by
Stan Feldsine (www.tojesusbeallglory.com)
Matthew
15:1-3 - Traditions and Commands
Mat 15:1-3
Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from
Jerusalem and asked, (2) "Why do your disciples break the
tradition of the elders? They don't wash their hands before they
eat!" (3) Jesus replied, "And why do you break the command
of God for the sake of your tradition?
Jesus here is
continuing His ministry to the people around Gennesaret. He had fed
the 5000, walked on water to the the boat where the disciples were encountering weather resistance in reaching the other side.
Peter had walked out to
Jesus on the water, after which Jesus entered the boat and they all
found themselves in Gennesaret, thus concluding the lessons taught by
the feeding the 5000, storms at sea, and walking on water. The lesson
was that the disciples would need to depend on and trust Jesus for
every aspect of all of their needs.
As He continued, He was
confronted by some Pharisees that had come up from Jerusalem. No
doubt Pharisee headquarters in Jerusalem had sent these out with the
the mission to confront and discredit Jesus. The opposition to Jesus
as the Messianic King is increasing and the Pharisees are traveling
to where Jesus is now to try and bring doubt regarding His authority.
In addition to
recording the parabolic discourse by Jesus on physical versus
spiritual defilement, Matthew reveals the contrast between the faith
of the Pharisees and that of a Canaanite (Gentile) woman in this
chapter. Jesus would again marvel at the unbelief of the Jewish
people, and the belief of the Gentile Canaanite woman.
Significantly, the
Pharisees accused the disciples of breaking the "tradition of
the elders", not of breaking the Law of Moses. The "elders"
were great rabbis of the past, and their oral teachings had come to
be viewed as almost equal in authority to the Law of Moses. These
Pharisees were quite aware that what they were accusing Jesus of was
breaking their traditions, not the actual law.
The oral law
(traditions of the elders) regarding the washing of hands is not a
matter of hygiene, but spiritual defilement. The purpose of the
"washing of hands" was religious purification. The
synagogues provided supplies of water for this ritual. Omitting this
ritual would lead to temporal destruction and poverty, and the
departure of God's divine presence. Pharisees elevated the study of
the oral law above that of the Law of Moses, and it was the
Pharisaical method of maintaining control of the Jewish nation.
According to the
Pharisees, Jews who contradicted the Law were not considered rebels,
but those who contradicted a rabbi were, hence Jesus charge against
them because their traditions invalidated God's law..
There were a lot of
other ritual traditions based on ritual washings, including that of
cups, pitchers, kettles, etc.
Mar 7:3-4
(The Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their
hands a ceremonial washing, holding to the tradition of the elders.
(4) When they come from the marketplace they do not eat unless they
wash. And they observe many other traditions, such as the washing of
cups, pitchers and kettles.)
Jesus counters with an
accusation that they are elevating their traditions over the law.
Mar 7:8-9
You have let go of the commands of God and are holding on to human
traditions." (9) And he continued, "You have a fine way of
setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own
traditions!
Matthew
15:4-9 - Honoring Mother and Father
Mat 15:4-9
For God said, 'Honor your father and mother' and 'Anyone who curses
their father or mother is to be put to death.' (5) But you say that
if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their
father or mother is 'devoted to God,' (6) they are not to 'honor
their father or mother' with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for
the sake of your tradition. (7) You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when
he prophesied about you: (8) "'These people honor me with their
lips, but their hearts are far from me. (9) They worship me in vain;
their teachings are merely human rules.'"
What Jesus is bringing
up in His counter argument is that the Pharisees were more interested
in honoring their traditions than they were about being obedient to
the Law of Moses.
Mar 7:6-9
He replied, "Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you
hypocrites; as it is written: "'These people honor me with their
lips, but their hearts are far from me. (7) They worship me in vain;
their teachings are merely human rules.' (8) You have let go of the
commands of God and are holding on to human traditions." (9) And
he continued, "You have a fine way of setting aside the commands
of God in order to observe your own traditions!
The example that Jesus
brings up to illustrate their error involves the 5th commandment.
Exo 20:12
"Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in
the land the LORD your God is giving you.
Eph 6:2-3
"Honor your father and mother"--which is the first
commandment with a promise-- (3) "so that it may go well with
you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth."
This is a part of the
Law of Moses, not a tradition. It states that children, adult or
otherwise, should "honor" our parents. "Honor"
means to "place value upon", "revere", "show
the value of someone or something". In the Jewish understanding,
it meant that the Jewish people were to care for the welfare of their
parents as they aged and were not able to care for themselves. This
law was serious enough that it provided for the death penalty for
insolent children who cursed their parents.
