The Teaching of the Ancestors
(Matthew 15.1-9)1 Some Pharisees and several teachers of the Law of Moses from Jerusalem came and gathered around Jesus. 2 They noticed that some of his disciples ate without first washing their hands.
3 The Pharisees and many others obey the teachings of their ancestors. They always wash their hands in the proper way before eating. 4 None of them will eat anything they buy in the market until it is washed. They also follow a lot of other teachings, such as washing cups, pitchers, and bowls.
5 The Pharisees and teachers asked Jesus, “Why don't your disciples obey what our ancestors taught us to do? Why do they eat without washing their hands?”
6 Jesus replied:
You are nothing but show-offs! The prophet Isaiah was right when he wrote that God had said,
“All of you praise me
with your words,
but you never really
think about me.
7 It is useless for you
to worship me,
when you teach rules
made up by humans.”
8 You disobey God's commands in order to obey what humans have taught. 9 You are good at rejecting God's commands so that you can follow your own teachings! 10 Didn't Moses command you to respect your father and mother? Didn't he tell you to put to death all who curse their parents? 11 But you let people get by without helping their parents when they should. You let them say that what they own has been offered to God. 12 You won't let those people help their parents. 13 And you ignore God's commands in order to follow your own teaching. You do a lot of other things just as bad.
What Really Makes People Unclean
(Matthew 15.10-20)14 Jesus called the crowd together again and said, “Pay attention and try to understand what I mean. 15-16 The food that you put into your mouth doesn't make you unclean and unfit to worship God. The bad words that come out of your mouth are what make you unclean.”
17 After Jesus and his disciples had left the crowd and gone into the house, they asked him what these sayings meant. 18 He answered, “Don't you know what I am talking about by now? You surely know that the food you put into your mouth cannot make you unclean. 19 It doesn't go into your heart, but into your stomach, and then out of your body.” By saying this, Jesus meant that all foods were fit to eat.
20 Then Jesus said:
What comes from your heart is what makes you unclean. 21 Out of your heart come evil thoughts, vulgar deeds, stealing, murder, 22 unfaithfulness in marriage, greed, meanness, deceit, indecency, envy, insults, pride, and foolishness. 23 All of these come from your heart, and they are what make you unfit to worship God.
A Woman's Faith
(Matthew 15.21-28)24 Jesus left and went to the region near the town of Tyre, where he stayed in someone's home. He did not want people to know he was there, but they found out anyway. 25 A woman whose daughter had an evil spirit in her heard where Jesus was. And at once she came and knelt down at his feet. 26 The woman was Greek and had been born in the part of Syria known as Phoenicia. She begged Jesus to force the demon out of her daughter. 27 But Jesus said, “The children must first be fed! It isn't right to take away their food and feed it to dogs.”
28 The woman replied, “Lord, even puppies eat the crumbs that children drop from the table.”
29 Jesus answered, “That's true! You may go now. The demon has left your daughter.” 30 When the woman got back home, she found her child lying on the bed. The demon had gone.
Jesus Heals a Man Who Was Deaf and Could Hardly Talk
31 Jesus left the region around Tyre and went by way of Sidon toward Lake Galilee. He went through the land near the ten cities known as Decapolis. 32 Some people brought to him a man who was deaf and could hardly talk. They begged Jesus just to touch him.
33 After Jesus had taken him aside from the crowd, he stuck his fingers in the man's ears. Then he spit and put it on the man's tongue. 34 Jesus looked up toward heaven, and with a groan he said, “Effatha!” which means “Open up!” 35 At once the man could hear, and he had no more trouble talking clearly.
36 Jesus told the people not to say anything about what he had done. But the more he told them, the more they talked about it. 37 They were completely amazed and said, “Everything he does is good! He even heals people who cannot hear or talk.”
Kudiya kwe bantolo
(Matewu 15:1-9)1 Bafarasi ne bamwe Badiyi be nlayo bakabe badwa ku Jerusalema bakakubungana pana Jesu. 2 Ngono bakabona badiyiwa babe bamwe beja nge maboko asimabuyanana, asakangugwa.
3 Bafarasi ne Bajuta bose, abatoja basangula maboko abo nge tjilenje tjabo. Oku banokuthama belondolodza tjilenje tje bawola. 4 Ha bedwa ku matengeselo abatoja basangula. Banolondolodza zwilenje zwimwe zwinjinji, zwinonga kusuka mikombe ne hali ne zwija zwe phangula.
5 Ndizo Bafarasi ne Badiyi be nlayo bakabhuzwa Jesu bakati, “Ini badiyiwa babo basingalondolodze zwilenje zwe bawola, beja zojiwa zwabo nge maboko asi mabuyanana?”
6 Kadabila kati, “Isaya wakabe elebesa paakalebela mbeli nge kwenyu batjengedzi ndimwi eti, kwakakwagwa kuyi,
“ ‘Bathu ibaba banondilumbidza nge milomo yabo koga,
koga mimoyo yabo ikule nami.
7 Banondithigamilila suli,
ngobe banodiya milayo ye bathu se banodiya nlayo wangu.’
8 “Moletjedza milayo ye Ndzimu, ngono mubhata zwilenje zwe bathu.”
