Matthew 15:10-14 10And after calling to himself the crowd, he said to them, “Hear and understand. 11It is not what enters into the mouth that defiles the person, but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles the person.” 12Then after coming, the disciples said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees, when they heard the word, were offended?” 13But answering he said, “Every plant which my heavenly Father did not plant will be uprooted. 14Leave them; the blind are leading the blind. And if a blind person is lead leading a blind person, both will fall into a pit.”
Jesus uses the opportunity of the controversy with the Pharisees and scribes to teach those following him a deeper truth. The people may have stepped back when they saw the “important” people from the capital arrive to question Jesus. Jesus had put these people in their place and now turns to the crowd to explain things in a simple way with two simple statements. The first saying explains the issue of purity that seemed to have been the primary concern of the Jewish leaders who thought that purity of the heart was somehow connected with hand washing. Jesus gets to the heart of the issue of purity. What shows that a person is clean is what that person says. Purity of the heart is more important than if someone has clean hands. Jesus redefines defilement, not as ritual but as attitude. The words a person speaks is a better indicator of defilement.
The disciples were watching the whole scene and may have felt some social pressure to stay on the good side of the people from the capital. Their question to Jesus in verse 12 almost has the sense of embarrassment or shame. Whose side where they on? At least they were observing the response of the Jewish leaders and knew something was not right.
Jesus uses their question as an opportunity to teach them a deeper truth about God’s kingdom by using a simple parabolic statement, one again based on plants and may be reflecting back on the parable of the weeds in chapter 13. The Pharisees and teachers of the law were like weeds that God had not planted. They were the obstacles to the growth of the kingdom and would face “uprooting,” which refers to judgment.
Jesus’ criticism of them continues with another image in verse 14. These Jews were like blind people leading other blind people. They did not know where they were going or what they were doing. They did not see the danger before them. Pit also represents judgment and disaster. Jesus tells the disciples to just leave these type of people alone and pay them no attention. Do not let power or position of certain people influence one’s faith. By listening to these Jewish leaders, the disciples would become blind and face the same outcome as them.
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