1562 | MattheW 15:7
your tra di tion. 7 You hyp o crites! Isa iah was right when he proph e sied about you:
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“‘ These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.
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They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules.’ a”
The Faith of a Canaanite Woman
15:21-28pp— Mk 7:24-30
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Leav ing that place, Jesus with drew to the region of Tyre and Si don. 22 A Ca naan ite wom an from that vi cin i ty came to him, cry ing out,“ Lord, Son of Da vid, have mer cy on me! My daugh ter is de mon-pos sessed and suf fer ing ter ri bly.”
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Jesus did not an swer a word. So his dis ci ples came to him and urged him,“ Send her away, for she keeps cry ing out af ter us.”
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He an swered,“ I was sent only to the lost sheep of Is ra el.”
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The wom an came and knelt be fore him.“ Lord, help me!” she said.
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He re plied,“ It is not right to take the children’ s bread and toss it to the dogs.”
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“ Yes it is, Lord,” she said.“ Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their mas ter’ s ta ble.”
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Then Jesus said to her,“ Wom an, you have great faith! Your re quest is grant ed.” And her daugh ter was healed at that moment.
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Jesus called the crowd to him and said,“ Listen and un der stand. 11 What goes into some one’ s mouth does not de file them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what de files them.”
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Then the dis ci ples came to him and asked,“ Do you know that the Phar i sees were of fend ed when they heard this?”
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He re plied,“ Ev ery plant that my heav en ly Father has not plant ed will be pulled up by the roots.
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Leave them; they are blind guides. b If the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.”
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Pe ter said,“ Ex plain the par a ble to us.”
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“ Are you still so dull?” Jesus asked them.
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“ Don’ t you see that what ev er en ters the mouth goes into the stom ach and then out of the body? Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand
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But the things that come out of a per son’ s mouth 15:29-31pp— Mk 7:31-37 come from the heart, and these de file them. 19 For 15:32-39pp— Mk 8:1-10 out of the heart come evil thoughts— mur der, 15:32-39Ref— Mt 14:13-21 adul tery, sex u al im mo ral i ty, theft, false tes timo ny, slan der. 20 These are what de file a per son; but eat ing with un washed hands does not de file them.” a
9 Isaiah 29:13 b
14 Some manuscripts blind guides of the blind
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Jesus left there and went along the Sea of Gal i lee. Then he went up on a moun tain side and
15:7 Isaiah Jesus quotes Isa 29:13, which originally referred to the people of Jerusalem, and by extension God’ s people as a whole, and applies it to the Pharisees.
15:10 – 20 Jesus turns the confrontation with the Pharisees into a teaching opportunity for his disciples. He emphasizes the priority of the heart over external matters, such as handwashing and ritual purity.
15:11 defile Make ritually unclean. 15:13 Every plant Drawing from Isaiah, Jesus uses plant imagery to describe the people of God( see Isa 60:21). will be pulled up by the roots Jesus implies that the Pharisees, who oppose his message and burden the people with human-made laws, do not come from the Father( even though they are Jews) and therefore will be destroyed. 15:14 they are blind guides The Pharisees, who knew the law better than the rest of the Jews, should have been teaching and instructing the people in the ways of God. Instead, they became caught up in ritual concerns of the law, unnecessarily burdening the people with secondary matters. 15:18 come from the heart In the Hebrew conception of personhood, the heart represents intelligence and will. 15:20 These are what defile a person Jews believed that ritual purity protected them from incurring God’ s wrath; they would not approach God if they were unclean. Jesus teaches that matters of the heart— not external ceremonial regulations— render people unfit to enter God’ s presence.
15:21 – 28 Jesus seizes this opportunity to instruct his disciples about the value of faith and their Gentile( non- Jewish) neighbors.
15:21 Leaving that place Refers to Gennesaret( Mt 14:34). Tyre and Sidon Powerful Gentile city-states on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, northwest of Gennesaret. 15:22 Canaanite woman The Canaanites, Israel’ s enemies in the Hebrew Scriptures( e. g., Dt 7:1), no longer existed as a distinct people. Mark uses the more historically accurate designation“ Syrophoenician”( Mk 7:26). Matthew probably is employing“ Canaanite” to emphasize the woman’ s outsider status as a Gentile( non-Jewish person). Lord, Son of David The title“ lord” could simply be a sign of respect( see Mt 8:2 and note), but the title“ Son of David” has Messianic overtones, indicating that the Canaanite woman had better insight into Jesus’ identity than many Jews. 15:24 lost sheep of Israel Refers to the Jews. Eventually, the gospel will be preached among non-Jewish people( as recorded in the book of Acts), but Jesus focused on teaching and healing among the people of Israel. His interaction with the Canaanite woman represents an exception to his normal pattern of ministry( compare 8:5 – 13). 15:26 children’ s Refers to the Jews. dogs Refers to the Gentiles. Rather than conveying personal hostility toward non-Jewish people, Jesus’ choice of words likely reflects a common Jewish sentiment, which he uses to evoke a response from her about Jewish and non-Jewish relations. 15:28 Your request is granted Jesus’ response illustrates his point in vv. 10 – 20: The state of one’ s heart, shaped by faith, is the decisive factor.
15:29 – 31 Jesus leaves Tyre and Sidon and returns to Galilee. The summary statement of his healing ministry( v. 30) is reminiscent of 4:23 – 25; 9:35 – 36; 14:34 – 35. Wherever Jesus went, he brought physical and spiritual restoration.