Introductory remarks:
In this chapter we have the Scribes and Pharisees coming together to question Jesus about His religious principles. The scribes and Pharisees were man-made offices that came about in the intertestamental period; this period was the four hundred years between the return of the Jews from Babylonian captivity to the birth of Christ. The Pharisees believed in the Old Testament and the supernatural, while the Scribes were the wealthy expounders of the Law, somewhat like lawyers, however they did not accept the supernatural, especially the resurrection. These man-made offices, along with the Elders made up the Sanhedrin Council. This chapter may be outlined as follows: the tradition of the Elders vv. 1-23; the Syrophoenician women's faith vv. 24-30; a deaf and dumb man healed vv. 31-37.
The Tradition of the Elders
(Matt. 15:1-20)
Verse 1, "Then came together unto him the Pharisees, and certain of the scribes, which came from Jerusalem."
LGT "And are gathered together to Him the Pharisees and some of the Scribes, having come from Jerusalem."
These two religious parties oppose one another, but they come together when it comes to indict Jesus. These religious leaders come across the Jordan from Jerusalem to Capernaum, drawn together by Jesus.
Verse 2-4, "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, brazen vessels, and of tables."
LGT "And having seen some of His disciples with defiled hands, that is unwashed, eating the bread - for the Pharisee and all of the Jews, carefully wash the hands, they do not eat, holding the tradition of the Elders, and [on coming] from the market [or field], unless they wash themselves, they do not eat, and many other things there are which they received to hold, washings of cups and vessels and brazen utensils [and couches]:"
These religious rulers might have seen the disciples eating the loaves after feeding of the five thousand, where they did not have the opportunity to wash for sanitary reasons; but the Pharisees and Scribes were not interested in the sanitary aspect of washing, only the ceremonial washing.
Edersheim wrote:
"It can only be necessary to refer in briefest manner to those observances which orthodox Judaism had received to hold. They connect themselves with those eighteen decrees, intended to separate the Jew from all contact with Gentiles. Any contact with a heathen, even the touch of his dress, might involve such defilement, that on coming from the market the orthodox Jew would have to immerse. Only those who know the complicated arrangements about defilements of vessels that were any part, however small, hollow, as these are described in the Misnah (Tractate Kelim), can form an adequate idea of the painful minuteness with which every little detail is treated. Earthen vessels that had contracted impurity were to be broken; those of wood, horn, glass, or brass immersed; while, if vessels were bought of Gentiles, they were (as the case might be) to be immersed, put into boiling water, purged with fire, or at least polished.
It was the practice to draw water out of these with what was called a natal, antila, or antelaya, very often of glass, which must hold (at least) a quarter of a log - a measure equal to one and a half egg-shells. For, no less quantity than this might be used for effusion. The water was poured on both hands, which must be free of anything covering them, such as gravel, mortar, etc. The hands were lifted up, so as to make the water run to the wrist, in order to ensure that the whole hand was washed, and that the water polluted by the hand did not again run down the fingers. Similarly, each hand was rubbed with the other (the fist), provided the hand that rubbed had been effused [poured-out]; otherwise, the rubbing might be done against the head, or even against the wall. But there was one point on which special stress was laid. In the first effusion, which was all that originally was required when the hands were Levitically defiled, the water had to run down to the wrist (lappereq, or happereq). If the water remained short of the wrist (chuts lappereq), the hands were not clean. Accordingly, the words of St. Mark can only mean that the Pharisees eat not except they wash their hands to the wrist."
McGee wrote about the hypocrisy of these religious leaders in their false emphasis:
"Now this obviously was a special delegation from Jerusalem. They had been sent to Galilee to spy on Jesus. They were the intellectual opponents sent to trap the Lord Jesus. The way that our Lord defended Himself is to me another proof of His deity - Never man spake like this man was the testimony of His enemies (John 7:46). Of course, it wasn't difficult for them to find some fault because the Lord Jesus entirely ignored their traditions.
Now what was their tradition? They were not simply criticizing the disciples because of a breach of etiquette, but for the fact that the Lord was not having them keep the traditions, which were their interpretation of the Old Testament. This referred to a ceremonial cleansing and hadn't anything to do with sanitary measures. Mark explains for the benefit of the Romans that this custom of ceremonial cleansing was peculiar to Israel; and it was.
