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MattheW 15:6 | 1561
him self to pray . Later that night , he was there alone , 24 and the boat was al ready a con sid er able dis tance from land , buf fet ed by the waves be cause the wind was against it .
25
Short ly be fore dawn Jesus went out to them , walk ing on the lake . 26 When the dis ci ples saw him walk ing on the lake , they were ter ri fied . “ It ’ s a ghost ,” they said , and cried out in fear .
34
When they had crossed over , they land ed at Gen nes a ret . 35 And when the men of that place recog nized Jesus , they sent word to all the sur rounding coun try . Peo ple brought all their sick to him
36 and begged him to let the sick just touch the edge of his cloak , and all who touched it were healed .
That Which Defiles
27
But Jesus im me di ate ly said to them : “ Take
15:1-20pp — ​ Mk 7:1-23 cour age ! It is I . Don ’ t be afraid .”
28 Then some Phar i sees and teach ers of the “ Lord , if it ’ s you ,” Pe ter re plied , “ tell me to

15 law came to Jesus from Je ru sa lem and asked , come to you on the wa ter .”

2
29 “ Why do your dis ci ples break the tra di tion of the elders ? They don ’ t wash their hands be fore they eat !”
“ Come ,” he said .
Then Pe ter got down out of the boat , walked
3
Jesus re plied , “ And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tra di tion ? 4 For on the wa ter and came to ward Jesus . 30 But when he saw the wind , he was afraid and , be gin ning to
God said , ‘ Hon or your fa ther and moth er ’ a and sink , cried out , “ Lord , save me !”
31
‘ Any one who curs es their fa ther or moth er is to Im me di ate ly Jesus reached out his hand and be put to death .’ b 5 But you say that if any one declares that what might have been used to help caught him . “ You of lit tle faith ,” he said , “ why did you doubt ?”
32 their fa ther or moth er is ‘ de vot ed to God ,’ 6 they And when they climbed into the boat , the are not to ‘ hon or their fa ther or moth er ’ with it . wind died down . 33 Then those who were in the
Thus you nul li fy the word of God for the sake of boat wor shiped him , say ing , “ Tru ly you are the
Son of God .”
a
4 Exodus 20:12 ; Deut . 5:16
b
4 Exodus 21:17 ; Lev . 20:9
14:21 besides women and children The women and children likely added 1,000 – 3,000 people .
14:22 – 33 Jesus sends his disciples to the other side of the Sea of Galilee while he goes away to pray . He then comes to them by walking on the surface of the water . For the first time in Matthew ’ s Gospel , the disciples confess Jesus ’ true identity — ​which Satan and demons have already acknowledged ( Mt 4:3,6 ; 8:29 ). The statement here foreshadows the great confession in 16:16 . See the table “ Miracles of Jesus ” on p . 1741 .
14:24 a considerable distance The Greek phrase used here , stadious pollous , does not give an exact distance but simply indicates “ many stadia .” A stadion is about 1 / 8 of a Roman mile , or roughly 600 feet ( 185 meters ). This suggests that the boat was a significant distance from the shore . John ’ s parallel account gives a more specific distance of 25 – 30 stadia ( Jn 6:19 ). 14:25 Shortly before dawn Romans divided the 12- hour span between 6 p . m . and 6 a . m . into four watches of three hours each . The fourth watch ( mentioned here in the Greek text of Matthew ) was 3 – 6 a . m . walking on the lake This demonstration of power over the sea served as a sign of Jesus ’ deity . See note on Mt 8:26 . 14:27 It is I Matthew may be employing this phrase in a colloquial manner (“ it ’ s me ”). Alternatively , he could be intentionally using the Greek translation of the divine name ( egō eimi ) revealed in Ex 3:14 . The miraculous nature of this event and the confession in Mt 14:33 seem to favor the interpretation that Jesus is equating himself with Yahweh . See the table “ Jesus ’ ‘ I Am ’ Statements ” on p . 1727 . 14:28 Lord Peter respectfully and fearfully addresses Jesus ; this address may indicate that Peter is addressing Jesus as Yahweh ( see note on 8:2 ). if it ’ s you The disciples did not recognize Jesus at this point . 14:33 Truly you are the Son of God The first apostolic confession of Jesus ’ divine messiahship . This answers the disciples ’ question from their previous incident out on the lake ( 8:27 ).
14:34 – 36 The people in this episode exercise great faith , believing that Jesus can heal them if they simply touch his clothes ( compare 9:21 ).
14:34 Gennesaret A town on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee . See the map “ Jesus ’ Ministry in Galilee ” on p . 2260 .
15:1 – 9 In Gennesaret , Pharisees from Jerusalem approach Jesus and accuse him of being lax toward their legal traditions . Jesus responds by pointing out their inconsistencies and condemns them by quoting the prophet Isaiah .
15:1 Pharisees and teachers of the law Two groups of Jewish religious leaders . See note on 2:4 ; note on Jn 1:24 . 15:2 tradition of the elders Refers to the oral teachings of the Pharisees throughout the centuries . These teachings served to clarify and preserve the law . In Jesus ’ day , these traditions carried nearly equal authority with the Jewish law ; they were intended to allow people to better apply the law to their daily lives . However , Jesus claims that they unnecessarily burden the people ( Mt 23:2 – 4 ; compare 11:28,30 ). They don ’ t wash The disciples ’ negligence makes them ritually unclean according to the tradition of the Pharisees . However , this point is not elucidated in the law , which required only priests to wash prior to ser vice . The Pharisees applied this ceremonial purity to all Jews ( compare Ex 30:17 – 21 ; Lev 15:11 ; Mk 7:3 – 4 ). 15:3 break the command of God Jesus turns the tables on his opponents . In the following verses , he highlights their guilt for a much greater offense than handwashing . 15:4 Honor your father and mother The fifth commandment . See Ex 20:12 ; Dt 5:16 . Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death See Ex 21:17 ; Lev 20:9 . 15:5 what might have been used to help their father or mother is ‘ devoted to God ’ This apparently involves pledging to support the religious establishment with resources that otherwise might go to one ’ s parents . The Pharisees seem to have allowed — ​or even encouraged — ​such a trade-off , which Jesus says elevates human tradition above God ’ s commands .