The lie 

Bind or Loose the Strongman?

Tradition teaches to bind the strongman, however, upon study of the scriptures
this is not the correct application of the term STRONG MAN and binding. This is a lie leading many people astray, and keeping them in bondage. Let’s walk through the scriptures to get a clear understanding of what is taking place Biblically.

Backstory.

I was part of a deliverance team and I noticed that many people were not getting breakthrough. I knew that breakthrough was possible. I believed it, because I had received it, with my sons and my being healed from highly reactive Celiac disease. I went to an authority I could trust, the Holy Spirit. When questioned, the Holy Spirit guided me to research the Bible for the concepts of binding, loosing and the strongman. I dug into the scriptures and have included what I learned in this study.

After applying the understanding of the Word, and helping others to renew their thinking with the true power of these concepts held in Scripture, we started to see a massive shift. Participants were not only being transformed by the renewing of their mind, they were getting set free from the bondage quickly, and walking in the power of the Holy Spirit.
My prayer is that your eyes are opened to the twisting of scripture and that you have a clear understanding of the concepts of strongman, binding and loosing so that you too can walk in freedom, and help the captives be set free in the mighty name of Jesus.

Bind & Loose

“Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven,
and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Matthew 18:18-20

We hold GREAT responsibility!

Whatever WE DO HERE on earth, will be DONE IN HEAVEN!

Summary of terms

1. Bind – tie down, restrict, hold back, restrain something from doing what it wants
2. Loose – free something, unlock, release, permit.
3. Strongman – See below for the deeper study

Scriptures: Bind & Loose

“The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me, because the LORD has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release (loose) from darkness for the prisoners,” Isaiah 61:1

• • To “Bind up the broken hearted”, is a translation that can lead to confusion.

• • What is actually says if we look at the Hebrew: “to heal the broken hearted to the captives liberty, and to [those who are] bound the opening of the prison”

• • We are to LOOSE the captives, not bind people! So you can see that “binding and loosing” can be confusing when you read it only in English. 

Principles of Biblical Warfare

“Then should not this woman, a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan has kept bound for eighteen long years, be set free (loosed) on the Sabbath day from what bound her?” Luke 13:16

1. The enemy has her bound, so we know we are not binding the individual
2. We are instructed by Jesus to LOOSE HER from the bonds. 
3. We are to set the captive free!

Key Points

• We need to set others free and LOOSE them from the bonds of Satan.
  • We are called to set the captives free, not to loose satan and the demonic and bind the individual up
• We must RESIST the enemy, CAST OUT demons, and STAND against his schemes.
• We are NEVER called to BIND, only the enemy binds!
• The only time something other than satan binding is in the Bible is in Revelation 20:1-3. A mighty, unnamed angel descends from heaven with a key to the “bottomless pit” and a great chain to bind Satan. The angel seizes the “dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan,” binds him for a thousand years, and throws him into the pit, where he is sealed to prevent him from deceiving the nations.

What believers ARE called to do:

• CAST OUT demons (Mark 16:17)
• RESIST the devil and he will flee (James 4:7)
• STAND against his schemes (Ephesians 6:11)
• SET CAPTIVES FREE / LOOSE them (Isaiah 61:1)

Scriptures: Strongman

• Word Study via BibleHub.com

  • Greek: Ἰσχυρὸς: (Root: ischyros)
  • Adjective – Nominative Masculine Singular
  • Strong’s 2478: Strong (originally and generally of physical strength); mighty, powerful, vehement, sure. 
  • From ischus; forcible.
  • 29 Occurrences of STRONG

• Scriptures

  • Mighty Wind: Matthew 14:30
  • Strong Angel: Revelation 5:2, Revelation 10:1,Revelation 18:21
  • God is mightier than man: Matthew 3:11, Mark 1:7, Luke 3:16, 
  • Severe Famine: Luke 15:14,
  • Wisdom of God is Stronger: 1 Cor 1:15
  • God shames the strong: 1 Corinthians 1:2
  • Strongman and binding: Luke 11:21-24, Mark 3:23 Matt 12:25-30

• See all occurrences here: https://biblehub.com/greek/strongs_2478.htm

What is Missing? 

