Matthew 15
Young's Literal Translation
15 Then come unto Jesus do they from Jerusalem -- scribes and Pharisees -- saying,
2 `Wherefore do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? for they do not wash their hands when they may eat bread.'
3 And he answering said to them, `Wherefore also do ye transgress the command of God because of your tradition?
4 for God did command, saying, Honour thy father and mother; and, He who is speaking evil of father or mother -- let him die the death;
5 but ye say, Whoever may say to father or mother, An offering [is] whatever thou mayest be profited by me; --
6 and he may not honour his father or his mother, and ye did set aside the command of God because of your tradition.
7 `Hypocrites, well did Isaiah prophesy of you, saying,
8 This people doth draw nigh to Me with their mouth, and with the lips it doth honour Me, but their heart is far off from Me;
9 and in vain do they worship Me, teaching teachings -- commands of men.'
10 And having called near the multitude, he said to them, `Hear and understand:
11 not that which is coming into the mouth doth defile the man, but that which is coming forth from the mouth, this defileth the man.'
12 Then his disciples having come near, said to him, `Hast thou known that the Pharisees, having heard the word, were stumbled?'
13 And he answering said, `Every plant that my heavenly Father did not plant shall be rooted up;
14 let them alone, guides they are -- blind of blind; and if blind may guide blind, both into a ditch shall fall.'
15 And Peter answering said to him, `Explain to us this simile.'
16 And Jesus said, `Are ye also yet without understanding?
17 do ye not understand that all that is going into the mouth doth pass into the belly, and into the drain is cast forth?
18 but the things coming forth from the mouth from the heart do come forth, and these defile the man;
19 for out of the heart come forth evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, whoredoms, thefts, false witnessings, evil speakings:
20 these are the things defiling the man; but to eat with unwashen hands doth not defile the man.'
21 And Jesus having come forth thence, withdrew to the parts of Tyre and Sidon,
22 and lo, a woman, a Canaanitess, from those borders having come forth, did call to him, saying, `Deal kindly with me, Sir -- Son of David; my daughter is miserably demonized.'
23 And he did not answer her a word; and his disciples having come to him, were asking him, saying -- `Let her away, because she crieth after us;'
24 and he answering said, `I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.'
25 And having come, she was bowing to him, saying, `Sir, help me;'
26 and he answering said, `It is not good to take the children's bread, and to cast to the little dogs.'
27 And she said, `Yes, sir, for even the little dogs do eat of the crumbs that are falling from their lords' table;'
28 then answering, Jesus said to her, `O woman, great [is] thy faith, let it be to thee as thou wilt;' and her daughter was healed from that hour.
29 And Jesus having passed thence, came nigh unto the sea of Galilee, and having gone up to the mountain, he was sitting there,
30 and there came to him great multitudes, having with them lame, blind, dumb, maimed, and many others, and they did cast them at the feet of Jesus, and he healed them,
31 so that the multitudes did wonder, seeing dumb ones speaking, maimed whole, lame walking, and blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel.
32 And Jesus having called near his disciples, said, `I have compassion upon the multitude, because now three days they continue with me, and they have not what they may eat; and to let them away fasting I will not, lest they faint in the way.'
33 And his disciples say to him, `Whence to us, in a wilderness, so many loaves, as to fill so great a multitude?'
34 And Jesus saith to them, `How many loaves have ye?' and they said, `Seven, and a few little fishes.'
35 And he commanded the multitudes to sit down upon the ground,
36 and having taken the seven loaves and the fishes, having given thanks, he did break, and gave to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude.
37 And they did all eat, and were filled, and they took up what was over of the broken pieces seven baskets full,
38 and those eating were four thousand men, apart from women and children.
