Matthew 15
Easy-to-Read Version
God’s Law and Human Traditions(A)
15 Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus. They came from Jerusalem and asked him, 2 “Why do your followers not obey the traditions we have from our great leaders who lived long ago? Your followers don’t wash their hands before they eat!”
3 Jesus answered, “And why do you refuse to obey God’s command so that you can follow those traditions you have? 4 God said, ‘You must respect your father and mother.’[a] And God also said, ‘Whoever says anything bad to their father or mother must be killed.’[b] 5 But you teach that a person can say to their father or mother, ‘I have something I could use to help you. But I will not use it for you. I will give it to God.’ 6 You are teaching them not to respect their father. So you are teaching that it is not important to do what God said. You think it is more important to follow those traditions you have. 7 You are hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he spoke for God about you:
8 ‘These people honor me with their words,
but I am not really important to them.
9 Their worship of me is worthless.
The things they teach are only human rules.’” (B)
10 Jesus called the people to him. He said, “Listen and understand what I am saying. 11 It is not what people put in their mouth that makes them wrong.[c] It is what comes out of their mouth that makes them wrong.”
12 Then the followers came to Jesus and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees are upset about what you said?”
13 Jesus answered, “Every plant that my Father in heaven has not planted will be pulled up by the roots. 14 Stay away from the Pharisees. They lead the people, but they are like blind men leading other blind men. And if a blind man leads another blind man, both of them will fall into a ditch.”
15 Peter said, “Explain to us what you said earlier to the people.”
16 Jesus said, “Do you still have trouble understanding? 17 Surely you know that all the food that enters the mouth goes into the stomach. Then it goes out of the body. 18 But the bad things people say with their mouth come from the way they think. And that’s what can make people wrong. 19 All these bad things begin in the mind: evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual sins, stealing, lying, and insulting people. 20 These are the things that make people wrong. Eating without washing their hands will never make people unacceptable to God.”
Jesus Helps a Non-Jewish Woman(C)
21 Jesus went from there to the area of Tyre and Sidon. 22 A Canaanite woman from that area came out and began shouting, “Lord, Son of David, please help me! My daughter has a demon inside her, and she is suffering very much.”
23 But Jesus did not answer her. So the followers came to him and said, “Tell her to go away. She keeps crying out and will not leave us alone.”
24 Jesus answered, “God sent me only to the lost people[d] of Israel.”
25 Then the woman came over to Jesus and bowed before him. She said, “Lord, help me!”
26 He answered her with this saying: “It is not right to take the children’s bread and give it to the dogs.”
27 The woman said, “Yes, Lord, but even the dogs eat the pieces of food that fall from their master’s table.”
28 Then Jesus answered, “Woman, you have great faith! You will get what you asked for.” And right then the woman’s daughter was healed.
Jesus Heals Many People
29 Then Jesus went from there to the shore of Lake Galilee. He went up on a hill and sat down.
30 A large crowd of people came to him. They brought many other sick people and put them before him. There were people who could not walk, people who were blind, crippled, or deaf, and many others. Jesus healed them all. 31 People were amazed when they saw that those who could not speak were now able to speak. Crippled people were made strong. Those who could not walk were now able to walk. The blind were able to see. Everyone thanked the God of Israel for this.
Jesus Feeds More Than 4000(D)
32 Jesus called his followers to him and said, “I feel sorry for these people. They have been with me three days, and now they have nothing to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry. They might faint while going home.”
33 The followers asked Jesus, “Where can we get enough bread to feed all these people? We are a long way from any town.”
34 Jesus asked, “How many loaves of bread do you have?”
They answered, “We have seven loaves of bread and a few small fish.”
35 Jesus told the people to sit on the ground. 36 He took the seven loaves of bread and the fish. Then he gave thanks to God for the food. He broke the bread into pieces, which he gave to the followers, and they gave the food to the people. 37 All the people ate until they were full. After this, the followers filled seven baskets with the pieces of food that were not eaten. 38 There were about 4000 men there who ate. There were also some women and children. 39 After they all ate, Jesus told the people they could go home. He got into the boat and went to the area of Magadan.