Although the Law stated
that we should honor our parents, the oral law provided ways to "opt
out" of this care. It stated that giving money to the temple was
more important than caring for ones parents. The term "corban"
meant "a gift set apart to God". If a person had a parent
in need, that person could escape from the responsibility to care for
their parents by declaring the gift set apart to God.
Mar 7:10-13
For Moses said, 'Honor your father and mother,' and, 'Anyone who
curses their father or mother is to be put to death.' (11) But you
say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help
their father or mother is Corban (that is, devoted to God)-- (12)
then you no longer let them do anything for their father or mother.
(13) Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have
handed down. And you do many things like that."
The intricacies of this
tradition allowed the person who declared what might have been used
to help the parent to either give it to the synagogue, or keep it
themselves as something set apart to God.
In this way the
traditions of the elders conflicted with the Law of Moses and the
people had to choose which to follow. The Pharisees were rightly
called hypocrites and rebuked.
The Ritual
The "tradition of
the elders" in this case involved ceremonial cleansing in the
form of the washing of hands. It was believed that evil spirits were
present all the time and that the frequent ritual of washing of hands
and various implements cleansed the individual and removed the evil
spirits from their presence.
The ritual itself
required that in groups of people, there was an order that the ritual
was to be completed, starting with the most important person, and
ending with the least. The ritual ended with a benediction recited by
the person who began the ritual.
If a Jew despised the
washing of hands, then they were excommunicated, and when he died, a
large rock was placed on his grave, and the rock was stoned. A Jew
who despised the washing of hands would be rooted out of the world,
and would fall into poverty.
There were even
traditions for situations when there was no water to wash in. If
water was within 4 miles of where the party was, then they were to
travel to that location to perform the ritual. If the distance was
greater than 4 miles, then they were to wipe their hands with
shavings, sand or a board, then they could proceed with the prayer.
Jesus's Dealing and
Response to Rabbinic Ritualism
Jesus did not follow
this tradition, and neither did His disciples. That was the whole
point of the Pharisees questioning Him about this. The Pharisees that
were questioning Jesus had traveled for three days to question Him
about something that was not even a matter of the Mosaic Law.
The Pharisees were
never able to accuse Jesus of breaking the Law of Moses, which He was
obedient to down to the last jot and tittle. They could only accuse
Him of breaking their traditions.
Jesus responded to
Pharisaic traditionalism by pointing out that they were hypocrites,
that they were setting up a tradition that allowed for passively
ignoring the commandments of God (Law of Moses) and allowing their
traditions to outright reject the commands of God.
Isa 29:13
The Lord says: "These people come near to me with their mouth
and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their
worship of me is based on merely human rules they have been taught.
Mar 7:6-7
He replied, "Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you
hypocrites; as it is written: "'These people honor me with their
lips, but their hearts are far from me. (7) They worship me in vain;
their teachings are merely human rules.'
The Pharisees believed
that they were honoring and worshiping God with their man made rules,
but in truth their worship was empty and vain and elevated their man
made rules above the rules that God gave them in His law.
Mar 7:9
And he continued, "You have a fine way of setting aside the
commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!
Corban
As mentioned above,
Jesus illustrated the truth of what He was saying about their
hypocrisy, and elevating their traditions above the Law of Moses.
"Many Such Like
Things"
Mar 7:13
Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have
handed down. And you do many things like that."
Jesus judged the
Pharisees for elevating their traditions above the Law of Moses in
many other things. Another example has to do with the principle of
"Eruv".
The Law of Moses
contains a command for the Sabbath day of rest in which the
individual Jew is not permitted to travel more than .57 miles. The
Pharisees devised a way to get around this and travel further. Dr.
Arnold Fruchtenbaum quotes a source (b.Shabbath, p. 27, n. 9.. See
also y. Shebiit 9:1):
On the Sabbath one
may not go more than two thousand cubits out of the town. This,
however, may be extended by placing some food (called an 'erub) at
any spot within the two thousand cubits on Friday; by a legal fiction
that spot becomes the Sabbath abode, since he can now eat his meal
there, and from there he is premitted to walk a further two thousand
cubits in any direction. This food must so be placed that it is
permissable to take it on the Sabbath."
Matthew
15:10-11 - What Defiles a Person Parable
Mat 15:10-11
Jesus called the crowd to him and said, "Listen and understand.
