Matthew 15

Jesus Teaches about Inner Purity

1Some Pharisees and teachers of religious law now arrived from Jerusalem to see Jesus. They asked him, 2“Why do your disciples disobey our age-old tradition? For they ignore our tradition of ceremonial hand washing before they eat.”

3Jesus replied, “And why do you, by your traditions, violate the direct commandments of God? 4For instance, God says, ‘Honor your father and mother,’#15:4a Exod 20:12; Deut 5:16. and ‘Anyone who speaks disrespectfully of father or mother must be put to death.’#15:4b Exod 21:17 (Greek version); Lev 20:9 (Greek version). 5But you say it is all right for people to say to their parents, ‘Sorry, I can’t help you. For I have vowed to give to God what I would have given to you.’ 6In this way, you say they don’t need to honor their parents.#15:6 Greek their father; other manuscripts read their father or their mother. And so you cancel the word of God for the sake of your own tradition. 7You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he wrote,

8 ‘These people honor me with their lips,

but their hearts are far from me.

9 Their worship is a farce,

for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God.’ # 15:8-9 Isa 29:13 (Greek version). ”

10Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. “Listen,” he said, “and try to understand. 11It’s not what goes into your mouth that defiles you; you are defiled by the words that come out of your mouth.”

12Then the disciples came to him and asked, “Do you realize you offended the Pharisees by what you just said?”

13Jesus replied, “Every plant not planted by my heavenly Father will be uprooted, 14so ignore them. They are blind guides leading the blind, and if one blind person guides another, they will both fall into a ditch.”

15Then Peter said to Jesus, “Explain to us the parable that says people aren’t defiled by what they eat.”

16 “Don’t you understand yet?” Jesus asked. 17“Anything you eat passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer. 18But the words you speak come from the heart—that’s what defiles you. 19For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander. 20These are what defile you. Eating with unwashed hands will never defile you.”

The Faith of a Gentile Woman

21Then Jesus left Galilee and went north to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22A Gentile#15:22 Greek Canaanite. woman who lived there came to him, pleading, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! For my daughter is possessed by a demon that torments her severely.”

23But Jesus gave her no reply, not even a word. Then his disciples urged him to send her away. “Tell her to go away,” they said. “She is bothering us with all her begging.”

24Then Jesus said to the woman, “I was sent only to help God’s lost sheep—the people of Israel.”

25But she came and worshiped him, pleading again, “Lord, help me!”

26Jesus responded, “It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs.”

27She replied, “That’s true, Lord, but even dogs are allowed to eat the scraps that fall beneath their masters’ table.”

28 “Dear woman,” Jesus said to her, “your faith is great. Your request is granted.” And her daughter was instantly healed.

Jesus Heals Many People

29Jesus returned to the Sea of Galilee and climbed a hill and sat down. 30A vast crowd brought to him people who were lame, blind, crippled, those who couldn’t speak, and many others. They laid them before Jesus, and he healed them all. 31The crowd was amazed! Those who hadn’t been able to speak were talking, the crippled were made well, the lame were walking, and the blind could see again! And they praised the God of Israel.

Jesus Feeds Four Thousand

32Then Jesus called his disciples and told them, “I feel sorry for these people. They have been here with me for three days, and they have nothing left to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry, or they will faint along the way.”

33The disciples replied, “Where would we get enough food here in the wilderness for such a huge crowd?”

34Jesus asked, “How much bread do you have?”

They replied, “Seven loaves, and a few small fish.”

35So Jesus told all the people to sit down on the ground. 36Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, thanked God for them, and broke them into pieces. He gave them to the disciples, who distributed the food to the crowd.

37They all ate as much as they wanted. Afterward, the disciples picked up seven large baskets of leftover food. 38There were 4,000 men who were fed that day, in addition to all the women and children. 39Then Jesus sent the people home, and he got into a boat and crossed over to the region of Magadan.

Currently Selected:

Matthew 15: NLT

Highlight

Copy

Compare

Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in

For more information about the NLT:

Learn More About New Living Translation

Matthew 15

Tradition and Commandment

1Then some Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem came to Jesus and said, 2“Why do Your disciples violate the #15:2 I.e. the oral commentary on the Law, later codified as the Mishnah.tradition (religious laws) handed down by the [Jewish] elders? For Your disciples do not [ceremonially] wash their hands before they eat.” 3He replied to them, “Why also do you violate the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition [handed down by the elders]? 4For God said [through Moses], ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and, ‘He who speaks evil of or insults or treats improperly father or mother is to be put to death.’ [Ex 20:12; 21:17; Lev 20:9; Deut 5:16] 5But you say, ‘If anyone says to his father or mother, “Whatever [money or resource that] I have that would help you is [already dedicated and] given to God,” 6he is not to honor his father or his mother [by helping them with their need].’ So by this you have invalidated the word of God [depriving it of force and authority and making it of no effect] for the sake of your tradition [handed down by the elders]. 7You hypocrites (play-actors, pretenders), rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you when he said,

8 ‘This people honors Me with their lips,

But their heart is far away from Me.