39 And having let away the multitudes, he went into the boat, and did come to the borders of Magdala.
Matthew 15
Legacy Standard Bible
God’s Commandments, Man’s Traditions
15 (A)Then some Pharisees and scribes *came to Jesus (B)from Jerusalem and said, 2 “Why do Your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they (C)do not wash their hands when they eat bread.” 3 And He answered and said to them, “Why do you yourselves transgress the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? 4 For God said, ‘(D)Honor your father and mother,’ and, ‘(E)He who speaks evil of father or mother is to [a]be put to death.’ 5 But you say, ‘Whoever says to his father or mother, “Whatever you might benefit from me [b]is given to God,” 6 he need not [c]honor his father.’ And by this you invalidated the word of God for the sake of your tradition. 7 You hypocrites, rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you:
8 ‘(F)This people honors Me with their lips,
But their heart is far away from Me.
9 But in vain do they worship Me,
Teaching as (G)doctrines the commands of men.’”
10 After Jesus called the crowd to Him, He said to them, “Hear and understand. 11 (H)It is not what enters into the mouth that defiles the man, but what proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man.”
12 Then the disciples *came and *said to Him, “Do You know that the Pharisees were [d]offended when they heard this statement?” 13 But He answered and said, “(I)Every plant which My heavenly Father did not plant shall be uprooted. 14 Let them alone; (J)they are blind guides [e]of the blind. And (K)if a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”
The Heart of Man
15 Now Peter answered and said to Him, “(L)Explain the parable to us.” 16 And [f]Jesus said, “Are you still lacking in understanding also? 17 Do you not understand that everything that goes into the mouth passes into the stomach, and goes into the sewer? 18 But (M)the things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man. 19 (N)For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, sexual immoralities, thefts, false witness, slanders. 20 These are the things which defile the man; but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile the man.”
The Canaanite Woman
21 (O)And going away from there, Jesus withdrew into the district of (P)Tyre and (Q)Sidon. 22 And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and began to cry out, saying, “Have mercy on me, Lord, (R)Son of David; my daughter is cruelly (S)demon-possessed.” 23 But He did not answer her a word. And His disciples came and were pleading with Him, saying, “Send her away, because she keeps shouting [g]at us.” 24 But He answered and said, “I was not sent except to (T)the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 But she came and [h](U)was bowing down before Him, saying, “Lord, help me!” 26 And He answered and said, “It is not [i]good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” 27 But she said, “Yes, Lord; [j]but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.” 28 Then Jesus answered and said to her, “O woman, (V)your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed [k]at once.
Jesus Heals the Crowds
29 (W)And departing from there, Jesus went along by (X)the Sea of Galilee, and having gone up on the mountain, He was sitting there. 30 And [l]large crowds came to Him, bringing with them those who were lame, crippled, blind, mute, and many others, and they laid them down at His feet; and (Y)He healed them. 31 So the crowd marveled as they saw the mute speaking, the crippled [m]restored, and the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they (Z)glorified the God of Israel.
Jesus Feeds Four Thousand
32 (AA)And Jesus called His disciples to Him, and said, “(AB)I feel compassion for the crowd, because they [n]have remained with Me now three days and have nothing to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.” 33 And the disciples *said to Him, “Where would we get so many loaves in this desolate place to satisfy such a large crowd?” 34 And Jesus *said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” And they said, “Seven, and a few small fish.” 35 And He directed the crowd to [o]sit down on the ground; 36 and He took the seven loaves and the fish; and (AC)giving thanks, He broke them and kept giving them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 37 And they all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up what was left over of the broken pieces, seven large (AD)baskets full. 38 And those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children.