(11) What goes into someone's mouth does not defile them, but what
comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them."
Jesus calls the entire
crowd to hear what He has to say. He is going to use a parabolic
method to explain what is going on by showing that defilement is a
heart issue, not a physical issue.
In the following
passage we see that the Pharisees were only concerned with outward
ritual.
Mar 7:1-4
The Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law who had come from
Jerusalem gathered around Jesus (2) and saw some of his disciples
eating food with hands that were defiled, that is, unwashed. (3) (The
Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their hands a
ceremonial washing, holding to the tradition of the elders. (4) When
they come from the marketplace they do not eat unless they wash. And
they observe many other traditions, such as the washing of cups,
pitchers and kettles.)
Jesus contradicts the
traditional teachings of the Pharisees by stating that it is not what
is done outside physically, I.E. ritual, that determines if one is
"clean" or not, rather, it is the expression proceeding
forth from the heart that determines if one is "clean" or
not.
One is physical
cleanliness, the other is spiritual cleanliness. The Pharisees were
concerned with physical cleanliness and ignored spiritual
cleanliness.
Mat 15:11
What goes into someone's mouth does not defile them, but what comes
out of their mouth, that is what defiles them."
Mar 7:15
Nothing outside a person can defile them by going into them. Rather,
it is what comes out of a person that defiles them."
Matthew
15:12-14 - The Offense to the Pharisees
Mat 15:12-14
Then the disciples came to him and asked, "Do you know that the
Pharisees were offended when they heard this?" (13) He replied,
"Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be
pulled up by the roots. (14) Leave them; they are blind guides. If
the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit."
The people held the
Pharisees in high regard, even the disciples respected them. It is in
this spirit that the disciples wanted to know why Jesus was speaking
in a way that offended them.
The passage that "every
plant ... that the Father has not planted will be pulled up by the
roots" hearkens back to the parable of the Wheat and Tares. The
pulling up of the weeds occurs between the end of the Tribulation and
the beginning of the Messianic Kingdom. They are to be left to spread
their false teachings until that time.
The Parable of the
Wheat and Tares:
Mat 13:24-30
Jesus told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like
a man who sowed good seed in his field. (25) But while everyone was
sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went
away. (26) When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds
also appeared. (27) "The owner's servants came to him and said,
'Sir, didn't you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the
weeds come from?' (28) "'An enemy did this,' he replied. "The
servants asked him, 'Do you want us to go and pull them up?' (29)
"'No,' he answered, 'because while you are pulling the weeds,
you may uproot the wheat with them. (30) Let both grow together until
the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect
the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat
and bring it into my barn.'"
The Parable of the
Wheat and Tares Explained:
Mat 13:36-42
Then he left the crowd and went into the house. His disciples came to
him and said, "Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the
field." (37) He answered, "The one who sowed the good seed
is the Son of Man. (38) The field is the world, and the good seed
stands for the people of the kingdom. The weeds are the people of the
evil one, (39) and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest
is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. (40) "As
the weeds are pulled up and burned in the fire, so it will be at the
end of the age. (41) The Son of Man will send out his angels, and
they will weed out of his kingdom everything that causes sin and all
who do evil. (42) They will throw them into the blazing furnace,
where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
The righteous people
are referred to as a plant the Lord has planted, I.E. wheat.
Isa 60:21
Then all your people will be righteous and they will possess the land
forever. They are the shoot I have planted, the work of my hands, for
the display of my splendor.
The unrighteous are
referred to as a plant that will be destroyed for it's lack of fruit,
I.E. tares.
Isa 5:1-6
I will sing for the one I love a song about his vineyard: My loved
one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside. (2) He dug it up and
cleared it of stones and planted it with the choicest vines. He built
a watchtower in it and cut out a winepress as well. Then he looked
for a crop of good grapes, but it yielded only bad fruit. (3) "Now
you dwellers in Jerusalem and people of Judah, judge between me and
my vineyard. (4) What more could have been done for my vineyard than
I have done for it? When I looked for good grapes, why did it yield
only bad? (5) Now I will tell you what I am going to do to my
vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it will be destroyed; I
will break down its wall, and it will be trampled. (6) I will make it
a wasteland, neither pruned nor cultivated, and briers and thorns
will grow there. I will command the clouds not to rain on it."
The Pharisees
considered themselves to be guides to the spiritually blind, but they
themselves were blind.
Rom 2:19-21
if you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for
those who are in the dark, (20) an instructor of the foolish, a
teacher of little children, because you have in the law the
embodiment of knowledge and truth-- (21) you, then, who teach others,
do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you
steal?
