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Matthew 15
Easy-to-Read Version
Matthew 15
Easy-to-Read Version
God’s Law and Human Traditions(A)
15 Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus. They came from Jerusalem and asked him, 2 “Why do your followers not obey the traditions we have from our great leaders who lived long ago? Your followers don’t wash their hands before they eat!”
3 Jesus answered, “And why do you refuse to obey God’s command so that you can follow those traditions you have? 4 God said, ‘You must respect your father and mother.’[a] And God also said, ‘Whoever says anything bad to their father or mother must be killed.’[b] 5 But you teach that a person can say to their father or mother, ‘I have something I could use to help you. But I will not use it for you. I will give it to God.’ 6 You are teaching them not to respect their father. So you are teaching that it is not important to do what God said. You think it is more important to follow those traditions you have. 7 You are hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he spoke for God about you:
8 ‘These people honor me with their words,
but I am not really important to them.
9 Their worship of me is worthless.
The things they teach are only human rules.’” (B)
10 Jesus called the people to him. He said, “Listen and understand what I am saying. 11 It is not what people put in their mouth that makes them wrong.[c] It is what comes out of their mouth that makes them wrong.”
12 Then the followers came to Jesus and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees are upset about what you said?”
13 Jesus answered, “Every plant that my Father in heaven has not planted will be pulled up by the roots. 14 Stay away from the Pharisees. They lead the people, but they are like blind men leading other blind men. And if a blind man leads another blind man, both of them will fall into a ditch.”
15 Peter said, “Explain to us what you said earlier to the people.”
16 Jesus said, “Do you still have trouble understanding? 17 Surely you know that all the food that enters the mouth goes into the stomach. Then it goes out of the body. 18 But the bad things people say with their mouth come from the way they think. And that’s what can make people wrong. 19 All these bad things begin in the mind: evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual sins, stealing, lying, and insulting people. 20 These are the things that make people wrong. Eating without washing their hands will never make people unacceptable to God.”
Jesus Helps a Non-Jewish Woman(C)
21 Jesus went from there to the area of Tyre and Sidon. 22 A Canaanite woman from that area came out and began shouting, “Lord, Son of David, please help me! My daughter has a demon inside her, and she is suffering very much.”
23 But Jesus did not answer her. So the followers came to him and said, “Tell her to go away. She keeps crying out and will not leave us alone.”
24 Jesus answered, “God sent me only to the lost people[d] of Israel.”
25 Then the woman came over to Jesus and bowed before him. She said, “Lord, help me!”
26 He answered her with this saying: “It is not right to take the children’s bread and give it to the dogs.”
27 The woman said, “Yes, Lord, but even the dogs eat the pieces of food that fall from their master’s table.”
28 Then Jesus answered, “Woman, you have great faith! You will get what you asked for.” And right then the woman’s daughter was healed.
Jesus Heals Many People
29 Then Jesus went from there to the shore of Lake Galilee. He went up on a hill and sat down.
30 A large crowd of people came to him. They brought many other sick people and put them before him. There were people who could not walk, people who were blind, crippled, or deaf, and many others. Jesus healed them all. 31 People were amazed when they saw that those who could not speak were now able to speak. Crippled people were made strong. Those who could not walk were now able to walk. The blind were able to see. Everyone thanked the God of Israel for this.
Jesus Feeds More Than 4000(D)
32 Jesus called his followers to him and said, “I feel sorry for these people. They have been with me three days, and now they have nothing to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry. They might faint while going home.”
33 The followers asked Jesus, “Where can we get enough bread to feed all these people? We are a long way from any town.”
34 Jesus asked, “How many loaves of bread do you have?”
They answered, “We have seven loaves of bread and a few small fish.”
35 Jesus told the people to sit on the ground. 36 He took the seven loaves of bread and the fish. Then he gave thanks to God for the food. He broke the bread into pieces, which he gave to the followers, and they gave the food to the people. 37 All the people ate until they were full. After this, the followers filled seven baskets with the pieces of food that were not eaten. 38 There were about 4000 men there who ate. There were also some women and children. 39 After they all ate, Jesus told the people they could go home. He got into the boat and went to the area of Magadan.
Footnotes
- Matthew 15:4
Quote from Ex. 20:12; Deut. 5:16. - Matthew 15:4
Quote from Ex. 21:17. - Matthew 15:11 wrong Literally, “unclean” or “not pure,” meaning unacceptable to God. Also in verse 18.
- Matthew 15:24 people Literally, “sheep.”
Matthew 15
New International Version
Matthew 15
New International Version
That Which Defiles(A)
15 Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and asked, 2 “Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? They don’t wash their hands before they eat!”(B)
3 Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? 4 For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’[a](C) and ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’[b](D) 5 But you say that if anyone declares that what might have been used to help their father or mother is ‘devoted to God,’ 6 they are not to ‘honor their father or mother’ with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition. 7 You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
8 “‘These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
9 They worship me in vain;
their teachings are merely human rules.(E)’[c](F)”
10 Jesus called the crowd to him and said, “Listen and understand. 11 What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them,(G) but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.”(H)
12 Then the disciples came to him and asked, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this?”
13 He replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted(I) will be pulled up by the roots. 14 Leave them; they are blind guides.[d](J) If the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.”(K)
15 Peter said, “Explain the parable to us.”(L)
16 “Are you still so dull?”(M) Jesus asked them. 17 “Don’t you see that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and then out of the body? 18 But the things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart,(N) and these defile them. 19 For out of the heart come evil thoughts—murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.(O) 20 These are what defile a person;(P) but eating with unwashed hands does not defile them.”
The Faith of a Canaanite Woman(Q)
21 Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon.(R) 22 A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David,(S) have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly.”(T)
23 Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.”
24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel.”(U)
25 The woman came and knelt before him.(V) “Lord, help me!” she said.
26 He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”
27 “Yes it is, Lord,” she said. “Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.”
28 Then Jesus said to her, “Woman, you have great faith!(W) Your request is granted.” And her daughter was healed at that moment.
Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand(X)(Y)(Z)
29 Jesus left there and went along the Sea of Galilee. Then he went up on a mountainside and sat down. 30 Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and he healed them.(AA) 31 The people were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled made well, the lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.(AB)
32 Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion for these people;(AC) they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may collapse on the way.”
33 His disciples answered, “Where could we get enough bread in this remote place to feed such a crowd?”
34 “How many loaves do you have?” Jesus asked.
“Seven,” they replied, “and a few small fish.”
35 He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. 36 Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, and when he had given thanks, he broke them(AD) and gave them to the disciples, and they in turn to the people. 37 They all ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.(AE) 38 The number of those who ate was four thousand men, besides women and children. 39 After Jesus had sent the crowd away, he got into the boat and went to the vicinity of Magadan.
Footnotes
- Matthew 15:4 Exodus 20:12; Deut. 5:16
- Matthew 15:4 Exodus 21:17; Lev. 20:9
- Matthew 15:9 Isaiah 29:13
- Matthew 15:14 Some manuscripts blind guides of the blind
Easy-to-Read Version (ERV)
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