39 And sending away the crowds, Jesus got into (AE)the boat and came to the region of (AF)Magadan.
Footnotes
- Matthew 15:4 Lit die the death
- Matthew 15:5 An offering; lit a gift
- Matthew 15:6 By supporting them with it
- Matthew 15:12 Lit caused to stumble
- Matthew 15:14 Some mss omit of the blind
- Matthew 15:16 Lit He
- Matthew 15:23 Lit behind us
- Matthew 15:25 Or worshiped
- Matthew 15:26 Or proper
- Matthew 15:27 Lit for
- Matthew 15:28 Lit from that hour
- Matthew 15:30 Lit many
- Matthew 15:31 Or healthy
- Matthew 15:32 Lit are remaining
- Matthew 15:35 Lit recline
Matthew 15
Living Bible
15 Some Pharisees and other Jewish leaders now arrived from Jerusalem to interview Jesus.
2 “Why do your disciples disobey the ancient Jewish traditions?” they demanded. “For they ignore our ritual of ceremonial handwashing before they eat.” 3 He replied, “And why do your traditions violate the direct commandments of God? 4 For instance, God’s law is ‘Honor your father and mother; anyone who reviles his parents must die.’ 5-6 But you say, ‘Even if your parents are in need, you may give their support money to the church[a] instead.’ And so, by your man-made rule, you nullify the direct command of God to honor and care for your parents. 7 You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, 8 ‘These people say they honor me, but their hearts are far away. 9 Their worship is worthless, for they teach their man-made laws instead of those from God.’[b]”
10 Then Jesus called to the crowds and said, “Listen to what I say and try to understand: 11 
12 Then the disciples came and told him, “You offended the Pharisees by that remark.”
13-14 Jesus replied, “Every plant not planted by my Father shall be rooted up, so ignore them. They are blind guides leading the blind, and both will fall into a ditch.”
15 Then Peter asked Jesus to explain what he meant when he said that people are not defiled by nonkosher food.
16 “Don’t you understand?” Jesus asked him. 17 “Don’t you see that anything you eat passes through the digestive tract and out again? 18 But evil words come from an evil heart and defile the man who says them. 19 For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, lying, and slander. 20 These are what defile; but there is no spiritual defilement from eating without first going through the ritual of ceremonial handwashing!”
21 Jesus then left that part of the country and walked the fifty miles to Tyre and Sidon.[d]
22 A woman from Canaan who was living there came to him, pleading, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, King David’s Son! For my daughter has a demon within her, and it torments her constantly.”
23 But Jesus gave her no reply—not even a word. Then his disciples urged him to send her away. “Tell her to get going,” they said, “for she is bothering us with all her begging.”
24 Then he said to the woman, “I was sent to help the Jews—the lost sheep of Israel—not the Gentiles.”
25 But she came and worshiped him and pled again, “Sir, help me!”
26 “It doesn’t seem right to take bread from the children and throw it to the dogs,” he said.
27 “Yes, it is!” she replied, “for even the puppies beneath the table are permitted to eat the crumbs that fall.”
28 “Woman,” Jesus told her, “your faith is large, and your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed right then.
29 Jesus now returned to the Sea of Galilee and climbed a hill and sat there. 30 And a vast crowd brought him their lame, blind, maimed, and those who couldn’t speak, and many others, and laid them before Jesus, and he healed them all. 31 What a spectacle it was! Those who hadn’t been able to say a word before were talking excitedly, and those with missing arms and legs had new ones; the crippled were walking and jumping around, and those who had been blind were gazing about them! The crowds just marveled and praised the God of Israel.
32 Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I pity these people—they’ve been here with me for three days now and have nothing left to eat; I don’t want to send them away hungry or they will faint along the road.”
33 The disciples replied, “And where would we get enough here in the desert for all this mob to eat?”
34 Jesus asked them, “How much food do you have?” And they replied, “Seven loaves of bread and a few small fish!”
35 Then Jesus told all of the people to sit down on the ground, 36 and he took the seven loaves and the fish, and gave thanks to God for them, and divided them into pieces, and gave them to the disciples who presented them to the crowd. 37-38 And everyone ate until full—four thousand men besides the women and children! And afterwards, when the scraps were picked up, there were seven basketfuls left over!
39 Then Jesus sent the people home and got into the boat and crossed to Magadan.
Footnotes
- Matthew 15:5 to the church, literally, “to God.”
- Matthew 15:9 those from God, see Isaiah 29:13.
- Matthew 15:11 It is what you say and think that makes you unclean, implied; literally, “What comes out of a man defiles a man.”
- Matthew 15:21 walked the fifty miles, implied; literally, “withdrew into the parts of Tyre and Sidon.”
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