The Tradition of the Elders

15 Then^(A) Jesus was approached by Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem, who asked,^{(B) 2} “Why do your disciples^(C) break the tradition of the elders? For they don’t wash their hands when they eat.”^[a](D)

³ He answered them, “Why do you break God’s commandment because of your tradition? ⁴ For God said:^[b] Honor your father and your mother;^[c](E) and, Whoever speaks evil of father or mother must be put to death.^{[d](F) 5} But you say, ‘Whoever tells his father or mother, “Whatever benefit you might have received from me is a gift committed to the temple,” ⁶ he does not have to honor his father.’^[e] In this way, you have nullified the word of God^[f] because of your tradition. ⁷ Hypocrites! Isaiah prophesied correctly about you when he said:

Defilement Is from Within

¹⁰ Summoning the crowd, he told them, “Listen and understand: ¹¹ It’s not what goes into the mouth that defiles^(H) a person, but what comes out of the mouth—this defiles a person.”^(I)

¹² Then the disciples came up and told him, “Do you know that the Pharisees took offense when they heard what you said?”

¹³ He replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father didn’t plant will be uprooted.^{(J) 14} Leave them alone! They are blind guides.^[i] And if the blind guide the blind, both will fall into a pit.”^(K)

¹⁵ Then Peter said, “Explain this parable to us.”^(L)

¹⁶ “Do you still lack understanding?” he^[j] asked. ¹⁷ “Don’t you realize^[k] that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is eliminated?^{[l] 18} But what comes out of the mouth comes from the heart, and this defiles a person.^{(M) 19} For from the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, sexual immoralities, thefts, false testimonies,^(N) slander.^{(O) 20} These are the things that defile a person; but eating with unwashed hands does not defile a person.”^(P)

A Gentile Mother’s Faith

²¹ When Jesus left there,^(Q) he withdrew to the area of Tyre and Sidon.^{(R) 22} Just then a Canaanite woman from that region came and kept crying out,^[m] “Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is severely tormented by a demon.”^(S)

²³ Jesus did not say a word to her. His disciples^(T) approached him and urged him, “Send her away because she’s crying out after us.”

²⁴ He replied, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”^(U)

²⁵ But she came, knelt before him, and said, “Lord, help me!”

²⁶ He answered, “It isn’t right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”^(V)

²⁷ “Yes, Lord,” she said, “yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”

²⁸ Then Jesus replied to her, “Woman, your faith is great. Let it be done for you as you want.” And from that moment^[n] her daughter was healed.^(W)

Healing Many People

²⁹ Moving on from there,^(X) Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee.^(Y) He went up on a mountain and sat there, ³⁰ and large crowds came to him, including the lame, the blind, the crippled, those unable to speak, and many others. They put them at his feet, and he healed them. ³¹ So the crowd was amazed when they saw those unable to speak talking, the crippled restored, the lame walking, and the blind seeing,^(Z) and they gave glory to the God of Israel.

Feeding of the Four Thousand

³² Jesus called his disciples and said,^(AA) “I have compassion on the crowd, because they’ve already stayed with me three days and have nothing to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry, otherwise they might collapse on the way.”

³³ The disciples said to him, “Where could we get enough bread in this desolate place^(AB) to feed such a crowd?”

³⁴ “How many loaves do you have?” Jesus asked them.

“Seven,” they said, “and a few small fish.”

³⁵ After commanding the crowd to sit down on the ground, ³⁶ he took the seven loaves and the fish, gave thanks, broke them, and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds.^{(AC) 37} They all ate and were satisfied. They collected the leftover pieces—seven large baskets full. ³⁸ Now there were four thousand men who had eaten, besides women and children. ³⁹ After dismissing the crowds, he got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan.^[o](AD)

The Traditions of the Elders

7 The^(A) Pharisees^(B) and some of the scribes^(C) who had come from Jerusalem^(D) gathered around him. ² They observed that some of his disciples were eating bread with unclean^(E)—that is, unwashed—hands. ³ (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their hands a ceremonial washing, keeping the tradition of the elders. ⁴ When they come from the marketplace,^(F) they do not eat unless they have washed.^(G) And there are many other customs they have received and keep, like the washing of cups, pitchers, kettles, and dining couches.^[a](H)) ⁵ So the Pharisees^(I) and the scribes^(J) asked him, “Why don’t your disciples live^[b] according to the tradition of the elders,^(K) instead of eating bread with ceremonially unclean^[c] hands?”

