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That Which Defiles
1 The Pharisees and some of the teachers of the law who
had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus 2 and saw some
of his disciples eating food with hands that were defiled,
that is, unwashed. 3 (The Pharisees and all the Jews do not
eat unless they give their hands a ceremonial washing,
holding to the tradition of the elders. 4 When they come
from the marketplace they do not eat unless they wash. And
they observe many other traditions, such as the washing of
cups, pitchers and kettles. )
5 So the Pharisees and teachers of the law asked Jesus,
“Why don’t your disciples live according to the tradition of
the elders instead of eating their food with defiled hands?”
6 He replied, “Isaiah was right when he prophesied
about you hypocrites; as it is written:
“ ‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts
are far from me.
7 They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely
human rules.’
8 You have let go of the commands of God and are
holding on to human traditions.”
9 And he continued, “You have a fine way of setting
aside the commands of God in order to observe your own
traditions! 10 For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and
mother,’ and, ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is
to be put to death.’ 11 But you say that if anyone declares
that what might have been used to help their father or
mother is Corban (that is, devoted to God)— 12 then you no
longer let them do anything for their father or mother. 13
Thus you nullify the word of God by your tradition that you
have handed down. And you do many things like that.”
14 Again Jesus called the crowd to him and said,
“Listen to me, everyone, and understand this. 15 [16]Nothing
outside you can defile you by going into you. Rather, it is
what comes out of you that defiles you.”
17 After he had left the crowd and entered the house,
his disciples asked him about this parable.
18 “Are you so dull?” he asked. “Don’t you see that
nothing that enters you from the outside can defile you? 19
For it doesn’t go into your heart but into your stomach, and
then out of your body.” (In saying this, Jesus declared all
foods clean.)
20 He went on: “What comes out of you is what defiles
you. 21 For from within, out of your hearts, come evil
thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, 22 adultery,
greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance
and folly. 23 All these evils come from inside and defile
you.”
Jesus Honors a Syrophoenician Woman’s Faith
24 Jesus left that place and went to the vicinity of
Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know it;
yet he could not keep his presence secret. 25 In fact, as
soon as she heard about him, a woman whose little daughter
was possessed by an evil spirit came and fell at his feet.
26 The woman was a Greek, 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, “for it is not right to take the children’s bread and
toss it to the dogs.”
28 “Lord,” she replied, “even the dogs under the table
eat the children’s crumbs.”
29 Then he told her, “For such a reply, you may go; the
demon has left your daughter.”
30 She went home and found her child lying on the bed,
and the demon gone.
Jesus Heals a Deaf and Mute Man
31 Then Jesus left the vicinity of Tyre and went
through Sidon, down to the Sea of Galilee and into the
region of the Decapolis. 32 There some people brought to him
a man who was deaf and could hardly talk, and they begged
Jesus to place his hand on him.
33 After he took him aside, away from the crowd, Jesus
put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then he spit and
touched the man’s tongue. 34 He looked up to heaven and with
a deep sigh said to him, “Ephphatha!” (which means “Be
opened!”) 35 At this, the man’s ears were opened, his tongue
was loosened and he began to speak plainly.
36 Jesus commanded them not to tell anyone. But the
more he did so, the more they kept talking about it. 37
People were overwhelmed with amazement. “He has done
everything well,” they said. “He even makes the deaf hear
and the mute speak.”
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Cults 
Why Did God Permit Sin?
