Matthew 15:1–20

Tradition and Commandment

^1aThen some Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus ^bfrom Jerusalem and said,

²“Why do Your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they ^ado not wash their hands when they eat bread.”

³And He answered and said to them, “Why do you yourselves transgress the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition?

⁴“For God said, ‘^aHonor your father and mother,’ and, ‘^bHe who speaks evil of father or mother is to ¹be put to death.’

⁵“But you say, ‘Whoever says to his father or mother, “Whatever I have that would help you has been ¹given to God,”

⁶he is not to honor his father or his mother¹.’ And by this you invalidated the word of God for the sake of your tradition.

⁷“You hypocrites, rightly did Isaiah prophesy of you:

⁸‘^aThis people honors Me with their lips,

But their heart is far away from Me.

⁹‘But in vain do they worship Me,

Teaching as ^adoctrines the precepts of men.’ ”

¹⁰After Jesus called the crowd to Him, He said to them, “Hear and understand.

¹¹“^aIt is not what enters into the mouth that defiles the man, but what proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man.”

¹²Then the disciples came and said to Him, “Do You know that the Pharisees were ¹offended when they heard this statement?”

¹³But He answered and said, “^aEvery plant which My heavenly Father did not plant shall be uprooted.

¹⁴“Let them alone; ^athey are blind guides ¹of the blind. And ^bif a blind man guides a blind man, both will fall into a pit.”

The Heart of Man

¹⁵Peter ¹said to Him, “^aExplain the parable to us.”

¹⁶¹Jesus said, “Are you still lacking in understanding also?

¹⁷“Do you not understand that everything that goes into the mouth passes into the stomach, and is ¹eliminated?

¹⁸“But ^athe things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile the man.

¹⁹“^aFor out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, ¹fornications, thefts, false witness, slanders.

²⁰“These are the things which defile the man; but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile the man.”