Chapter 15

¹Then came to him from Jerusalem scribes and Pharisees, saying: ²Why do thy disciples trangress the tradition of the ancients? For they wash not their hands when they eat bread. ³But he answering, said to them: Why do you also transgress the commandment of God for your tradition? For God said: ⁴Honour thy father and mother: And: He that shall curse father or mother, let him die the death. ⁵But you say: Whosoever shall say to father or mother, The gift whatsoever proceedeth from me, shall profit thee. ⁶And he shall not honour his father or his mother: and you have made void the commandment of God for your tradition. ⁷Hypocrites, well hath Isaias prophesied of you, saying: ⁸This people honoureth me with their lips: but their heart is far from me. ⁹And in vain do they worship me, teaching doctrines and commandments of men. ¹⁰And having called together the multitudes unto him, he said to them: Hear ye and understand. ¹¹Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man: but what cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man. ¹²Then came his disciples, and said to him: Dost thou know that the Pharisees, when they heard this word, were scandalized? ¹³But he answering them, said: Every plant which my heavenly Father hath not planted, shall be rooted up. ¹⁴Let them alone: they are blind, and leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into the pit. ¹⁵And Peter answering, said to him: Expound to us this parable. ¹⁶But he said: Are you also yet without understanding? ¹⁷Do you not understand, that whatsoever entereth into the mouth, goeth into the belly, and is cast out into the privy? ¹⁸But the things which proceed out of the mouth, come forth from the heart, and those things defile a man. ¹⁹For from the heart come forth evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false testimonies, blasphemies. ²⁰These are the things that defile a man. But to eat with unwashed hands doth not defile a man. ²¹And Jesus went from thence, and retired into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon. ²²And behold a woman of Canaan who came out of those coasts, crying out, said to him: Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou son of David: my daughter is grieviously troubled by the devil. ²³Who answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying: Send her away, for she crieth after us: ²⁴And he answering, said: I was not sent but to the sheep that are lost of the house of Israel. ²⁵But she came and adored him, saying: Lord, help me. ²⁶Who answering, said: It is not good to take the bread of the children, and to cast it to the dogs. ²⁷But she said: Yea, Lord; for the whelps also eat of the crumbs that fall from the table of their masters. ²⁸Then Jesus answering, said to her: O woman, great is thy faith: be it done to thee as thou wilt: and her daughter was cured from that hour. ²⁹And when Jesus had passed away from thence, he came nigh the sea of Galilee. And going up into a mountain, he sat there. ³⁰And there came to him great multitudes, having with them the dumb, the blind, the lame, the maimed, and many others: and they cast them down at his feet, and he healed them: ³¹So that the multitudes marvelled seeing the dumb speak, the lame walk, and the blind see: and they glorified the God of Israel. ³²And Jesus called together his disciples, and said: I have compassion on the multitudes, because they continue with me now three days, and have not what to eat, and I will not send them away fasting, lest they faint in the way. ³³And the disciples say unto him: Whence then should we have so many loaves in the desert, as to fill so great a multitude? ³⁴And Jesus said to them: How many loaves have you? But they said: Seven, and a few little fishes. ³⁵And he commanded the multitude to sit down upon the ground. ³⁶And taking the seven loaves and the fishes, and giving thanks, he brake, and gave to his disciples, and the disciples to the people. ³⁷And they did all eat, and had their fill. And they took up seven baskets full, of what remained of the fragments. ³⁸And they that did eat, were four thousand men, beside children and women. ³⁹And having dismissed the multitude, he went up into a boat, and came into the coasts of Magedan.