New Living Translation
Mark 7:15
15It’s not what goes into your body that defiles you; you are defiled by what comes from your heart.”
Mark 7:15 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man.
- New International Version (NIV)Nothing outside a person can defile them by going into them. Rather, it is what comes out of a person that defiles them.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him."
- New King James Version (NKJV)There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man.
Context of Mark 7:15
13And so you cancel the word of God in order to hand down your own tradition. And this is only one example among many others.” 14Then Jesus called to the crowd to come and hear. “All of you listen,” he said, “and try to understand. It’s not what goes into your body that defiles you; you are defiled by what comes from your heart.” 17Then 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.
Read all of Mark 7Mark 7:15 word by word
οὐδέν ἐστιν ἔξωθεν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου εἰσπορευόμενον εἰς αὐτὸν ὃ δύναται κοινῶσαι αὐτόν, ἀλλὰ τὰ ἐκ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου ἐκπορευόμενά ἐστιν τὰ κοινοῦντα τὸν ἄνθρωπον.¶Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- There isεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
- nothingοὐδείςoudeis · noneG3762
- from withoutἔξωθενexōthen · outsideG1855
- a manἄνθρωποςanthrōpos · a humanG444
- thatὅςhos hē ho · whichG3739
- enteringεἰσπορεύωeisporeuomai · to enterG1531
- intoεἰςeis · towardG1519
- himαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
- canδύναμαιdunamai · be ableG1410
- defileκοινόωkoinoō · to profaneG2840
- butἀλλάalla · butG235
- the things which come outἐκπορεύωekporeuomai · to departG1607
- ofἀπόapo · away fromG575
- thoseἐκεῖνοςekeinos · thatG1565
Cross-references for Mark 7:15
- Mark 7:18“Don’t you understand either?” he asked. “Can’t you see that the food you put into your body cannot defile you?
- Leviticus 11:42This includes all animals that slither along on their bellies, as well as those with four legs and those with many feet. All such animals that scurry along the ground are detestable, and you must never eat them.
- Acts 10:14“No, Lord,” Peter declared. “I have never eaten anything that our Jewish laws have declared impure and unclean.”
- Acts 11:8“‘No, Lord,’ I replied. ‘I have never eaten anything that our Jewish laws have declared impure or unclean.’
- Acts 15:20Instead, we should write and tell them to abstain from eating food offered to idols, from sexual immorality, from eating the meat of strangled animals, and from consuming blood.
- Romans 14:17For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
- 1 Corinthians 10:25So you may eat any meat that is sold in the marketplace without raising questions of conscience.
- 1 Timothy 4:3They will say it is wrong to be married and wrong to eat certain foods. But God created those foods to be eaten with thanks by faithful people who know the truth.
- Hebrews 9:10For that old system deals only with food and drink and various cleansing ceremonies—physical regulations that were in effect only until a better system could be established.
- Hebrews 13:9So do not be attracted by strange, new ideas. Your strength comes from God’s grace, not from rules about food, which don’t help those who follow them.
- Mark 7:20And then he added, “It is what comes from inside that defiles you.
- Proverbs 4:23Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.
- Matthew 12:34You brood of snakes! How could evil men like you speak what is good and right? For whatever is in your heart determines what you say.
- Matthew 15:16“Don’t you understand yet?” Jesus asked.
Commentaries on Mark 7:15
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 1-23Verses 1-23 See this passage explained in the notes at Mark 7:1 Came from Jerusalem - Probably to observe his conduct, and to find matter of accusation against him. Mark 7:2 Defiled hands - The hands were considered defiled or polluted unless they were washed previous to every meal. Mark 7:3 Except they wash their hands oft - Our word “oft” means frequently, often. The Greek wore translated oft has been rendered various ways. Some have said that it means…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-23Verses 14-23 Our wicked thoughts and affections, words and actions, defile us, and these only. As a corrupt fountain sends forth corrupt streams, so does a corrupt heart send forth corrupt reasonings, corrupt appetites and passions, and all the wicked words and actions that come from them. A spiritual understanding of the law of God, and a sense of the evil of sin, will cause a man to seek for the grace of the Holy Spirit, to keep down the evil thoughts…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 14-23The second argument of Jesus against the Pharisees was a proverb he told the crowd. Later, in a private setting, Jesus explained it to his disciples (7:17–23). It concerns moral distinctions about eating (rules about what is right or wrong to eat). Eating affects the system that processes food, but moral issues involve the heart. The heart is a metaphor for where a person makes moral decisions. How a person eats (with ceremonially clean or unclean hands)…Read the comment
Topics related to Mark 7:15
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Mark 7
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Catena Aurea
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Family Bible Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- John Lightfoot Commentary
- Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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