Matthew 15 · KJV
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Matthew 15

Tradition and the command of God

Then came to Jesus scribes and Pharisees, which were of Jerusalem, saying, Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? for they wash not their hands when they eat bread. But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? For God commanded, saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death. But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; And honour not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition. Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying, This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me. But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem ask why Jesus' disciples break the tradition of the elders by eating without washing their hands. Jesus retorts that they break God's own command through their tradition, citing a practice by which a person could declare his property 'a gift' dedicated to God and so avoid supporting his parents.

  • Scripture connection · Quotation

    Matthew 15:7–9 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?

The 'tradition of the elders' was the body of teaching handed down orally by the Pharisees to apply the Law to daily life; much of it was later written down in the Mishnah, around AD 200. 'It is a gift' (KJV) refers to a vow of the kind Mark calls 'Corban' (Mark 7:11).

Historical context

The handwashing concerned ritual purity, not hygiene: the Pharisees urged extending priestly purity practices into everyday meals. Vows dedicating property to God were binding, and later rabbis debated whether such vows could be released when they harmed parents.

Why does it matter?

The dispute is about authority: whose interpretation of God's will is binding. The delegation 'from Jerusalem' signals that opposition is now coming from the centre.

Editorial notes, not scripture.

What makes a person unclean

And he called the multitude, and said unto them, Hear, and understand: Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man. Then came his disciples, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the Pharisees were offended, after they heard this saying? But he answered and said, Every plant, which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up. Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch. Then answered Peter and said unto him, Declare unto us this parable. And Jesus said, Are ye also yet without understanding? Do not ye yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast out into the draught? But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.

Jesus tells the crowd that what goes into the mouth does not defile a person, but what comes out of it does. When the disciples report that the Pharisees are offended, he calls them blind guides. Explaining to Peter, he lists evil thoughts, murder, adultery and other wrongs that come from the heart.

What does this mean?

'Defile' means make unclean. 'Draught' (KJV) means latrine.

Historical context

Purity laws governed food, bodily conditions and contact with the dead, and marked Israel as set apart. Pharisees sought to keep such laws in daily life, not only at the temple.

Why does it matter?

Mark adds a comment that modern translations render as Jesus 'declaring all foods clean' (Mark 7:19); Matthew has nothing like it and ends with the handwashing question. Interpreters debate whether Matthew regarded the food laws as still in force for Jewish followers of Jesus. The list of wrongs from the heart follows the order of several of the Ten Commandments.

Editorial notes, not scripture.

A Canaanite woman's faith

Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon. And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil. But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us. But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to dogs. And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table. Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.

In the region of Tyre and Sidon, a Canaanite woman begs Jesus, as 'son of David', to heal her daughter, who is possessed by a demon. At first he ignores her and says he was sent only to Israel, and that it is not right to throw the children's bread to the dogs. She replies that even dogs eat the crumbs from their masters' table. Jesus praises her great faith, and her daughter is healed.

What does this mean?

'Dogs' was a Jewish insult for Gentiles. The Greek word here is a diminutive, sometimes taken to mean house dogs or puppies, though whether this softens it is debated.

Historical context

Tyre and Sidon were Gentile cities on the Phoenician coast, north-west of Galilee. Mark calls the woman a Greek, 'a Syrophoenician by race'; Matthew's older term 'Canaanite' recalls Israel's ancient neighbours and enemies.

Why does it matter?

Jesus' initial refusal is one of the most discussed moments in the Gospels: interpreters debate whether he was testing her, voicing a common attitude in order to overturn it, or being led to widen his mission. Like the centurion (8:10), a Gentile shows faith that Jesus praises, anticipating the mission to all nations (28:19).

Editorial notes, not scripture.

Healing crowds on the mountain

And Jesus departed from thence, and came nigh unto the sea of Galilee; and went up into a mountain, and sat down there. And great multitudes came unto him, having with them those that were lame, blind, dumb, maimed, and many others, and cast them down at Jesus’ feet; and he healed them: Insomuch that the multitude wondered, when they saw the dumb to speak, the maimed to be whole, the lame to walk, and the blind to see: and they glorified the God of Israel.

Jesus goes up a mountain beside the Sea of Galilee and sits down. Great crowds bring the lame, blind, mute, maimed and many others, and he heals them. The people are amazed and praise 'the God of Israel'.

What does this mean?

'Maimed' means crippled or injured in a limb.

Why does it matter?

The list echoes Isaiah 35:5–6 on the healing of the blind, deaf and lame in the age of salvation. Some interpreters take 'glorified the God of Israel' to imply a Gentile crowd, in keeping with Mark's setting in the Decapolis (Mark 7:31); others think the crowd is Jewish. The scene sets up the second feeding.

Editorial notes, not scripture.

The feeding of the four thousand

Then Jesus called his disciples unto him, and said, I have compassion on the multitude, because they continue with me now three days, and have nothing to eat: and I will not send them away fasting, lest they faint in the way. And his disciples say unto him, Whence should we have so much bread in the wilderness, as to fill so great a multitude? And Jesus saith unto them, How many loaves have ye? And they said, Seven, and a few little fishes. And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground. And he took the seven loaves and the fishes, and gave thanks, and brake them, and gave to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude. And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the broken meat that was left seven baskets full. And they that did eat were four thousand men, beside women and children. And he sent away the multitude, and took ship, and came into the coasts of Magdala.

After the crowd has been with him for three days, Jesus has compassion on them because they have nothing to eat. With seven loaves and a few small fish, he gives thanks, breaks them, and the disciples distribute them. Four thousand men, besides women and children, eat their fill, and seven baskets of leftovers are collected. Jesus then sails to the region of Magdala.

What does this mean?

The word for 'baskets' here differs from the one used in 14:20 and may mean a larger basket, though the difference is uncertain.

Why does it matter?

Some readers see this as a separate event, others as a second telling of the same tradition; Matthew presents two distinct feedings, and Jesus recalls both in 16:9–10. The seven baskets are sometimes read as symbolising the nations, as twelve may symbolise Israel, but this is speculative.

Editorial notes, not scripture.

Told in two Gospels

How Matthew tells it

Matthew's account is close to Mark's, but sets the feeding on a mountain by the Sea of Galilee after a scene of mass healing, where Mark places Jesus in the region of the Decapolis. Matthew again adds 'besides women and children', and ends with Jesus going to Magdala where Mark has Dalmanutha.

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
  17. 17
  18. 18
  19. 19
  20. 20
  21. 21
  22. 22
  23. 23
  24. 24
  25. 25
  26. 26
  27. 27
  28. 28

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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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