Traditions and Commandments

15 (A)Then Pharisees and (B)scribes came to Jesus (C)from Jerusalem and said, (D)“Why do your disciples break (E)the tradition of the elders? (F)For they do not wash their hands when they eat.” He answered them, “And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? For God commanded, (G)‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, (H)‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’ But you say, ‘If anyone tells his father or his mother, “What you would have gained from me is given to God,”[a] he need not honor his father.’ So for the sake of your tradition you have (I)made void the word[b] of God. (J)You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said:

(K)“‘This people honors me with their lips,
    but their heart is far from me;
in vain do they worship me,
    teaching as (L)doctrines the commandments of men.’”

What Defiles a Person

10 And he called the people to him and said to them, (M)“Hear and understand: 11 (N)it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” 12 Then the disciples came and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were (O)offended when they heard this saying?” 13 He answered, (P)“Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted (Q)will be rooted up. 14 Let them alone; (R)they are blind guides.[c] And (S)if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” 15 But Peter said to him, (T)“Explain the parable to us.” 16 And he said, (U)“Are you also still without understanding? 17 Do you not see that (V)whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled?[d] 18 But (W)what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. 19 For out of the heart come (X)evil thoughts, (Y)murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, (Z)slander. 20 (AA)These are what defile a person. But (AB)to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.”

The Faith of a Canaanite Woman

21 (AC)And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And behold, (AD)a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, (AE)“Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.” 23 But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, (AF)“Send her away, for she is crying out after us.” 24 He answered, (AG)“I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 But she came and (AH)knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26 And he answered, “It is not right to take the children's bread and (AI)throw it to the dogs.” 27 She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat (AJ)the crumbs that fall from their masters' table.” 28 Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, (AK)great is your faith! (AL)Be it done for you as you desire.” (AM)And her daughter was (AN)healed instantly.[e]

Jesus Heals Many

29 (AO)Jesus went on from there and walked (AP)beside the Sea of Galilee. And he (AQ)went up on the mountain and sat down there. 30 And great crowds came to him, bringing with them (AR)the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many others, and they put them at his feet, and he healed them, 31 (AS)so that the crowd wondered, when they saw the mute speaking, (AT)the crippled healthy, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And (AU)they glorified (AV)the God of Israel.

Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand

32 (AW)Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, (AX)“I have compassion on the crowd because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And I am unwilling to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.” 33 And the disciples said to him, “Where are we to get enough bread in such a desolate place to feed so great a crowd?” 34 And Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” They said, (AY)“Seven, and a few small fish.” 35 And directing the crowd to sit down on the ground, 36 he took the seven loaves and the fish, and (AZ)having given thanks he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 37 And (BA)they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up seven baskets full of the broken pieces left over. 38 Those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children. 39 And after sending away the crowds, he got into the boat and went to the region of (BB)Magadan.

Footnotes

  1. Matthew 15:5 Or is an offering
  2. Matthew 15:6 Some manuscripts law
  3. Matthew 15:14 Some manuscripts add of the blind
  4. Matthew 15:17 Greek is expelled into the latrine
  5. Matthew 15:28 Greek from that hour

15 Then Perushim and Sofrim (rabbonim) from Yerushalayim approach Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, saying,

Why do your talmidim transgress the Masoret HaZekenim (the Tradition of the Elders)? For they do not do the netilat yadayim before meals.

But Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, in reply to them, said, Why [do] also you transgress the mitzvat Hashem for the sake of your own masoros?

For Hashem has said, KABED ES AVICHA VES IMMECHA (honor your father and your mother, SHEMOT 20:12; DEVARIM 5:16), and MKALEL AVIV VIMMO MOT YUMAT (the one cursing his father and mother to die he must die, SHEMOT 21:17; VAYIKRA 20:9).

But you say, Whoever says to his abba or his em, whatever support you might have had from me, [it is] a gift [i.e., korban, dedicated to G-d].

By no means does [anyone who says this] honor his abba or em. And you nullify the Dvar Hashem on account of your masoros.

