Traditions and Commandments

1 ^yNow when the Pharisees gathered to him, with some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem, 2 they saw that some of his disciples ate with hands that were ^zdefiled, that is, unwashed. 3 (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands properly,¹ holding to the ^atradition of the elders, 4 and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash.² And there are many other traditions that they observe, such as the ^bwashing of cups and pots and copper vessels and dining couches.³) 5 And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?” 6 And he said to them, ^c“Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written,

8 You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.”

9 And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition! 10 For Moses said, ^f‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ^g‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’ 11 But you say, ‘If a man tells his father or his mother, “Whatever you would have gained from me is Corban”’ (that is, given to God)⁴— 12 then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother, 13 thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do.”

What Defiles a Person

14 ^hAnd he called the people to him again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand: 15 ⁱThere is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, ^jbut the things that come out of a person are what defile him.”⁵ 17 And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. 18 And he said to them, ^k“Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, 19 since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?”⁶ (Thus he declared all foods clean.) 20 And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 ^lFor from within, out of the ^mheart of man, come evil thoughts, ⁿsexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

The Syrophoenician Woman’s Faith

24 ^oAnd ^pfrom there he arose and went away to the region of Tyre and Sidon.⁷ And he entered a house and did not want anyone to know, yet he could not be hidden. 25 But immediately a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit heard of him and came and fell down at his feet. 26 Now the woman was a Gentile, a Syrophoenician by birth. And she begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. 27 And he said to her, “Let the children be fed ^qfirst, for it is not right to take the children’s bread and ^rthrow it to the dogs.” 28 But she answered him, “Yes, Lord; yet even the dogs under the table eat the children’s ^scrumbs.” 29 And he said to her, “For this statement you may go your way; the demon has left your daughter.” 30 And she went home and found the child lying in bed and the demon gone.

Traditions and Commandments

1 ^mThen Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said, 2 “Why do your disciples break the ⁿtradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat.” 3 He answered them, “And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? 4 For God commanded, ^o‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ^p‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’ 5 But you say, ‘If anyone tells his father or his mother, “What you would have gained from me is given to God,”¹ 6 he need not honor his father.’ So for the sake of your tradition you have made void the word² of God. 7 You hypocrites! ^qWell did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said:

What Defiles a Person

10 ^tAnd he called the people to him and said to them, “Hear and understand: 11 ^uit is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, ^vbut 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 offended when they heard this saying?” 13 He answered, “Every ^wplant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be ^xrooted up. 14 Let them alone; they are ^yblind guides.³ And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” 15 But Peter said to him, “Explain the parable to us.” 16 And he said, ^z“Are you also still without understanding? 17 Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled?⁴ 18 But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. 19 ^aFor out of the ^bheart come evil thoughts, ^cmurder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. 20 These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.”

The Faith of a Canaanite Woman

21 ^dAnd ^eJesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, ^fSon 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, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.” 24 He answered, “I was sent only to the ^glost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26 And he answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and ^hthrow it to the dogs.” 27 She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the ⁱcrumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” 28 Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you ^jas you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly.⁵