返回Chapter 7
Chapter 7
Chapter Seven
Mk. 7:1. And there assembled unto Him the Pharisees and certain of the scribes, who had come from Jerusalem,
Mk. 7:2. And having seen some of His disciples eating bread with unclean, that is, unwashed hands, they found fault.
Mk. 7:3. For the Pharisees and all the Jews, holding to the tradition of the elders, do not eat unless they have thoroughly washed their hands;
Mk. 7:4. Coming from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash themselves. And there are many other things which they have received to hold: the washing of cups, pitchers, kettles, and benches.
Mk. 7:5. Then the Pharisees and scribes ask Him: Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?
Having been taught to hold to one virtue alone and to be concerned with nothing else besides it, the disciples of the Lord ate with unwashed hands without any deliberate intent and in simplicity. Meanwhile the Pharisees, wishing to find a pretext for reproach, seize upon this occasion and accuse the apostles, though not as violators of the Law, but as violators of the tradition of the elders, for there is no commandment in the Law to wash one's hands up to the elbows before eating, but they held to this as a tradition of the elders.
Mk. 7:6. He said to them in reply: Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, hypocrites, as it is written: This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me,
Mk. 7:7. But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.
Mk. 7:8. For you, having left the commandment of God, hold to the tradition of men, the washing of cups and chalices, and you do many other things similar to this.
Mk. 7:9. And He said to them: is it well that you set aside the commandment of God in order to keep your own tradition?
Mk. 7:10. For Moses said: Honor your father and your mother; and: He who speaks evil of father or mother, let him be put to death.
Mk. 7:11. But you say: whoever says to his father or mother: Corban, that is, a gift to God, is that which you would have benefited from me,
Mk. 7:12. then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or his mother,
Mk. 7:13. Making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have established; and you do many other things similar to this.
In order to more strongly convict the Jews, the Lord also brings forward a prophet who condemns them. They accused the disciples for transgressing the tradition of the elders, but the Lord directs against them a far stronger accusation, namely, that they transgress the Law of Moses. The Law, He says, teaches: "Honor your father and your mother" (Exodus 20:12); but you teach children to say to their parents: that which you want from me is corban, that is, dedicated to God. For the Pharisees, wishing to profit from the property of simple people, taught children (when the children had any possessions and the parents demanded from them) to say the following: I have already dedicated that to God, and you must not demand what has been dedicated to God. By thus deceiving children and persuading them to dedicate their possessions to God, the Pharisees through this made them neglect their parents, and they themselves consumed what had been dedicated to God. This is precisely what the Lord charges them with—that for the sake of gain they transgress the Law of God.
Mk. 7:14. And when He had called all the people unto Him, He said unto them, Hearken unto Me every one of you, and understand:
Mk. 7:15. Nothing that enters a man from outside can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are what defile a man.
Mk. 7:16. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!
Mk. 7:17. And when He had entered into a house away from the crowd, His disciples asked Him about the parable.
Mk. 7:18. He said to them: Are you so lacking in understanding as well? Do you not comprehend that nothing entering a person from outside can defile him?
Mk. 7:19. Because it does not enter into his heart, but into the belly, and goes out, thereby purging all foods.
Mk. 7:20. Then He said: that which comes out of a man, that defiles a man.
Mk. 7:21. For from within, out of the heart of man, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,
Mk. 7:22. thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness—
Mk. 7:23. All these evils come from within and defile the man.
Teaching people to understand the dietary prescriptions of the Law not in a carnal manner, the Lord begins here to gradually reveal the meaning of the Law and says that nothing entering from outside defiles anyone, but what comes from the heart defiles. By "envious eye" He means either envy or licentiousness: for the envious person typically casts a malicious and venomous glance at the one envied, and the debauched person, gazing with his eyes, strives toward an evil deed. By "blasphemy" He means an insult against God: if, for example, someone begins to say that there is no Providence of God, this would be blasphemy; which is why the Lord also joins "pride" with it. Pride is, as it were, a disregard of God, when someone, having done a good deed, attributes it not to God but to his own strength. By "foolishness" He means offense against one's neighbors. All these passions defile the soul, and arise and proceed from it. To the crowd the Lord spoke in this manner not quite clearly, which is why He also remarked: "he who has ears to hear, let him hear," that is: let him who understands, understand. As for the apostles, who understood the Lord's speech more deeply and approached to ask Him about the "parable," that is, about this veiled speech (a parable is a veiled speech), the Lord first rebuked them, saying: "Are even you so lacking in understanding?" but then resolved for them what had been difficult to comprehend.
Mk. 7:24. And from thence He arose, and went into the borders of Tyre and Sidon, and entered into a house, and would have no man know it; but He could not be hid.
