Mark 7

THen came together the Pharisees, and certain of the scribes, which came from Jerusalem

And when they saw some of his disciples eat bread with defiled (that is to say, with unwashen hands) they found fault.

For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, except they wash heir hands oft, eat not, holding the traditions of the elders.

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

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.

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

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

For laying aside the commandement of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups, and many other such like things ye do.

And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradion.

For Moses said, Honour thy father, and thy mother, and Whoso curseth father or mother, let him dye the death.

But ye say, If a man 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.

And ye suffer him no ore to do ought for his father, or his mother.

Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered, And many such like things do ye. See the Notes upon the nine first Verses of the fifteenth of Matthew. By the Notions of Traditions. Our Saviour understandeth not such things, as were delivered to them by God in his Law but such things as were delivered to them by the Elders, that is, their Rulers in the Church in the former times, for v. 9. he opposeth Traditions, to Gods Commandements, and says the latter were neglected by their Zeal for the former, to give Countenance to which Traditions, as the Papists would impose upon us to believe, that Christ Communicated some things to his Apostles, and hey to the Primitive Churches, by Word of Mouth, which ha been so Transmitted from Age to Age, so the Jew pretended that God Communicated his Will in some things to Moses, which Moses did not publish to the People. And as the former pretend Power by Christ left to the Church to determine Rituals: So the Pharisees (their true Predecessors) pretended a such like power amongst others, besides the Divers washings mentioned by the Apostle, Heb. 9.10. amongst the Carnal Ordinances imposed only until the time of Reformation, they had invented many other Washings, as sepimenta Legis, Hedges to the Divine Law. They Washed their Hands often, when they came from Market, or before they did eat, not for Decency, and Neatne, but out of Religion, lest they should have been defiled by touching any Heathens, or any Polluted things, and not their Hands only, but their Pots, and Cups, their Beds and Tables, and Brasen Vessels (as indeed there is no stop, when once Men have passed the Hedge of the Divine Institution,) of which Popery is a plentiful Instance, where it is hard to discern an Ordinance of God in the Rubbish of their Superstitious Traditions. And 'tis very observable, that Superstitious Men are always more fond of, and zealous for, the Traditions of Men in their Worship, then keeping the Commandements of God, it is with the Papists more hainous to Violate Lent, then to Violate the Sabbath. For a Priest to Marry then to commit Whoredom. This Zeal in them ordinarily produceth a neglect, or slight esteem of the plain Commandments of God. So it did in the Pharisees, v. 9. upon which our Saviour calleth them Hypocrites, v. 6. and telleth them this Worshipping of God was Vain, Sinful, and Idle, and impertinent, there was in it a Derogating from the Authority of God, and arrogating of an undue Authority to themselves by their Commands making those things necessary, which are not so, and as commonly it happeneth, when humane inventions are over urged, and Multiplyed, some are urged Destructive of the Divine Law, so it was with those Pharisees, so they had done as to the fifth Commandment (of which we have spoken plentifully in our Notes on Matth. 15, 8.) Our Saviour goeth on, showing their Ignorance and Blindness, in imagining that any Person could be defiled by Eating with Vnwashen Hands.

And when he had called all the people unto him, he said unto them, Hearken unto me every one of you and understand. Our Saviours calling all the People unto him, before he spake what next followeth, and his Prefacing that Discourse with. Hearken every one of you, and understand, Lets us know that what he was about to say, was a point of great Moment, well worth their Learning, and Observation.

There is nothing from witho a man, that entring into him, can defile him, but the things that come out of him, those are they that defile the man.

If any man has ears to hear, let him hear. The addition of these Words, If any Man has ears to hear, let him hear, con irm what I observed before, that our Saviour look't upon what he said as a truth of very great moment, and with all as such a Notion which carnal hearts and superstitious Persons, had no Ears to hear. This great Truth was. That a Man in the sight of God. (For of such defilement he alone speaketh) could be defiled by nothing but what came from within him. How easily would a Popish Doctor have answered this, does not Disobedience to the Churches commands, come from within us, our Saviourtherefore must be understood of such things as come from within, in disobedience to the Commands of God, such are those which he mentioneth, v. 21.22. for all things that come from within, do not defile the Man. And it is true, that a Disobedience to the Commands of any Power, whither Civil or Ecclesiastical is a thing which cometh from within and difileth a Soul, if it be a disobedience in such things, which God has given them, a Power to Command, but if not, the case is otherwise.

