Matthew 15:10-20

New Catholic Bible

¹⁰ Clean and Unclean.^[a] Then he called the people to him and said to them, “Listen and understand. ¹¹ It is not what goes into one’s mouth that defiles a person; what comes out of the mouth is what defiles him.”

¹² The disciples approached and said to him, “Do you realize that the Pharisees were greatly offended when they heard what you said?” ¹³ He answered, “Every plant that my Father has not planted will be uprooted. ¹⁴ Leave them alone. They are blind guides. And if one blind person guides another, they will both fall into a pit.”

¹⁵ Peter said to him, “Explain that parable to us.” ¹⁶ Jesus replied, “Are even you still without understanding? ¹⁷ Do you not realize that whatever goes into the mouth passes through the stomach and is discharged into the sewer? ¹⁸ But what comes out of the mouth originates in the heart, and this is what defiles a person. ¹⁹ For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, perjury, slander. ²⁰ These are the things that defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not make anyone unclean.”