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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1"><title>Matthew 15</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="/chapnew2.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/bsb/spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /></head><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/matthew/15.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="/bmc//matthew/15-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="http://biblehub.com">Bible</a> > <a href="/matthew/">Matthew</a> > Matthew 15</div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../matthew/14.htm" title="Matthew 14">◄</a> Matthew 15 <a href="../matthew/16.htm" title="Matthew 16">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div align="center" id="jump2"><a href="/niv/matthew/15.htm">NIV</a> • <a href="/nlt/matthew/15.htm">NLT</a> • <a href="/esv/matthew/15.htm">ESV</a> • <a href="/kjv/matthew/15.htm">KJV</a> • <a href="/nkjv/matthew/15.htm">NKJ</a> • <a href="/nasb/matthew/15.htm">NAS</a></div><br /><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="1%" valign="top">BSB</td><td width="99%" valign="top" align="right"><a href="/parallel/matthew/15.htm" style="font-weight:normal" title="Parallel Chapters">Parallel Chapters ▾ </a></tr></table></div><div class="chap"><A name="2"></a><p class="hdg">The Tradition of the Elders<br /><span class="cross">(<a href ="../mark/7.htm">Mark 7:1–13</a>)</span><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-1.htm"><b>1</b></a></span>Then some Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, <A name="3"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-2.htm"><b>2</b></a></span>“Why do Your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They do not wash their hands before they eat.” <A name="4"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-3.htm"><b>3</b></a></span>Jesus replied, <span class="red">“And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? <A name="5"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-4.htm"><b>4</b></a></span>For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’<span class="fn"><a href="#fn">a</a></span> and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’<span class="fn"><a href="#fn">b</a></span> <A name="6"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-5.htm"><b>5</b></a></span>But you say that if anyone says to his father or mother, ‘Whatever you would have received from me is a gift devoted to God,’ <A name="7"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-6.htm"><b>6</b></a></span>he need not honor his father or mother with it.<span class="fn"><a href="#fn">c</a></span> Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition. <A name="8"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-7.htm"><b>7</b></a></span>You hypocrites! Isaiah prophesied correctly about you:</span> <A name="9"></a><p class="indent1stlinered"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-8.htm"><b>8</b></a></span>‘These people honor Me with their lips, <p class="indentred2"> but their hearts are far from Me. <A name="10"></a><p class="indentred1"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-9.htm"><b>9</b></a></span>They worship Me in vain; <p class="indentred2"> they teach as doctrine the precepts of men.’<span class="fn"><a href="#fn">d</a></span>” <A name="11"></a><p class="hdg">What Defiles a Man<br /><span class="cross">(<a href ="../mark/7.htm#14">Mark 7:14–23</a>)</span><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-10.htm"><b>10</b></a></span>Jesus called the crowd to Him and said, <span class="red">“Listen and understand. <A name="12"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-11.htm"><b>11</b></a></span>A man is not defiled by what enters his mouth, but by what comes out of it.”</span> <A name="13"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-12.htm"><b>12</b></a></span>Then the disciples came to Him and said, “Are You aware that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?” <A name="14"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-13.htm"><b>13</b></a></span>But Jesus replied, <span class="red">“Every plant that My heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by its roots. <A name="15"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-14.htm"><b>14</b></a></span>Disregard them! They are blind guides.<span class="fn"><a href="#fn">e</a></span> If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”</span> <A name="16"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-15.htm"><b>15</b></a></span>Peter said to Him, “Explain this parable to us.” <A name="17"></a><p class="reg"><span class="red"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-16.htm"><b>16</b></a></span>“Do you still not understand?”</span> Jesus asked. <A name="18"></a><span class="red"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-17.htm"><b>17</b></a></span>“Do you not yet realize that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then is eliminated? <A name="19"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-18.htm"><b>18</b></a></span>But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these things defile a man. <A name="20"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-19.htm"><b>19</b></a></span>For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, and slander. <A name="21"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-20.htm"><b>20</b></a></span>These are what defile a man, but eating with unwashed hands does not defile him.”