And when he was entred into the house from the people, his disciples asked him concerning the parable. That is concerning this saying of his, which appeared to them Dark: For a Parable somet mes in Scripture signifieth no more Psal. 49.4. yet one would think that our Saviours saying was plain enough. But Custom is a great Tyrant. The prejudice they had received from their Superstitious teachers, Blinded them, and lock't up their Souls from receiving true and spiritual Instructions, we see the same thing every day. What an heinous thing do the Blind Papists think it i to eat Flesh in Lent, or on one of their Fish days? never considering by what Law of God any Men are restrained in such things. Our Saviour in the next Words checks their Blindness.

And he says unto them, Are ye so without understanding also? Do ye not perceive, that whatsoever thing from without entreth into the man, it cannot defile him.

Because it entreth not into his heart, but into the belly, and goeth out into the draught, purging all meats.

And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man.

For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders.

Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness.

All these things come from within, and defile the man. Christ checketh his Disciples for understanding things no better Ignorance is more excusable in those who are Strangers to God and Christ, then in those that have Relation to him. In our Saviours enumeration of those things which come out of the heart, several things are reckoned up which are the Overt actions of the Tongue, Eye, Hands, but our Saviour says, all these flow from the heart, for the Actions of the outward Man, are but the imperate Actions of the Will, and things past the Imaginations and Understanding, before they come at the Will, to be chosen or rejected. Here are but some Sins reckoned instead of many, for it is true of all our evil Actions, that they are first hatched in the heart, and are first entertained in our thoughts, in our Understandings, then chosen by our Wills, and then the bodily Members are commanded by the Soul to the Execution of them. Mark reckoneth more then Matthew, but in both, the enumerations are imperfect, and some Sins are named instead of all. Nothing but Sin defileth the Man, Sin has its first rise in the heart, and floweth from thence. See further the Notes upon Matth. 15.18.19 &c.

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

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

The woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician by nation, And she besought him that he would cast forth the devil out of her daughter.

But Jesus said unto her, Let the children first be filled, for it is not meet to take the childrens bread, and to cast it unto the dogs.

And she answered and said unto him, Yes Lord: yet the dogs under the table eat of the childrens crumbs.

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

And when she was come to her house, she found the devil gone out, and her daughter laid upon her bed. Matthew recordeth this History with several considerable additions, See Matth. 15.21. where we have largely opened it.

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.

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.

And he took him aside from the multitude, and put his finger into his ears, and he spit, and touched his tongue.

And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and says unto him Ephatha, that is, Be opened.

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

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.

And were beyond measure astonished, saying, He has done all things well, he maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak. This History is recorded by Mark only. And again departing from the coasts of Tyre and Sidon. We heard v. 24. of his going into those Coasts, some think that our Saviour did not go out of the Jewish country, tho he went to the Coasts of Tyre and Sidon, which were Pagan Countries, he came to the Sea of Galilee, through the midst of the Coasts of Decapolis. That Decapolis was an Union of ten Cities so called, is plain by the Name, but what those Cities were, and whether they lay on the same side of Iordan, that Galilee did, or on the other side of Iordan, is disputed: most think they lay on the Galilean side. One that was Deaf, and had an Impediment in his Speech. Some think that he was Dumb, but the Word signifies one that spake with difficulty, so as it is likely his Deafness, was not natural (for all naturally Deaf, are also Dumb; we learning to Speak by hearing) besides that it is said after the cure, that he spake plain, it was probably an accidental Deafness happening to him, after that he could speak. Their beseeching Christ to put his hand upon him, proceeded from their observation of him very often to use that rite in his healing sick Persons. And he took him aside from the M titude, not seeking his own Glory, and Ostentation, and put his finger into his Ears, and spit, and touched his Tongue. All these things were ex abundanti, not necessary actions, or naturally efficacious for his cure, but our Lord sometimes used no Signs, or Rites, sometimes these, sometims others, as it pleased him, And looking up to Heaven, he sighed, pitying the condition of humane nature, subject to so many Miseries, Defects and Infirmities, and says, Ephphatha, that is, be opened. By the Word of his Power, he made the World, and by the Word of his Power, he upholds it, and by the same Word of his Power, he restoreth any lapsed, or decayed part of it. He speaks, and it is done. And straightway his Ears were opened. Nature obeyeth the God of Nature. Concerning his Charge of them not to publish it, and their disobedience to it, I have had occasion once and again to speak, and must confess I can neither satisfie my self in the reason from my own thoughts, nor from what I read in others. This Miracle has no other effect than the People, Astonishment, and Confession, that what he did was well done; which was the common effect of Christs Preaching, and Miracles upon the most.