Matthew 15:3 NIV

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Matthew 15:1-9

Evil manners, we say, beget good laws. The intemperate heat of the Jewish teachers for the support of their hierarchy, occasioned many excellent discourses of our Saviour's for the settling of the truth, as here. I. Here, is the cavil of the scribes and Pharisees at Christ's disciples, for eating with unwashen hands. The scribes and Pharisees were the great men of the Jewish church, men whose gain was godliness, great enemies to the gospel of Christ, but colouring their opposition with a... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Matthew 15:1-9

15:1-9 Then the Pharisees and Scribes from Jerusalem approached Jesus. "Why," they said, "do your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? They do so transgress, because they do not wash their hands before they eat bread." Jesus answered them: "Why do you too transgress God's commandment, because of your tradition? For God said, 'Honour your father and your mother,' and, 'He who curses his father and mother, let him die'; but, as for you, you say, 'Whoever says to his father or his... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Matthew 15:1-9

The laws of cleanness and uncleanness had a further wide area of application. They laid down what a man might eat, and what he might not eat. Broadly speaking all fruit and vegetables were clean. But, in regard to living creatures, the laws were strict. These laws are in Leviticus 11:1-47 . We may briefly summarize them. Of beasts only those can be eaten who part the hoof and chew the cud. That is why no Jew can eat the flesh of the pig, the rabbit, or the hare. In no case may the flesh of... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Matthew 15:1-9

Now we come to the particular impact of this on the passage we are studying. It was clearly impossible to avoid all kinds of ceremonial uncleanness. A man might himself avoid unclean things, but how could he possibly know when on the street he had touched someone who was unclean? This was further complicated by the fact that there were Gentiles in Palestine, and the very dust touched by a Gentile foot became unclean. To combat uncleanness an elaborate system of washings was worked out. These... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Matthew 15:1-9

Jesus did not answer the question of the Pharisees directly. What he did was to take an example of the operation of the oral and ceremonial law to show how its observance so far from being obedience to the Law of God, could become actual contradiction of that Law. Jesus says that the Law of God lays it down that a man shall honour his father and his mother; then he goes on to say that if a man says, "It is a gift," he is free from the duty of honouring his father and his mother. If we look... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Matthew 15:3

But he answered and said unto them ,.... Taking no notice of the tradition about eating bread without washing the hands, whether it was right or wrong; it being at most but an human tradition, of no moment and importance, whether it was broke or kept; he makes a very just recrimination, by putting another question to them, why do you also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? suggesting, that, if his disciples were guilty, they were not so guilty as they themselves were;... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Matthew 15:3

Why do ye - transgress the commandment - Ye accuse my disciples of transgressing the traditions of the elders - I accuse you of transgressing the commands of God, and that too in favor of your own tradition; thus preferring the inventions of men to the positive precepts of God. Pretenders to zeal often prefer superstitious usages to the Divine law, and human inventions to the positive duties of Christianity. read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Matthew 15:3

Verse 3 3.Why do you also transgress? There are here two answers that are given by Christ, the former of which is addressed, as we say, to the person; while the latter decides as to the fact and the question in hand. Mark inverts that order; for he first represents Christ as speaking on the whole subject, and afterwards adds the reproof which is directed against hypocrites. We shall follow the narrative of Matthew. When the Lord, in his turn, puts the question to the scribes why they break the... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Matthew 15:1-20

Discourse concerning ceremonial pollution. ( Mark 7:1-23 .) read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Matthew 15:1-20

Unwashen hands. I. CONTROVERSY WITH SCRIBES AND PHARISEES . 1 . They were of Jerusalem. It seems that a deputation had been sent by the leading inert in Jerusalem. The great discourse related in John 6:1-71 . had probably been reported to them; they had heard that the scribes and Pharisees of Galilee were unable to cope with our Lord; and they now sent some of their own body to watch him and to find opportunity for accusing him. Mark the reception which he met with on... read more

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Matthew 15:1-9

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Matthew 15:1-9

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Matthew 15:1-9

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Matthew 15:1-9

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Matthew 15:1-9

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Matthew 15:3

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Matthew 15:3

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Matthew 15:3

The Pulpit Commentary - Matthew 15:1-20

The Pulpit Commentary - Matthew 15:1-20

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