Mark 7

Thought on This Chapter

MK 7:5 Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why walk not thy disciples according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashen hands?

Men who pride themselves in keeping the traditions of men over the Word of God will often attack those who hold to salvation by grace. This is nothing new.

MK 7:6 He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.

Jesus responds to them and calls them hypocrites. He refers to an Old Testament prophecy of Isaiah and applies it to them. When you are doing the traditions of men instead of obeying the Word, then all you are doing is lip service. You might be talking a good talk, but the fact is that something is very wrong with your heart. God says that your heart is far from Him.

MK 7:7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

Obeying the commandments of men is worthless. It is vain worship. Nothing will come from it. It is empty and will not save you from hell.

MK 7:9 And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.

The commandments of God and the tradition of men do not go hand in hand. They are contrary to each other. You cannot have it both ways. To keep the traditions of men you have to reject the commands of God.

A good example is on salvation. God says, Eph 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: [it is] the gift of God: Eph 2:9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.

God made it very clear in His Word that you are saved by grace and you ARE NOT saved by works.

To say that salvation is only thru the Catholic church is against the Word of God. That is a works salvation. It is only a tradition made up by men. To believe that you must reject the Word of God.

Thought On This Chapter

MK 7:15 There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man.

MK 7:16 If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.

The Pharisees and scribes had just taken issue with Jesus' disciples because they did not keep the traditions of men. They claimed that this made them unclean. Jesus rebukes them for their hypocrisy and then Jesus gives us verse 15. The immediate context here is talking about religious rituals, rites, and traditions. Jesus makes it very clear here that not doing some ritual in NO WAY makes you unclean.

The disciples asked for clarification on this statement in verse 17, and Jesus makes the same point to them in verses 18-19. He then tells them what does defile the man.

MK 7:20 And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man.

MK 7:21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,

MK 7:22 Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:

MK 7:23 All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.

It is the wickedness of the heart that defiles the man. It is man's sin that defiles him. The evil deed that is done, only happened because it was in the man's wicked heart. Out of the heart comes adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, and foolishness. These wicked deeds do not just happen all on their own. They have a cause. They come from somewhere, and that place is the heart. A man does not get a wicked heart after he does wicked deeds. No! He does wicked deeds because he has a wicked heart. The deed is only the outward manifestation of what lies within. A man does not sin to become a sinner; he sins because that is what is inside of him.

The more you study the Bible, and the more you watch people, the more you come to realize just how much it is all a heart matter and not a works matter. Works don't come first, they come after. We don't work to get saved, we work because we are saved.

If the heart is right, then what comes out of the life will be right. To work on the most important thing is to work on the heart.

King James Bible Main Index:

Mark 7 [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16]

MK 7:1 Then came together unto him the Pharisees, and certain of the scribes, which came from Jerusalem.

MK 7:2 And when they saw some of his disciples eat bread with defiled, that is to say, with unwashen, hands, they found fault.

MK 7:3 For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, except they wash their hands oft, eat not, holding the tradition of the elders.

MK 7:4 And when they come from the market, except they wash, they eat not. And many other things there be, which they have received to hold, as the washing of cups, and pots, brasen vessels, and of tables.

MK 7:5 Then the Pharisees and scribes asked him, Why walk not thy disciples according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashen hands?

MK 7:6 He answered and said unto them, Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, This people honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.

MK 7:7 Howbeit in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

MK 7:8 For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do.

MK 7:9 And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.

MK 7:10 For Moses said, Honour thy father and thy mother; and, Whoso curseth father or mother, let him die the death:

MK 7:11 But ye say, If a man shall say to his father or mother, It is Corban, that is to say, a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; he shall be free.

MK 7:12 And ye suffer him no more to do ought for his father or his mother;

MK 7:13 Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.

MK 7:14 And when he had called all the people unto him, he said unto them, Hearken unto me every one of you, and understand:

MK 7:15 There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man.

MK 7:16 If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.

MK 7:17 And when he was entered into the house from the people, his disciples asked him concerning the parable.

MK 7:18 And he saith unto them, Are ye so without understanding also? Do ye not perceive, that whatsoever thing from without entereth into the man, it cannot defile him;

MK 7:19 Because it entereth not into his heart, but into the belly, and goeth out into the draught, purging all meats?

