Mark 7

¹And the Pharisees and some of the scribes having come from Jerusalem are gathered to him.

²And they saw some of his disciples eating bread with defiled -- that is, unwashed -- hands, and they found fault.

³For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands with the fist, holding to the tradition of the elders;

⁴and when they come from the marketplace, unless they wash themselves they do not eat; and many other things there are which they received to keep: washings of cups and pitchers and bronze vessels and [dining couches].

⁵And the Pharisees and the scribes questioned him: 'Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat the bread with defiled hands?'

⁶And he answered and said to them, Rightly did Isaiah prophesy concerning you hypocrites, as it is written: This people honors me with the lips, but their heart is far from me.

⁷In vain, however, do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.

⁸Having neglected the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men -- washings of vessels and of cups, and many other such things you do.

⁹And he was saying to them: 'Nicely you set aside the commandment of God, in order that you may establish your tradition.'

¹⁰For Moses said, Honor your father and your mother, and, The one who speaks evil of father or mother, let him die the death.

¹¹But you yourselves say: 'If a man says to his father or to his mother, Corban -- that is, a gift -- whatever you might have been profited by me,'

¹²and you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or his mother,

¹³making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down; and many such things like these you do.

¹⁴And having called the crowd to him again, he was saying to them: 'Hear me, all of you, and understand.'

¹⁵There is nothing outside of the man entering into him that is able to defile him, but the things proceeding from the man -- those are the things that defile the man.

¹⁶If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.

¹⁷And when he went into the house away from the crowd, his disciples were asking him about the parable.

¹⁸And he says to them, 'Are you yourselves also without understanding? Do you not understand that everything entering from outside into the man is not able to defile him?'

¹⁹because it does not enter into his heart but into the belly, and goes out into the drain -- thus he declares all foods clean.

²⁰And he was saying that, That which proceeds out of the man, that is what defiles the man.

²¹For from within, from the heart of men, the evil thoughts go forth: sexual immorality, thefts, murders,

²²adulteries, covetings, wickednesses, deceit, licentiousness, an evil eye, slander, pride, foolishness --

²³All these evil things come out from within and defile the person.

²⁴And from there, having arisen, he went away into the region of Tyre and Sidon. And having entered into a house, he wished no one to know it, and yet he was unable to remain hidden.

²⁵But immediately a woman who had heard about him, whose little daughter had an unclean spirit, came and fell at his feet.

²⁶Now the woman was a Greek, a Syrophoenician by race, and she was asking him that he cast the demon out of her daughter.

²⁷And Jesus was saying to her, 'Let the children first be satisfied; for it is not good to take the bread of the children and throw it to the little dogs.'

²⁸But she answered and says to him: 'Yes, Lord; and even the little dogs under the table eat of the crumbs of the children.'

²⁹And he said to her, 'Because of this word, go; the demon has gone out of your daughter.'

³⁰And having departed to her house, she found the child lying on the bed and the demon having gone out.

³¹And again, having departed from the region of Tyre, he came through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, through the midst of the region of the Decapolis.

³²And they bring to him a deaf man who also spoke with difficulty, and they implore him that he might lay his hand on him.

³³And having taken him away from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and having spit, he touched his tongue.

³⁴and having looked up to heaven he sighed deeply, and he says to him, 'Ephphatha!' -- that is, 'Be opened.'

³⁵And immediately his ears were opened, and the bond of his tongue was loosed, and he was speaking plainly.

³⁶And he instructed them that they should say nothing to anyone; but the more he instructed them, the more they kept proclaiming it.

³⁷And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, He has done all things well; he makes both the deaf to hear and the mute to speak.