Mark 7:1 One day some Pharisees and teachers of religious law arrived from Jerusalem to see Jesus.
2 They noticed that some of His disciples failed to follow the Jewish ritual of hand washing before eating.
3 (The Jews, especially the Pharisees, do not eat until they have poured water over their cupped hands, as required by their ancient traditions.
4 Similarly, they don't eat anything from the market until they immerse their hands in water. This is but one of many traditions they have clung to-such as their ceremonial washing of cups, pitchers, and kettles [and dining couches].)
5 So the Pharisees and teachers of religious law asked Him, "Why don't Your disciples follow our age-old tradition? They eat without first performing the hand-washing ceremony."
6 Jesus replied, "You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you, for he wrote, 'These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me.
7 Their worship is a farce, for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God.'
8 For you ignore God's law and substitute your own tradition."
9 Then He said, "You skillfully sidestep God's law in order to hold on to your own tradition.
10 For instance, Moses gave you this law from God: 'Honor your father and mother,' and 'Anyone who speaks disrespectfully of father or mother must be put to death.'
11 But you say it is all right for people to say to their parents, 'Sorry, I can't help you. For I have vowed to give to God what I would have given to you.'
12 In this way, you let them disregard their needy parents.
13 And so you cancel the word of God in order to hand down your own tradition. And this is only one example among many others."
14 Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. "All of you listen," He said, "and try to understand.
15 It's not what goes into your body that defiles you; you are defiled by what comes from your heart. "
16 [Anyone with ears to hear should listen and understand.]
17 Then Jesus went into a house to get away from the crowd, and His disciples asked Him what He meant by the parable He had just used.
18 "Don't you understand either?" He asked. "Can't you see that the food you put into your body cannot defile you?
19 Food doesn't go into your heart, but only passes through the stomach and then goes into the sewer." (By saying this, He declared that every kind of food is acceptable in God's eyes.)
20 And then He added, "It is what comes from inside that defiles you.
21 For from within, out of a person's heart, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder,
22 adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness.
23 All these vile things come from within; they are what defile you."
24 Then Jesus left Galilee and went north to the region of Tyre [and Sidon]. He didn't want anyone to know which house He was staying in, but He couldn't keep it a secret.
25 Right away a woman who had heard about Him came and fell at His feet. Her little girl was possessed by an evil spirit,
26 and she begged Him to cast out the demon from her daughter. Since she was a Gentile, born in Syrian Phoenicia,
27 Jesus told her, "First I should feed the children-My own family, the Jews. It isn't right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs."
28 She replied, "That's true, Lord, but even the dogs under the table are allowed to eat the scraps from the children's plates."
29 "Good answer!" He said. "Now go home, for the demon has left your daughter."
30 And when she arrived home, she found her little girl lying quietly in bed, and the demon was gone.
31 Jesus left Tyre and went up to Sidon before going back to the Sea of Galilee and the region of the Ten Towns.
32 A deaf man with a speech impediment was brought to Him, and the people begged Jesus to lay His hands on the man to heal him.
33 Jesus led him away from the crowd so they could be alone. He put His fingers into the man's ears. Then, spitting on His own fingers, He touched the man's tongue.
34 Looking up to heaven, He sighed and said, "Ephphatha," which means, "Be opened!"
35 Instantly the man could hear perfectly, and his tongue was freed so he could speak plainly!
36 Jesus told the crowd not to tell anyone, but the more He told them not to, the more they spread the news.
Mar 7:37 They were completely amazed and said again and again, "Everything He does is wonderful. He even makes the deaf to hear and gives speech to those who cannot speak."
Mk. 8:1 About this time another large crowd had gathered, and the people ran out of food again. Jesus called His disciples and told them,
2 "I feel sorry for these people. They have been here with Me for three days, and they have nothing left to eat.
3 If I send them home hungry, they will faint along the way. For some of them have come a long distance."
4 His disciples replied, "How are we supposed to find enough food to feed them out here in the wilderness?"
5 Jesus asked, "How much bread do you have?" "Seven loaves," they replied.
6 So Jesus told all the people to sit down on the ground. Then He took the seven loaves, thanked God for them, and broke them into pieces. He gave them to His disciples, who distributed the bread to the crowd.
7 A few small fish were found, too, so Jesus also blessed these and told the disciples to distribute them.
8 They ate as much as they wanted. Afterward, the disciples picked up seven large baskets of leftover food.
9 There were about 4,000 people in the crowd that day, and Jesus sent them home after they had eaten.
10 Immediately after this, He got into a boat with His disciples and crossed over to the region of Dalmanutha.
11 When the Pharisees heard that Jesus had arrived, they came and started to argue with Him. Testing Him, they demanded that He show them a miraculous sign from heaven to prove His authority.
