Matthew 15
15
Jesus Breaks Religious Traditions
1Then the Pharisees and religious scholars # 15:1 Or “scribes,” considered to be experts in interpreting Jewish laws. came from Jerusalem and asked Jesus this question: 2“Why do your disciples ignore the traditions of our elders? For example, they don’t ceremonially wash their hands before they eat bread.”
3Jesus answered, “And why do you ignore the commandment of God because of your traditions? 4For didn’t God say, ‘Honor your father and mother,’ and, ‘Whoever abuses or insults his father or mother must be put to death?’ # 15:4 See Ex. 20:12; 21:17; Lev. 20:9.
5“But you teach that it’s permissible to say to your parents when they are in financial need, ‘Whatever gift you would have received from me I can keep for myself, since I dedicated it as an offering to God.’ 6This doesn’t honor your father or mother. And you have elevated your tradition above the words of God. 7Frauds and hypocrites! Isaiah described you perfectly when he said:
8These people honor me only with their words,
for their hearts are so very distant from me.
9They pretend to worship me,
but their worship is nothing more
than the empty traditions of men.” # 15:9 See Isa. 29:13.
10Then Jesus turned to the crowd and said, “Come, listen and open your heart to understand. 11What truly contaminates a person is not what he puts into his mouth but what comes out of his mouth. That’s what makes people defiled.”
12Then his disciples approached him and said, “Don’t you know that what you just said offended the Pharisees?”
13Jesus replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father didn’t plant is destined to be uprooted. 14Stay away from them, # 15:14 The Aramaic is “Let them remain blind! For they are nothing more than blind leaders of the blind.” for they’re nothing more than blind guides. Do you know what happens when a blind man pretends to guide another blind man? They both stumble into a ditch!”
15Peter spoke up and said, “Will you explain to us what you mean by your parable?”
16Jesus said, “Even after all that I’ve taught you, you still remain clueless? 17Is it hard to understand that whatever you eat enters the stomach only to pass out into the sewer? 18But what comes out of your mouth reveals the core of your heart. Words can pollute, not food. 19You will find living within an impure heart evil ideas, murderous thoughts, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, lies, and slander. # 15:19 Or “blasphemies.” 20That’s what pollutes a person. Eating with unwashed hands doesn’t defile anyone.”
A Lebanese Woman’s Faith
21Then Jesus left and went north into the non-Jewish region of Lebanon. # 15:21 Or “Tyre and Sidon,” both cities of Lebanon. 22He encountered there a Canaanite woman # 15:22 The Hebrew Matthew is “a Canaanite merchant woman.” Canaan included the region of modern-day Lebanon. Canaanite refers to a non-Jewish person who lived in that region. It was in this very region that an Old Testament woman named Jezebel established Baal worship. Now Jesus heals a woman and brings her into the true worship of God. who shouted out to him, “Lord, Son of David, show mercy to me! My daughter is horribly afflicted by a demon that torments her.” 23But Jesus never answered her. So his disciples said to him, “Why do you ignore this woman who is crying out to us?” # 15:23 As translated from Hebrew Matthew. The Greek is “The disciples kept begging Jesus to send her away.”
24Jesus said, “I’ve only been sent to the lost sheep of Israel.” 25But she came and bowed down before him and said, “Lord, help me!”
26Jesus responded, “It’s not right for a man to take bread from his children and throw it out to the dogs.” # 15:26 Jesus uses a figure of speech and describes the people of Israel as “children” who view the non-Jewish people as “dogs.”
27“You’re right, Lord,” she replied. “But even puppies get to eat the crumbs that fall from the prince’s table.”
28Then Jesus answered her, “Dear woman, your faith is strong! What you desire will be done for you.” And at that very moment, her daughter was instantly set free from demonic torment.
Jesus Heals Many Others
29After leaving Lebanon, Jesus went to Lake Galilee and climbed a hill nearby and sat down. 30Then huge crowds of people streamed up the hill, bringing with them the lame, blind, deformed, mute, and many others in need of healing. They laid them at Jesus’ feet and he healed them all.
31And the crowds marveled with amazement, astounded over the things they were witnessing with their own eyes! The lame were walking, the mute were speaking, the crippled were made well, and the blind could see. For three days everyone celebrated the miracles as they exalted and praised the God of Israel!
Jesus Feeds Thousands
32Jesus called his disciples to himself and said, “I care deeply about all these people, for they’ve already been with me for three days without food. I don’t want to send them away fasting or else they may be overcome by weakness on their journey home.”
33The disciples said to him, “Where in the world are we going to find enough food in this desolate place to feed this crowd?”
34“How many barley loaves do you have?” Jesus asked.
“Seven,” they replied, “and a few small fish.”