MK 7:20 And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man.

MK 7:21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,

MK 7:22 Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:

MK 7:23 All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.

MK 7:24 And from thence he arose, and went into the borders of Tyre and Sidon, and entered into an house, and would have no man know it: but he could not be hid.

MK 7:25 For a certain woman, whose young daughter had an unclean spirit, heard of him, and came and fell at his feet:

MK 7:26 The woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician by nation; and she besought him that he would cast forth the devil out of her daughter.

MK 7:27 But Jesus said unto her, Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it unto the dogs.

MK 7:28 And she answered and said unto him, Yes, Lord: yet the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs.

MK 7:29 And he said unto her, For this saying go thy way; the devil is gone out of thy daughter.

MK 7:30 And when she was come to her house, she found the devil gone out, and her daughter laid upon the bed.

MK 7:31 And again, departing from the coasts of Tyre and Sidon, he came unto the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the coasts of Decapolis.

MK 7:32 And they bring unto him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech; and they beseech him to put his hand upon him.

MK 7:33 And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue;

MK 7:34 And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened.

MK 7:35 And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain.

MK 7:36 And he charged them that they should tell no man: but the more he charged them, so much the more a great deal they published it;

MK 7:37 And were beyond measure astonished, saying, He hath done all things well: he maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak.

Outline of Mark Chapter 7

D. Rebuking the Pharisees
1. Pharisees and scribes come to Jesus from Jerusalem
2. They find fault
a. They see His disciples eat bread with defiled hands
b. The disciples are not holding the tradition of the elders
1. They don't wash after the market
2. They don't hold the washing of cups, pots, brasen vessels, and tables
3. The Pharisees ask Jesus why His disciples do not walk according to tradition
4. Jesus answers
a. Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites
1. They honoureth Me with their lips
2. Their heart is far from Me
3. In vain they worship
4. They teach commandments of men for doctrines
b. You lay aside the commandment of God
c. You hold the tradition of men
d. You reject the commandment of God to keep your own tradition
e. Example of Honour thy father and mother
f. You make the word of God of none effect with tradition
g. Jesus calls and talks to the people
1. Nothing from without a man defiles him by entering
2. The things that come out of him is what defiles
3. If any man has ears, let him hear
5. The disciples ask Jesus about the parable
a. Things from without do not enter the heart
b. Things from without enter the belly and are purged
c. What comes out of the man defiles the man
d. Out of the heart proceeds evil things
1. Evil thoughts
2. Adulteries
3. Fornications
4. Murders
5. Thefts
6. Covetousness
7. wickedness
8. Deceit
9. Lasciviousness
10. An evil eye
11. Blasphemy
12. Pride
13. Foolishness
e. Evil things come from within and defile the man
E. The Syrophoenician woman
1. Jesus enters a house and would have no man know it
2. Jesus could not be hid
3. A woman hears where Jesus is
a. She has a daughter with an unclean spirit
b. The woman falls at the feet of Jesus
c. She was a Syrophenician by nation
4. She besought Jesus to cast the devil out of her daughter
5. Jesus answers
a. Let the children first be filled
b. It is not meet to cast the children's bread to the dogs
6. She answers
a. Yes Lord
b. Yet the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs
7. Jesus says go thy way the devil is gone out of thy daughter
8. The woman comes to her house
a. The devil is gone out of her daughter
b. Her daughter is laying on the bed
F. Healing the deaf mute
1. Jesus travels through the coasts of Decapolis
2. They bring to Jesus a deaf mute
3. They beseech Jesus to put His hand upon him
4. Jesus takes the man aside from the multitude
a. Jesus puts His fingers into his ears
b. He spit
c. He touched his tongue
d. Jesus looking up to heaven says Be opened
e. Straightway the man could hear and talk
f. Jesus charged them to tell no man
g. The more He charged the more they published it

One of the problems with working your way to heaven is that it does not change the inside.

You can clean yourself up on the outside. You can follow every tradition that a religious group can make up and you will still be defiled. verses 20 -23

In fact following traditions makes the word of God of none effect verse 13.

What you need is a new heart. The only solution is to be born again.

Joh 3:7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.