Matthew 15 — TCENT

The Traditions of the Elders

15Verse 1Then⁺the scribes and Pharisees from Jerusalem came to Jesus and said,^{Verse 2}“Why do yoʋr disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread.”^{Verse 3}He answered them,“And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition?^{Verse 4}For God⁺commanded, ‘Honor yoʋr father and yoʋr mother,’ and, ‘Whoever speaks evil of his father or mother must surely die.’^{Verse 5}But you say, ‘If anyone says to his father or mother, “Whatever benefit yoʋ might have received from me is now a gift devoted to God,”⁺then he certainly need not honor his father⁺or his mother.’^{Verse 6}You have nullified the⁺commandment of God for the sake of your tradition.^{Verse 7}Hypocrites! Isaiah prophesied rightly about you when he said,^{Verse 8}‘This people⁺draws near to me with their mouth
and honors me with their lips,
but their heart is far from me.
^{Verse 9}They worship me in vain,
teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ ”^{Verse 10}Then Jesus called the crowd over and said to them,“Listen and understand:^{Verse 11}It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person; it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles a person.”^{Verse 12}Then⁺his disciples came and said to him, “Do yoʋ know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard what yoʋ said?”^{Verse 13}Jesus answered,“Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted.^{Verse 14}Leave them be; they are blind guides⁺of the blind. And if one blind person guides another, both will fall into a pit.”^{Verse 15}Then Peter said to him in response, “Explain⁺this parable to us.”^{Verse 16}Jesus said,“Are you also still without understanding?^{Verse 17}Do you not⁺yet understand that everything that goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled into the latrine?^{Verse 18}But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these defile a person.^{Verse 19}For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false testimony, and slander.^{Verse 20}These are what defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a person.”

A Canaanite Woman's Faith

^{Verse 21}Then Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon.^{Verse 22}And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came and cried out⁺to him, “Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is severely demon-possessed.”^{Verse 23}But he did not respond to her at all. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.”^{Verse 24}In response Jesus said,“I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”^{Verse 25}But she came and bowed down before him, saying, “Lord, help me.”^{Verse 26}He replied,“It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the dogs.”^{Verse 27}She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from the table of their masters.”^{Verse 28}Then Jesus answered her,“O woman, great is yoʋr faith; it will be done for yoʋ as yoʋ wish.”And her daughter was healed from that hour.

Jesus Heals Many

^{Verse 29}Departing from there, Jesus went along the Sea of Galilee. Then he went up on the mountain and sat down.^{Verse 30}Large crowds came to him, having with them the⁺lame, blind, mute, crippled, and many others. They put them at the feet of Jesus, and he healed them.^{Verse 31}So the⁺crowds were amazed when they⁺saw the mute speaking,⁺the crippled made well, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they glorified the God of Israel.

The Feeding of the Four Thousand

^{Verse 32}Then Jesus called his disciples over and said,“I have compassion on the crowd because they have stayed with me now for three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away without having eaten, lest they faint on the way.”^{Verse 33+}His disciples said to him, “Where can we get so many loaves in such a desolate place to fill such a large crowd?”^{Verse 34}Jesus said to them,“How many loaves do you have?”They said, “Seven, and a few small fish.”^{Verse 35}So he commanded the crowds to sit down on the ground,^{Verse 36}and taking the seven loaves and the fish, he gave thanks, broke them, and gave them to⁺his disciples, and the disciples gave them to the⁺crowd.^{Verse 37}They all ate and were filled, and the disciples picked up what was left over of the broken pieces, seven baskets full.^{Verse 38}Besides women and children, there were four thousand men who had eaten.^{Verse 39}After sending the crowds away, Jesus got into the boat and went to the region of⁺Magdala.