35So he gave the order, “Have the people sit down on the grass.” 36Then he took the seven loaves and the fish and gave thanks to God. He broke the bread and gave it to his disciples, who then distributed the food to the crowds. 37When everyone was full and satisfied, they gathered up the leftovers. And from what was once seven loaves and a few fish, they filled seven baskets! # 15:37 The Greek word used here implies a very large basket, possibly the size of a person. 38There were four thousand men who ate the food Jesus multiplied, and even more including the women and children!
39After dismissing the crowd, Jesus got into the boat and crossed over to the region of Magdala. # 15:39 Or “Magadan.” This was a place where fish were salted and preserved. Magdala means “tower.” Magdala was the town that Mary Magdalene came from. Perhaps during this visit is when they first met.
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Matthew 15: TPT
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Learn More About The Passion TranslationMatthew 15
15
1 THEN FROM Jerusalem came scribes and Pharisees and said,
2 Why do Your disciples transgress and violate the rules handed down by the elders of the past? For they do not practice [ceremonially] washing their hands before they eat.
3 He replied to them, And why also do you transgress and violate the commandment of God for the sake of the rules handed down to you by your forefathers (the elders)?
4 For God commanded, Honor your father and your mother, and, He who curses or reviles or speaks evil of or abuses or treats improperly his father or mother, let him surely come to his end by death. [Exod. 20:12; 21:17; Lev. 20:9; Deut. 5:16.]
5 But you say, If anyone tells his father or mother, What you would have gained from me [that is, the money and whatever I have that might be used for helping you] is already dedicated as a gift to God, then he is exempt and no longer under obligation to honor and help his father or his mother.
6 So for the sake of your tradition (the rules handed down by your forefathers), you have set aside the Word of God [depriving it of force and authority and making it of no effect].
7 You pretenders (hypocrites)! Admirably and truly did Isaiah prophesy of you when he said:
8 These people draw near Me with their mouths and honor Me with their lips, but their hearts hold off and are far away from Me.
9 Uselessly do they worship Me, for they teach as doctrines the commands of men. [Isa. 29:13.]
10 And Jesus called the people to Him and said to them, Listen and grasp and comprehend this:
11 It is not what goes into the mouth of a man that makes him unclean and defiled, but what comes out of the mouth; this makes a man unclean and defiles [him].
12 Then the disciples came and said to Him, Do You know that the Pharisees were displeased and offended and indignant when they heard this saying?
13 He answered, Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted will be torn up by the roots. [Isa. 60:21.]
14 Let them alone and disregard them; they are blind guides and teachers. And if a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a ditch.
15 But Peter said to Him, Explain this proverb (this maxim) to us.
16 And He said, Are you also even yet dull and ignorant [without understanding and unable to put things together]?
17 Do you not see and understand that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the abdomen and so passes on into the place where discharges are deposited?
18 But whatever comes out of the mouth comes from the heart, and this is what makes a man unclean and defiles [him].
19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts (reasonings and disputings and designs) such as murder, adultery, sexual vice, theft, false witnessing, slander, and irreverent speech.
20 These are what make a man unclean and defile [him]; but eating with unwashed hands does not make him unclean or defile [him].
21 And going away from there, Jesus withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon.
22 And behold, a woman who was a Canaanite from that district came out and, with a [loud, troublesomely urgent] cry, begged, Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! My daughter is miserably and distressingly and cruelly possessed by a demon!
23 But He did not answer her a word. And His disciples came and implored Him, saying, Send her away, for she is crying out after us.
24 He answered, I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
25 But she came and, kneeling, worshiped Him and kept praying, Lord, help me!
26 And He answered, It is not right (proper, becoming, or fair) to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs.
27 She said, Yes, Lord, yet even the little pups (little whelps) eat the crumbs that fall from their [young] masters' table.
28 Then Jesus answered her, O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you wish. And her daughter was cured from that moment.
29 And Jesus went on from there and passed along the shore of the Sea of Galilee. Then He went up into the hills and kept sitting there.
30 And a great multitude came to Him, bringing with them the lame, the maimed, the blind, the dumb, and many others, and they put them down at His feet; and He cured them,
31 So that the crowd was amazed when they saw the dumb speaking, the maimed made whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they recognized and praised and thanked and glorified the God of Israel.
32 Then Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, I have pity and sympathy and am deeply moved for the crowd, because they have been with Me now three days and they have nothing [at all left] to eat; and I am not willing to send them away hungry, lest they faint or become exhausted on the way.
33 And the disciples said to Him, Where are we to get bread sufficient to feed so great a crowd in this isolated and desert place?
34 And Jesus asked them, How many loaves of bread do you have? They replied, Seven, and a few small fish.
35 And ordering the crowd to recline on the ground,
36 He took the seven loaves and the fish, and when He had given thanks, He broke them and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.
37 And they all ate and were satisfied. And they gathered up seven [large provision] baskets full of the broken pieces that were left over.
38 Those who ate were 4,000 men, not including the women and the children.
39 Then He dismissed the crowds, got into the boat, and went to the district of Magadan.
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