Footnotes
- Matthew 15:4
Quote from Ex. 20:12; Deut. 5:16. - Matthew 15:4
Quote from Ex. 21:17. - Matthew 15:11 wrong Literally, “unclean” or “not pure,” meaning unacceptable to God. Also in verse 18.
- Matthew 15:24 people Literally, “sheep.”
Matthew 15
New Century Version
Obey God’s Law
15 Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem. They asked him, 2 “Why don’t your followers obey the unwritten laws which have been handed down to us? They don’t wash their hands before they eat.”
3 Jesus answered, “And why do you refuse to obey God’s command so that you can follow your own teachings? 4 God said, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’[a] and ‘Anyone who says cruel things to his father or mother must be put to death.’[b] 5 But you say a person can tell his father or mother, ‘I have something I could use to help you, but I have given it to God already.’ 6 You teach that person not to honor his father or his mother. You rejected what God said for the sake of your own rules. 7 You are hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he said about you:
8 ‘These people show honor to me with words,
but their hearts are far from me.
9 Their worship of me is worthless.
The things they teach are nothing but human rules.’” Isaiah 29:13
10 After Jesus called the crowd to him, he said, “Listen and understand what I am saying. 11 It is not what people put into their mouths that makes them unclean. It is what comes out of their mouths that makes them unclean.”
12 Then his followers came to him and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees are angry because of what you said?”
13 Jesus answered, “Every plant that my Father in heaven has not planted himself will be pulled up by the roots. 14 Stay away from the Pharisees; they are blind leaders.[c] And if a blind person leads a blind person, both will fall into a ditch.”
15 Peter said, “Explain the example to us.”
16 Jesus said, “Do you still not understand? 17 Surely you know that all the food that enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then goes out of the body. 18 But what people say with their mouths comes from the way they think; these are the things that make people unclean. 19 Out of the mind come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual sins, stealing, lying, and speaking evil of others. 20 These things make people unclean; eating with unwashed hands does not make them unclean.”
Jesus Helps a Non-Jewish Woman
21 Jesus left that place and went to the area of Tyre and Sidon. 22 A Canaanite woman from that area came to Jesus and cried out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter has a demon, and she is suffering very much.”
23 But Jesus did not answer the woman. So his followers came to Jesus and begged him, “Tell the woman to go away. She is following us and shouting.”
24 Jesus answered, “God sent me only to the lost sheep, the people of Israel.”
25 Then the woman came to Jesus again and bowed before him and said, “Lord, help me!”
26 Jesus answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and give it to the dogs.”
27 The woman said, “Yes, Lord, but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”
28 Then Jesus answered, “Woman, you have great faith! I will do what you asked.” And at that moment the woman’s daughter was healed.
Jesus Heals Many People
29 After leaving there, Jesus went along the shore of Lake Galilee. He went up on a hill and sat there.
30 Great crowds came to Jesus, bringing with them the lame, the blind, the crippled, those who could not speak, and many others. They put them at Jesus’ feet, and he healed them. 31 The crowd was amazed when they saw that people who could not speak before were now able to speak. The crippled were made strong. The lame could walk, and the blind could see. And they praised the God of Israel for this.
More than Four Thousand Fed
32 Jesus called his followers to him and said, “I feel sorry for these people, because they have already been with me three days, and they have nothing to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry. They might faint while going home.”
33 His followers asked him, “How can we get enough bread to feed all these people? We are far away from any town.”
34 Jesus asked, “How many loaves of bread do you have?”
They answered, “Seven, and a few small fish.”
35 Jesus told the people to sit on the ground. 36 He took the seven loaves of bread and the fish and gave thanks to God. Then he divided the food and gave it to his followers, and they gave it to the people. 37 All the people ate and were satisfied. Then his followers filled seven baskets with the leftover pieces of food. 38 There were about four thousand men there who ate, besides women and children. 39 After sending the people home, Jesus got into the boat and went to the area of Magadan.
Footnotes
- 15:4 ‘Honor . . . mother.’ Quotation from Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 5:16.
- 15:4 ‘Anyone . . . death.’ Quotation from Exodus 21:17.
