February 18: Mark 7
Jesus Breaks Religious Traditions
7 One day, those known as the Pharisees and certain religious scholars came from Jerusalem and gathered around Jesus. 2 They were shocked[a] to find that some of Jesusâ disciples ate bread without first observing the prescribed Jewish ritual of hand washing before eating their meal. 3 (For the Pharisees, like all other Jews, will not eat without first performing a ritual of pouring water over their cupped hands[b] to keep the tradition of the elders. 4 Similarly, when returning from the marketplace, they ceremonially wash themselves before eating.[c] They also observed many other traditions, such as ceremonially washing cups, pitchers, and kettles.)[d]
5 So the Pharisees and religious scholars asked Jesus, âWhy donât your disciples live according to the age-old traditions passed down by our elders? They should first ceremonially wash their hands before eating.â
6 Jesus replied, âYou are frauds and hypocrites! How accurately[e] did Isaiah prophesy about you phonies when he said:
âThese people honor me with their words
  while their hearts run far away from me!
7 Their worship is nothing more than a charade!
  For they continue to insist
  that their man-made traditions
  are equal to the instructions of God.â[f]
8 âYou abandon Godâs commandments just to keep menâs rituals, such as ceremonially washing utensils, cups, and other things.â[g]
9 Then he added, âHow skillful youâve become in rejecting Godâs law in order to maintain your man-made set of rules. 10 For example, Moses taught us:
âHonor your father and your mother,â[h]
  and,
âWhoever insults or mistreats his father or
  mother must be put to death.â[i]
11 âBut your made-up rules allow a person to say to his parents, âIâve decided to take the support you were counting on from me and make it my holy offering to God, and that will be your blessing instead.â[j] 12 How convenient! The rules you teach exempt him from providing for his aged parents. 13 Do you really think God will honor your traditions passed down to others, making up these rules that nullify Godâs Word? And youâre doing many other things like that.â
Jesus Explains What Truly Defiles
14 Then Jesus called the crowd together again, saying, âHear my words, all of you, and take them to heart. 15 What truly contaminates a person is not what he puts into his body, but what comes out. Thatâs what makes a person defiled.â[k]
17 When Jesus went back home and away from the crowd, his disciples acknowledged that they didnât understand the meaning of the parable and asked him to explain it. 18 He answered them, âAre you as dull as the rest? Donât you understand that you are not defiled by what you eat? 19 For the food you swallow doesnât enter your heart, but goes into your stomach, only to pass out into the sewer.â (This means all foods are clean.)[l] 20 He added, âWords and deeds pollute a person, not food. 21 Evil originates from inside a person. Coming out of a human heart are evil schemes,[m] sexual immorality,[n] theft, murder, 22 adultery, greed, wickedness, treachery, debauchery,[o] jealousy,[p] slander,[q] arrogance,[r] and recklessness.[s] 23 All these corrupt things emerge from within and constantly pollute a person.â
Jesus and a Foreign Woman
24 Jesus set out from there to go into the non-Jewish region of Tyre.[t] He intended to slip into a house unnoticed, but people found out that he was there. 25 But when a woman whose daughter had a demon spirit heard he was there, she came and threw herself down at his feet. 26 She was not Jewish, but a foreigner,[u] born in the part of Syria known as Phoenicia.[v] She begged him repeatedly to cast the demon out of her daughter. 27 Finally he said to her, âFirst let my children be fed and satisfied, for it isnât fair to take the childrenâs bread[w] and throw it to the little dogs.â[x]
28 She answered, âHow true that is, Lord. But even puppies under the family table are allowed to eat the little childrenâs crumbs.â
29 Then Jesus said to her, âThatâs a good reply! Now, because you said this, you may go. The demon has permanently left your daughter.â 30 And when she returned home, she found her daughter resting quietly on the couch, completely set free from the demon!
Jesus Heals a Deaf Man
31 After this, Jesus left the coastland of Tyre and came through Sidon on his way to Lake Galilee and over into regions of Syria.[y] 32 Some people brought to him a deaf man with a severe speech impediment. They pleaded with Jesus to place his hands on him and heal him.
33 So Jesus led him away from the crowd to a private spot. Then he stuck his fingers into the manâs ears and placed some of his saliva on the manâs tongue.[z] 34 Then he gazed into heaven,[aa] sighed deeply, and spoke to the manâs ears and tongue, âEthpathakh,â which is Aramaic[ab] for âOpen up, now!â[ac]
35 At once the manâs ears opened and he could hear perfectly, and his tongue was untied and he began to speak normally. 36 Jesus ordered everyone to keep this miracle a secret, but the more he told them not to, the more the news spread! 37 The people were absolutely beside themselves and astonished beyond measure.[ad] And they began to declare, âEverything he does is wonderful![ae] He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak!â
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