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:
8 r“‘This people honors me with their lips,
but their heart is far from me;
9 in vain do they worship me,
teaching as doctrines the scommandments of men.’”
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
Jesus Heals Many
29 Jesus went on from there and walked beside the Sea of Galilee. And he went up on the mountain and sat down there. 30 And great crowds came to him, bringing with them the klame, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many others, and they put them at his feet, and he healed them, 31 so that the crowd lwondered, when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled healthy, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they mglorified the God of Israel.
Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand
32 nThen Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have ocompassion on the crowd because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And I am unwilling to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.” 33 And the disciples said to him, “Where are we to get enough bread in such a desolate place to feed so great a crowd?” 34 And Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” They said, “Seven, and a few small fish.” 35 And directing the crowd to sit down on the ground, 36 he took the seven loaves and the fish, and having given thanks he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 37 And they all pate and were satisfied. And they took up seven baskets full of the broken pieces left over. 38 Those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children. 39 And after sending away the crowds, he got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan.
The Lord Will Not Forsake His People
1 O Lord, God of zvengeance,
O God of vengeance, ashine forth!
2 bRise up, O cjudge of the earth;
repay to the proud what they deserve!
3 O Lord, how long shall the wicked,
how long shall the wicked exult?
4 They pour out their arrogant words;
all the evildoers boast.
5 They crush your people, O Lord,
and afflict your heritage.
6 They kill the dwidow and the esojourner,
and murder the fatherless;
7 and they say, f“The Lord does not see;
the God of Jacob does not perceive.”
8 Understand, O dullest of the people!
Fools, when will you be wise?
9 He who planted the ear, does he not hear?
He who formed the eye, does he not see?
10 He who disciplines the nations, does he not rebuke?
He who teaches man knowledge—
11 gthe Lord—knows the thoughts of man,
that they are but a breath.1
12 hBlessed is the man whom you discipline, O Lord,
and whom you teach out of your law,
13 to give him rest from days of trouble,
until a pit is dug for the wicked.
14 iFor the Lord will not forsake his people;
he will not abandon his heritage;
15 for justice will return to the righteous,
and all the upright in heart will follow it.
16 Who jrises up for me against the wicked?
Who stands up for me against evildoers?
17 kIf the Lord had not been my help,
my soul would soon have lived in the land of silence.
18 When I thought, “My foot lslips,”
your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up.
19 When the cares of my heart are many,
your consolations cheer my soul.
20 Can wicked rulers be allied with you,
those who frame2 injustice by statute?
21 They band together against the life of the righteous
and condemn the innocent to death.3
22 But the Lord has become my mstronghold,
and my God the nrock of my refuge.
23 oHe will bring back on them their iniquity
and wipe them out for their wickedness;
the Lord our God will wipe them out.
