Followers of Tradition
1 Now the Pharisees and some of the scribes came from Jerusalem and gathered around Him,
2 and they had seen that some of His disciples ate their bread with [ceremonially] impure hands, that is, unwashed [and defiled according to Jewish religious ritual].
3 (For the Pharisees and all of the Jews do not eat unless theycarefully wash their hands, holding firmly to the traditions of the elders;
4 andwhen they comefrom the market place, they do not eat unless theycleanse themselves [completely according to ritual]; and there are many other things [oral, man-made laws and traditions handed down to them] which they follow diligently, such as the washing of cups and pitchers and copper utensils.)
5 So the Pharisees and scribes asked Jesus, “Why do Your disciples not live their lives according to the tradition of the elders, but [instead] eat their bread with [ceremonially] unwashed hands?”
6 He replied,“Rightly did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites (play-actors, pretenders), as it is written[in Scripture],
‘These people honorMe with their lips,
But their heart is far fromMe.
7 ‘They worshipMe in vain[their worship is meaningless and worthless, a pretense],
Teaching the precepts of men as doctrines[giving their traditions equal weight with the Scriptures].’
8 You disregardandneglect the commandment of God, and cling[faithfully]to the tradition of men.”
9 He was also saying to them,“You are experts at setting asideandnullifying the commandment of God in order to keep your[man-made]traditionandregulations.
10 For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother[with respect and gratitude]’;and, ‘He who speaks evil of his father or mother must be put to death’;
11 but you[Pharisees and scribes]say, ‘If a man tells his father or mother, “Whatever I have that would help you is Corban,(that is to say,alreadya gift to God),”’
12 then you no longer let him do anything for his father or mother[since helping them would violate his vow of Corban];
13 so you nullify the[authority of the]word of God[acting as if it did not apply]because of your tradition which you have handed down[through the elders].And you do many things such as that.”
The Heart of Man
14 After He called the people to Him again, Hebegansaying to them,“Listen[carefully]to Me, all of you,[hear]and understand[what I am saying]:
15 there is nothing outside a man[such as food]which by going into him can defile him[morally or spiritually];but the things which come out of[the heart of]a man are what defileanddishonor him.
16 [If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.”]
17 When Jesus had left the crowd and gone into thehouse, His disciples asked Him about the parable.
18 And He said to them,“Are you, too, so foolishandlacking in understanding? Do you not understand that whatever goes into the man from outside cannot defileanddishonor him,
19 since it does not enter his heart, but[only]his stomach, and[from there it]is eliminated?”(By this, Hedeclared all foodsceremonially clean.)
20 And He said,“Whatever comes from[the heart of]a man, that is what defilesanddishonors him.
21 For from within,[that is]out the heart of men, come baseandmalevolent thoughtsandschemes, acts of sexual immorality, thefts, murders, adulteries,
22 acts of greedandcovetousness, wickedness, deceit, unrestrained conduct, envyandjealousy, slanderandprofanity, arroganceandself-righteousness and foolishness (poor judgment).
23 All these evil things[schemes and desires]come from within and defileanddishonor the man.”
The Syrophoenician Woman
24 Jesus got up and left there and went to the region of Tyre [and Sidon, the coastal area of Phoenicia]. He entered a house and did not want anyone to knowabout it;but it was impossible for Him to be hidden [from the public].
25 Instead, after hearing about Him, a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately came and fell at His feet.
26 Now the woman was a Gentile (Greek), aSyrophoenician by nationality. And she kept pleading with Him to drive the demon out of her daughter.
27 He was saying to her,“First let the children[of Israel]be fed, for it is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to thepet dogs (non-Jews).”
28 But she replied, “Yes, Lord, but even the pet dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.”
29 And He said to her,“Because of this answer[reflecting your humility and faith],go[knowing that your request is granted];the demon has left your daughter[permanently].”
30 And returning to her home, she found the child lying on the couch [relaxed and resting], the demon having gone.
31 Soon after this Jesus left the region of Tyre, and passed through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, through the region of Decapolis [the ten Hellenistic cities].
32 They brought to Him a man who was deaf and had difficulty speaking, and they begged Jesus to place His hand on him.
33 Jesus, taking him aside by himself, away from the crowd, put His fingers into the man’s ears, and after spitting, He touched the man’s tongue [with the saliva];
34 and looking up to heaven, He sighed deeply and said to the man,“Ephphatha,”which [in Aramaic] means,“Be openedandreleased!”
35 And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and hebeganspeaking plainly.
36 Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone; but the more He ordered them, the more widely they continued to proclaim it.
37 They were thoroughly astoundedandcompletely overwhelmed, saying, “He has done everything well! He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak!”