12 When He heard this, He sighed deeply in His spirit and said, "Why do these people keep demanding a miraculous sign? I tell you the truth, I will not give this generation any such sign."
13 So He got back into the boat and left them, and He crossed to the other side of the lake.
14 But the disciples had forgotten to bring any food. They had only one loaf of bread with them in the boat.
15 As they were crossing the lake, Jesus warned them, "Watch out! Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and of Herod."
16 At this they began to argue with each other because they hadn't brought any bread.
17 Jesus knew what they were saying, so He said, "Why are you arguing about having no bread? Don't you know or understand even yet? Are your hearts too hard to take it in?
18 'You have eyes-can't you see? You have ears-can't you hear?' Don't you remember anything at all?
19 When I fed the 5,000 with five loaves of bread, how many baskets of leftovers did you pick up afterward?" "Twelve," they said.
20 "And when I fed the 4,000 with seven loaves, how many large baskets of leftovers did you pick up?" "Seven," they said.
21 "Don't you understand yet?" He asked them.
22 When they arrived at Bethsaida, some people brought a blind man to Jesus, and they begged Him to touch the man and heal him.
23 Jesus took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village. Then, spitting on the man's eyes, He laid His hands on him and asked, "Can you see anything now?"
24 The man looked around. "Yes," he said, "I see people, but I can't see them very clearly. They look like trees walking around."
25 Then Jesus placed His hands on the man's eyes again, and his eyes were opened. His sight was completely restored, and he could see everything clearly.
26 Jesus sent him away, saying, "Don't go back into the village on your way home."
27 Jesus and His disciples left Galilee and went up to the villages near Caesarea Philippi. As they were walking along, He asked them, "Who do people say I am?"
28 "Well," they replied, "some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others say You are one of the other prophets."
29 Then He asked them, "But who do you say I am?" Peter replied, "You are the Messiah. "
30 But Jesus warned them not to tell anyone about Him.
31 Then Jesus began to tell them that the Son of Man must suffer many terrible things and be rejected by the elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of religious law. He would be killed, but three days later He would rise from the dead.
32 As He talked about this openly with His disciples, Peter took Him aside and began to reprimand Him for saying such things.
33 Jesus turned around and looked at His disciples, then reprimanded Peter. "Get away from Me, Satan!" He said. "You are seeing things merely from a human point of view, not from God's."
34 Then, calling the crowd to join His disciples, He said, "If any of you wants to be My follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow Me.
35 If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for My sake and for the sake of the Good News, you will save it.
36 And what do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your own soul?
37 Is anything worth more than your soul?
38 If anyone is ashamed of Me and My message in these adulterous and sinful days, the Son of Man will be ashamed of that person when He returns in the glory of His Father with the holy angels."
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Psalms 46:1 For the choir director: A song of the descendants of Korah, to be sung by soprano voices. God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.
2 So we will not fear when earthquakes come and the mountains crumble into the sea.
3 Let the oceans roar and foam. Let the mountains tremble as the waters surge! Interlude
:4 A river brings joy to the city of our God, the sacred home of the Most High.
5 God dwells in that city; it cannot be destroyed. From the very break of day, God will protect it.
6 The nations are in chaos, and their kingdoms crumble! God's voice thunders, and the earth melts!
7 The LORD of Heaven's Armies is here among us; the God of Israel is our fortress. Interlude
8 Come, see the glorious works of the LORD: See how He brings destruction upon the world.
9 He causes wars to end throughout the earth. He breaks the bow and snaps the spear; He burns the shields with fire.
10 "Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world."
11 The LORD of Heaven's Armies is here among us; the God of Israel is our fortress. Interlude
Psa 47:1 For the choir director: A psalm of the descendants of Korah. Come, everyone! Clap your hands! Shout to God with joyful praise!
2 For the LORD Most High is awesome. He is the great King of all the earth.
3 He subdues the nations before us, putting our enemies beneath our feet.
4 He chose the Promised Land as our inheritance, the proud possession of Jacob's descendants, whom He loves. Interlude
5 God has ascended with a mighty shout. The LORD has ascended with trumpets blaring.
6 Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises!
7 For God is the King over all the earth. Praise Him with a psalm!
8 God reigns above the nations, sitting on His holy throne.
9 The rulers of the world have gathered together with the people of the God of Abraham. For all the kings of the earth belong to God. He is highly honored everywhere.
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