⁶ He answered them, “Isaiah^(L) prophesied^(M) correctly about you hypocrites,^(N) as it is written: ^(O)

⁸ Abandoning the command of God, you hold on to human tradition.”^{[e] 9} He also said to them, “You have a fine way of invalidating God’s command in order to set up^[f] your tradition! ¹⁰ For Moses^(T) said: Honor your father and your mother; ^[g](U) and Whoever speaks evil of father or mother must be put to death.^{[h](V) 11} But you say, ‘If anyone tells his father or mother: Whatever benefit^(W) you might have received from me is corban’” (that is, an offering^(X) devoted to God), ¹² “you no longer let him do anything for his father or mother. ¹³ You nullify the word of God^(Y) by your tradition that you have handed^(Z) down. And you do many other similar things.”

¹⁴ Summoning^(AA) the crowd again, he told them, “Listen to me, all of you, and understand:^{(AB) 15} Nothing that goes into a person from outside can defile him but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.”^[i]

¹⁷ When he went into the house away from the crowd, his disciples asked him about the parable. ¹⁸ He said to them, “Are you also as lacking in understanding? Don’t you realize that nothing going into a person from the outside can defile him? ¹⁹ For it doesn’t go into his heart but into the stomach^(AC) and is eliminated” (thus he declared all foods clean^(AD)). ²⁰ And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. ²¹ For from within, out of people’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immoralities,^(AE) thefts, murders,^{(AF) 22} adulteries,^(AG) greed,^(AH) evil actions, deceit,^(AI) self-indulgence,^(AJ) envy,^[j] slander,^(AK) pride,^(AL) and foolishness.^{(AM) 23} All these evil things come from within and defile a person.”

A Gentile Mother’s Faith

²⁴ He got up and departed from^(AN) there to the region of Tyre.^[k](AO) He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it, but he could not escape notice. ²⁵ Instead, immediately after hearing about him, a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit^(AP) came and fell at his feet.^{(AQ) 26} The woman was a Gentile,^[l](AR) a Syrophoenician by birth, and she was asking him to cast the demon^(AS) out of her daughter. ²⁷ He said to her, “Let the children be fed first, because it isn’t right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”^(AT)

²⁸ But she replied to him, “Lord,^(AU) even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.”

²⁹ Then he told her, “Because of this reply, you may go. The demon has left your daughter.” ³⁰ When she went back to her home, she found her child lying on the bed, and the demon was gone.

Jesus Does Everything Well

³¹ Again, leaving the region of Tyre,^(AV) he went by way of Sidon to the Sea of Galilee,^(AW) through^[m] the region of the Decapolis.^{(AX) 32} They brought to him a deaf^(AY) man who had difficulty speaking^(AZ) and begged Jesus to lay his hand on^(BA) him. ³³ So he took him away from the crowd in private. After putting his fingers in the man’s ears and spitting,^(BB) he touched his tongue. ³⁴ Looking up to heaven,^(BC) he sighed deeply and said to him, “Ephphatha!”^[n] (that is, “Be opened!”). ³⁵ Immediately his ears were opened,^(BD) his tongue was loosened, and he began to speak clearly.^{(BE) 36} He ordered them to tell no one,^(BF) but the more he ordered them, the more they proclaimed it.^(BG)

³⁷ They were extremely astonished and said, “He has done everything well.^(BH) He even makes the deaf^(BI) hear and the mute speak.”^(BJ)

Feeding Four Thousand

8 In^(BK) those days there was again a large crowd, and they had nothing to eat. He called^(BL) the disciples^(BM) and said to them, ² “I have compassion^(BN) on the crowd, because they’ve already stayed with me three days and have nothing to eat. ³ If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way,^(BO) and some of them have come a long distance.”

⁴ His disciples answered him, “Where can anyone get enough bread here in this desolate place to feed^(BP) these people?”

⁵ “How many loaves do you have?” he asked them.

“Seven,” they said. ⁶ He commanded the crowd to sit down on the ground. Taking the seven loaves, he gave thanks, broke^(BQ) them, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people. So they served them to the crowd. ⁷ They also had a few small fish, and after he had blessed them, he said these were to be served as well. ⁸ They ate and were satisfied. Then they collected seven large baskets of leftover pieces. ⁹ About four thousand were there. He dismissed them.