Mark 7
7
Jesus Teaches about Inner Purity
1One day some Pharisees and teachers of religious law arrived from Jerusalem to see Jesus. 2They noticed that some of his disciples failed to follow the Jewish ritual of hand washing before eating. 3(The Jews, especially the Pharisees, do not eat until they have poured water over their cupped hands,#7:3 Greek have washed with the fist. as required by their ancient traditions. 4Similarly, they don’t eat anything from the market until they immerse their hands#7:4a Some manuscripts read sprinkle themselves. in water. This is but one of many traditions they have clung to—such as their ceremonial washing of cups, pitchers, and kettles.#7:4b Some manuscripts add and dining couches.)
5So the Pharisees and teachers of religious law asked him, “Why don’t your disciples follow our age-old tradition? They eat without first performing the hand-washing ceremony.”
6Jesus replied, “You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he wrote,
‘These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
7 Their worship is a farce,
for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God.’ # 7:7 Isa 29:13 (Greek version).
8 For you ignore God’s law and substitute your own tradition.”
9Then he said, “You skillfully sidestep God’s law in order to hold on to your own tradition. 10For instance, Moses gave you this law from God: ‘Honor your father and mother,’#7:10a Exod 20:12; Deut 5:16. and ‘Anyone who speaks disrespectfully of father or mother must be put to death.’#7:10b Exod 21:17 (Greek version); Lev 20:9 (Greek version). 11But 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.’#7:11 Greek ‘What I would have given to you is Corban’ (that is, a gift). 12In this way, you let them disregard their needy parents. 13And so you cancel the word of God in order to hand down your own tradition. And this is only one example among many others.”
14Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. “All of you listen,” he said, “and try to understand. 15It’s not what goes into your body that defiles you; you are defiled by what comes from your heart.#7:15 Some manuscripts add verse 16, Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand. Compare 4:9, 23.”
17Then Jesus went into a house to get away from the crowd, and his disciples asked him what he meant by the parable he had just used. 18“Don’t you understand either?” he asked. “Can’t you see that the food you put into your body cannot defile you? 19Food doesn’t go into your heart, but only passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer.” (By saying this, he declared that every kind of food is acceptable in God’s eyes.)
20And then he added, “It is what comes from inside that defiles you. 21For from within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, 22adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. 23All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you.”
The Faith of a Gentile Woman
24Then Jesus left Galilee and went north to the region of Tyre.#7:24 Some manuscripts add and Sidon. He didn’t want anyone to know which house he was staying in, but he couldn’t keep it a secret. 25Right away a woman who had heard about him came and fell at his feet. Her little girl was possessed by an evil#7:25 Greek unclean. spirit, 26and she begged him to cast out the demon from her daughter.
Since she was a Gentile, born in Syrian Phoenicia, 27Jesus told her, “First I should feed the children—my own family, the Jews.#7:27 Greek Let the children eat first. It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs.”
28She replied, “That’s true, Lord, but even the dogs under the table are allowed to eat the scraps from the children’s plates.”
29 “Good answer!” he said. “Now go home, for the demon has left your daughter.” 30And when she arrived home, she found her little girl lying quietly in bed, and the demon was gone.
Jesus Heals a Deaf Man
31Jesus left Tyre and went up to Sidon before going back to the Sea of Galilee and the region of the Ten Towns.#7:31 Greek Decapolis. 32A deaf man with a speech impediment was brought to him, and the people begged Jesus to lay his hands on the man to heal him.
33Jesus led him away from the crowd so they could be alone. He put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then, spitting on his own fingers, he touched the man’s tongue. 34Looking up to heaven, he sighed and said, “Ephphatha,” which means, “Be opened!” 35Instantly the man could hear perfectly, and his tongue was freed so he could speak plainly!
36Jesus told the crowd not to tell anyone, but the more he told them not to, the more they spread the news. 37They were completely amazed and said again and again, “Everything he does is wonderful. He even makes the deaf to hear and gives speech to those who cannot speak.”
