Matthew 15:1–20; Mark 7:1–23

red bookmark icon blue bookmark icon gold bookmark icon
Matthew 15:1–20

Traditions and Commandments

eThen Pharisees and fscribes came to Jesus ffrom Jerusalem and said, gWhy do your disciples break hthe tradition of the elders? jFor they do not wash their hands when they eat. He answered them, And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? For God commanded, kHonor your father and your mother, and, lWhoever reviles father or mother must surely die. But you say, If anyone tells his father or his mother, What you would have gained from me is given to God,1 he need not honor his father. So for the sake of your tradition you have mmade void the word2 of God. nYou hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said:

oThis people honors me with their lips,

but their heart is far from me;

in vain do they worship me,

teaching as pdoctrines the commandments of men.

What Defiles a Person

10 And he called the people to him and said to them, qHear and understand: 11 rit is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but 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 soffended when they heard this saying? 13 He answered, tEvery plant that my heavenly Father has not planted uwill be rooted up. 14 Let them alone; vthey are blind guides.3 And wif the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit. 15 But Peter said to him, xExplain the parable to us. 16 And he said, yAre you also still without understanding? 17 Do you not see that zwhatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled?4 18 But awhat comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. 19 For out of the heart come bevil thoughts, cmurder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, dslander. 20 eThese are what defile a person. But fto eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.


Mark 7:1–23

Traditions and Commandments

pNow when the Pharisees gathered to him, with some of the scribes qwho had come from Jerusalem, they saw that some of his disciples ate with hands that were rdefiled, that is, unwashed. (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands properly,1 holding to sthe tradition of tthe elders, 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 uthe washing of vcups and pots and copper vessels and dining couches.3) And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, Why do your disciples not walk according to sthe tradition of tthe elders, wbut eat with rdefiled hands? And he said to them, Well did Isaiah prophesy of you xhypocrites, as it is written,

yThis people honors me with their lips,

but their heart is far from me;

in vain do they worship me,

teaching as zdoctrines the commandments of men.

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

And he said to them, You have a fine way of arejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition! 10 For Moses said, bHonor your father and your mother; and, cWhoever 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 dmaking void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do.

What Defiles a Person

14 And he called the people to him again and said to them, eHear me, all of you, and understand: 15 fThere is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.5 17 And when he had entered gthe house and left the people, hhis disciples asked him about the parable. 18 And he said to them, Then iare 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 jbut his stomach, and is expelled?6 (kThus he declared all foods clean.) 20 And he said, lWhat comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, mmurder, adultery, 22 coveting, wickedness, deceit, nsensuality, oenvy, pslander, qpride, rfoolishness. 23 sAll these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.