What Truly Defiles

1Then Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem, saying, 2“Why do your disciples disobey the tradition of the elders? They don’t wash their hands when they eat bread.”

3He answered them, “Why do y’all disobey the commandment of God because of y’all’s tradition? 4For God commanded, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’+Exo 20:16 and, ‘Anyone who speaks evil of their father or mother is to be put to death.’+Exo 21:9 5But y’all say, ‘Whoever tells their father or mother, “Whatever help I have for you is devoted to God,” 6they do not need to their father or mother.’ By this, y’all have nullified the commandment of God for the sake of y’all’s tradition. 7Hypocrites! Isaiah prophesied correctly about y’all,

10Then he called the crowd and said to them, “Y’all hear and understand. 11What enters into the mouth doesn’t defile a human, but what comes out of the mouth, that defiles the human.”

12Then the disciples came and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?”

13But he answered, “Every plant my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. 14Y’all are to leave them alone. They are blind guides of the blind. If the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.”

15Peter said, “Explain the parable to us.”

16So Jesus said, “Are y’all still not getting it? 17Don’t y’all understand that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and then out into the sewer? 18But the things that come out of the mouth proceed from the heart, and these are what defile a human. 19For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, sexual sins, thefts, false testimony, and blasphemies. 20These are the things that defile a human, but eating with unwashed hands doesn’t defile a human.”

The Canaanite Woman’s Courage

21Jesus left that place and withdrew into the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22A Canaanite woman came out from that region and cried out, “Have mercy on me, Lord, son of David! My daughter is severely possessed by a demon!”

23But he answered her not a word.

His disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, because she keeps crying out after us.”

24But he answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

25But she came and bowed down before him, saying, “Lord, help me!”

26But he answered, “It is not appropriate to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”

27But she said, “Yes, Lord, but even the dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.”

28Then Jesus answered her, “Woman, great is your faith! It will be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed from that hour.

Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand

29Jesus left there and came near to the sea of Galilee. Then he went up on the mountain and sat down. 30Large crowds came to him, having with them the lame, blind, mute, maimed, and many others. They laid them at his feet, and he healed them. 31The crowd marveled when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled restored, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they glorified the God of Israel.

32Jesus summoned his disciples and said, “I have gut-wrenching sympathy for the multitude, because they have continued with me now three days and have nothing to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry, or they might faint on the way.”

33The disciples said to him, “Where could we get so many loaves in a deserted place as to satisfy so great a crowd?”

34Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do y’all have?”

They replied, “Seven, and a few small fish.”

35He directed the crowd to sit down on the ground. 36Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, and when he had given thanks, he broke them and gave to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the multitudes. 37They all ate and were satisfied. They picked up the leftover broken, seven baskets full. 38Those who ate were four thousand men, in addition to women and children. 39Then he sent away the multitudes, got into the boat, and came into the borders of Magdala.