Demon Tossing: The Biblical Authority to Cast Out Devils
Demon Tossing: The Biblical Authority to Cast Out Devils
Written on 2 September 2026.
The Bible repeatedly records Jesus Christ casting out devils, giving His disciples authority over devils, and His disciples exercising that authority. The expression demon tossing is a convenient description of the simple act found repeatedly in Scripture: an unclean spirit is commanded to come out of a person in the name and authority of Jesus Christ.
This doctrine should not be confused with witchcraft. The biblical pattern is not to employ devils, negotiate with them for assistance, or direct them to harm somebody. The believer exercises authority over the unclean spirit and commands it to depart.
The fundamental distinction is therefore:
- Demon tossing — commanding an unclean spirit to come out.
- Witchcraft — attempting to employ, direct, cooperate with, or make use of unclean spirits.
The devils are not presented in Scripture as helpers of the believer. They are subjected to the authority of Jesus Christ.
Signs Following Them That Believe
One of the clearest statements concerning casting out devils occurs in Mark 16. Jesus does not merely describe what He Himself had done. He says that casting out devils would be among the signs following believers.
Mark 16:17-18 (KJV)
17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
The wording is significant:
In my name shall they cast out devils
The authority is not presented as originating in the believer himself. It is exercised in the name of Jesus Christ.
Jesus Cast Out Devils With His Word
Jesus repeatedly demonstrated direct authority over unclean spirits.
Matthew 8:16 (KJV)
When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick:
There is no elaborate ritual described here. Christ "cast out the spirits with his word."
Mark records a specific example:
Mark 1:23-26 (KJV)
23 And there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out,
24 Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God.
25 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, Hold thy peace, and come out of him.
26 And when the unclean spirit had torn him, and cried with a loud voice, he came out of him.
Christ speaks directly to the unclean spirit:
Hold thy peace, and come out of him.
The command is directed against the devil's presence in the man.
Devils Are Subject Through the Name of Jesus Christ
Jesus gave His disciples authority over devils.
Luke 9:1 (KJV)
Then he called his twelve disciples together, and gave them power and authority over all devils, and to cure diseases.
The seventy later returned and specifically reported that the devils were subject unto them through Christ's name.
Luke 10:17 (KJV)
And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name.
This establishes an important biblical relationship. The disciples were not subject to the devils. The devils were subject unto them through the name of Jesus Christ.
The believer therefore does not need to cooperate with an unclean spirit. The scriptural pattern is authority over it.
Paul Commanded the Spirit to Come Out
The same pattern continues after the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ.
Acts 16 describes a woman possessed with a spirit of divination. Paul eventually addressed the spirit itself.
Acts 16:16-18 (KJV)
16 And it came to pass, as we went to prayer, a certain damsel possessed with a spirit of divination met us, which brought her masters much gain by soothsaying:
17 The same followed Paul and us, and cried, saying, These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation.
18 And this did she many days. But Paul, being grieved, turned and said to the spirit, I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her. And he came out the same hour.
Notice that Paul did not address the woman as though she herself were the spirit. He:
turned and said to the spirit
His command was simple:
I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.
This provides one of the clearest scriptural models for what is meant by demon tossing.
Casting Out Devils Is Not Witchcraft
A crucial distinction must be maintained between commanding an unclean spirit and using an unclean spirit.
Paul did not ask the spirit of divination to perform a service for him. He did not redirect its divination toward his enemies. He commanded it to come out.
Likewise Jesus did not employ unclean spirits as agents against other people.
This is important when understanding spiritual authority. If somebody attempted to command a devil to remain inside another person in order to torment that person, or attempted to command a devil to injure somebody, this would reverse the biblical pattern. Instead of exercising authority against the devil's activity, the person would be attempting to use demonic activity against somebody.
That resembles witchcraft rather than biblical deliverance.
The scriptural model is:
Come out of him.
And:
I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.
The believer commands the unclean spirit to cease its occupation or activity. He does not recruit it.
Christ Commanded a Spirit Not to Return
The authority demonstrated by Christ was not necessarily limited merely to saying "come out." In Mark 9 Christ also commanded the spirit not to enter the person again.
Mark 9:25-26 (KJV)
25 When Jesus saw that the people came running together, he rebuked the foul spirit, saying unto him, Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him.
26 And the spirit cried, and rent him sore, and came out of him: and he was as one dead; insomuch that many said, He is dead.
The command contains two components:
- Come out of him.
- Enter no more into him.
This demonstrates that Christ could command not only departure but also prohibit the spirit from subsequently entering the same person.
Devils Can Be Connected With Physical Affliction
Several passages associate possession by devils with physical impairment.