God had given to Israel a great deal of information about cleansing. In the Old Testament, in the Book of Leviticus, there is a great deal of instruction about cleansing. It was very important because God was teaching them the great lesson that a sinner had to be cleansed [notice he didn't say clean] before he could enjoy fellowship with a Holy God. But the Pharisees had built a great tradition that was supposed to be an interpretation of the Mosaic Law, and some of them even contended that Moses had given them the traditions when he gave them the Law. In time, these traditions became the interpretation of the Law, and eventually there was a wide departure in the traditions from what had been the intent of the Law.
In our passage here, some of this tradition is given in detail. They would ceremonially wash the cups and pots and brazen vessels and the tables [reclining couches]. All of this was a burdensome sort of thing and was an entirely outward performance. The word used for washing is baptism. They baptized cups, pots, and religious objects, even tables. Now this is religion with a vengeance, friend, and you can see that one could get so involved in going through a ritual of religion that one would forget the whole purpose - which is that a person must be made right with God before a relationship can be established. We find the same kind of thing today. So many people will argue points of religion when it is the Person of Jesus Christ that should be our concern."
Verse 5, "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?"
LGT "And the Pharisees and the Scribes question Him, Why do Your disciples walk not according to the tradition of the Elders, but with common [or polluted] hands, eat the bread?"
These religious fanatical, uncompromising extremists were actually leveling their charges at Christ, without much concern for His disciples.
Verse 6, "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."
LGT "But He answering, said to them, Beautifully has Esaias prophesied concerning you hypocrites, as it has been written, [That] this people honor Me with the lips, but their heart is far away from Me."
Remember that the word 'hypocrite' is the word used for an actor on the stage; these Pharisees went through the ritual of religion, but their hearts were far from the Lord. Today we see the same thing in our denominational churches; I saw a picture in the Sunday newspaper concerning the expansion of the Calvary Church, pastured by Chuck Smith; the picture showed a woman praying with her hands raised above her head, with her hands outstretched with palms up, and the caption below gave her name, and said that she was praying in the worship service to God. I agree she was praying, but not to God; she was well aware that the cameras were rolling, and that she was noticed as a holy person.
Verse 7, "Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrine the commandments of men."
LGT "But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as teachings, ordinances of men."
Whenever men substitute the Word of God for speculative philosophy and psychology, that is, the doctrine of self-esteem, such as the tripe promulgated from the Crystal Cathedral in Costa Mesa, they are teaching the ordinances of men and not God. They build great Cathedrals but are filled with dead men's bones, and are whitewashed sepulchers.
Verse 8, "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."
LGT "Leaving the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men."
"Note the sharp contrast between the command of God and the traditions of men. Jesus here drives a keen wedge into the Pharisaic contention. They had covered up the Word of God with oral teaching. Jesus here shows that they care more for the oral teaching of the scribes and elders than for the written Law of God. The Talmud gives abundant and specific confirmation of the truthfulness of this indictment" (Robertson).
Verse 9, "And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition."
LGT "And He said to them, Beautifully have ye set aside the commandment of God, in order that you may observe your own tradition."
The Greek word for 'full well' is an adverb Kalos, meaning fundamentally beautiful, so it really does set forth the biting irony of Christ's Words. Any time men substitute a doctrine or tradition for God's Word they are headed for ruin; the Roman Catholic Church is nothing but traditions of men, and they are superstitious beyond belief.
Verse 10, "For Moses said, Honor thy father and mother; and, Whoso curseth father or mother, let him die the death:"
LGT "For Moses said, Honor your father and your mother, and, the one who speaks evil of father or mother, let him die by death."
Jesus gives them the truth of what the Law of Moses requires: For everyone who curseth his father or mother shall be surely put to death; he hath cursed his father or his mother; his blood shall be upon him (Lev. 20:9).
Verse 11, "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."
LGT "But ye say, If a man say to father or mother, Corban, that is, a Gift, whatever from me, you might be profited by,"
Christ showing their uselessness compared to God's Law brings out the Jews tradition. Mark uses the Hebrew word Corban, meaning a gift; any Jew who wanted to escape honoring his father or mother could take whatever he would use for them and give it as a gift to the temple priests, and he would then escape his responsibility to his parents.