Matthew
15:15-20 - What Defiles a Person Explained
Mat 15:15-20
Peter said, "Explain the parable to us." (16) "Are you
still so dull?" Jesus asked them. (17) "Don't you see that
whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the
body? (18) But the things that come out of a person's mouth come from
the heart, and these defile them. (19) For out of the heart come evil
thoughts--murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false
testimony, slander. (20) These are what defile a person; but eating
with unwashed hands does not defile them."
Peter
and the disciples referred to the statement Jesus made in
Mat 15:10-11
as a parable. Parables were designed so that no one understood what
He was talking about.
Mat 15:10-11
Jesus called the crowd to him and said, "Listen and understand.
(11) What goes into someone's mouth does not defile them, but what
comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them."
Mar 7:14-15
Again Jesus called the crowd to him and said, "Listen to me,
everyone, and understand this. (15) Nothing outside a person can
defile them by going into them. Rather, it is what comes out of a
person that defiles them."
Peter and the disciples
asked Jesus to explain this short parable. Even the disciples did not
understand what Jesus was saying.
Mat 15:15
Peter said, "Explain the parable to us."
Mar 7:17
After he had left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples
asked him about this parable.
The Pharisees only say
defilement as something external to themselves. I.E. they ate pork,
they were defiled. They touched a dead man, they were defiled, etc.
Jesus was teaching them
that defilement was not something caused externally, but originated
internally, in the heart. That is where defilement originated.
Remember from the beginning the law was concerned not about external
cleanliness, but was concerned about circumcision, or regeneration of
the heart.
Deu 10:15-16
Yet the LORD set his affection on your ancestors and loved them, and
he chose you, their descendants, above all the nations--as it is
today. (16) Circumcise your hearts, therefore, and do not be
stiff-necked any longer.
Deu 30:6
The LORD your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your
descendants, so that you may love him with all your heart and with
all your soul, and live.
Jer 4:4
Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, circumcise your hearts, you people
of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem, or my wrath will flare up and
burn like fire because of the evil you have done-- burn with no one
to quench it.
In the example of
eating pork, Jesus is wanting the disciples to understand that the
decision to eat pork originates in the heart and that is where
defilement occurs. Their behavior proceeds from their heart.
Cleanliness is a matter of the heart, not ritual. The washing of
hands was a worthless ritual created by the "wise rabbis"
to be a tradition that was not a part of the Law of Moses. It did not
deal with the thoughts in the mind or the heart from whence
defilement originated.
The Pharisees were hard
hearted, focused on worthless tradition, and resistant to change.
They were not allowing God's word to change their heart through
regeneration. They did not understand the real Law of Moses that
called on them to be circumcised of heart, which is to be regenerated
in their minds.
Mark adds a detail that
should not be overlooked.
Mar 7:19
For it doesn't go into their heart but into their stomach, and then
out of the body." (In
saying this, Jesus declared all foods clean.)
The Pharisees were only
concerned with external cleanliness. This is most likely because they
were devoid of the Spirit, and could not perceive thus not understand
the concept of internal cleanliness. The prohibition against eating
pork was in the Law of Moses, not a tradition.
A part of Jesus'
mission was to eliminate the distinction between clean and unclean in
the realm of food. In the realm of the physical, Jesus is saying that
nothing can defile us:
Mar 7:15
Nothing outside a person can defile them by going into them. Rather,
it is what comes out of a person that defiles them."
Jesus here is teaching
that defilement occurs in the heart, not physically.
Mar 7:20-23
He went on: "What comes out of a person is what defiles them.
(21) For it is from within, out of a person's heart, that evil
thoughts come--sexual immorality, theft, murder, (22) adultery,
greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly.
(23) All these evils come from inside and defile a person."
So Mark is applying
this to foods that previously had been considered unclean to eat. If
nothing physically outside a person can defile them, and pork is
something eaten physically, then pork cannot defile a person who eats
it. Thus, Jesus made pork clean for those who understand what this
parable is teaching.
Other writers confirmed
this the change in the nature of unclean meat. Luke writing in Acts
states this:
Act 10:9-15
About noon the following day as they were on their journey and
approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. (10) He
became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was
being prepared, he fell into a trance. (11) He saw heaven opened and
something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four
corners. (12) It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well
as reptiles and birds. (13) Then a voice told him, "Get up,
Peter. Kill and eat." (14) "Surely not, Lord!" Peter
replied. "I have never eaten anything impure or unclean."
