Mark 7:9-19

9 And he said to them, "You splendidly ignore the commandment of God so that you can keep your tradition.
10 For Moses said, 'Honor your father and your mother,' and, 'The one who speaks evil of father or mother {must certainly die}.'
11 But you say, 'If a man says to his father or to his mother, "Whatever {benefit you would have received} from me [is] corban" (that is, a gift [to God]),
12 you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or his mother,
13 [thus] making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down, and you do many similar [things] such as this."

Defilement from Within

14 And summoning the crowd again, he said to them, "Listen to me, all [of you], and understand:
15 There is nothing outside of a person that is able to defile him [by] going into him. But the things that go out of a person are the things that defile a person."
17 And when he entered into the house away from the crowd, his disciples asked him about the parable.
18 And he said to them, "So are you also without understanding? Do you not understand that everything [that is] outside that goes into a person [is] not able to defile him?
19 For it does not enter into his heart but into his stomach, and goes out into the latrine"--[thus] declaring all foods clean.

Footnotes 15

  • [a]. Some manuscripts have "you can maintain"
  • [b]. A quotation from Exod 20:12; Deut 5:16
  • [c]. Literally "let him die the death"
  • [d]. A quotation from Exod 21:17; Lev 20:9
  • [e]. Literally "the"; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  • [f]. Literally "the"; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  • [g]. Literally "you would have been benefited"
  • [h]. A Hebrew term referring to something consecrated as a gift to God and thus not available for ordinary use
  • [i]. Literally "the"; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  • [j]. Literally "the"; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  • [k]. *Here "[thus]" is supplied as a component of the participle ("making void") which is understood as result
  • [l]. *Here "[by]" is supplied as a component of the participle ("going") which is understood as means
  • [m]. Most later manuscripts add v. 16, "If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear."
  • [n]. Literally "the"; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
  • [o]. *Here "[thus]" is supplied as a component of the participle ("declaring") which is understood as result
Scripture quotations marked (LEB) are from the Lexham English Bible. Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software.