the King James?

And he said unto them, Go. And when they were come out, they went into the herd of swine: and, behold, the whole herd of swine ran violently down a steep place into the sea, and perished in the waters.

Matthew 8:32 · KJV

The analysis reads the King James wording.

King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.

This verse in the Selah Decoded Version

THE KEY

The spirits’ departure is not the end of the violence: the whole herd they enter rushes toward destruction.

THE MEANING

The spirits leave the man and enter the herd; then every animal rushes down the steep slope into the sea and dies. The verse holds one person’s deliverance beside the destruction of the herd, making the cost visible.

THE ROOT

ἀπώλοντο

apōlonto

GROWS FROM

⁨ἀπόλλυμι⁩ (apollymi), from ⁨ὄλλυμι⁩ (ollymi)

To destroy, perish, or lose; in this verse, the herd perishes.

The Greek verb family behind “perished” also describes being lost. Destruction and lostness remain connected, while the verse makes the herd’s loss concrete in its plunge into the waters.

ALSO GROWS

apōleia: Destruction, ruin, loss.

ἀπώλεια

This related noun keeps destruction and loss within one word family, showing the resonance beneath the English endpoint “perished.”

apolōlōs: Lost; perished.

ἀπολωλώς

Luke 15:24 uses this form for the son who is found, opening a contrast between his lostness and the herd’s death.

THE PATTERN

What flows from an inner source makes that source visible through its direction and outcome.

Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life.

Proverbs 4:23 · KJVThe heart is shown as the source from which life flows, making its inner condition visible in what proceeds from it.

Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.

Matthew 7:17 · KJVThe tree’s fruit reveals the nature of the source, just as the herd’s movement makes the force within the scene visible.

Doth a fountain send forth at the same place sweet water and bitter?

James 3:11 · KJVThe water that comes from a fountain exposes its source, linking what flows outward to what gives rise to it.

THE THREAD

For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.

Luke 15:24 · KJV

Matthew’s “perished” and Luke’s “was lost” belong to the Greek verb family ⁨ἀπόλλυμι⁩ (apollymi, “perish” or “be lost”). The herd’s end is death, while Luke’s lost son is found: the shared word brings two different endings into view.

Read the SDV Bible.

Every verse has a Deep Dive in the app.

Get Selah Verse

The iPhone Bible app with the Selah Decoded Version.

Does something in this reading look wrong? Tell us