Matthew 15:15-20 15But answering Peter said to him, “Explain this parable to us.” 16And he said, “Are you also still without understanding? 17Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled into the toilet? 18But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and those things defile a person. 19For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, sexual immoralities, thefts, false witnesses, slanders. 20These are the things that defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile the person.”
Peter always seemed to be the one to step out and voice what the rest of the disciples were thinking. Every group needs someone like that who is not ashamed to raise questions. Jesus is patient with Peter and the disciples and uses Peter’s question as another teaching opportunity. Jesus’ rhetorical question in verse 16 implies a danger for the disciples unless that come to a deeper faith. Matthew has recorded the miracles and teachings of Jesus. He has established clearly Jesus power and authority as Messiah and Immanuel. Now he records how the disciples needed to learn all of this in a personal way and put their faith in Jesus.
The deep issue for Jesus is not what is ritual actions done outwardly but on the condition of one’s heart. He uses a physical illustration to point out the spiritual issue. What we eat simply nourishes the body and is passed out as part of the digestive system. The point of verse 17 is not on what is healthy food or what may be fattening or create health issues. It simply points out that the Jewish laws of purity do not necessarily indicate the spiritual condition of the person eating such food.
Jesus’ question expects the answer “yes” because it should be obvious. What is important is not what goes into the mouth but what comes out of it through the words we speak. Verses 18-20 give the teaching the disciples need to learn. The words we speak show the condition of our heart. The heart (kardias) refers to the inner most thoughts of a person, the place where decisions are made that are determined by one’s values and worldview. What a person thinks will eventually come out in what that person says and does.
Jesus gives a short vice list in verse 19 that reflects some of the ten commandments that the Jewish leaders were neglecting by their emphasis on outward ceremonial practices. Each of these words is in the plural in the Greek, suggesting that these sins are done multiple times. Sin is an illness that affects everyone. We may not outwardly do them all, but our thoughts are drawn to them because of our sinful nature and the deceit of temptation.
Verse 20 returns to the issue at hand introduced in verse 1. What really matters is the condition of the heart. The heart needs cleansed through faith in Jesus. From the transformed heart will come forth a lifestyle of purity. Ceremonial washing of hands is no indicator of spiritual purity. We may not do ceremonial washing like the Pharisees and scribes, but we may be following other human traditions that give a false sense of spirituality and righteousness. How we live on Monday confirms any rituals we may do on Sunday.
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