Pure of Heart
There is something very satisfying and also unsettling about the passage below. On the one hand, I'm not sure we ever get tired of watching Jesus dismantle groups of smug hypocrites who've come to point fingers and pick fights, right? There's just something deep in us that loves seeing bullies get set straight. But on the other hand, while it'd be tempting to stand in judgment over those people, over the Pharisees, Jesus doesn't just have something to say to them he says something to all of us.
In Mark 7, what begins as a dispute about religious handwashing turns into something much deeper. Jesus doesn't mince words about this problem, and it's not just a Pharisee problem, it's a human problem.
This message is tough to swallow, but we need to hear this. We need to hear this, and when we do, it helps us see Jesus for who he is - how truly good he is.
In Mark 7, what begins as a dispute about religious handwashing turns into something much deeper. Jesus doesn't mince words about this problem, and it's not just a Pharisee problem, it's a human problem.
This message is tough to swallow, but we need to hear this. We need to hear this, and when we do, it helps us see Jesus for who he is - how truly good he is.
Mark 7:1-23
1 The Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him. 2 They observed that some of his disciples were eating bread with unclean — that is, unwashed — hands. 3 (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their hands a ceremonial washing, keeping the tradition of the elders. 4 When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they have washed. And there are many other customs they have received and keep, like the washing of cups, pitchers, kettles, and dining couches.) 5 So the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why don’t your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders, instead of eating bread with ceremonially unclean hands? ”
6 He answered them, “Isaiah prophesied correctly about you hypocrites, as it is written:
This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. 7 They worship me in vain, teaching as doctrines human commands.
8 Abandoning the command of God, you hold on to human tradition.” 9 He also said to them, “You have a fine way of invalidating God’s command in order to set up your tradition! 10 For Moses said: Honor your father and your mother; and Whoever speaks evil of father or mother must be put to death. 11 But you say, ‘If anyone tells his father or mother: Whatever benefit you might have received from me is corban’ ” (that is, an offering devoted to God), 12 “you no longer let him do anything for his father or mother. 13 You nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many other similar things.”
14 Summoning the crowd again, he told them, “Listen to me, all of you, and understand: 15 Nothing that goes into a person from outside can defile him but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.”
17 When he went into the house away from the crowd, his disciples asked him about the parable. 18 He said to them, “Are you also as lacking in understanding? Don’t you realize that nothing going into a person from the outside can defile him? 19 For it doesn’t go into his heart but into the stomach and is eliminated” (thus he declared all foods clean). 20 And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of people’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immoralities, thefts, murders, 22 adulteries, greed, evil actions, deceit, self-indulgence, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within and defile a person.”
1 The Pharisees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him. 2 They observed that some of his disciples were eating bread with unclean — that is, unwashed — hands. 3 (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they give their hands a ceremonial washing, keeping the tradition of the elders. 4 When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they have washed. And there are many other customs they have received and keep, like the washing of cups, pitchers, kettles, and dining couches.) 5 So the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why don’t your disciples live according to the tradition of the elders, instead of eating bread with ceremonially unclean hands? ”
6 He answered them, “Isaiah prophesied correctly about you hypocrites, as it is written:
This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. 7 They worship me in vain, teaching as doctrines human commands.
8 Abandoning the command of God, you hold on to human tradition.” 9 He also said to them, “You have a fine way of invalidating God’s command in order to set up your tradition! 10 For Moses said: Honor your father and your mother; and Whoever speaks evil of father or mother must be put to death. 11 But you say, ‘If anyone tells his father or mother: Whatever benefit you might have received from me is corban’ ” (that is, an offering devoted to God), 12 “you no longer let him do anything for his father or mother. 13 You nullify the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And you do many other similar things.”
14 Summoning the crowd again, he told them, “Listen to me, all of you, and understand: 15 Nothing that goes into a person from outside can defile him but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.”
17 When he went into the house away from the crowd, his disciples asked him about the parable. 18 He said to them, “Are you also as lacking in understanding? Don’t you realize that nothing going into a person from the outside can defile him? 19 For it doesn’t go into his heart but into the stomach and is eliminated” (thus he declared all foods clean). 20 And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. 21 For from within, out of people’s hearts, come evil thoughts, sexual immoralities, thefts, murders, 22 adulteries, greed, evil actions, deceit, self-indulgence, envy, slander, pride, and foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within and defile a person.”
GOING DEEPER
Parallel, Related and Referenced Passages
Parallel Accounts: Matthew 15:1-20
1) THE HEART OF THE PROBLEM
2) THE PROBLEM OF THE HEART
Parallel, Related and Referenced Passages
Parallel Accounts: Matthew 15:1-20
1) THE HEART OF THE PROBLEM
- Exodus 30:19 – Instructions for the priests’ ceremonial washing.
- Exodus 40:13 – Ritual washing related to the Tabernacle service.
- Leviticus 22:1–6 – Regulations for priests’ purity.
- Isaiah 29:13 – “This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.”
- Leviticus 27:28 – On things dedicated to God (corban).
- Numbers 18:14 – Items devoted to God cannot be used for personal purposes.
- Deuteronomy 5:16 – “Honor your father and your mother.”
- Proverbs 3:9 – Honoring God with first fruits and obedience.
2) THE PROBLEM OF THE HEART
- Colossians 1:15 – Jesus is the image of God
- Luke 6:45 – “The mouth speaks from the overflow of the heart.”
- Proverbs 4:23 – “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”
- Jeremiah 17:9 – “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure.”
- Psalm 51:10 – Prayer for a clean heart, reflecting inner transformation.
- Romans 12:2 – Be transformed by the renewing of your mind (heart-centered change).
- Ezekiel 36:26 – God promises a new heart and spirit.
CONSIDER
- Jesus challenged the Pharisees for holding onto human traditions while neglecting God’s commands. What are some examples in culture, work, or church where people rely on rules, habits, or appearances instead of truly following God?
- What are some ways you might be honoring God “with your lips” but not with your heart?
- Jesus said that it’s what comes out of the heart that defiles a person. How do you see attitudes, desires, or hidden thoughts shaping actions in your own life?
- How might personal opinions, cultural norms, or unexamined assumptions subtly replace God’s authority in the ways people live or make decisions?
- Reflecting on the specific temptations Jesus lists—greed, pride, envy, deceit, and so on—how do these show up in general human behavior? Which ones do you notice most around you?
- Now thinking personally, how have you seen these heart issues show up in your own life? Which areas do you want God to reshape or purify this week?
- Proverbs 4:23 says, “Above all else, guard your heart.” What practical steps could you take to protect your heart from habits, influences, or routines that steer you away from God?
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