Matthew 9:32-33 (KJV)
32 As they went out, behold, they brought to him a dumb man possessed with a devil.
33 And when the devil was cast out, the dumb spake: and the multitudes marvelled, saying, It was never so seen in Israel.
Another example involves both blindness and inability to speak.
Matthew 12:22 (KJV)
Then was brought unto him one possessed with a devil, blind, and dumb: and he healed him, insomuch that the blind and dumb both spake and saw.
Luke gives another example:
Luke 11:14 (KJV)
And he was casting out a devil, and it was dumb. And it came to pass, when the devil was gone out, the dumb spake; and the people wondered.
These passages do not teach that every illness is caused by a devil. Matthew 8:16 itself distinguishes between casting out spirits and healing the sick. Nevertheless, Scripture plainly records particular cases in which the removal of a devil was associated with the removal of a physical impairment.
More Than One Devil Can Be Present
Scripture also establishes that multiple devils can be associated with one person.
Luke 8:2 (KJV)
And certain women, which had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities, Mary called Magdalene, out of whom went seven devils,
The account of Legion provides the most dramatic example.
Mark 5:8-13 (KJV)
8 For he said unto him, Come out of the man, thou unclean spirit.
9 And he asked him, What is thy name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion: for we are many.
10 And he besought him much that he would not send them away out of the country.
11 Now there was there nigh unto the mountains a great herd of swine feeding.
12 And all the devils besought him, saying, Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them.
13 And forthwith Jesus gave them leave. And the unclean spirits went out, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea, (they were about two thousand;) and were choked in the sea.
The important statement is:
My name is Legion: for we are many.
Thus the Bible itself rules out the assumption that there can only be one unclean spirit associated with one person.
Knowing the Devil's Name Is Not Required
Although Jesus asked Legion his name, the other accounts demonstrate that learning a devil's personal name is not a prerequisite for casting it out.
Paul simply said:
I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.
Jesus likewise said:
Come out of the man, thou unclean spirit.
And:
Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him.
Consequently there is no general biblical rule saying that a believer must first discover a devil's name before commanding it to depart.
Demon Tossing Does Not Require Prior Diagnosis
An important practical consequence follows from the nature of the command itself.
If someone commands an unclean spirit to depart from a person who has no unclean spirit, there is nothing for that command to address. The command does not require accusing the person publicly of having a devil.
This distinction is important.
One does not need to announce:
This person has a devil.
The command itself can simply be conditional upon the existence of the thing being commanded. If there is no unclean spirit there, there is nothing to cast out.
Moishe therefore teaches that uncertainty about whether a person actually has an unclean spirit does not prevent privately attempting to cast one out. In his formulation, if there is no devil present, nothing happens.
This is also why demon tossing, in this doctrine, does not require constructing an elaborate diagnostic system beforehand.
Casting Out at a Distance
The account of the Canaanite woman is especially significant because Jesus was not physically beside the woman's daughter when the deliverance occurred.
Matthew 15:22-28 (KJV)
22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.
23 But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.
24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
25 Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me.
26 But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs.
27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.
28 Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.
Mark records the result particularly clearly:
Mark 7:29-30 (KJV)
29 And he said unto her, For this saying go thy way; the devil is gone out of thy daughter.
30 And when she was come to her house, she found the devil gone out, and her daughter laid upon the bed.
The daughter was at home. Jesus was speaking with her mother elsewhere.
Physical proximity was therefore not necessary for this particular deliverance.
This is the principal scriptural example behind Moishe's teaching that spiritual authority is not inherently dependent upon standing physically beside the affected person.
The Devils Entered the Swine
Matthew gives another account of the devils entering animals.
Matthew 8:28-32 (KJV)
28 And when he was come to the other side into the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two possessed with devils, coming out of the tombs, exceeding fierce, so that no man might pass by that way.
29 And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment us before the time?
30 And there was a good way off from them an herd of many swine feeding.
31 So the devils besought him, saying, If thou cast us out, suffer us to go away into the herd of swine.
32 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.
This passage establishes several points simultaneously:
- Devils recognized Jesus as the Son of God.
- They understood that a future time of torment awaited them.
- They knew Christ possessed authority to cast them out.
- Devils could inhabit human beings.
- Devils could also enter animals.
The Disciples Actually Cast Out Devils
Casting out devils was not merely an authority theoretically given to the disciples. Scripture records them doing it.
Mark 6:12-13 (KJV)
12 And they went out, and preached that men should repent.
13 And they cast out many devils, and anointed with oil many that were sick, and healed them.
Again Scripture distinguishes between casting out devils and healing sick people while recording both as part of the disciples' ministry.