Mk. 7:25. For a woman, whose daughter had an unclean spirit, heard of Him, and came and fell at His feet;
Mk. 7:26. And the woman was a pagan, a Syrophoenician by birth; and she besought Him to cast the demon out of her daughter.
Mk. 7:27. But Jesus said to her: let the children be filled first, for it is not good to take the bread from the children and throw it to the dogs.
Mk. 7:28. But she answered and said to Him: yes, Lord; yet even the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs.
Mk. 7:29. And He said to her: for this word, go; the demon has gone out of your daughter.
Mk. 7:30. And when she came to her house, she found that the demon had gone out and her daughter was lying on the bed.
After He had spoken about food and saw that the Jews did not believe, the Lord crosses over into the regions of the Gentiles, for with the unbelief of the Jews, salvation was to pass to the Gentiles. At first the Lord tried to remain hidden, so that the Jews would not have a pretext to accuse Him of having gone over to the side of the unclean Gentiles. Yet He could not be hidden, for it was impossible for Him to be concealed and recognized by no one. The aforementioned woman, having heard about Him, displays a fervent faith. Therefore the Lord does not immediately consent to her request, but delays the gift in order to show that the woman's faith is firm and that she waits patiently despite the refusal. Let us also learn not to abandon prayer at once when we do not immediately receive what we ask for, but to continue praying patiently until we receive what we ask. The Lord calls the Gentiles "dogs," since they were considered unclean by the Jews. He calls "bread" the benefaction appointed by God for the "children," that is, for the Jews. Therefore He also says that the Gentiles should not partake of the benefaction that was appointed for the Jews. But since the woman answered wisely and with faith, she received what she asked for. The Jews, she says, have the bread, that is, all of You who came down from heaven, and Your benefactions, while I ask for a "crumb," that is, a small portion of Your benefactions. But see how the Lord also acts! He did not say: My power has saved you, but what did He say? "For this word," that is, for your faith, "go," your daughter has been healed. Draw from this a useful lesson for yourself as well. Every one of us, when he commits sin, is a "woman," that is, a weak soul. Such a soul is a "Phoenician," as having a crimson, that is, a bloody and murderous sin. Such a soul has a "daughter" — wicked deeds, demonic deeds. Being sinners, we are called "dogs," full of impurities, which is why we are also unworthy to receive the "bread" of God, that is, to partake of the most pure Mysteries. But if in humility we acknowledge that we are dogs, if we confess and reveal our sins, then our daughter will be healed, that is, our demonic deeds.
Mk. 7:31. Having departed from the borders of Tyre and Sidon, Jesus went again to the Sea of Galilee through the borders of Decapolis.
Mk. 7:32. They brought to Him a man who was deaf and had an impediment in his speech, and they besought Him to lay His hand upon him.
Mk. 7:33. Jesus, having taken him aside from the crowd, put His fingers into his ears and, having spit, touched his tongue;
Mk. 7:34. And, looking up to heaven, He sighed and said to him: "Ephphatha," that is, Be opened.
Mk. 7:35. And immediately his hearing was opened and the bonds of his tongue were loosed, and he began to speak clearly.
Mk. 7:36. And He commanded them to tell no one. But the more He commanded them, the more widely they proclaimed it.
Mk. 7:37. And they were beyond measure astonished, and said: He has done all things well – He makes both the deaf to hear and the mute to speak.
The Lord does not linger in pagan places, but quickly withdraws from them, so as not to give the Jews, as I said, a pretext for saying about Him that He acts unlawfully by mingling with pagans. Having therefore withdrawn from the region of Tyre and Sidon, He comes to Galilee and there heals the deaf-mute, whose affliction was from a demon. He takes "him aside," for He was not a lover of glory, having humbled Himself to our poverty and not wishing to perform miracles before many, except when the benefit of the onlookers required it. "Having spit, He touched his tongue" as a sign that all parts of His Holy flesh were divine and holy, so that even His spittle loosed the bonds of the tongue. All spittle is an excess of fluids, but in the Lord everything is wondrous and divine. Looking up to heaven, the Lord "sighed," on the one hand, prayerfully to the Father, that He might have mercy on the man, and as an example to us, that when we intend to do any good deed, we should look to God and ask His help for its accomplishment; and on the other hand, He sighs also out of compassion for human nature, how it has been so given over to the devil that it suffers such outrage and affliction from him. For this reason, when the Lord healed, those who were healed proclaim Him, despite the fact that He forbade them this and commanded them to say nothing. From this let us also learn, when we do good to others, not to accept praise from them, but when we receive good deeds, to glorify our benefactors and spread word of them, even if they do not wish it.