Robertson notes:
"The Rabbis actually allowed the mere saying of this word Corban by an unfaithful son to prevent the use of needed money for the support of father or mother. It was a home thrust to these petty-fogging sticklers for ceremonial punctilios. They not only justified such a son's trickery, but held that he was prohibited from using it for father or mother, but he might use it for himself."
Edersheim adds:
"It must not be thought that the pronunciation of the votive word Qorban, although meaning a gift, or given to God, necessarily dedicated a thing to the Temple. The meaning might simply be, and generally was, that it was to be regarded like Qorban - that is, that in regard to the persons named, the thing termed was to be considered as if it were Qorban, laid on the altar, and put entirely out of reach."
Verse 12, "And ye suffer him no more to do aught for his father or his mother;"
LGT "And ye suffer him no longer to do anything [literally nothing] for father or mother,"
The Pharisees once again find a way to skirt around the Law of God with their traditions, making a way for a man to completely shirk his responsibility to his parents.
Verse 13, "Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye."
LGT "Making void the Word of God by your tradition, which you have delivered; and many like [things] you do."
These Pharisees have laid the Word of God aside and replaced it with human viewpoint by way of their ridiculous tradition. Whenever a commentary uses speculation in place of God's Word, they are making the word of God of none effect. These religious zealots did the same thing with adultery, marriage, and divorce, and many other issues Moses made very plain.
Verse 14, "And when he had called all the people unto him, he said unto them, Hearken unto me every one of you, and understand:"
LGT "And having called to Himself again the crowd, He said to them, Hear ye Me, and understand."
Jesus now turns from the Pharisees and addresses the crowd again. Jesus makes a very appointed appeal to the crowd, which had withdrawn a little while He was conversing with the religious rulers; He tells them that He would clear up any doubt they might have had regarding these leader's trickery and dishonesty.
Verses 15, 16, "There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile the man. If any man have ears to hear, let him hear."
LGT "There is nothing from without the man, entering into him, which is able to defile him, but the things which go out from the man, are the things which defile the man."
Christ is saying that the evil that comes from the heart is morally defiling; He does not mean that a man cannot eat something that can make him physically sick; what He is referring to naturally, is moral corruption from the heart. Verse sixteen is missing in the Greek.
Verse 17, "And when he was entered into the house from the people, his disciples asked him concerning the parable."
LGT "And when He went into a house from the crowd, His disciples asked Him [concerning] the parable."
The house Jesus entered was probably Peter's house in Capernaum. The disciples ask Him concerning the parable of which He had just been speaking; it was not a parable in the strict sense of the term, but a saying that the disciples were confused over.
Barnes notes:
"The word parable, here, means obscure and difficult saying. They could not understand it. They had probably imbibed many popular notions of the Pharisees, and they could not understand why a man was not defiled by external things. It was, moreover, a doctrine of the law that men were ceremonially polluted by contact with dead bodies, &c., and they could not understand how it could be otherwise."
Verses 18, 19, "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?"
LGT "And He says to them, Thus are ye also without understanding: perceive not that everything which from without enters into the man is not able to pollute him, because it enters not into the heart of him, but into the belly, and goes out into the stool, purifying all the food?"
"Are ye so without understanding also?"
"You also as well as the multitude. It was a discouraging moment for the great Teacher if His own chosen pupils (disciples) were still under the spell of the Pharisaic theological outlook. It was a riddle to them. 'They had been trained in Judaism, in which the distinction between clean and unclean is ingrained, and could not understand a statement abrogating [canceling] this' (Gould). They had noticed the Pharisees stumbling at the parable of Jesus (Matt. 15:12). They were stumbling themselves and did not know how to answer the Pharisees. Jesus charges the disciples with intellectual dullness and spiritual stupidity" (Robertson).
"Purging all meats."
Vincent notes:
"According to the A.V. these words are in apposition [by way of explanation - to place along side] with draught: The draught which makes pure the whole of the food, since it is the place designed for receiving the impure excrements.
Christ was enforcing the truth that all defilement comes from within. This was in the face of the Rabbinic distinction between clean and unclean meats. Christ asserts that Levitical uncleanness, such as eating with unwashed hands, is of small importance compared with moral uncleanness. Peter, still under the influence of the old ideas, cannot understand the saying and asks an explanation (Matt. 15:15), which Christ gives in vv. 18-23. The words purging all meats (Revised Version, making all meats clean) are not Christ's, but the Evangelist's, explaining the bearing of Christ's words; and therefore the RV properly renders, this he said. Making all meats clean."
