Christ Episcopal Church Study – by Scott Kitayama (Mark 7:1-13)

17 Now when the and some of the scribes who had come from gathered around him, 2 they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. 3 (For the Pharisees, and all the , do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands, thus observing the tradition of the elders; 4 and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it; and there are also many other traditions that they observe, the washing of cups, pots, and bronze kettles.) 5 So the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not live according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?” 6 He said to them, “Isaiah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites, as it is written, ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me; 7 in vain do they worship me, teaching human precepts as doctrines.’ 8 You abandon the commandment of and hold to human tradition.” 9 Then he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition! 10 For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘Whoever speaks of father or mother must surely die.’ 11 But you say that if anyone tells father or mother, ‘Whatever support you might have had from me is Corban’ (that is, an offering to God)— 12 then you no longer permit doing anything for a father or mother, 13 thus making void the word of God through your tradition that you have handed on. And you do many things like this.”

“Mark returns to the theme of opposition to ’ ministry by the religious leaders, which had characterized the early Galilean ministry (2:1-3:30). This episode, which includes a controversy story and teaching by Jesus, is introduced without chronological or geographical connection to what precedes. Though there are no narrative link, there are thematic ones, including the reference to bread and the growing theme of the spiritual dullness of the disciples (7:18). Mark probably introduces Jesus’ teaching on “clean” and “unclean” things here in order to prepare for the episodes that follow, where Jesus will travel into territory and interact with “unclean” . Jesus will heal the daughter of a Syrophoenician woman (7:24-30), give hearing and speech to a deaf and mute man in the (7:31-37), and feed a Gentile crowd of four thousand (8:1-10). Mark L. Strauss 1. Who are the Pharisees and the scribes and where did they travel from (v1)? What did they notice about Jesus’ disciples (v2)? What did “defiled” mean to mean to the Pharisees. 2. What is the tradition of the Pharisees and all the Jews (v3)? Read Exodus 30:20-21; 40:12, 30-32, the verses explain about washing of hands and ceremonial items. What type of individuals are washing their hands in the Exodus verses? Where did the tradition that even non-priestly individuals should participate in ceremonial washing (v3)? 3. Why is this tradition so important to the Pharisees and scribes? Is there something in our recent memory in our nation’s history that certain places, items, and people were considered clean or unclean. 4. How does Jesus respond to his critics (v6)? What does he use to rebuke them? 5. Who are the “hypocrites” in verse six that Isaiah (:13) rightly proclaimed? According to Isaiah, what does a hypocrite act and look like? Christ Episcopal Church Bible Study – by Scott Kitayama (Mark 7:1-13)

6. Jesus claims the Pharisees are clinging to what instead of God’s commands (v8)? How does he continue his argument with the Pharisees in verse nine? How does he contrast God’s command versus human tradition (Exodus 20:12; Exodus 21:17; Deut 5:16, Lev 20:9)? 7. Corban means a gift often used for sacrificial offering and dedicated to God and so unavailable for human use. It is not a biblical command but rabbinical interpretation (v11). What commandment are they breaking by using this loophole of Corban (Exodus 20:12)? 8. What does Jesus say is the essential problem in verse 13? Do you see where this is a repetition from verses 8 and 9? What do you think Jesus is trying to convey to this group? Going Deeper Jesus condemns this use of Corban (v11) not just because honor for parents supersedes human made vows, but because the selfish motives behind such traditions are contrary to the heart of God and the true spirit of the law. And he will add this to verse 13, “And you do many things like this.” “When religion becomes a series of dos and don’ts, there is a tendency to simply follow the rules and miss the heart of God. Jesus accuses the Pharisees and scribes of being hypocrites not because they had high standards, but because they emphasized nonessential things like ritual hand washing and then ignored the weightier matters of the law, such as love and justice.” Mark Strauss