NOT ONE VERSE talks about a STRONG ENEMY!

NOT ONE VERSE refers to the enemy as a strongman!

BEWARE!!! THE ENEMY HAS CREPT INTO DELIVERANCE AND
BINDING VICTIMS WHERE WE ARE TO BE RAISING UP WARRIORS!

 So what’s the TRUTH?

This is where we go to the Word. In the next section, we will look at the scriptures regarding the Strongman; Luke 11:21-24, Mark 3:23 and Matt 12:25-30.

Strongman Scripture References

1. Lessons from Luke

Luke 11:21“When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own house, his possessions are safe. 22 But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, he takes away the armor in which the man trusted and divides up his plunder. 23 “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. 24 “When an impure spirit comes out of a person, it goes through arid places seeking rest and does not find it. Then it says, ‘I will return to the house I left.’ 25 When it arrives, it finds the house swept clean and put in order. 26 Then it goes and takes seven other spirits more wicked than itself, and they go in and live there. And the final condition of that person is worse than the first.” 

1. The enemy’s job is to convince you that you are weak and under HIS CONTROL!
2. In CHRIST your strongman cannot be overpowered, unless convinced otherwise!
3. In Christ we are NOT weak. We must abide in Christ, be nourished by the Word and not try to be strong in our own strength, this is pride.

2. Lessons from Mark

Mark 3:23 “So Jesus called them over to him and began to speak to them in parables: “How can Satan drive out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand.
25 If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand. 26 And if Satan opposes himself and is divided, he cannot stand; his end has come. 27 In fact, no one can enter a strong man’s house without first tying him up. Then he can plunder the strong man’s house.
28 Truly I tell you, people can be forgiven all their sins and every slander they utter,
29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven; they are guilty of an eternal sin.” 

1. The enemy cannot enter your house, unless your strongman is bound up.
   In traditional deliverance, why are we BINDING THE STRONGMAN?
   >>>>>> If our strongman is bound, we need to LOOSE him from the enemy’s bondage.
2. The HOLY SPIRIT living in us empowers our strongman to live SET APART (holy), however, SIN (separation from God) empowers the enemy to continue to be in power over our strongman, which leads to bondage, not freedom.

3. Lessons from Matthew 

Matthew 12:25 Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand. 26 If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand? 27 And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your people drive them out? So then, they will be your judges. 28 But if it is by the Spirit of God that I drive out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 29 “Or again, how can anyone enter a strong man’s house and carry off his possessions unless he first ties up the strong man? Then he can plunder his house. 30 “Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters. 31 And so I tell you, every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.

1. 1. Kingdom Divided cannot stand. If we think the strong man is the enemy and drive him out, then we cannot stand against the enemy. Instead we give the enemy reign and our strongman becomes weaker and weaker.
   2. Satan cannot drive out satan, so if we believe that the strongman is the enemy, then we drive out the very being of who we are!
      >>>> This is why many people DO NOT GET SET FREE IN DELIVERANCE.
   3. We are the strongman of our inner house. We can choose to let CHRIST REIGN, or declare that our strongman is the enemy. Can you see the trap!?

Victim or Victor Mentality?

Due to the fact that so many believers do not know this within the scriptures, they are being led astray to continue to bind up the strongman of themselves, or the person they are ministering to. This puts the individual in a horrific space, as they think that they are subject to a STRONG enemy. If the enemy is ‘their strongman’ then this actually puts them in a victim mindset. The TRUTH is we are the strongman living in us, we have the FREE WILL to choose who our strongman will serve, the enemy or God.

So if we bless someone with the scriptures above and encourage them that they are the strongman in CHRIST, and that in CHRIST they can break every chain of bondage off of them, then we have just given them victory. This is what it means to break every chain. This is what it means that Jesus Yoke is easy and the burden is light.

Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Deliverance

Here are some deliverance prayers for you to use and apply to bless your strongman, or to work with someone else to have them repeat.