9 Ngono kati ku bali, “Muna zila mbuya seni ye kubigila ntome milayo ye Ndzimu, kuti ndizo mulondolodze zwilenje zwenyu! 10 Mushe wakati, ‘Kudza tate babo na mmeyabo.’ Kakale wakati ‘Iye unoleba bubi ngekwa tate babe kene mmeyabe, nge malebeswa ngaafe.’ 11 Koga moti nthu ha eti kuna tate babe kene mmeyabe, ‘Tjamakabe makafanila tjidziwa ndimi nditjo tjabe Korobhani, kodwa kuti tjapiwa Ndzimu,’ 12 ngono kudwapo amuton'dumila kuthamila tjimwe tate babe kene mmeyabe. 13 Ndiko muthama kuti dama le Ndzimu lisishinge, nge tjilenje tjenyu tjamunopitshila ku bana benyu. Mothama zwithu zwinjinji zwakajalo.”
Zwithu zwinoyita kuti nthu asibe mbuyanana
(Matewu 15:10-20)14 Kakale Jesu kadana mbunga we bathu, ngono kati, “Mundibhulutaneni mose, ngono muhwisise. 15 Akuna tjikuzhe kwe mbili we nthu tjinganthama kuti asibe mbuyanana. Koga tjithu tjinodwa mu nthu nditjo tjinonthama kuti asibe mbuyanana. 16 [Una zebe dze kuhwa ngaahwe.]”
17 Kukati asiya mbunga we bathu angina mu ng'umba, badiyiwa babe bakambhuzwa ngekwe tjifaniso itjetji. 18 Kati ku bali, “Apa namwibo amutohwisisa kene? Amutobona kene kuti akuna tjinongina mu nthu tjidwa kuzhe tjinganlonga shambgwa? 19 Atjitongina mu moyo uwe, koga tjongina mu ntumbu uwe kudwapo tjibhuda mu mbili uwe.” Nge kujalo Jesu wakabe edwa kuti zojiwa zose zwibuyanana.
20 Kadwilila kati, “Tjinobhuda mu nthu nditjo tjinonthama kuti asibe mbuyanana. 21 Ngoti tjinodwa mukati kwe nthu, mu moyo uwe, mikumbulo mibi, kuwalilana kuzhe kwe ndobolo ne bubava ne kubulaya ne bupombwe, 22 ne tjiba ne bubi ne kutjebela ne butjakwani ne bugovu ne ndandala ne tjinya bamwe mazina ne kuzwida ne bulengwe. 23 Zwithu zose izwezwi zwakabipa zodwa mukati kwe nthu, ngono zothama nthu kuti asibe mbuyanana.”
Kugalamoyo kwe nkadzi we N'giriki
(Matewu 15:21-28)24 Jesu wakabhuda ipapo kayenda ku ntuthu we Tire ne we Sidoni, kangina mu ng'umba, ngono kaside kuti kube ne unoziba, koga kasitubule kubgwata. 25 Mmwe nkadzi wakabe ana mwana we tjianadana wakasungwa nge meya mbi, kazha kawila pa makumbo awe. 26 Nkadzi iwoyo wakabe ali N'giriki, akazwagwa mu Siriya mu ntuthu we Fenishiya. Wakakumbila Jesu kuti aduse meya mbi mu nkololokadzi uwe. 27 Jesu kati kunli, “Letja bana baje kutanga, ngobe akuzolulwama kuti zojiwa zwe bana zwitogwe zwiposegwe mbgwa.”
28 Nkadzi iwoyo kadabila eti, “Kwakajalo She, koga na idzo mbgwa dzikusi kwe tafuli, dzoja mamburumburu anowila pasi edwa mu ndilo dze bana.”
29 Ipapo kan'dwa kati, “Wadabila zubuyanana, ndizo ungayenda, meya mbi yabhuda mu nkololokadzi uwo.”
30 Kayenda kanyi, ngono kawana mwanadana uwe ali lele mu bulalo meya mbi yabhuda munli.
Jesu unopodza nlume wakabe ali bhubuzebe ntome ali mbebebe
31 Ipapo Jesu kashanduka edwa ku ntuthu we Tire, kapalama Sidoni edelukila ku gungwa gwe Galili nge zila ye ntuthu we Dekapoli. 32 Bamwe bathu bakazhisa mmwe nlume wakabe ali bhubuzebe, kakale asingatubule kulebeleka zubuyanana. Ndizo bakakumbila Jesu kumbiga maboko. 33 Jesu kati antolela ntome, edwa naye pa mbunga we bathu, kalonga zwinyala zwizwe mu zebe dze nlume iwoyo. Ipapo kathwa mate, ngono kabhata lulimi gwe nlume iwoyo. 34 Kalinga zhuzhugwi kudzimu, kafemela pezhugwi, kati kunli, “Efata” kunodwa kuti, “Zhulika.”
35 Zebe dze nlume iwoyo dzikazhulika ne lulimi gugwe gukasununguka, ndizo katangisa kulebeleka zubuyanana. 36 Jesu kabalaya kati kushaye wababudza. Koga kati ajalo ibo bakakuandamisa kwazo. 37 Bakatjenama kwazo bakati, “Unothama zwithu zose kubuyanana seni? Unothama ne mabhubuzebe akahwa ne mbebebe dzikalebeleka.”