Mark 7

What Makes People Unclean?

1The Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law who’d come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus. 2They saw some of his disciples eating food with hands that were unclean, that is, not ceremonially washed. 3The Pharisees and all the Jews never eat until they’ve washed their hands to make them clean. Their elders teach that they have to do that. 4When they come home from the market, they have to take a bath before they can eat anything. And they follow many other teachings too. For example, they wash cups, pitchers, and kettles in a special way.

5So the Pharisees and the teachers of the law asked Jesus, “Why don’t your disciples follow what the elders teach? Why do they eat their food with unclean hands?”

6Jesus answered, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you hypocrites! He said,

“ ‘These people honor me by what they say,

but their hearts are far away from me.

7Their worship doesn’t mean anything to me,

because they’re only teaching human rules.’

8You’ve let go of God’s commands, and instead you’re holding on to teachings that people have passed down.”

9Jesus continued, “You have a fine way of setting aside God’s commands so that you can follow your own teachings. 10Moses said, ‘Honor your father and mother.’ He also said, ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother must be put to death.’ 11But you tell people that if they have money that they could use to help their parents, they can say instead that it’s Corban. (That means ‘a gift set apart for God.’) 12So you no longer allow them to do anything for their parents anymore. 13You make the word of God useless by putting your own teachings in its place. And you do this a lot.”

14Jesus called the crowd to him again and said, “Listen to me, everyone, and understand this. 15-16Nothing that’s outside of a person can make them unclean by going into them. It’s what comes out of a person that makes them unclean.”

17When he left the crowd and entered the house, his disciples asked him what he’d meant by that. 18“Don’t you understand?” Jesus asked. “Don’t you see that nothing that goes into a person from the outside can make them unclean? 19It doesn’t go into their heart, but into their stomach, and then it passes right back out of the body.” This meant that all foods were clean.

20He went on to say, “What comes out of a person is what makes them unclean. 21It’s from the inside, from a person’s heart, that bad things come: sexual sins, stealing, murder, 22adultery, greed, hate, cheating, impurity, jealousy, lying, pride, and foolishness. 23All these bad things come from inside a person, and that’s what makes them unclean.”

Jesus Honors a Greek Woman’s Faith

24Jesus went from there to a place near Tyre. He didn’t want anyone to know which house he was staying in, but he couldn’t keep it a secret. 25There was a woman whose little daughter had an evil spirit. As soon as the woman heard that Jesus was nearby, she came and bowed down at his feet. 26She was a Greek woman who’d been born in Syrian Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to drive the demon out of her daughter.

27“First let the children eat all they want,” he told her. “It isn’t right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”

28“Lord,” she answered, “even the dogs eat the children’s crumbs under the table.”

29“That’s a good answer,” Jesus told her. “Go on home, the demon has left your daughter.”

30So she went home and found her child lying quietly in bed, because the demon had gone.

Jesus Heals a Man Who Can’t Hear or Speak

31Then Jesus left the area of Tyre and went through Sidon, down to the Sea of Galilee, and into the area known as the Ten Cities. 32There some people brought a man to Jesus who was deaf and could hardly speak. They begged Jesus to place his hands on the man.

33Jesus took the man to one side, away from the crowd. He put his fingers into the man’s ears, and then he spit and touched the man’s tongue. 34Jesus looked up to heaven and said to the man with a deep sigh, “Ephphatha!” which means, “Be opened!” 35The man’s ears were opened, his tongue was freed up, and he began to speak clearly.

36Jesus ordered the people not to tell anyone. But the more he did, the more they kept talking about it. 37People were overwhelmed and amazed and said, “He has done everything well. He even makes deaf people able to hear, and he makes those who can’t speak able to talk.”

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