Mark 7 · KJV
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Mark 7

The tradition of the elders

Then came together unto him the Pharisees, and certain of the scribes, which came from Jerusalem. And when they saw some of his disciples eat bread with defiled, that is to say, with unwashen, hands, they found fault. For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, except they wash their hands oft, eat not, holding the tradition of the elders. And when they come from the market, except they wash, they eat not. And many other things there be, which they have received to hold, as the washing of cups, and pots, brasen vessels, and of tables. Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why walk not thy disciples according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashen hands? He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do. And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition. For Moses said, Honour thy father and thy mother; and, Whoso curseth father or mother, let him die the death: But ye say, If a man shall say to his father or mother, It is Corban, that is to say, a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; he shall be free. And ye suffer him no more to do ought for his father or his mother; Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.

Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem criticise Jesus' disciples for eating without ritually washing their hands. Jesus calls them hypocrites and accuses them of setting aside God's commandments, such as honouring parents, in favour of human tradition.

  • Scripture connection · Quotation

    Mark 7:6–7 quotes Isaiah 29:13

    Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men:
    Isaiah 29:13 · KJV

    Isaiah criticised worship that was only outward. Jesus uses it against traditions that override God's commands.

What does this mean?

'Defiled' or 'unwashen' hands means hands not ritually washed — a matter of religious purity, not hygiene. 'The tradition of the elders' was the body of interpretations and practices handed down by word of mouth alongside the written law. 'Corban' is a Hebrew word for an offering dedicated to God. 'Esaias' (KJV) is Isaiah.

Historical context

Mark explains Jewish customs for readers unfamiliar with them, suggesting an audience that included non-Jews. Despite Mark's 'all the Jews', scholars debate how widely such washing was practised beyond the Pharisees. Declaring property 'Corban' dedicated it to God; Jesus objects to such a vow being used to deny support to one's parents. Later Jewish teachers also discussed releasing people from vows of this kind.

Why does it matter?

This dispute leads into Jesus' teaching about what truly makes a person unclean (7:14–23). Questions of purity then frame his journey into Gentile territory (7:24–37).

Editorial notes, not scripture.

What makes a person unclean

And when he had called all the people unto him, he said unto them, Hearken unto me every one of you, and understand: There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man. If any man have ears to hear, let him hear. And when he was entered into the house from the people, his disciples asked him concerning the parable. And he saith unto them, Are ye so without understanding also? Do ye not perceive, that whatsoever thing from without entereth into the man, it cannot defile him; Because it entereth not into his heart, but into the belly, and goeth out into the draught, purging all meats? And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.

Jesus tells the crowd that nothing entering a person from outside can defile them; what defiles comes from within. In private he explains to the puzzled disciples that food passes through the body, while evil comes from the heart.

What does this mean?

'Draught' (KJV) means latrine. 'Fornications' are sexual immoralities; 'lasciviousness' is unrestrained sensuality; an 'evil eye' was an idiom for envy or stinginess. In biblical thought the heart is the centre of thought and will, not only of emotion.

Historical context

The Jewish law included food laws (Leviticus 11) separating clean from unclean animals. In verse 19 both the KJV ('purging all meats') and the WEB ('making all foods clean') keep these words inside Jesus' question, describing digestion. Most modern translations follow the oldest Greek manuscripts, which differ here by one letter, and read them as Mark's own comment: 'Thus he declared all foods clean', as the WEB's footnote gives it. Verse 16 is absent from many early manuscripts.

Why does it matter?

Read as Mark's comment, verse 19 speaks to a major question in the early church: whether non-Jewish believers had to keep the Jewish food laws (see Acts 10; Galatians 2). Interpreters differ on whether Jesus himself meant to set those laws aside.

Editorial notes, not scripture.

A Syrophoenician woman's daughter

And from thence he arose, and went into the borders of Tyre and Sidon, and entered into an house, and would have no man know it: but he could not be hid. For a certain woman, whose young daughter had an unclean spirit, heard of him, and came and fell at his feet: The woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician by nation; and she besought him that he would cast forth the devil out of her daughter. But Jesus said unto her, Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it unto the dogs. And she answered and said unto him, Yes, Lord: yet the dogs under the table eat of the children’s crumbs. And he said unto her, For this saying go thy way; the devil is gone out of thy daughter. And when she was come to her house, she found the devil gone out, and her daughter laid upon the bed.

In the region of Tyre, a Gentile woman begs Jesus to drive a demon out of her daughter. He replies that the children must be fed first, and it is not right to throw their bread to the dogs. She answers that even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs, and Jesus tells her that, for this answer, her daughter is free.

What does this mean?

'Greek' here means a Gentile, a non-Jew; a 'Syrophoenician' was a Phoenician from the Roman province of Syria. 'Meet' (KJV) means right or fitting. The word for 'dogs' is a diminutive, suggesting house dogs or puppies; interpreters differ on whether this softens the insult.

Historical context

Tyre was a wealthy Phoenician port on the Mediterranean, north-west of Galilee, and relations between Tyre and Galilean Jews were often tense. 'Dogs' was a known term of contempt for outsiders.

Why does it matter?

This is one of the few times in the Gospels that someone wins an argument with Jesus. 'The children' are usually understood as Israel, fed 'first'; the woman's reply claims a share for Gentiles too. The story continues the theme of the previous passage, as barriers of purity give way.

Editorial notes, not scripture.

Jesus heals a deaf man

And again, departing from the coasts of Tyre and Sidon, he came unto the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the coasts of Decapolis. And they bring unto him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech; and they beseech him to put his hand upon him. And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue; And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain. And he charged them that they should tell no man: but the more he charged them, so much the more a great deal they published it; And were beyond measure astonished, saying, He hath done all things well: he maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak.

Back near the Sea of Galilee, in the Decapolis, Jesus is brought a deaf man who can hardly speak. Taking him aside, he puts his fingers in his ears, spits and touches his tongue, looks up to heaven, sighs and says 'Ephphatha'. The man hears and speaks plainly, and despite orders to keep quiet, people spread the news widely.

What does this mean?

'Ephphatha' is Aramaic for 'Be opened', which Mark translates. 'The string of his tongue' (KJV) means what bound his tongue. 'Dumb' (KJV) means unable to speak, with no reference to intelligence.

Historical context

Saliva was widely believed in the ancient world to have healing power, and healers used touch and gestures. Mark's route, from the region of Tyre and Sidon to the lake by way of the Decapolis, is a long circuit through largely Gentile territory.

Why does it matter?

Only Mark tells this story. The crowd's words, that he makes the deaf hear and the mute speak, echo Isaiah 35:5–6, a prophecy of God's restoration. Opened ears also anticipate Jesus' complaint about his disciples' deafness to his meaning (8:18).

Editorial notes, not scripture.

Translation

KJVTraditional biblical languageWEBContemporary English

Chapters

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12
  13. 13
  14. 14
  15. 15
  16. 16

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Reading

Translation

KJVTraditional biblical languageWEBContemporary English

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

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