Traditions and Commandments

7 ^(A)Now when the Pharisees gathered to him, with some of the scribes ^(B)who had come from Jerusalem, ² they saw that some of his disciples ate with hands that were ^(C)defiled, that is, unwashed. ³ (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands properly,^[a] holding to ^(D)the tradition of ^(E)the elders, ⁴ and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash.^[b] And there are many other traditions that they observe, such as ^(F)the washing of ^(G)cups and pots and copper vessels and dining couches.^[c]) ⁵ And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not walk according to ^(H)the tradition of ^(I)the elders, ^(J)but eat with ^(K)defiled hands?” ⁶ And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you ^(L)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 ^(O)rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition! ¹⁰ For Moses said, ^(P)‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ^(Q)‘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)^[d]— ¹² then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother, ¹³ thus ^(R)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 And he called the people to him again and said to them, ^(S)“Hear me, all of you, and understand: ^15 (T)There 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.”^{[e] 17} And when he had entered ^(U)the house and left the people, ^(V)his disciples asked him about the parable. ¹⁸ And he said to them, “Then ^(W)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 ^(X)but his stomach, and is expelled?”^[f] (^(Y)Thus he declared all foods clean.) ²⁰ And he said, ^(Z)“What 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, ^(AA)murder, adultery, ²² coveting, wickedness, deceit, ^(AB)sensuality, ^(AC)envy, ^(AD)slander, ^(AE)pride, ^(AF)foolishness. ^23 (AG)All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

The Syrophoenician Woman's Faith

²⁴ And from there he arose and went away to the region of Tyre and Sidon.^[g] 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 (AH)Now the woman was a ^(AI)Gentile, ^(AJ)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 ^(AK)fed first, for it is not right to take the children's bread and ^(AL)throw it to the dogs.” ²⁸ But she answered him, “Yes, Lord; yet even the dogs under the table eat the children's ^(AM)crumbs.” ²⁹ And he said to her, “For this statement you may ^(AN)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.

Jesus Heals a Deaf Man

^31 (AO)Then he returned from the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to ^(AP)the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the ^(AQ)Decapolis. ³² And they brought to him ^(AR)a man who was deaf and ^(AS)had a speech impediment, and they begged him to ^(AT)lay his hand on him. ³³ And ^(AU)taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and ^(AV)after spitting touched his tongue. ³⁴ And ^(AW)looking up to heaven, ^(AX)he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.” ^35 (AY)And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. ³⁶ And ^(AZ)Jesus^[h] charged them to tell no one. But ^(BA)the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. ³⁷ And they were ^(BB)astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”