Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man

 

 Then the scribes and Pharisees who were from Jerusalem came to Jesus, saying, "Why do Your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders?  For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread."  

 

He answered and said to them, "Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition?  For God commanded, saying, 'Honor your father and your mother'; and, 'He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.'  But you say, 'Whoever says to his father or mother, "Whatever profit you might have received from me is a gift to God" -- 'then he need not honor his father or mother.  Thus you have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition.  

 

"Hypocrites!  Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying:

 'These people draw near to Me with their mouth,

And honor Me with their lips,

But their heart is far from Me.

And in vain they worship Me,

Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.' "

 

When He had called the multitude to Himself, He said to them, "Hear and understand:  Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man."  Then His disciples came and said to Him, "Do You know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?"  But He answered and said, "Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted.  Let them alone.  They are blind leaders of the blind.  And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch."  Then Peter answered and said to Him, "Explain this parable to us."  So Jesus said, "Are you also still without understanding?  Do you not yet understand that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and is eliminated?  But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man.  for out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.  These are the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man."

 

- Matthew 15:1-20 

 

 Yesterday we read that, after feeding the multitudes in the wilderness, immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away.  And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray.  Now when evening came, He was alone there.  But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary. Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea.  And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, "It is a ghost!"  And they cried out for fear.  But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, "Be of good cheer!  It is I; do not be afraid."  And Peter answered Him and said, "Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water."  So He said, "Come."  And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.  But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, "Lord, save me!"  And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?"  And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.  Then those who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, "Truly You are the Son of God." When they had crossed over, they came to the land of Gennesaret.  And when the men of that place recognized Him, they sent out into all that surrounding region, brought to Him all who were sick,  and begged Him that they might only touch the hem of His garment.  And as many as touched it were made perfectly well.

 

  Then the scribes and Pharisees who were from Jerusalem came to Jesus, saying, "Why do Your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders?  For they do not wash their hands when they eat bread."  My study Bible explains that the tradition of the elders refers to the interpretations of the Law by Jewish teachers.  In today's reading, Jesus refutes their views that ritual purity depends on outward actions.  Instead, it is the state of the heart (see verse 8) that determines a person's purity.  

 

 He answered and said to them, "Why do you also transgress the commandment of God because of your tradition?  For God commanded, saying, 'Honor your father and your mother'; and, 'He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.'  But you say, 'Whoever says to his father or mother, "Whatever profit you might have received from me is a gift to God" -- 'then he need not honor his father or mother.  Thus you have made the commandment of God of no effect by your tradition."   According to my study Bible, Christ shows here that the commandment of God cannot be superseded by the religious traditions of human beings.  It says that devotion to God includes both obedience to God's commandments, and service to others.  These two things cannot be separated.  In Jesus' example here, it can be clearly seen that the tradition cited by Jesus is, in fact and in outcome, contradictory to the commandment of God.  See also James 2:14-18; 1 John 4:7-21.  

 

 "Hypocrites!  Well did Isaiah prophesy about you, saying:  'These people draw near to Me with their mouth, / And honor Me with their lips, / But their heart is far from Me. / And in vain they worship Me, / Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.' "  Jesus quotes from Isaiah 29:13.

 

 When He had called the multitude to Himself, He said to them, "Hear and understand:  Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man."  Then His disciples came and said to Him, "Do You know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?"  But He answered and said, "Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted.  Let them alone.  They are blind leaders of the blind.  And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch."  Then Peter answered and said to Him, "Explain this parable to us."  So Jesus said, "Are you also still without understanding?  Do you not yet understand that whatever enters the mouth goes into the stomach and is eliminated?  But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man.   For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.  These are the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man."  The Pharisees are scrupulous in their observance of their tradition.  For fear of consuming something unclean, they observe these practices.  But they are blind to the greater purposes of God as intended in the Law in the first place.  Thus, Jesus calls them blind leaders of the blind.  As hypocrites, their intentions are unfortunately not always pure; they care too much for their places, which Jesus will elaborate on in Matthew 23.  

 

Jesus' teaching, as my study Bible says, emphasizes the purity of the heart (Matthew 5:8).  What do we nurture in our hearts?  What do we turn away from?  These are the questions we ask ourselves in obedience to the teachings of Christ.  For Jesus points to the heart as the center of a person, where is stored our desires, compulsions, even thoughts.  He says, "For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.  These are the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man."  Elsewhere Jesus teaches, "A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart brings forth evil. For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks" (Luke 6:45).  Out of these teachings proceed the practice of "guarding the heart."  That is, to be aware of what is going on inside of our own hearts, and not entertaining the things which Christ says are not good for us.  All kinds of thoughts and desires will pass through the heart, but  our job is to be aware of what we entertain and nurture within the heart, and what we discard and turn away from -- and towards Him.  This is part of the purpose of fasting, to teach us this kind of discipline, that it is possible to turn away from thoughts and compulsions that do us no good, and are not a part of what it means to love God.  "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength" (Deuteronomy 6:5) is, according to Jesus, the first and greatest commandment of all (see Matthew 22:36-38).  The Pharisees, in their legalism, seem to have lost all sight of this guiding principle for all the rest of what we do to honor God and to live our lives is a good and fruitful and spiritual healthful way.  Let us note that these men, the Pharisees in today's reading, have come from Jerusalem.  No doubt they come to scrutinize Jesus and His ministry, and they begin with their questions and criticisms.  But Jesus is ready to stand up for what He is here to do and to teach and to live, for all of us.  Note how He seeks to protect His disciples when they are criticized for not practicing ceremonial washing.  Let us take note how Jesus teaches us to be, in defiance of those with authority in the Pharisees, and follow our Lord's teaching and all the practices of the Church designed to help us to guard the important place of the heart, that our good treasure may be there in a good and pure heart.