9 ‘But in vain do they worship Me,

For they teach as doctrines the precepts of men.’ ” [Is 29:13]

10After Jesus called the crowd to Him, He said, “Listen and understand this: 11It is not what goes into the mouth of a man that defiles and dishonors him, but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles and dishonors him.”

12Then the disciples came and said to Jesus, “Do You know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard you say this?” 13He answered, “Every plant which My heavenly Father did not plant will be torn up by the roots. [Is 60:21] 14Leave them alone; they are blind guides #15:14 Later mss add of the blind.[leading blind followers]. If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”

The Heart of Man

15Peter asked Him, “Explain this parable [about what defiles a person] to us.” 16And He said, “Are you still so dull [and unable to put things together]? 17Do you not understand that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach, and is eliminated? 18But whatever [word] comes out of the mouth comes from the heart, and this is what defiles and dishonors the man. 19For out of the heart come evil thoughts and plans, murders, adulteries, sexual immoralities, thefts, false testimonies, slanders (verbal abuse, irreverent speech, blaspheming). 20These are the things which defile and dishonor the man; but eating with [ceremonially] unwashed hands does not defile the man.”

The Syrophoenician Woman

21After leaving there, Jesus withdrew to the district of #15:21 Tyre and Sidon were located along the Gentile coastal region of Phoenicia. Tyre was 35 miles and Sidon 60 miles north of Galilee.Tyre and Sidon. [Mark 7:24-30] 22And a #15:22 The Canaanites were ancient, pagan enemies of Israel.Canaanite woman from that district came out and began to cry out [urgently], saying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David (Messiah); my daughter is cruelly possessed by a demon.” 23But He did not say a word in answer to her. And His disciples came and asked Him [repeatedly], “Send her away, because she keeps shouting out after us.” 24He answered, “I was commissioned by God and sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25But she came and began to kneel down before Him, saying, “Lord, help me!” 26And He replied, “It is not good (appropriate, fair) to take the #15:26 A reference for the Jewish people.children’s bread and throw it to the #15:26 Jews used kuon (dog) as a derogatory term referring to Gentiles. This dog (kuon) was a despised, filthy, homeless street scavenger. When speaking with this woman, Jesus uses a word for “dog” (kunarion) that refers to a household pet. The use of the word kunariois by both Jesus and the woman reflects the tenderness and spiritual depth of this exchange. More importantly, it foreshadows the fact that Gentile believers would not be spiritually homeless, but would also be welcomed into God’s household as His children. The gracious response of the woman recorded in v 27 confirms that on some level she understands this.pet dogs.” 27She said, “Yes, Lord; but even the pet dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their [young] masters’ table.” 28Then Jesus answered her, “Woman, your faith [your personal trust and confidence in My power] is great; it will be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed from that moment.

Healing Crowds

29Jesus went on from there and passed along by [the eastern shore of] the Sea of Galilee. Then He went up on the hillside and was sitting there. 30And great crowds came to Him, bringing with them the lame, crippled, blind, mute, and many others, and they put them down at His feet; and He healed them. 31So the crowd was amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled restored, the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they praised and glorified the God of Israel.

Four Thousand Fed

32Then Jesus called His disciples to Him, and said, “I feel compassion for the crowd, because they have been with Me now three days and have nothing [left] to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, because they might faint [from exhaustion] on the way [home].” [Mark 8:1-21] 33The disciples said to Him, “Where are we to get enough bread in this isolated place to feed so large a crowd?” 34And Jesus asked them, “How many loaves [of bread] do you have?” They replied, “Seven, and a few small fish.” 35He directed the crowd to sit down on the ground, 36and He took the seven loaves and the fish; and when He had given thanks, He broke them and started giving them to the disciples, and the disciples [gave them] to the people. 37And they all ate and were satisfied, and they gathered up seven full baskets of the broken pieces that were left over. 38[Among] those who ate were 4,000 men, not counting women and children.

39Then Jesus sent the crowds away, got into the boat and went to the district of #15:39 A small town on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee, between Tiberias and Capernaum.Magadan.

Amplified® Bible

The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, CA 90631

Learn More About Amplified Bible