Mk. 7:1. And there assembled unto Him the Pharisees and certain of the scribes, who had come from Jerusalem,
Mk. 7:2. And having seen some of His disciples eating bread with unclean, that is, unwashed hands, they found fault.
Mk. 7:3. For the Pharisees and all the Jews, holding to the tradition of the elders, do not eat unless they have thoroughly washed their hands;
Mk. 7:4. Coming from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash themselves. And there are many other things which they have received to hold: the washing of cups, pitchers, kettles, and benches.
Mk. 7:5. Then the Pharisees and scribes ask Him: Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?
Having been taught to hold to one virtue alone and to be concerned with nothing else besides it, the disciples of the Lord ate with unwashed hands without any deliberate intent and in simplicity. Meanwhile the Pharisees, wishing to find a pretext for reproach, seize upon this occasion and accuse the apostles, though not as violators of the Law, but as violators of the tradition of the elders, for there is no commandment in the Law to wash one's hands up to the elbows before eating, but they held to this as a tradition of the elders.
Mk. 7:6. He said to them in reply: Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, hypocrites, as it is written: This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me,
Mk. 7:7. But in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.
Mk. 7:8. For you, having left the commandment of God, hold to the tradition of men, the washing of cups and chalices, and you do many other things similar to this.
Mk. 7:9. And He said to them: is it well that you set aside the commandment of God in order to keep your own tradition?
Mk. 7:10. For Moses said: Honor your father and your mother; and: He who speaks evil of father or mother, let him be put to death.
Mk. 7:11. But you say: whoever says to his father or mother: Corban, that is, a gift to God, is that which you would have benefited from me,
Mk. 7:12. then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or his mother,
Mk. 7:13. Making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have established; and you do many other things similar to this.
In order to more strongly convict the Jews, the Lord also brings forward a prophet who condemns them. They accused the disciples for transgressing the tradition of the elders, but the Lord directs against them a far stronger accusation, namely, that they transgress the Law of Moses. The Law, He says, teaches: "Honor your father and your mother" (Exodus 20:12); but you teach children to say to their parents: that which you want from me is corban, that is, dedicated to God. For the Pharisees, wishing to profit from the property of simple people, taught children (when the children had any possessions and the parents demanded from them) to say the following: I have already dedicated that to God, and you must not demand what has been dedicated to God. By thus deceiving children and persuading them to dedicate their possessions to God, the Pharisees through this made them neglect their parents, and they themselves consumed what had been dedicated to God. This is precisely what the Lord charges them with—that for the sake of gain they transgress the Law of God.
Mk. 7:14. And when He had called all the people unto Him, He said unto them, Hearken unto Me every one of you, and understand:
Mk. 7:15. Nothing that enters a man from outside can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are what defile a man.
Mk. 7:16. If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!
Mk. 7:17. And when He had entered into a house away from the crowd, His disciples asked Him about the parable.
Mk. 7:18. He said to them: Are you so lacking in understanding as well? Do you not comprehend that nothing entering a person from outside can defile him?
Mk. 7:19. Because it does not enter into his heart, but into the belly, and goes out, thereby purging all foods.
Mk. 7:20. Then He said: that which comes out of a man, that defiles a man.
Mk. 7:21. For from within, out of the heart of man, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,
Mk. 7:22. thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness—
Mk. 7:23. All these evils come from within and defile the man.
Teaching people to understand the dietary prescriptions of the Law not in a carnal manner, the Lord begins here to gradually reveal the meaning of the Law and says that nothing entering from outside defiles anyone, but what comes from the heart defiles. By "envious eye" He means either envy or licentiousness: for the envious person typically casts a malicious and venomous glance at the one envied, and the debauched person, gazing with his eyes, strives toward an evil deed. By "blasphemy" He means an insult against God: if, for example, someone begins to say that there is no Providence of God, this would be blasphemy; which is why the Lord also joins "pride" with it. Pride is, as it were, a disregard of God, when someone, having done a good deed, attributes it not to God but to his own strength. By "foolishness" He means offense against one's neighbors. All these passions defile the soul, and arise and proceed from it. To the crowd the Lord spoke in this manner not quite clearly, which is why He also remarked: "he who has ears to hear, let him hear," that is: let him who understands, understand. As for the apostles, who understood the Lord's speech more deeply and approached to ask Him about the "parable," that is, about this veiled speech (a parable is a veiled speech), the Lord first rebuked them, saying: "Are even you so lacking in understanding?" but then resolved for them what had been difficult to comprehend.
Mk. 7:24. And from thence He arose, and went into the borders of Tyre and Sidon, and entered into a house, and would have no man know it; but He could not be hid.
