Matthew 15 :: Amplified Bible (AMP)

Tradition and Commandment

(Mar 7:1–23 )

Then some Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem came to Jesus and said,

Mat 15:2“Why do Your disciples violate the [fn]tradition (religious laws) handed down by the [Jewish] elders? For Your disciples do not [ceremonially] wash their hands before they eat.”

Mat 15:3

Mat 15:3He replied to them, “Why also do you violate the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition [handed down by the elders]?

Mat 15:4

Mat 15:4“For God said [through Moses], ‘HONOR YOUR FATHER AND MOTHER,’ and, ‘HE WHO SPEAKS EVIL OF or INSULTS or TREATS IMPROPERLY FATHER OR MOTHER IS TO BE PUT TO DEATH.’

Mat 15:5

Mat 15:5“But you say, ‘If anyone says to his father or mother, “Whatever [money or resource that] I have that would help you is [already dedicated and] given to God,”

Mat 15:6

Mat 15:6he is not to honor his father or his mother [by helping them with their need].’ So by this you have invalidated the word of God [depriving it of force and authority and making it of no effect] for the sake of your tradition [handed down by the elders].

Mat 15:7

Mat 15:7“You hypocrites (play-actors, pretenders), rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you when he said,

Mat 15:8

‘THIS PEOPLE HONORS ME WITH THEIR LIPS,

BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR AWAY FROM ME.

Mat 15:9

‘BUT IN VAIN DO THEY WORSHIP ME,

FOR THEY TEACH AS DOCTRINES THE PRECEPTS OF MEN.’”

Mat 15:10

After Jesus called the crowd to Him, He said, “Listen and understand this:

Mat 15:11

Mat 15:11It is not what goes into the mouth of a man that defiles and dishonors him, but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles and dishonors him.”

Mat 15:12

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

Mat 15:13

Mat 15:13He answered, “Every plant which My heavenly Father did not plant will be torn up by the roots.

Mat 15:14

Mat 15:14“Leave them alone; they are blind guides [fn][leading blind followers]. If a blind man leads a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”

The Heart of Man

Mat 15:15

Peter asked Him, “Explain this parable [about what defiles a person] to us.”

Mat 15:16

Mat 15:16And He said, “Are you still so dull [and unable to put things together]?

Mat 15:17

Mat 15:17“Do you not understand that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach, and is eliminated?

Mat 15:18

Mat 15:18“But whatever [word] comes out of the mouth comes from the heart, and this is what defiles and dishonors the man.

Mat 15:19

Mat 15:19“For out of the heart come evil thoughts and plans, murders, adulteries, sexual immoralities, thefts, false testimonies, slanders (verbal abuse, irreverent speech, blaspheming).

Mat 15:20

Mat 15:20“These are the things which defile and dishonor the man; but eating with [ceremonially] unwashed hands does not defile the man.”

The Syrophoenician Woman

(Mar 7:24–30 )

Mat 15:21

After leaving there, Jesus withdrew to the district of [fn]Tyre and Sidon.

Mat 15:22

Mat 15:22And a [fn]Canaanite woman from that district came out and began to cry out [urgently], saying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David (Messiah); my daughter is cruelly possessed by a demon.”

Mat 15:23

Mat 15:23But He did not say a word in answer to her. And His disciples came and asked Him [repeatedly], “Send her away, because she keeps shouting out after us.”

Mat 15:24

Mat 15:24He answered, “I was commissioned by God and sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

Mat 15:25

Mat 15:25But she came and began to kneel down before Him, saying, “Lord, help me!”

Mat 15:26

Mat 15:26And He replied, “It is not good (appropriate, fair) to take the [fn]children’s bread and throw it to the [fn]pet dogs.”

Mat 15:27

Mat 15:27She said, “Yes, Lord; but even the pet dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their [young] masters’ table.”

Mat 15:28

Mat 15:28Then Jesus answered her, “Woman, your faith [your personal trust and confidence in My power] is great; it will be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed from that moment.

Healing Crowds

(Mar 7:31–37 )

Mat 15:29

Jesus went on from there and passed along by [the eastern shore of] the Sea of Galilee. Then He went up on the hillside and was sitting there.

Mat 15:30

Mat 15:30And great crowds came to Him, bringing with them the lame, crippled, blind, mute, and many others, and they put them down at His feet; and He healed them.

Mat 15:31

Mat 15:31So the crowd was amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled restored, the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they praised and glorified the God of Israel.

Four Thousand Fed

(Mar 8:1–10 )

Mat 15:32

Then Jesus called His disciples to Him, and said, “I feel compassion for the crowd, because they have been with Me now three days and have nothing [left] to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, because they might faint [from exhaustion] on the way [home].”

Mat 15:33

Mat 15:33The disciples said to Him, “Where are we to get enough bread in this isolated place to feed so large a crowd?”

Mat 15:34

Mat 15:34And Jesus asked them, “How many loaves [of bread] do you have?” They replied, “Seven, and a few small fish.”

Mat 15:35

Mat 15:35He directed the crowd to sit down on the ground,

Mat 15:36

Mat 15:36and He took the seven loaves and the fish; and when He had given thanks, He broke them and started giving them to the disciples, and the disciples [gave them] to the people.

Mat 15:37

Mat 15:37And they all ate and were satisfied, and they gathered up seven full baskets of the broken pieces that were left over.

Mat 15:38

Mat 15:38[Among] those who ate were 4,000 men, not counting women and children.

Mat 15:39

Then Jesus sent the crowds away, got into the boat and went to the district of [fn]Magadan.

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AMP Footnotes

(15:2)

I.e. the oral commentary on the Law, later codified as the Mishnah.

(15:14)

Later mss add of the blind.

(15:21)

Tyre and Sidon were located along the Gentile coastal region of Phoenicia. Tyre was 35 miles and Sidon 60 miles north of Galilee.

(15:22)

The Canaanites were ancient, pagan enemies of Israel.

(15:26)

A reference for the Jewish people.

(15:26)

Jews used kuon (dog) as a derogatory term referring to Gentiles. This dog (kuon) was a despised, filthy, homeless street scavenger. When speaking with this woman, Jesus uses a word for “dog” (kunarion) that refers to a household pet. The use of the word kunariois by both Jesus and the woman reflects the tenderness and spiritual depth of this exchange. More importantly, it foreshadows the fact that Gentile believers would not be spiritually homeless, but would also be welcomed into God’s household as His children. The gracious response of the woman recorded in v 27 confirms that on some level she understands this.

(15:39)

A small town on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee, between Tiberias and Capernaum.

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