- 15:14 leaders Some Greek copies continue, “of blind people.”
Matthew 15
New Life Version
Jesus Speaks Sharp Words to the Leaders (A)
15 Some of the teachers of the Law and the proud religious law-keepers from Jerusalem came to Jesus. They asked, 2 “Why do Your followers not obey the teaching that was given to them by our fathers? They do not wash their hands before they eat.” 3 Jesus said to them, “Why do you break the Law of God by trying to keep their teaching? 4 For God said, ‘Show respect to your father and mother.’ (B) And, ‘He who curses his father or mother will be put to death.’ (C) 5 But you say that if a man says to his parents that anything he has, that might have been of help to them, is already given to God, 6 he does not have to show respect by helping his father and mother. You are putting aside the Word of God to keep their teaching. 7 You who pretend to be someone you are not, Isaiah told about you. He said, 8 ’These people show respect to Me with their mouth, but their heart is far from Me. 9 Their worship of Me is worth nothing. They teach what men have made up.’” (D)
10 Jesus called the people to Him and said to them, “Listen and understand this! 11 It is not what goes into a man’s mouth that makes his mind and heart sinful. It is what comes out of a man’s mouth that makes him sinful.”
12 His followers came to Him. They said, “Did You know the proud religious law-keepers were ashamed and turned away because of You when they heard this?” 13 He said, “Every plant that My Father in heaven did not plant will be pulled up by the roots. 14 Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. If one blind man leads another blind man, they will both fall into a hole.”
15 Then Peter said to Jesus, “Tell us this picture-story so we can understand it.” 16 Jesus said, “Do you not understand yet? 17 Do you not understand that whatever goes into the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? 18 But whatever comes from the mouth has come out of the heart. These things make the man unclean inside. 19 For out of the heart come bad thoughts, killing other people, sex sins of a married person, sex sins of a person not married, stealing, lying, speaking against God. 20 These are the things that make the man unclean inside. It does not make a man sinful to eat with hands that have not been washed.”
Jesus Puts a Demon Out of a Girl (E)
21 Jesus went from there to the cities of Tyre and Sidon. 22 A woman came from the land of Canaan. She cried out to Jesus and said, “Take pity on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter has a demon and is much troubled.” 23 But Jesus did not speak a word to her. His followers kept asking, saying, “Send her away for she keeps calling us.” 24 He said, “I was sent only to the Jewish people who are lost.” 25 Then she came and got down before Jesus and worshiped Him. She said, “Lord, help me!” 26 But He said, “It is not right to take children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” 27 She said, “Yes, Lord, but even the dogs eat the pieces that fall from the table of their owners.” 28 Jesus said to her, “Woman, you have much faith. You will have what you asked for.” Her daughter was healed at that very time.
Jesus Heals All Who Come to Him
29 Jesus went from there and came to the Sea of Galilee. Then He went up the mountain and sat down. 30 Many people came to Him. They brought with them those who were not able to walk. They brought those who were not able to see. They brought those who were not able to hear or speak and many others. Then they put them at the feet of Jesus and He healed them. 31 All the people wondered. They saw how those who could not speak were now talking. They saw how those who could not walk were now walking. They saw how those who could not see were now seeing, and they gave thanks to the God of the Jews.
The Feeding of the Four Thousand (F)
32 Then Jesus called His followers to Him. He said, “I pity these people because they have been with Me three days and they have no food. I do not want to send them home without food. They might get too weak as they go.” 33 The followers said to Jesus, “Where can we get enough bread to feed them all in this desert?” 34 Jesus said to them, “How many loaves of bread do you have?” They said, “Seven loaves and a few small fish.” 35 He told the people to sit down on the ground. 36 Then He took the seven loaves of bread and the fish and gave thanks. He broke them and gave them to His followers. The followers gave them to the people. 37 They all ate and were filled. They picked up seven baskets full of pieces of bread and fish after the people finished eating. 38 Four thousand men ate. Women and children ate also. 39 After this Jesus sent the people away. Then He got into a boat and came to a place called Magadan.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International
The Holy Bible, New Century Version®. Copyright © 2005 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
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