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Mark 7: NLT
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Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.
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Mark 7
7
1The Pharisees and religious leaders who had come down from Jerusalem to meet Jesus 2noticed that some of his disciples ate with “unclean” (meaning unwashed) hands. 3(The Pharisees and all Jews don't eat until they wash their hands, following the tradition of their ancestors. 4In the same way, they don't eat when they return from the market until they have had a wash. They observe many other rituals, like the washing of cups, pots, and pans.)#7:4. While hygienic, the focus was on making sure everything was ceremonially clean.
5So the Pharisees and religious leaders asked Jesus, “Why don't your disciples follow the tradition of our ancestors? They eat food#7:5. Literally, “bread.” with unclean hands.”
6Jesus replied, “Isaiah was right about you hypocrites when he said, ‘These people claim they honor me, but in their thinking they are far from me. 7There's no point in their worship of me, for what they teach as doctrines are merely human rules.’#7:7. Quoting Isaiah 29:13. 8You disregard God's law, and instead you carefully observe human traditions.”
9“How cleverly you set aside God's law so you can support your traditions!” he told them. 10“Moses said, ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and ‘Whoever curses their father or mother should die.’#7:10. Quoting Exodus 20:12 and Exodus 21:17. 11But you say that if someone tells their father or mother, ‘Anything you might have received from me is now Corban,’ (that means dedicated to God), 12then you don't permit them to do anything further for their mother or father. 13By means of this tradition of yours that you pass down, you make God's word null and void. You do many other things like this.”
14Jesus called the crowd to him again and told them, “Please, everyone listen to me and understand. 15It's not what's on the outside and goes into you that makes you unclean. It's what comes out that makes you unclean.” 16#7:16. The earliest manuscripts do not have verse 16.
17Then Jesus went inside to escape the crowd, and his disciples asked him about his illustration.
18“Don't you understand it either?” he asked them. “Don't you see that what you eat doesn't make you unclean? 19It doesn't go into your mind, but into your stomach, and then passes out of the body. So all foods are ceremonially ‘clean.’#7:19. Some scholars believe this sentence is a later addition.
20It's what comes out of you that makes you unclean. 21It's from the inside, from people's minds, that evil thoughts come: sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, 22greed, malice, deceit, indecency, envy, slander, pride, thoughtlessness— 23all these evils come from inside and defile people.”
24Then Jesus left and went to the region of Tyre. He didn't want anyone to know he was staying in a house there, but he couldn't keep it a secret. 25As soon as a woman whose little daughter had an evil spirit heard about him, she came and fell at his feet. 26The woman was Greek, born in Syrophoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive out the demon from her daughter.
27“First let the children eat until they're full,” Jesus replied. “It's not right to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs.”#7:27. Or puppies, small dogs.
28“True, sir,” she said, “but even the dogs under the table eat the scraps the children leave.”
29Jesus told her, “For such an answer you may go—the demon has left your daughter.” 30She went home and found the child lying on the bed, the demon gone.
31Leaving the region of Tyre, Jesus passed through Sidon and then on to the Sea of Galilee and the territory of the Ten Cities. 32There they brought him a deaf man who also could not speak properly. They asked Jesus to touch the man with his hand and heal him. 33After Jesus took him aside from the crowd, Jesus put his fingers in the deaf man's ears. Then he touched the man's tongue with spit. 34Jesus looked up to heaven and with a sigh he said, “Ephphatha,”#7:34. This is the Aramaic word meaning “cause to be open.” which means, “Open!” 35The man's ears were opened, his speech impediment was gone, and he began speaking properly. 36Jesus gave them strict orders not to tell anyone, but the more he said this, the more they spread the news. 37They were totally amazed and said, “Everything he does is marvelous. He even makes the deaf hear, and the dumb speak.”
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com