The Tradition of the Elders

¹ Then the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus, ² and they saw some of His disciples eating with hands that were defiled—^* that is, unwashed.

³ Now in holding to the tradition of the elders, the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat until they wash their hands ceremonially.⁴ And on returning from the market, they do not eat unless they wash.^* And there are many other traditions for them to observe, including the washing of cups, pitchers, kettles, and couches for dining.

⁵ So the Pharisees and scribes questioned Jesus: “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders? Instead, they eat with defiled hands.”

⁶ Jesus answered them, “Isaiah prophesied correctly about you hypocrites, as it is written:

‘These people honor Me with their lips,

but their hearts are far from Me.

⁷ They worship Me in vain;

they teach^* as doctrine the precepts of men.’

⁸ You have disregarded the commandment of God to keep the tradition of men.”

⁹ He went on to say, “You neatly set aside the command of God to maintain your own tradition. ¹⁰ For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’^*11 But you say that if a man says to his father or mother, ‘Whatever you would have received from me is Corban’ (that is, a gift devoted to God^* ),^{* 12} he is no longer permitted to do anything for his father or mother. ¹³ Thus you nullify the word^* of God by the tradition you have handed down. And you do so in many such matters.”

What Defiles a Man

¹⁴ Once again Jesus called the crowd to Him and said, “All of you, listen to Me and understand: ¹⁵ Nothing that enters a man from the outside can defile him; but the things that come out of a man, these are what defile him.”

¹⁷ After Jesus had left the crowd and gone into the house, His disciples inquired about the parable.

¹⁸ “Are you still so dull?” He asked. “Do you not understand? Nothing that enters a man from the outside can defile him, ¹⁹ because it does not enter his heart, but it goes into the stomach and then is eliminated^*.” (Thus all foods are clean.)^*

²⁰ He continued: “What comes out of a man, that is what defiles him. ²¹ For from within the hearts of men come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery,²² greed,^* wickedness, deceit, debauchery,^* envy^*, slander,^* arrogance, and foolishness. ²³ All these evils come from within, and these are what defile a man.”

The Faith of the Gentile Woman

²⁴ Jesus left that place and went to the region of Tyre. Not wanting anyone to know He was there, He entered a house, but was unable to escape their notice. ²⁵ Instead, a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit soon heard about Jesus, and she came and fell at His feet. ²⁶ Now she was a Greek woman of Syrophoenician origin, and she kept asking Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter.

²⁷ “First let the children have their fill,” He said. “For it is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”

²⁸ “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.”

²⁹ Then Jesus told her, “Because of this answer, you may go. The demon has left your daughter.”³⁰ And she went home and found her child lying on the bed, and the demon was gone.

The Deaf and Mute Man

³¹ Then Jesus left the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee and into the region of the Decapolis.³² Some people brought to Him a man who was deaf and hardly able to speak, and they begged Jesus to place His hand on him.

³³ So Jesus took him aside privately, away from the crowd, and put His fingers into the man’s ears. Then He spit and touched the man’s tongue. ³⁴ And looking up to heaven, He sighed deeply^* and said to him, “Ephphatha!” (which means, “Be opened!”). ³⁵ Immediately the man’s ears were opened^* and his tongue was released, and he began to speak plainly.

³⁶ Jesus ordered them not to tell anyone. But the more He ordered them, the more widely they proclaimed it. ³⁷ The people were utterly astonished and said, “He has done all things well! He makes even the deaf hear and the mute speak!”