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15:1  Then some Pharisees and ·teachers of the law [scribes] came to Jesus from Jerusalem. They asked him,
15:2  “Why don’t your ·followers [disciples] obey the ·unwritten laws which have been handed down to us [L traditions of the elders]? [L For] They don’t wash their hands before they eat [C a Jewish ritual for ceremonial purity].”
15:3  Jesus answered, “And why do you ·refuse to obey [break; violate] God’s command ·so that you can follow your own teachings [L for the sake of your traditions]?
15:4  God said, ‘Honor your father and your mother [Ex. 20:12; Deut. 5:16],’ and ‘Anyone who ·says cruel things to [speaks evil of; curses] his father or mother must be put to death [Ex. 21:17; Lev. 20:9].’
15:5  But you say a person can tell his father or mother, ‘I have something I could use to help you, but I have ·given [dedicated; devoted] it to God already [C a practice known as Corban; see Mark 7:10–12].’
15:6  You teach that person ·not to [that he need not] honor his father or his mother. You ·rejected [invalidated; canceled; nullified] ·what God said [L the word of God] for the sake of your own ·rules [tradition].
15:7  You are hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he ·said [L prophesied] about you:
15:8  ‘These people show honor to me with ·words [L their lips], but their hearts are far from me.
15:9  Their worship of me is ·worthless [futile; in vain]. The things [doctrines] they teach are nothing but human ·rules [commandments; Is. 29:13].’”
15:10  After Jesus called the crowd to him, he said, “Listen and ·understand what I am saying [try to understand].
15:11  It is not what ·people put into their mouths [L goes into the mouth] that ·makes them unclean [pollutes/defiles the person]. It is what comes out of their mouths that ·makes them unclean [pollutes/defiles the person].”
15:12  Then his ·followers [disciples] came to him and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees are ·angry [offended; shocked] because of what you said?”
15:13  Jesus answered, “Every plant that my Father in heaven has not planted himself will be pulled up by the roots.
15:14  ·Stay away from the Pharisees [L Leave/Ignore them]; they are blind ·leaders [guides]. And if a blind person ·leads [guides] a blind person, both will fall into a ·ditch [pit; hole].”
15:15  Peter said, “Explain the ·example [parable] to us.”
15:16  Jesus said, “·Do you still not understand [L Are you still so dull/foolish]?
15:17  ·Surely you know [L Don’t you know…?] that all the food that enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then goes ·out of the body [L into the sewer/latrine].”
15:18  But ·what people say with their mouths [L the things that come out of the mouth] comes from the ·way they think [L the heart]; these are the things that ·make people unclean [pollute/defiled a person].
15:19  [L For] Out of the ·mind [heart] come evil ·thoughts [intentions; ideas], murder, adultery, sexual sins, stealing, ·lying [false witness/testimony], and ·speaking evil of others [slander; blasphemy].
15:20  These things make people ·unclean [polluted; defiled]; eating with unwashed hands does not make them ·unclean [polluted; defiled].”
15:21  Jesus left that place and went to the ·area [district; region] of Tyre and Sidon [C cities on the coast north of Israel].
15:22  A ·Canaanite [C a non-Jewish (Gentile) resident of Palestine (Canaan was the ancient name for Palestine)] woman from that area came to Jesus and cried out, “Lord, Son of David [C a title for the Messiah], have mercy on me! My daughter ·has a demon, and she is suffering very much [is tormented; L is severely demon-possessed].”
15:23  But Jesus did not ·answer the woman [L answer her a word]. So his ·followers [disciples] came to Jesus and ·begged [asked; urged] him, “Tell the woman to go away. [L Because] She is following us and ·shouting [crying out].”
15:24  Jesus answered, “·God sent me [L I was sent] only to the lost sheep, the ·people [L house] of Israel.”
15:25  Then the woman came to Jesus again and bowed before him and said, “Lord, help me!”
15:26  Jesus answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and ·give [throw] it to the dogs.” [C “Children” refers to Israel; “dogs” to the Gentiles.]
15:27  The woman said, “Yes, Lord, but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.”
15:28  Then Jesus answered, “[L O] Woman, you have great faith! ·I will do what you asked [L Let it be done for you as you wish].” And ·at that moment [L from that hour] the woman’s daughter was healed.
15:29  After leaving there, Jesus went along ·the shore of Lake Galilee [T the Sea of Galilee]. He went up on ·a hill [or the mountain] and sat there.
15:30  Great crowds came to Jesus, bringing with them the lame, the blind, the crippled, ·those who could not speak [the mute/deaf; C the word can refer to speech or hearing; v. 31 suggests it here means “mute”], and many others. They ·put [laid] them at Jesus’ feet, and he healed them.
15:31  The crowd was ·amazed [astonished; marveled] when they saw that ·people who could not speak before [the mute/deaf] were now able to speak. The crippled were ·made strong [well; whole]. The lame could walk, and the blind could see. And they ·praised [glorified] the God of Israel for this.
15:32  Jesus called his ·followers [disciples] to him and said, “I ·feel sorry [have compassion] for these people, because they have already been with me three days, and they have nothing to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry. They might ·faint [collapse] while going home.”
15:33  His ·followers [disciples] asked him, “·How [L From where] can we get enough bread in this ·remote place [desolate place; desert] to feed ·all these people [L so great a crowd]?”
15:34  Jesus asked, “How many loaves of bread do you have?” They answered, “Seven, and a few small fish.”
15:35  Jesus told the people to ·sit [recline] on the ground.
15:36  He took the seven loaves of bread and the fish and gave thanks to God. Then he ·divided the food [L broke them] and gave it to his ·followers [disciples], and they gave it to the people.
15:37  All the people ate and were satisfied. Then his ·followers [disciples] filled seven ·baskets [large baskets; C a different word than in the feeding of the five thousand; 14:20] with the leftover pieces of food.
15:38  There were about four thousand men there who ate, besides women and children.
15:39  After ·sending the people home [dismissing the crowds], Jesus got into the boat and went to the ·area [region] of Magadan [C an unknown place, probably on the western shore of Lake Galilee; perhaps Magdala, the hometown of Mary Magdalene].