Matthew 15:1–20

THE TRADITION OF THE ELDERS

15Then^v Jesus was approached by Pharisees and scribes from Jerusalem, who asked,^{w 2}“Why do your disciples^x break the tradition of the elders? For they don’t wash their hands when they eat.”^Aa

³He answered them, “Why do you break God’s commandment because of your tradition? ⁴For God said:^B Honor your father and your mother;^Cb and, Whoever speaks evil of father or mother must be put to death.^{Dc 5}But you say, ‘Whoever tells his father or mother, “Whatever benefit you might have received from me is a gift committed to the temple,” ⁶he does not have to honor his father.’^E In this way, you have nullified the word of God^F because of your tradition. ⁷Hypocrites! Isaiah prophesied correctly about you when he said:

⁸This people^G honors me with their lips,

but their heart is far from me.

⁹They worship me in vain,

teaching as doctrines human commands.”^d

DEFILEMENT IS FROM WITHIN

¹⁰Summoning the crowd, he told them, “Listen and understand: ¹¹It’s not what goes into the mouth that defiles^e a person, but what comes out of the mouth—this defiles a person.”^f

¹²Then the disciples came up and told him, “Do you know that the Pharisees took offense when they heard what you said?”

¹³He replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father didn’t plant will be uprooted.^{g 14}Leave them alone! They are blind guides.^I And if the blind guide the blind, both will fall into a pit.”^h

¹⁵Then Peter said, “Explain this parable to us.”ⁱ

¹⁶“Do you still lack understanding?” he^J asked. ¹⁷“Don’t you realize^K that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is eliminated?^{L 18}But what comes out of the mouth comes from the heart, and this defiles a person.^{j 19}For from the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, sexual immoralities, thefts, false testimonies,^k slander.^{l 20}These are the things that defile a person; but eating with unwashed hands does not defile a person.”^m