(15) The voice spoke to him a second time, "Do not call anything
impure that God has made clean."
The context of what
Luke is recording here is Peter's rejection of Gentiles. Jesus is
teaching him, using the metaphor of unclean meats becoming clean to
illustrate that Peter should not consider Gentiles to be unclean. In
the metaphor, all meats are necessarily clean, or the metaphor would
not be a valid illustration indicating that Gentile were now to be
considered clean.
Act 10:28
He said to them: "You are well aware that it is against our law
for a Jew to associate with or visit a Gentile. But God has shown me
that I should not call anyone impure or unclean.
Paul also shows that
all meats are considered clean now:
Rom 14:6
Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats
meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever
abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God.
1Ti 4:1-5
The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the
faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. (2)
Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences
have been seared as with a hot iron. (3) They forbid people to marry
and order them to
abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with
thanksgiving by those who believe and who know the truth.
(4) For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected
if it is received with thanksgiving, (5) because it is consecrated by
the word of God and prayer.
The "truth"
that Paul is referring to in this letter to Timothy is that external
things are not the source of defilement, our heart and mind is. Guard
our hearts and minds, and our behavior will be protected as well.
Matthew
15:21-28 - The Faith of a Canaanite Woman
Mat 15:21-28
Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon.
(22) A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out,
"Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is
demon-possessed and suffering terribly." (23) Jesus did not
answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, "Send
her away, for she keeps crying out after us." (24) He answered,
"I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel." (25) The
woman came and knelt before him. "Lord, help me!" she said.
(26) He replied, "It is not right to take the children's bread
and toss it to the dogs." (27) "Yes it is, Lord," she
said. "Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their
master's table." (28) Then Jesus said to her, "Woman, you
have great faith! Your request is granted." And her daughter was
healed at that moment.
The region of Tyre and
Sidon were predominantly Gentile. Jesus would retreat to Gentile
lands to escape the threats of the Pharisees and their followers.
Jesus was seeking a private place to speak to His disciples about
their lack of spiritual discernment.
Mar 7:24
Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of Tyre. He entered a
house and did not want anyone to know it; yet he could not keep his
presence secret.
Jesus was becoming
quite well known throughout the land and it was quite difficult at
this point to maintain secrecy about where He was. During this trip
to this region, he encountered a Gentile woman who was a Greek from
the area of Syria Phoenicia. This woman was well aware of who Jesus
was and cried out to Him for help.
Mar 7:25-26
In fact, as soon as she heard about him, a woman whose little
daughter was possessed by an impure spirit came and fell at his feet.
(26) The woman was a Greek, born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged
Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter.
Of significant note is
that the woman addressed Jesus as "Son of David".
Mat 15:22
A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, "Lord,
Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and
suffering terribly."
By calling Jesus the
"Son of David" the woman revealed that she understood Jesus
to be the Messianic King who had come to establish His Kingdom and
reign over earth from the throne of David.
But Jesus did not
answer her, basically ignoring her. This distressed the disciples who
were probably embarrassed and asked Jesus to send her away.
Mat 15:23
Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged
him, "Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us."
Jesus responded by
telling her that He had not come but for the lost sheep of Israel,
meaning the Jewish people. Jesus was the Jewish Messiah and had come
for the Jews only. At this point the Gentiles were still without hope
and without God in the world.
Eph 2:11-12
Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and
called "uncircumcised" by those who call themselves "the
circumcision" (which is done in the body by human hands)-- (12)
remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded
from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the
promise, without hope and without God in the world.
The Gentile would not
be welcomed into the new man until Jesus's resurrection.
Eph 2:13-16
But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought
near by the blood of Christ. (14) For he himself is our peace, who
has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the
dividing wall of hostility, (15) by setting aside in his flesh the
law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in
himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, (16) and
in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by
which he put to death their hostility.
Gal 3:24-29
So the law was our guardian until Christ came that we might be
justified by faith. (25) Now that this faith has come, we are no
longer under a guardian. (26) So in Christ Jesus you are all children
of God through faith, (27) for all of you who were baptized into
Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. (28) There is neither Jew
nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female,
for you are all one in Christ Jesus. (29) If you belong to Christ,
then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.
The woman accepted what
Jesus said about His coming only for the Israelites, and changed her
approach to one of worship. She came based on her personal need.
Jesus's response this time was that it was not proper to give her
what was not hers, I.E. the blessings of the Kingdom were for those
in the house of the Jews.
