< Matthew 15 >

1 Then came to Jesus scribes and Pharisees, which were of Jerusalem, saying,
Then some Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked,
2 Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? for they wash not their hands when they eat bread.
“Why do Your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They do not wash their hands before they eat.”
3 But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition?
Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?
4 For God commanded, saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death.
For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses his father or mother must be put to death.’
5 But ye say, Whosoever shall say to [his] father or [his] mother, [It is] a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me;
But you say that if anyone says to his father or mother, ‘Whatever you would have received from me is a gift devoted to God,’
6 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.
he need not honor his father or mother with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition.
7 [Ye] hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying,
You hypocrites! Isaiah prophesied correctly about you:
8 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with [their] lips; but their heart is far from me.
‘These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me.
9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching [for] doctrines the commandments of men.
They worship Me in vain; they teach as doctrine the precepts of men.’”
10 And he called the multitude, and said unto them, Hear, and understand:
Jesus called the crowd to Him and said, “Listen and understand.
11 Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man.
A man is not defiled by what enters his mouth, but by what comes out of it.”
12 Then came his disciples, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the Pharisees were offended, after they heard this saying?
Then the disciples came to Him and said, “Are You aware that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?”
13 But he answered and said, Every plant, which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up.
But Jesus replied, “Every plant that My heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by its roots.
14 Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.
Disregard them! They are blind guides. If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”
15 Then answered Peter and said unto him, Declare unto us this parable.
Peter said to Him, “Explain this parable to us.”
16 And Jesus said, Are ye also yet without understanding?
“Do you still not understand?” Jesus asked.
17 Do not ye yet understand, that whatsoever entereth in at the mouth goeth into the belly, and is cast out into the draught?
“Do you not yet realize that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then is eliminated?
18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.
But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these things defile a man.
19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:
For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, and slander.
20 These are [the things] which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.
These are what defile a man, but eating with unwashed hands does not defile him.”
21 Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon.
Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon.
22 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.
And a Canaanite woman from that region came to Him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is miserably possessed by a demon.”
23 But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.
But Jesus did not answer a word. So His disciples came and urged Him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.”
24 But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
25 Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me.
The woman came and knelt before Him. “Lord, help me!” she said.
26 But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast [it] to dogs.
But Jesus replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”
27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.
“Yes, Lord,” she said, “even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.”
28 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.
“O woman,” Jesus answered, “your faith is great! Let it be done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
29 And Jesus departed from thence, and came nigh unto the sea of Galilee; and went up into a mountain, and sat down there.
Moving on from there, Jesus went along the Sea of Galilee. Then He went up on a mountain and sat down.
30 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:
Large 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 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.
The crowd was amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled restored, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they glorified the God of Israel.
32 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.
Then Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “I have compassion for this crowd, because 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 faint along the way.”
33 And his disciples say unto him, Whence should we have so much bread in the wilderness, as to fill so great a multitude?
The disciples replied, “Where in this desolate place could we find enough bread to feed such a large crowd?”
34 And Jesus saith unto them, How many loaves have ye? And they said, Seven, and a few little fishes.
“How many loaves do you have?” Jesus asked. “Seven,” they replied, “and a few small fish.”
35 And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.
And He instructed the crowd to sit down on the ground.
36 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.
Taking the seven loaves and the fish, He gave thanks and broke them. Then He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.
37 And they did all eat, and were filled: and they took up of the broken [meat] that was left seven baskets full.
They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.
38 And they that did eat were four thousand men, beside women and children.
A total of four thousand men were fed, in addition to women and children.
39 And he sent away the multitude, and took ship, and came into the coasts of Magdala.
After Jesus had dismissed the crowds, He got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan.

< Matthew 15 >