The spirit, not the man, immediately recognizes Jesus and addresses him directly. It is obvious that the spirit is on the defensive and fears being destroyed (1:24). Jesus sternly admonishes him to be silent and to come out of the man (1:25). The spirit has no choice but to obey. He comes out without an argument or fight, all the while torturing the poor man (1:26). Mark concludes the story with a detailed description of the spectators’ amazement (1:27–28). The bystanders were already “astounded” at Jesus’s teaching at the beginning of the story (1:22). Their continuous amazement thus frames
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