Consider that Jesus had
been going to the Jews and many were unreached, others had rejected
Him. If Jesus were to redirect His efforts at this time and turn to
the Gentiles He would never reach all the Jewish people that needed
to hear him. The mission to the Gentiles would come later.
The term dogs in this
context referred to puppies, or house pets, not the mangy dogs of the
street. "Dogs" as used in this context was not a derogatory
term, it just showed that even as house pets the dogs did not get to
eat what belonged to the children of the household. Never the less
they did get to eat of the crumbs. As such the dogs were allowed in
the house, they just were not allowed to eat the children's food and
thus leave the children with nothing to eat.
Mat 15:26
He replied, "It is not right to take the children's bread and
toss it to the dogs."
Finally the woman
approached Jesus as one with great faith would. In spite of the
rejections so far she persisted. She understood that the dogs could
not eat the children's portion, but nevertheless they could eat of
the table food as it fell.
Mat 15:27
"Yes it is, Lord," she said. "Even the dogs eat the
crumbs that fall from their master's table."
Jesus saw in the woman
great faith. She believed and was persistent, and it is based on the
faith that she had that Jesus granted the woman's wish of healing for
her daughter.
Mat 15:28
Then Jesus said to her, "Woman, you have great faith! Your
request is granted." And her daughter was healed at that moment.
Matthew
15:29-31 - Jesus Heals Many
Mat 15:29-31
Jesus left there and went along the Sea of Galilee. Then he went up
on a mountainside and sat down. (30) Great 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. (31) The people were
amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled made well, the
lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of
Israel.
Jesus left the area of
Tyre and Sidon and traveled to the Decapolis. This is the area in
which Jesus cast the legion into the pigs, and was primarily a
Gentile region. While the residents asked Jesus to leave after the
encounter with the Legion, this time they welcomed Him.
Mar 7:31
Then Jesus left the vicinity of Tyre and went through Sidon, down to
the Sea of Galilee and into the region of the Decapolis.
Jesus again has
compassion on the crowds of sick, blind, mute and deaf people, and
heals them all. These healings are on the basis of compassion and not
signs of the Kingdom. The people are amazed, and even as Gentiles
they praised the God of Israel, even as the Israelites were rejecting
Him.
Mat 15:31
The people were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled
made well, the lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised
the God of Israel.
Mark includes the
account of a deaf and nearly mute man. This man is likely a Jew from
one of the small Jewish communities in the area based on the details
of the healing. Interestingly, Jesus took him aside away from the
crowd. This seems to represent a shift in Jesus's ministry where He
no longer performed healing in the sight of the general population.
Mar 7:33-35
After he took him aside, away from the crowd, Jesus put his fingers
into the man's ears. Then he spit and touched the man's tongue. (34)
He looked up to heaven and with a deep sigh said to him, "Ephphatha!"
(which means "Be opened!"). (35) At this, the man's ears
were opened, his tongue was loosened and he began to speak plainly.
Matthew
15:32-39 - Jesus Feeds the 4000
Mat 15:32-39
Jesus called his disciples to him and said, "I have compassion
for these people; 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
collapse on the way." (33) His disciples answered, "Where
could we get enough bread in this remote place to feed such a crowd?"
(34) "How many loaves do you have?" Jesus asked. "Seven,"
they replied, "and a few small fish." (35) He told the
crowd to sit down on the ground. (36) Then he took the seven loaves
and the fish, and when he had given thanks, he broke them and gave
them to the disciples, and they in turn to the people. (37) They all
ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven
basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. (38) The number of
those who ate was four thousand men, besides women and children. (39)
After Jesus had sent the crowd away, he got into the boat and went to
the vicinity of Magadan.
The feeding of the 4000
men is a similar event to the feeding of the 5000, but with some
distinct differences. The feeding of the 5000 was primarily Jews,
while the feeding of the 4000 are primarily Gentiles.
The motivation driving
Jesus to feed the 4000 is again, compassion.
The primary lesson
though is for the disciples, again emphasizing their need to depend
on the Lord for meeting the needs of others. It seems apparent that
the disciples were needing to hear the lesson again as they spoke up
asking Jesus once again how they were going to feed so many people.
Mat 15:33
His disciples answered, "Where could we get enough bread in this
remote place to feed such a crowd?"
After feeding the
people, Jesus sent them away, and traveled to Magadan by boat.
Mat 15:39
After Jesus had sent the crowd away, he got into the boat and went to
the vicinity of Magadan.
