The Gospel According to St. Matthew

⭑ King James Version :: World English Bible Catholic ⭑

- Chapter 15 -

(Mark 7:1–13)

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.

What Defiles a Man

(Mark 7:14–23)

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.

The Faith of the Canaanite Woman

(Mark 7:24–30)

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.

The Feeding of the Four Thousand

(2 Kings 4:42–44; Mark 8:1–10)

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.

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.

(Mark 7:1–13)

Then Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem, saying,

“Why do your disciples disobey the tradition of the elders? For they don’t wash their hands when they eat bread.”

He answered them, “Why do you also disobey the commandment of God because of your tradition?

For God commanded, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ (a) and, ‘He who speaks evil of father or mother, let him be put to death.’ (b)

But you say, ‘Whoever may tell his father or his mother, “Whatever help you might otherwise have gotten from me is a gift devoted to God,”

he shall not honor his father or mother.’ You have made the commandment of God void because of your tradition.

You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, saying,

‘These people draw near to me with their mouth, and honor me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.

And they worship me in vain, teaching as doctrine rules made by men.’” (c)

What Defiles a Man

(Mark 7:14–23)

He summoned the multitude, and said to them, “Hear, and understand.

That which enters into the mouth doesn’t defile the man; but that which proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man.”

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

But he answered, “Every plant which my heavenly Father didn’t plant will be uprooted.

Leave them alone. They are blind guides of the blind. If the blind guide the blind, both will fall into a pit.”

Peter answered him, “Explain the parable to us.”

So Jesus said, “Do you also still not understand?

Don’t you understand that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the belly and then out of the body?

But the things which proceed out of the mouth come out of the heart, and they defile the man.

For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, sexual sins, thefts, false testimony, and blasphemies.

These are the things which defile the man; but to eat with unwashed hands doesn’t defile the man.”

The Faith of the Canaanite Woman

(Mark 7:24–30)

Jesus went out from there and withdrew into the region of Tyre and Sidon.

Behold, a Canaanite woman came out from those borders and cried, saying, “Have mercy on me, Lord, you son of David! My daughter is severely possessed by a demon!”

But he answered her not a word. His disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away; for she cries after us.”

But he answered, “I wasn’t sent to anyone but the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

But she came and worshiped him, saying, “Lord, help me.”

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

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

Then Jesus answered her, “Woman, great is your faith! Be it done to you even as you desire.” And her daughter was healed from that hour.

The Feeding of the Four Thousand

(2 Kings 4:42–44; Mark 8:1–10)

Jesus departed from there and came near to the sea of Galilee; and he went up on the mountain and sat there.

Great multitudes came to him, having with them the lame, blind, mute, maimed, and many others, and they put them down at his feet. He healed them,

so that the multitude wondered when they saw the mute speaking, the injured healed, the lame walking, and the blind seeing—and they glorified the God of Israel.

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

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

Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” They said, “Seven, and a few small fish.”

He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground;

and he took the seven loaves and the fish. He gave thanks and broke them, and gave to the disciples, and the disciples to the multitudes.

They all ate and were filled. They took up seven baskets full of the broken pieces that were left over.

Those who ate were four thousand men, in addition to women and children.

Then he sent away the multitudes, got into the boat, and came into the borders of Magdala.

Footnotes

(a)15:4 ℘ Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 5:16

(b)15:4 ℘ Exodus 21:17; Leviticus 20:9