What Makes a Person Unclean

Matthew 15

¹ Then Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem, saying,

² “Why do your disciples disobey the tradition of the elders? For they don’t wash their hands when they eat bread.”

³ He answered them, “Why do you also disobey the commandment of God because of your tradition?

⁴ For God commanded, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘He who speaks evil of father or mother, let him be put to death.’

⁵ But you say, ‘Whoever may tell his father or his mother, “Whatever help you might otherwise have gotten from me is a gift devoted to God,”

⁶ he shall not honor his father or mother.’ You have made the commandment of God void because of your tradition.

⁷ You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, saying,

⁸ ‘These people draw near to me with their mouth, and honor me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.

⁹ And they worship me in vain, teaching as doctrine rules made by men.’ ”

¹⁰ He summoned the multitude, and said to them, “Hear, and understand.

¹¹ That which enters into the mouth doesn’t defile the man; but that which proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man.”

¹² Then the disciples came and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?”

¹³ But he answered, “Every plant which my heavenly Father didn’t plant will be uprooted.

¹⁴ Leave them alone. They are blind guides of the blind. If the blind guide the blind, both will fall into a pit.”

¹⁵ Peter answered him, “Explain the parable to us.”

¹⁶ So Jesus said, “Do you also still not understand?

¹⁷ Don’t you understand that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the belly and then out of the body?

¹⁸ But the things which proceed out of the mouth come out of the heart, and they defile the man.

¹⁹ For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, sexual sins, thefts, false testimony, and blasphemies.

²⁰ These are the things which defile the man; but to eat with unwashed hands doesn’t defile the man.”

Mark 7

¹ Then the Pharisees and some of the scribes gathered together to him, having come from Jerusalem.

² Now when they saw some of his disciples eating bread with defiled, that is unwashed, hands, they found fault.

³ (For the Pharisees and all the Jews don’t eat unless they wash their hands and forearms, holding to the tradition of the elders.

⁴ They don’t eat when they come from the marketplace unless they bathe themselves, and there are many other things which they have received to hold to: washings of cups, pitchers, bronze vessels, and couches.)

⁵ The Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why don’t your disciples walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat their bread with unwashed hands?”

⁶ He answered them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.

⁷ They worship me in vain, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’

⁸ “For you set aside the commandment of God, and hold tightly to the tradition of men—the washing of pitchers and cups, and you do many other such things.”

⁹ He said to them, “Full well do you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition.

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.’

¹¹ But you say, ‘If a man tells his father or his mother, “Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban,” ’ ” that is to say, given to God,

¹² “then you no longer allow him to do anything for his father or his mother,

¹³ making void the word of God by your tradition which you have handed down. You do many things like this.”

¹⁴ He called all the multitude to himself and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand.

¹⁵ There is nothing from outside of the man that going into him can defile him; but the things which proceed out of the man are those that defile the man.

¹⁷ When he had entered into a house away from the multitude, his disciples asked him about the parable.

¹⁸ He said to them, “Are you also without understanding? Don’t you perceive that whatever goes into the man from outside can’t defile him,

¹⁹ because it doesn’t go into his heart, but into his stomach, then into the latrine, making all foods clean?”

²⁰ He said, “That which proceeds out of the man, that defiles the man.

²¹ For from within, out of the hearts of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, sexual sins, murders, thefts,

²² covetings, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, and foolishness.

²³ All these evil things come from within and defile the man.”