Verse 20, "And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man."
LGT "And He said, That which goes forth out the man, that pollutes the man."
The heart is deceitful and desperately wicked, and it is from within man that sends forth his evil intentions and wicked ways. Man is completely polluted and needs a new heart.
Verses 21, 22 "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:"
LGT "For from within, out of the heart of men, go forth the reasonings, the evil ones, fornication, thefts, murders, adulteries, covetous desires, wickedness, guile, licentiousness, a wicked eye, blasphemy, haughtiness, folly:"
Jesus list thirteen sins produced within the heart of man. This list is just a summary of sins that can be more extreme depending on the total depravity of man's heart.
1. Evil thoughts: this is where it all starts, man's thoughts. Given time all men's thoughts become evil.
2. Adultery: having unlawful sex while married.
3. Fornication: having unlawful sex before marriage.
4. Murder: shedding innocent blood.
5. Theft: robbery, stealing, burglary, shoplifting, larceny, pilfering, and such.
6. Covetousness: desire, want, long for, yearn for, and crave.
7. Wickedness: evil, bad, wrong, heinous, depraved, immoral, sinful, and impious.
8. Deceit: dishonesty, treachery [disloyalty], deception, trickery, sham [fraud], charade, hypocrisy, pretense, cheating and duplicity [fraud].
9. Lascivious: unrestrained sex appetite or instinct [make-up or character].
10. An evil eye: look at, stare at, judgment, gaze at, watch, observe, eyeball, ogle with an evil intent.
11. Blasphemy: profanity, sacrilege, wickedness, and irreverence.
12. Pride: arrogance, conceit, smugness and self-importance.
13. Foolishness: stupidity, idiocy, lack of sense, silliness, imprudence [gullibility], and thoughtlessness [lack of consideration].
Verse 23, "All these evil things come from within, and defile the man."
LGT "All these evil things go forth from within, and defile the man."
The heart of man by nature is all the above, and he is defiled, and that is why He must be born again and receive a new heart from above, indwelt with Christ and the Holy Spirit of God. "The Pharisees were concerned about external contamination. They scrupulously observed traditional rituals to rid themselves of that uncleanness and did not deal with the uncleanness that came from within. If a man is himself righteous, he need concern himself only with external contamination; but if a man is himself unrighteous, he certainly needs more than ceremonial cleansing. The Pharisees' concept led them to reject Jesus, who offered them a righteousness from God. They sensed no need of such a righteousness and insisted that ceremonial cleansing were sufficient, thinking they were essentially clean within" (Pentecost).
The Syrophoenician Woman's Faith
(Matt. 15:21-28)
Verse 24, "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."
LGT "And from that place, having arisen up, He went away into the borders of Tyre. And having entered into the house, He wished no one to know, and He could not be hid."
"The departure from Capernaum was a withdrawal from Galilee. The first had been to the region of Bethsaida Julias in the territory of Herod Philip. This is into distinctly heathen land. It was not merely the edge of Phoenicia, but into the parts of Tyre and Sidon (Matt. 15:21). There was too much excitement among the people, too much bitterness among the Pharisees, too much suspicion on the part of Herod Antipas, too much dullness on the part of the disciples for Jesus to remain in Galilee. Jesus wanted to be alone in the house after all the strain in Galilee. He craved a little privacy and rest. This was His purpose in going into Phoenicia" (Robertson).
Verse 25, "For a certain woman, whose young daughter had an unclean spirit, heard of him, and came and fell at his feet:"
LGT "And immediately, a woman, having heard about Him, of whom her little daughter had an unclean spirit, having come, fell at His feet:"
Mark uses the diminutive for daughter, so it is literally her little daughter. After hearing of His arrival, the woman immediately came and fell at His feet, hoping He would cure her daughter of the unclean spirit.
Verse 26, "The woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician by nation; and she besought him that he would cast forth the devil out of her daughter."
LGT "But the woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician by race: and kept asking Him that He should cast out the demon out of her daughter."