Personal Deliverance Prayer

This prayer is for you to pray to God over yourself for a self deliverance tool. It is a sample, please modify as you feel led.

(The next section has the leader’s version of this Deliverance prayer, with pauses at each line break for ease in having someone repeat the prayer.)

Lord, by the power of Your Word, I receive that I am the strongman of my house, my heart, my spirit and my body. I speak to my strongman to be LOOSED IN THE NAME OF JESUS for the GLORY OF GOD. By the Blood of Jesus on the cross, I choose you, Lord, to be my strength and the leader of my strongman. I invite you into the throneroom of my heart and choose to have the Lord Jesus on the throne and the Holy Spirit filling me up and residing over my inner house.

I break off every chain, curse and burden that has been binding my strongman in the name of Jesus. I repent from living under this false teaching that the strongman is the enemy. I command away every spirit of passivity from Garden of Eden up to now. I break off every agreement I have made, known or unknown with the enemy being my strongman and walking in passivity of my true nature.

I bless you, my strongman, to be led by the Holy Spirit in Jesus Name. 

AMEN.

Leader’s Deliverance Prayer

Directions: Read aloud for the participant(s) to repeat in their own words

(Remember if they stumble over any words, repeat them until they are clear, or a block is revealed; as this can be a stronghold keeping their strongman to remain in bondage.) 

PRAYER

Lord, by the power of Your Word (pause)

I receive that I am the strongman of my house,

my heart, 

my spirit 

and my body. 

I speak to my strongman

to be LOOSED IN THE NAME OF JESUS

for the GLORY OF GOD. 

By the Blood

of Jesus on the cross, 

I choose you, Lord, 

to be my strength 

and the leader of my strongman. 

I invite you into 

the throneroom of my heart

and choose to have 

the Lord Jesus 

on the throne 

and the Holy Spirit filling me up 

and residing over my inner house.

I break off every chain, curse and burden

that has been binding my strongman

 in the name of Jesus. 

I repent from living 

under this false teaching

that the strongman is my enemy.

I command away

every spirit of passivity

from Garden of Eden up to now.

I receive the truth, 

that I am the strongman of my house.

I break off every agreement I have made, 

known or unknown 

with the enemy being my strongman

and walking in passivity

of my true nature.

I bless you, my strongman, 

to be led by the Holy Spirit 

in Jesus Name. 

AMEN.

Choose your ending “IM” vs “OR”

Are you a victIM or a victOR? 

This teaching is meant to help you to engage in reading the WORD. My prayer is that you can see from this study the grave importance of KNOWING the Word for yourself. It is very important that you do not take anyone else’s word for it. It is wonderful to listen to teachings, but you must know the Word well enough to know when you are being led astray. 

I encourage you to pray and ask the Holy Spirit to give you wisdom and discernment of what you are reading. It is important to get training in how to read the Word and apply it to your life in order to become a disciple of Jesus. 

TEST THE SCRIPTURES FOR YOURSELF! 

1 Thessalonians 5:21 – Amplified Bible But test all things carefully [so you can recognize what is good]. Hold firmly to that which is good.

Acts 17:11 Now the Bereans were more noble-minded than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if these teachings were true.

1 John 4:1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God. For many false prophets have gone out into the world.

Romans 12:2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.

1 Corinthians 14:29 Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said.

Philippians 1:9-10 And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, / so that you may be able to test and prove what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ,

May you be richly blessed and washed in His Word!

Shalom, Joelle

For more information, concerns or to request copies of this teaching. Please email Joelle at joelle@thepeacekeepher.com

Disclaimer: The content on this site reflects the author’s research, study, and personal insights within the Ipseity Approach™ framework. It is offered for educational and inspirational purposes only and is not intended as medical, psychological, legal, or financial advice. Readers are encouraged to prayerfully discern and seek professional counsel where appropriate.

Copyright Notice: © 2013-2025 Mary Jo Ellen Orn, Ipseity Approach™, Restful Reset™, Rapid Anxiety Relief™. All rights reserved. No part of this content may be copied, reproduced, or distributed in any form without the express written permission of the author.