Mark 7

Chapter 7

Jesus Teaches about Inner Purity

1 One day some Pharisees and teachers of religious law arrived from Jerusalem to see Jesus.2 They 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,t as required by their ancient traditions.

4 Similarly, they don’t eat anything from the market until they immerse their handst in water. This is but one of many traditions they have clung to—such as their ceremonial washing of cups, pitchers, and kettles.t)

5 So 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.”

6 Jesus 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.’t

8 For you ignore God’s law and substitute your own tradition.”
9 Then he said, “You skillfully sidestep God’s law in order to hold on to your own tradition.10 For instance, Moses gave you this law from God: ‘Honor your father and mother,’t and ‘Anyone who speaks disrespectfully of father or mother must be put to death.’t11 But 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.’t12 In this way, you let them disregard their needy parents.

13 And so you cancel the word of God in order to hand down your own tradition. And this is only one example among many others.”
14 Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. “All of you listen,” he said, “and try to understand.

15 It’s not what goes into your body that defiles you; you are defiled by what comes from your heart.t”
17 Then 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?

19 Food 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.)
20 And then he added, “It is what comes from inside that defiles you.21 For from within, out of a person’s heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder,22 adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness.

23 All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you.”

The Faith of a Gentile Woman

24 Then Jesus left Galilee and went north to the region of Tyre.t He didn’t want anyone to know which house he was staying in, but he couldn’t keep it a secret.25 Right away a woman who had heard about him came and fell at his feet. Her little girl was possessed by an evilt spirit,

26 and she begged him to cast out the demon from her daughter.

Since she was a Gentile, born in Syrian Phoenicia,

27 Jesus told her, “First I should feed the children—my own family, the Jews.t It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs.”

28 She 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.”

30 And when she arrived home, she found her little girl lying quietly in bed, and the demon was gone.

Jesus Heals a Deaf Man

31 Jesus left Tyre and went up to Sidon before going back to the Sea of Galilee and the region of the Ten Towns.t

32 A 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.
33 Jesus 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.34 Looking up to heaven, he sighed and said, “Ephphatha,” which means, “Be opened!”

35 Instantly the man could hear perfectly, and his tongue was freed so he could speak plainly!
36 Jesus told the crowd not to tell anyone, but the more he told them not to, the more they spread the news.

37 They 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.”

MARK 7

The Teaching of the Ancestors

(Matthew 15.1-9)

1 Some Pharisees and several teachers of the Law of Moses from Jerusalem came and gathered around Jesus.

2 They noticed that some of his disciples ate without first washing their hands.t
3 The Pharisees and many others obey the teachings of their ancestors. They always wash their hands in the proper wayt before eating.

4 None of them will eat anything they buy in the market until it is washed. They also follow a lot of other teachings, such as washing cups, pitchers, and bowls.t

5 The Pharisees and teachers asked Jesus, “Why don't your disciples obey what our ancestors taught us to do? Why do they eat without washing their hands?”

6  t Jesus replied:
You are nothing but show-offs! The prophet Isaiah was right when he wrote that God had said,
“All of you praise me
with your words,
but you never really
think about me.

7 It is useless for you
to worship me,
when you teach rules
made up by humans.”
8 You disobey God's commands in order to obey what humans have taught. 9 You are good at rejecting God's commands so that you can follow your own teachings! 10 t Didn't Moses command you to respect your father and mother? Didn't he tell you to put to death all who curse their parents? 11 But you let people get by without helping their parents when they should. You let them say that what they own has been offered to God.t 12 You won't let those people help their parents.

13 And you ignore God's commands in order to follow your own teaching. You do a lot of other things just as bad.

What Really Makes //People Unclean

(Matthew 15.10-20)

15-16 The food that you put into your mouth doesn't make you unclean and unfit to worship God. The bad words that come out of your mouth are what make you unclean.”t
17 After Jesus and his disciples had left the crowd and gone into the house, they asked him what these sayings meant. 18 He answered, “Don't you know what I am talking about by now? You surely know that the food you put into your mouth cannot make you unclean.

19 It doesn't go into your heart, but into your stomach, and then out of your body.” By saying this, Jesus meant that all foods were fit to eat.

20 Then Jesus said:
What comes from your heart is what makes you unclean. 21 Out of your heart come evil thoughts, vulgar deeds, stealing, murder, 22 unfaithfulness in marriage, greed, meanness, deceit, indecency, envy, insults, pride, and foolishness.

23 All of these come from your heart, and they are what make you unfit to worship God.

A Woman's Faith

(Matthew 15.21-28)

27 But Jesus said, “The children must first be fed! It isn't right to take away their food and feed it to dogs.”t

28 The woman replied, “Lord, even puppies eat the crumbs that children drop from the table.”
29 Jesus answered, “That's true! You may go now. The demon has left your daughter.”

30 When the woman got back home, she found her child lying on the bed. The demon had gone.

Jesus Heals //a Man Who Was Deaf //and Could Hardly Talk

32 Some people brought to him a man who was deaf and could hardly talk. They begged Jesus just to touch him.
33 After Jesus had taken him aside from the crowd, he stuck his fingers in the man's ears. Then he spit and put it on the man's tongue. 34 Jesus looked up toward heaven, and with a groan he said, “Effatha!”t which means “Open up!”

35 At once the man could hear, and he had no more trouble talking clearly.
36 Jesus told the people not to say anything about what he had done. But the more he told them, the more they talked about it. 37 They were completely amazed and said, “Everything he does is good! He even heals people who cannot hear or talk.”