"The woman was a Greek in religion, a Syrian in tongue, a Phoenician [African] in race" (Bruce). The verb 'besought' is in the imperfect tense, and it means continuous action, and is literally, she kept on asking Him, bringing out her persistence.
Verse 27, "But Jesus said unto her, Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the children's bread, and cast it unto the dogs."
LGT "And He said to her, Suffer first the children to be satisfied, for it is not good to take the children's bread and cast [It] to the dogs."
The fact of the matter is that the Gospel did go first to the Jews (Matt 15:24), and then to the Gentile world; however, these harsh words of Christ were designed for another purpose.
Verse 28, "And she answered and said unto him, Yes, Lord: yet the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs."
LGT "But she answered and says to Him, Lord, even the little dogs under the table, eat of the crumbs of the children."
Braid Scots has it: "Yet the wee dowgs aneath the table eat o' the moole o' the bairns." How this woman is so concerned with getting her little girl healed she refuses to take offense at the Lord's response. "The woman by her persistent plea, demonstrated her faith in the Person of Christ. She, a Gentile (dog), asked for what the children (Israel) cast aside" (Pentecost).
Verse 29, "And he said unto her, For this saying go thy way; the devil is gone out of thy daughter."
LGT "And He said to her, Because of this word go, the demon has gone forth out of your daughter."
Christ said that her faith was great (Matthew), and that her daughter was healed; He was pleased with her repartee.
Verse 30, "And when she was come to her house, she found the devil gone out, and her daughter laid upon the bed."
LGT "And having gone away into her house, she found the maiden laid upon the bed, and the demon had gone out."
The verb phrase 'had gone out' is a perfect active participle implying the demon had gone out for good. As Robertson stated "This healing of her daughter was the crumb from her Masters table."
A Deaf and Dumb Man Healed
Verse 31, "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."
LGT "And again having departed from the borders of Tyre, He came through Sidon, unto the Sea of Galilee, through the midst of the borders of Decapolis."
"Jesus left Phoenicia, but did not go back into Galilee. He rather went east and came down east of the Sea of Galilee into the region of the Greek cities of Decapolis. He thus kept out of the territory of Herod Antipas. He had been in this region when He healed the Gadarene demoniac and was asked to leave" (Robertson).
Verse 32, "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."
LGT "And they bring to Him a deaf man, who spoke with difficulty, and they begged Him, in order that He might lay on him His hand."
Christ's reputation had preceded Him in almost every part of the land. They brought unto Him a man that was deaf and had a very difficult time in speaking.
Verse 33, "And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue;"
LGT "And having taken him away from the crowd apart, He put His fingers into his ears, and having spit, He touched his tongue;"
Jesus took the deaf mute aside from the crowd in order to be alone with the man and have his full attention; the putting of the fingers in his ears and the spittle on his tongue, was to show him that the power came from Christ's Person.
Verse 34, "And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and said unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened."
LGT "And having looked up to the heaven, He sighed inwardly, and says to him, Ephatha, which is, Be opened."
Mark uses an Aramaic word, and then interprets it in Greek, ephatha. Jesus sighs inwardly and then gives the command for healing.
Verse 35, "And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain."
LGT "And [immediately] his ears were opened, and the band of his tongue was loosed, and he spoke rightly."
Immediately he could hear and he began to speak correctly.
Verse 36, "And he charged them that they should tell no man: but the more he charged them, so much the more a great deal they publish it;"
LGT "And He commanded them that they should tell no one; But as much as He commanded them, more exceeding abundantly they proclaimed [it]."
Whatever Christ's intention was to not have the healing published, one thing is sure, He didn't need, nor did He want the publicity. Human nature is such, in some people that the more you command them not to say something, the more they speak.
Verse 37, "And were beyond measure astonished, saying, He hath done all things well: he maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak."
LGT "And they were astonished above measure, saying, He has done all things beautifully, and the deaf He makes to hear, and [the] dumb to speak."
The more the people see Jesus perform these beautiful miracles, the more astonished they become. "At this time pressure upon Jesus was humanly unbearable. In spite of the pressure put upon Jesus, the burdens of the multitudes, the tensions of the times, the long busy days, and the weariness of the body, the crowd could say, He hath done all things well. We just add our word of agreement to this and say a hearty amen" (McGee). Chapter eight will begin with the crowd following Jesus.
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