Mk. 7:25. For a woman, whose daughter had an unclean spirit, heard of Him, and came and fell at His feet;
Mk. 7:26. And the woman was a pagan, a Syrophoenician by birth; and she besought Him to cast the demon out of her daughter.
Mk. 7:27. But Jesus said to her: let the children be filled first, for it is not good to take the bread from the children and throw it to the dogs.
Mk. 7:28. But she answered and said to Him: yes, Lord; yet even the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs.
Mk. 7:29. And He said to her: for this word, go; the demon has gone out of your daughter.
Mk. 7:30. And when she came to her house, she found that the demon had gone out and her daughter was lying on the bed.
After He had spoken about food and saw that the Jews did not believe, the Lord crosses over into the regions of the Gentiles, for with the unbelief of the Jews, salvation was to pass to the Gentiles. At first the Lord tried to remain hidden, so that the Jews would not have a pretext to accuse Him of having gone over to the side of the unclean Gentiles. Yet He could not be hidden, for it was impossible for Him to be concealed and recognized by no one. The aforementioned woman, having heard about Him, displays a fervent faith. Therefore the Lord does not immediately consent to her request, but delays the gift in order to show that the woman's faith is firm and that she waits patiently despite the refusal. Let us also learn not to abandon prayer at once when we do not immediately receive what we ask for, but to continue praying patiently until we receive what we ask. The Lord calls the Gentiles "dogs," since they were considered unclean by the Jews. He calls "bread" the benefaction appointed by God for the "children," that is, for the Jews. Therefore He also says that the Gentiles should not partake of the benefaction that was appointed for the Jews. But since the woman answered wisely and with faith, she received what she asked for. The Jews, she says, have the bread, that is, all of You who came down from heaven, and Your benefactions, while I ask for a "crumb," that is, a small portion of Your benefactions. But see how the Lord also acts! He did not say: My power has saved you, but what did He say? "For this word," that is, for your faith, "go," your daughter has been healed. Draw from this a useful lesson for yourself as well. Every one of us, when he commits sin, is a "woman," that is, a weak soul. Such a soul is a "Phoenician," as having a crimson, that is, a bloody and murderous sin. Such a soul has a "daughter" — wicked deeds, demonic deeds. Being sinners, we are called "dogs," full of impurities, which is why we are also unworthy to receive the "bread" of God, that is, to partake of the most pure Mysteries. But if in humility we acknowledge that we are dogs, if we confess and reveal our sins, then our daughter will be healed, that is, our demonic deeds.
Mk. 7:31. Having departed from the borders of Tyre and Sidon, Jesus went again to the Sea of Galilee through the borders of Decapolis.
Mk. 7:32. They brought to Him a man who was deaf and had an impediment in his speech, and they besought Him to lay His hand upon him.
Mk. 7:33. Jesus, having taken him aside from the crowd, put His fingers into his ears and, having spit, touched his tongue;
Mk. 7:34. And, looking up to heaven, He sighed and said to him: "Ephphatha," that is, Be opened.
Mk. 7:35. And immediately his hearing was opened and the bonds of his tongue were loosed, and he began to speak clearly.
Mk. 7:36. And He commanded them to tell no one. But the more He commanded them, the more widely they proclaimed it.
Mk. 7:37. And they were beyond measure astonished, and said: He has done all things well – He makes both the deaf to hear and the mute to speak.
The Lord does not linger in pagan places, but quickly withdraws from them, so as not to give the Jews, as I said, a pretext for saying about Him that He acts unlawfully by mingling with pagans. Having therefore withdrawn from the region of Tyre and Sidon, He comes to Galilee and there heals the deaf-mute, whose affliction was from a demon. He takes "him aside," for He was not a lover of glory, having humbled Himself to our poverty and not wishing to perform miracles before many, except when the benefit of the onlookers required it. "Having spit, He touched his tongue" as a sign that all parts of His Holy flesh were divine and holy, so that even His spittle loosed the bonds of the tongue. All spittle is an excess of fluids, but in the Lord everything is wondrous and divine. Looking up to heaven, the Lord "sighed," on the one hand, prayerfully to the Father, that He might have mercy on the man, and as an example to us, that when we intend to do any good deed, we should look to God and ask His help for its accomplishment; and on the other hand, He sighs also out of compassion for human nature, how it has been so given over to the devil that it suffers such outrage and affliction from him. For this reason, when the Lord healed, those who were healed proclaim Him, despite the fact that He forbade them this and commanded them to say nothing. From this let us also learn, when we do good to others, not to accept praise from them, but when we receive good deeds, to glorify our benefactors and spread word of them, even if they do not wish it.