Handkerchiefs, Aprons, Healing, and Evil Spirits
Acts records an unusual manifestation of the power of God through Paul:
Acts 19:11-12 (KJV)
11 And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul:
12 So that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them.
The text attributes these events to God:
And God wrought special miracles by the hands of Paul
The handkerchiefs and aprons therefore should not be understood as magical objects. Scripture presents what happened as special miracles wrought by God.
Binding and Loosing
Moishe also connects demon tossing with the biblical language of binding and loosing.
Matthew 16:19 (KJV)
And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
The language appears again in Matthew 18:
Matthew 18:18-20 (KJV)
18 Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
19 Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.
20 For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.
Moishe understands these passages as providing believers with substantial authority in spiritual warfare. In his teaching, casting out an unclean spirit, binding its activity, and loosing somebody from evil spiritual activity are related applications of spiritual authority.
The basic principle nevertheless remains the same: authority is exercised against the unclean spirit rather than through cooperation with it.
Agreement in Prayer
The early believers repeatedly acted in agreement before God.
Acts 1:14 (KJV)
These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.
Acts 4 records an especially powerful example:
Acts 4:24 (KJV)
And when they heard that, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, Lord, thou art God, which hast made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all that in them is:
The result of their prayer is recorded later in the same passage:
Acts 4:31 (KJV)
And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.
This corresponds with Christ's statement concerning agreement in Matthew 18:19.
Demon Tossing and Separation From Organized Religion
An important feature of Moishe's teaching is that demon tossing does not require membership in an organized church, attendance at a religious building, or the intervention of professional clergy.
The New Testament examples concern authority derived from Jesus Christ.
Paul says:
I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.
And Christ says:
In my name shall they cast out devils.
Moishe consequently presents demon tossing as something a believer can do without entering an organized religious institution. Indeed, he warns strongly against organized churches and particularly against indiscriminately allowing religious people to lay hands upon a believer.
This makes demon tossing part of a broader doctrine of direct dependence upon God rather than dependence upon religious organizations.
The Simplicity of Demon Tossing
The most striking feature of the biblical examples is their simplicity.
Jesus:
Come out of the man, thou unclean spirit.
Jesus again:
Thou dumb and deaf spirit, I charge thee, come out of him, and enter no more into him.
Paul:
I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.
There is no requirement in these passages for elaborate ceremonies, special buildings, lengthy interrogations of spirits, or discovering elaborate classifications and names of devils.
Moishe therefore reduces the practice to its basic scriptural pattern: command the unclean spirit to come out in the name of Jesus Christ.
His teaching further holds that this can be done privately, that physical distance does not inherently prevent spiritual action, and that uncertainty over whether a devil is actually present does not require an accusation or diagnosis. If no unclean spirit is present, there is simply nothing for such a command to cast out.
Authority Over Devils, Not Service to Devils
The distinction between demon tossing and witchcraft can therefore be summarized from the scriptural pattern.
The disciples said:
Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name.
Paul said:
I command thee in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.
Jesus said:
In my name shall they cast out devils.
The relationship is one of subjection and expulsion.
The believer does not need a devil to accomplish his purposes. He does not need to send a devil against another human being. He does not need to ask a devil for supernatural information. He does not need to cooperate with one.
Those things would turn the relationship around and move toward the use of unclean spirits associated with witchcraft.
Biblical demon tossing is the opposite: the devil is commanded to leave.
Conclusion
Casting out devils is not an obscure concept appearing once in Scripture. It occurs throughout the earthly ministry of Jesus Christ, in the ministry of His disciples, and later in the ministry recorded in Acts.
Jesus Christ cast out devils.
His disciples cast out devils.
Paul commanded a spirit to come out in the name of Jesus Christ.
The seventy declared that devils were subject unto them through Christ's name.
And Jesus said:
Mark 16:17 (KJV)
And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
The scriptural principle is therefore not cooperation with unclean spirits but authority over them through Jesus Christ.
Demon tossing, as Moishe uses the expression, is simply applying that principle: if an unclean spirit is present, command it to come out. If there is no unclean spirit present, then trying to cast out unclean spirits from the person will not harm that person.
See also
Reference
This article draws particularly upon Moishe's Bible study on demon tossing broadcast from Israel on September 2, 2026. In the study he works through the passages concerning Jesus casting out devils, the disciples' authority over devils, Paul's casting out of the spirit of divination, binding and loosing, casting out at a distance, and the distinction between casting out devils and attempting to use devils as in witchcraft.
- Moishe — US IRAN WAR BACK ON BUT FOR HOW LONG. LET'S BIBLE STUDY DEMON TOSSING ALL THE VERSES — YouTube livestream, September 2, 2026:
https://www.youtube.com/live/9cWSIeEO4FQ?si=c57ZxcXjP6grqakW
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