Commandments and Traditions

7 The Pharisees and some of the experts in the law came from Jerusalem and gathered around Jesus. ² They saw some of his disciples eating bread with unclean (that is, unwashed) hands. ³ In fact, the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they scrub their hands with a fist,^[a] holding to the tradition of the elders. ⁴ When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash.^[b] And there are many other traditions they adhere to, such as the washing^[c] of cups, pitchers, kettles, and dining couches.^{[d] 5} The Pharisees and the experts in the law asked Jesus, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders? Instead they eat bread with unclean hands.”

⁶ He answered them, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites. As it is written:

⁸ “You abandon God’s commandment but hold to human tradition like the washing of pitchers and cups, and you do many other such things.”^{[f] 9} He continued, “You have a fine way of setting aside God’s commandment to keep^[g] your own tradition. ¹⁰ For example, Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’^[h] and ‘Whoever speaks evil of his father or mother must be put to death.’^{[i] 11} But you say, ‘If a man tells his father or mother, “Whatever help you might have received from me is corban”’^[j] (which means an offering), ¹² then you no longer let him do anything for his father or mother. ¹³ So you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. You do many things like that.”

¹⁴ He called the crowd to him again and said, “Everyone, listen to me and understand. ¹⁵ There is nothing outside of a man that can make him unclean by going into him. But the things that come out of a man are what make a man unclean. ¹⁶ If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!”^[k]

¹⁷ After he had left the crowd and entered a house, his disciples asked him about this illustration. ¹⁸ He said, “Are you lacking in understanding too? Do you not understand that whatever goes into a man from the outside cannot make him unclean? ¹⁹ For it does not enter his heart but goes into his stomach and goes out of him into the latrine—in this way all foods are purified.”^[l]

²⁰ He continued, “What comes out of a man, that is what makes a man unclean. ²¹ In fact, from within, out of people’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual sins, theft, murder, ²² adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, unrestrained immorality, envy, slander, arrogance, and foolishness. ²³ All these evil things proceed from within and make a person unclean.”

The Faith of a Gentile Woman

²⁴ Jesus got up and went from there to the region of Tyre and Sidon. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it, but he could not remain hidden. ²⁵ Instead, when a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit heard about him, she immediately came and fell down at his feet. ²⁶ This woman was a Greek, of Syro-Phoenician origin. She asked him to drive the demon out of her daughter.

²⁷ Jesus said to her, “Let the children be fed first, because it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to their little dogs.”

²⁸ “Lord,” she answered, “their little dogs under the table also eat some of the children’s crumbs.”

²⁹ Then he said to her, “Because of this statement, go! The demon has gone out of your daughter.”

³⁰ She went home, found the child lying on the bed and the demon gone.

³¹ Jesus left the region of Tyre again and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, within the region of the Decapolis.

“Ephphatha! Be Opened!”

³² They brought a man to him who was deaf and had a speech impediment. They pleaded with Jesus to place his hand on him. ³³ Jesus took him aside in private, away from the crowd. He put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then he spit and touched the man’s tongue. ³⁴ After he looked up to heaven, he sighed and said, “Ephphatha!” (which means “Be opened!”) ³⁵ Immediately the man’s ears were opened, his tongue was set free, and he began to speak plainly. ³⁶ Jesus gave the people strict orders to tell no one, but the more he did so, the more they kept proclaiming it. ³⁷ They were amazed beyond measure and said, “He has done everything well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak!”