You tzevuim, well did Yeshayah give a dvar hanevuah concerning you, saying,

YAAN KI NIGASH HAAM HAZEH BEFIV UVISHFATAV KI-BDUNI VLIBO RICHAK MIMENI VATEHI YIRATAM OTI MITZVAT ANASHIM MELUMADAH (This people with their lips honor me, but their heart is far away from me,

and in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the mitzvot of [mere] men, YESHAYAH 29:13.)

10 And having summoned the multitude, Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach said to them, Listen and understand!

11 It is not the thing entering into the mouth that makes the man tameh (unclean), but the thing going out from the mouth this makes the man tameh.

12 Then Moshiach’s talmidim approached and say to him, Do you know that the Perushim took offense when they heard [this] dvar?

13 But Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, in reply, said, Every plant which Avi shbaShomayim did not plant will be uprooted.

14 Leave them. They are blind morei derech (guides, teachers) of [the] blind. And if the ivver (blind man) leads the ivrim (blind), both will fall into a pit.

15 And Kefa said in reply to Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, Explain to us the mashal.

16 And Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach said, Are you still devoid of binah (understanding)?

17 Do you not have daas that everything which enters into the mouth goes into the stomach and passes into a latrine?

18 But the things coming out from the mouth come out from the lev (heart), which makes tameh.

19 For out of the lev comes evil machshavot (thoughts): retzichot (murders), niufim (adulteries), zenunim (fornications), genevot (thefts), eduyot sheker (false testimonies), giddufim (revilements).

20 These are the things making the man tameh, but eating with hands lacking the netilat yadayim (ritual of the washing of the hands, see Mt 27:24), this does not make the man tameh.

21 And having gone from that place, Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach withdrew into the districts of Tzor and Tzidon.

22 And a woman from Canaan came out from those regions, and was shouting, Have mercy on me, Adoni, Ben Dovid! My bat is in torment possessed by shedim.

23 But Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach did not answer her a word. And Moshiach’s talmidim having approached, were asking him, saying, Send her away; she shouts after us.

24 But, Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach said in reply, I was not sent except to the Seh Oveid Beis Yisroel (the Lost Sheep of the House of Israel).

25 But she came and fell down before him, saying, Adoni, azreini (L-rd, help me).

26 But, Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach said in reply, It is not good to take the lechem of the Banim and throw it to the kelevim (dogs).

27 But she said, Ken, Adoni, but even the kelevim eat the crumbs falling from the tish (table) of their masters.

28 Then, in reply, Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach said to her, O woman, great [is] your emunah. Let it be done for you as you wish. And the bat (daughter) of her was given refuah (healing) at that very hour.

29 And having passed over from that place, Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach came beside Lake Kinneret, and having gone up the mountain, Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach was sitting there.

30 And great multitudes approached Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, having with them pisechim (lame), ivrim (blind), the crippled, the mute, and many others, and they laid them at Moshiach’s feet, and Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach gave the cholim (sick persons) refuah (healing).

31 The result was that the multitude was astounded, witnessing mute people speaking, cripples made whole, the pisechim (lame) walking, and the ivrim (blind people) seeing, and they gave kavod to Elohei Yisroel.

32 And Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach, having summoned his talmidim, said, I have rachmei shomayim for the multitudes, for already shloshah yamim (three days) they remain with me and they do not have anything they may eat, and I do not want to send them away famished, lest they might faint on the way.

33 And Moshiach’s talmidim say to him, From where bamidbar (in the wilderness) is there enough lechem for us to feed such a vast multitude?

34 And he says to them, How much lechem, how many loaves do you have? And they said, Sheva, and a few dagim.

35 And when Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach gave the command for the multitude to recline on the ground,

36 Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach took the loaves numbering sheva and the dagim, and, making a bracha, Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach offered the betziat halechem (the breaking of the bread) and served them to the talmidim, and Moshiach’s talmidim served them to the multitudes.

37 And everyone ate and they were satisfied, and the Rebbe’s farbrengen shirayim were numbering sheva baskets full.

38 And the ones eating were arbaat elafim (four thousand) men, not counting nashim and yeladim.

39 And having sent away the multitudes, Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach embarked in the sirah (boat), and came to the region of Magadan.