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One day, some Pharisees and teachers of the Law who had come from Jerusalem gathered around Jesus. 2 They saw that some of his disciples were frequently eating without washing their hands first. 3 {They noticed this} because the Pharisees and all of the other Jews would not eat unless they washed their hands. They learned this ritual from their elders.4 Likewise, they will not eat food from the marketplace until they are able to wash their hands. There are many other rituals which they hold to. They also washed their cups, pots, and copper utensils. 5 So, when they saw the disciples {eating without first washing their hands, the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law questioned Jesus. They said, “Your disciples disobey the traditions of our elders! Why do they eat food if they have not washed their hands using our ritual?” 6 Jesus said to them, “Isaiah prophesied accurately against you people who only pretend to be good! He wrote these words that God said:
‘These people speak as if they honor me,
but they really do not think about honoring me at all.
7 But their worship to me has no purpose,
because they teach rules that people have made
as if I myself had made those rules.’
8 You no longer obey what God has commanded you, but you obey only what people have taught you.” 9 Jesus also said to them, “You have refused to do what God commanded just so that you can obey your own traditions! 10 For example, our ancestor Moses wrote God’s command, ‘Honor your father and your mother’. He also wrote, ‘Anyone who speaks in an evil way about their father or mother God will punish with death.’ 11 But you teach people that it is all right if people give their things to God instead of giving their things to their father and mother {to take care of them}. 12 As a result, you are not allowing people to take care of their father and mother as Moses commanded. 13 In this way you disregard what God commanded! You teach your own rules to others and tell them that they should obey them! And you do many other things like that.”
14 Then Jesus again summoned the crowd to come closer. Then he said to them, “All of you people listen to me! Try to understand what I am about to tell you. 15 Nothing that people eat causes God to consider them to be defiled. On the contrary, it is that which comes from people’s hearts that causes God to consider them to be defiled.” 16 a [“Whoever is willing to listen, listen to what I say.”.]
17 After they had entered the house away from the crowd, the disciples were asking him about the parable he had just told. 18 He replied to them, “Did you also not understand what it meant? You ought to understand that food that people eat does not cause God to consider them to be defiled. 19 Instead of entering and corrupting us before God, food goes into our stomachs, and afterwards, it passes out of our bodies.” By saying this, Jesus was declaring that people can eat any food without causing God to consider them unacceptable to him. 20 Jesus also said, “It is the thoughts and actions that come from within people that cause God to consider them unacceptable to him. 21 Specifically, it is people’s desires that causes them to do things that are evil. They act immorally, they steal things, they commit murder, 22 They commit adultery, they are greedy, they act maliciously, they deceive people. They also act indecently, they envy people, they speak evil about others, they are proud, and they act foolishly. 23 People think these thoughts and then they do these evil actions, and that is what causes God to consider them unacceptable to him.”
24 Jesus and his disciples arose and left Galilee. They went to the region around the cities of Tyre and Sidon. While he stayed at a house, he did not want anyone to know {he was in the area}, but people soon found out that he was there. 25 A certain woman, whose daughter an evil spirit controlled, heard about Jesus. At once she came to him and knelt at his feet. 26 This woman was Greek, and had been born in the area around the region of Phoenicia, in the district of Syria. She pled with Jesus that he might force the evil spirit out from her daughter. 27 He said to the woman, “First let the children eat all they want, because it is not good for someone to take the food the mother has prepared for the children and then throw it to the little dogs.” 28 She replied to him, “Lord, what you say is correct, but even the house dogs, who lie under the table, eat the crumbs that the children drop.” 29 Jesus said to her, “Because of what you have said, go home. I have caused the evil spirit to leave your daughter.” 30 The woman returned to her house and saw that her child was lying quietly on the bed and that the evil spirit had left her.
31 Jesus and his disciples left the region around Tyre and went through Sidon. Then they traveled to the part of the Sea of Galilee which is in the region of the Ten Towns. 32 There, people brought to him a man who was deaf and could not talk. They begged Jesus to lay his hands on him {in order to heal him}. 33 So Jesus took him away from the crowd in order that the two of them could be alone. Then he put one of his fingers into each of the man’s ears. After he spat on his fingers, he touched the man’s tongue with his fingers. 34 Then he looked up toward heaven, he sighed and then said in his own language, “Ephphatha,” which means, “Open up!” 35 At once the man could hear plainly. He also began to speak clearly because what was causing him to be unable to speak was healed. 36 Jesus told the people not to tell anyone what he had done. But, although he ordered them and others repeatedly not to tell anyone about it, they kept talking about it even more. 37 People who heard about it were utterly amazed and were saying, “Everything he has done is wonderful! Besides doing other amazing things, he enables deaf people to hear! And he enables those who cannot speak to speak!”