Matthew 15:10-20

Christian Standard Bible

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^(A) a person, but what comes out of the mouth—this defiles a person.”^(B)

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.^{(C) 14} Leave them alone! They are blind guides.^[a] And if the blind guide the blind, both will fall into a pit.”^(D)

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

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