Mark 7 — Berean Standard Bible

¹ Then the Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around [Jesus], ² and they saw some of His disciples eating [with] hands [that were] defiled— that is, unwashed. ³ Now in holding to the tradition of the elders, the Pharisees and all the Jews {do} not eat until they wash [their] hands ceremonially. ⁴ And [on returning] from the market, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other traditions for them to observe, [including] the washing of cups, pitchers, kettles, and couches for dining. ⁵ So the Pharisees and scribes questioned [Jesus]: “Why {do} Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders? Instead, they eat with defiled hands. ⁶ Jesus answered them, “Isaiah prophesied correctly about you hypocrites, as it is written: ‘These people honor Me with [their] lips, but their hearts are far from Me. ⁷ They worship Me in vain; they teach [as] doctrine [the] precepts of men.’ ⁸ You have disregarded the commandment of God to keep the tradition of men. ⁹ He went on to say, “You neatly set aside the command of God to maintain your [own] tradition. ¹⁰ For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses [his] father or mother must be put to death.’ ¹¹ But you say that if a man says to [his] father or mother, ‘Whatever you would have received from me [is] Corban (that is, a gift devoted [to God] ), ¹² he [is] no longer permitted to do anything for his father or mother. ¹³ [Thus] you nullify the word of God by [the] tradition you have handed down. And you do so in many such [matters]. ¹⁴ Once again [Jesus] called the crowd [to Him] [and] said, “All of you, listen to Me and understand: ¹⁵ Nothing that enters a man from the outside can defile him; but the things that come out of a man, these are what defile [him].” ¹⁷ After [Jesus] had left the crowd [and gone] into [the] house, His disciples inquired about the parable. ¹⁸ “Are you still so dull? He asked. “Do you not understand? Nothing that enters a man from the outside can defile him, ¹⁹ because it does not enter his heart, but [it goes] into the stomach and then is eliminated.” ([Thus] all foods are clean.) ²⁰ He continued: “What comes out of a man, that [is what] defiles [him]. ²¹ For from within the hearts of men come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, ²² greed, wickedness, deceit, debauchery, envy, slander, arrogance, [and] foolishness. ²³ All these evils come from within, and [these are what] defile a man. ²⁴ [Jesus] left that place [and] went to the region of Tyre. Not wanting anyone to know [He was there], He entered [a] house, but was unable to escape their notice. ²⁵ Instead, a woman whose little daughter had [an] unclean spirit soon heard about Jesus, [and] she came [and] fell at His feet. ²⁶ Now she was a Greek woman of Syrophoenician origin, and she kept asking [Jesus] to drive the demon out of her daughter. ²⁷ “First let the children have their fill, He said. “For it is not right to take the children’s bread and toss [it] to the dogs. ²⁸ “Yes, Lord, she replied, “even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs. ²⁹ Then [Jesus] told her, “Because of this answer, you may go. The demon has left your daughter. ³⁰ And she went home [and] found [her] child lying on the bed, and the demon was gone. ³¹ Then [Jesus] left the region of Tyre [and] went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee [and] into the region of [the] Decapolis. ³² [Some people] brought to Him a man who was deaf and hardly able to speak, and they begged [Jesus] to place [His] hand on him. ³³ [So] [Jesus] took him aside privately, away from the crowd, [and] put His fingers into [the man’s] ears. Then He spit [and] touched [the man’s] tongue. ³⁴ And looking up to heaven, He sighed deeply and said to him, “Ephphatha! (which means, “Be opened!”). ³⁵ Immediately [the man’s] ears were opened and his tongue was released, and he began to speak plainly. ³⁶ [Jesus] ordered them not to tell anyone. But the more He ordered them, the more widely they proclaimed [it]. ³⁷ [The people] were utterly astonished [and] said, “He has done all things well! He makes even the deaf hear and the mute speak!