</span> <A name="22"></a><p class="hdg">The Faith of the Canaanite Woman<br /><span class="cross">(<a href ="../mark/7.htm#24">Mark 7:24–30</a>)</span><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-21.htm"><b>21</b></a></span>Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. <A name="23"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-22.htm"><b>22</b></a></span>And a Canaanite woman from that region came to Him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is miserably possessed by a demon.” <A name="24"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-23.htm"><b>23</b></a></span>But Jesus did not answer a word. So His disciples came and urged Him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.” <A name="25"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-24.htm"><b>24</b></a></span>He answered, <span class="red">“I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”</span> <A name="26"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-25.htm"><b>25</b></a></span>The woman came and knelt before Him. “Lord, help me!” she said. <A name="27"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-26.htm"><b>26</b></a></span>But Jesus replied, <span class="red">“It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”</span> <A name="28"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-27.htm"><b>27</b></a></span>“Yes, Lord,” she said, “even the dogs<span class="fn"><a href="#fn">f</a></span> eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.” <A name="29"></a><p class="reg"><span class="red"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-28.htm"><b>28</b></a></span>“O woman,”</span> Jesus answered, <span class="red">“your faith is great! Let it be done for you as you desire.”</span> And her daughter was healed from that very hour. <A name="30"></a><p class="hdg">The Feeding of the Four Thousand<br /><span class="cross">(<a href ="../2_kings/4.htm#42">2 Kings 4:42–44</a>; <a href ="../mark/8.htm">Mark 8:1–10</a>)</span><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-29.htm"><b>29</b></a></span>Moving on from there, Jesus went along the Sea of Galilee. Then He went up on a mountain and sat down. <A name="31"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-30.htm"><b>30</b></a></span>Large crowds came to Him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many others, and laid them at His feet, and He healed them. <A name="32"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-31.htm"><b>31</b></a></span>The crowd was amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled restored, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they glorified the God of Israel. <A name="33"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-32.htm"><b>32</b></a></span>Then Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, <span class="red">“I have compassion for this crowd, because they have already been with Me three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may faint along the way.”</span> <A name="34"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-33.htm"><b>33</b></a></span>The disciples replied, “Where in this desolate place could we find enough bread to feed such a large crowd?” <A name="35"></a><p class="reg"><span class="red"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-34.htm"><b>34</b></a></span>“How many loaves do you have?”</span> Jesus asked. <p class="reg">“Seven,” they replied, “and a few small fish.” <A name="36"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-35.htm"><b>35</b></a></span>And He instructed the crowd to sit down on the ground. <A name="37"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-36.htm"><b>36</b></a></span>Taking the seven loaves and the fish, He gave thanks and broke them. Then He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. <A name="38"></a><p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-37.htm"><b>37</b></a></span>They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. <A name="39"></a><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-38.htm"><b>38</b></a></span>A total of four thousand men were fed, in addition to women and children. <p class="reg"><span class="reftext"><a href="/matthew/15-39.htm"><b>39</b></a></span>After Jesus had dismissed the crowds, He got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan.</p><A name="fn"></a><div id="fnlink"><br /><br /><b>Footnotes:</b><br><br><span class="fnverse">4</span> <span class="footnotesbot">a</span> <a href="../exodus/20.htm#12">Exodus 20:12</a>; <a href="../deuteronomy/5.htm#16">Deuteronomy 5:16</a><br><span class="fnverse">4</span> <span class="footnotesbot">b</span> <a href="../exodus/21.htm#17">Exodus 21:17</a>; <a href="../leviticus/20.htm#9">Leviticus 20:9</a><br><span class="fnverse">6</span> <span class="footnotesbot">c</span> NE and TR (see also <a href="../mark/7.htm#12">Mark 7:12</a>); literally <i>he need not honor his father or mother</i><span class="thin"> </span>; SBL, NA, WH, and BYZ do not include <i>or mother</i><span class="thin"> </span>.<br><span class="fnverse">9</span> <span class="footnotesbot">d</span> <a href="../isaiah/29.htm#13">Isaiah 29:13</a> (see also LXX)<br><span class="fnverse">14</span> <span class="footnotesbot">e</span> Or <i>blind guides of the blind</i><span class="thin"> </span><br><span class="fnverse">27</span> <span class="footnotesbot">f</span> Or <i>puppies</i><span class="thin"> </span><br><br /></div><br /></div></div><div id="botbox"><div class="padbot"><div align="center">The Berean Bible (<a href=http://berean.bible>www.Berean.Bible</a>) <a href=http://bereanbible.com>Berean Study Bible (BSB)</a> © 2016, 2020 by <a href=http://biblehub.com>Bible Hub</a> and <a href=http://berean.bible>Berean.Bible</a>. 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