If you haven’t already had the opportunity to read through the previous parts of this “Food For Thought” series. I highly recommend that you do so before proceeding with this portion. This will help you better understand the context and progression of the topics discussed. Below are the links to parts 1-4 and another link to other significant “Food For Thoughts” related to names and changes done to the faith. Let’s continue the Changing Dietary Instructions portion.
Conflict Over Unwashed Hands
1. And the Pharisees and scribes who came from Jerusalem gathered around Him.
2. And seeing some of His disciples eating bread with unclean, that is unwashed hands, they complained.
5. Then the Pharisees and scribes questioned Him, Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?
6. And answering, He said to them, Well did Isaiah prophesy concerning you, hypocrites; as it has been written: “This people honors Me with the lips, but their heart is far away from Me;
7. and in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.” (Isaiah 29:13)
8. For forsaking the commandment of π€π€π€ π€, you hold the tradition of men: washing of utensils and cups, and many other such like things you do.
9. And He said to them, Well do you to set aside the commandment of π€π€π€ π€ so that you may establish your own tradition?
14. And calling all the crowd near, He said to them, All hear Me and understand.
15. There is nothing from outside the man, having entered into him, which is able to defile him. But the things going out from him, those are the things defiling the man.
17. And when He entered into a house from the crowd, His disciples questioned Him about the parable.
18. And He said to them, Are you also so undiscerning? Do you not perceive that all that enters from the outside into the man is not able to defile him?
19. This is because it does not enter into his heart, but into the belly, and goes out into the waste-bowl, PURGING THE FOOD.
20. And He said, That passing out of the man, it is the thing that defiles the man.
21. For from within, out of the heart of men, pass out the evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,
22. thefts, greedy desires, iniquities, deceit, lustful desires, a wicked eye, blasphemy, pride, recklessness.
23. All these evil things pass out from within and defile the man.Mark 7:1-2, 5-9, 14-15, 17-23 (HRB)
In this and all Food for Thoughts I recommend you read the Scripture(s) provided and the entire chapter they are from to obtain more insight.
In both Mark 7:1-23 and Matthew 15:1-20, we learn of the same events told by two different authors. In these accounts, we see the Pharisees complaining about and criticizing Yahshua and His disciples for eating BREAD (not meat) with unwashed or unclean hands. As you read the text and study it closely, you will begin to understand that the Pharisees were never genuinely concerned about the health of Yahshua or His disciples in regaurds to dirty hands. Their main focus was on maintaining their man-made religious and ceremonial ritual of handwashing. This man-made practice was not only created as a hedge or safeguard to avoid sin, but they also believed it was a way to wash their sins away. Furthermore, maintaining strict adherence to these and other traditions also allowed them to maintain their desired perceived superiority over others.
Lost Food in Translation
The King James Version (KJV) and many other modern-day Bible translations have added, changed, mistranslated, or misinterpreted the word of π€π€π€ π€, as in Mark 7:19. These tiny deceitful changes to the word of π€π€π€ π€ which seem harmless or inconsequential, are truthfully insidious. They have led many people astray with the false doctrines produced by them. Mark 7:19 is the Scripture we will study today to unravel the truth.
The translators suggest that Yahshua went against His own words of NOT annulling the Torah and Prophets (Matthew 5:17) and said, “making all foods clean,” “purging all meats,” or “purifying all the meats.” However, these phrases do not appear in any original manuscript, whether in Aramaic or Greek. The original manuscript reads “purging the food or purging all the food.” If you follow this contextually and go back to Mark 7:2-3, 5, you will see that the dispute was not even about food, but about Yahshua’s disciples eating food (Bread) without washing their hands in the traditional way of the Pharisees.
If you follow the original manuscript and stay in context you will see that Yahshua points out that the digestive system can easily eliminate a speck(s) of dirt from unwashed hands, unlike a heart or mind filled with wickedness. Simply put, why are you (Pharisees) worrying about the dirt on their hands that the body removes through the digestive tract, but not the dirt or wickedness on your heart that allows all the things of Mark 7:20-23 to come out and defile? These words probably left the Pharisees angrier, as we know they were only concerned abo
Mistake or Deliberate
It seems the translators misunderstood the grammatical gender difference between the neuter and masculine form of the Greek words katharismos(2512), which refers to the action of the stomach purifying (cleaning) foods ingested, and katharizΓ³(2511), which would imply that Yahshua purified (cleansed) the food. It is possible, at best, that the translators made a genuine mistake in their interpretation, or worse yet, and more probable, they aimed to mislead deliberately and still do today.
I do not say deliberately lightly, but it’s hard to avoid saying as the translators have added their own interpretations as evidence. While some modern translations are faithful to the original text, others have included brainwashing false doctrines by adding their own interpretations in parentheses (). I have listed a few that have included commentary that misleads readers to inaccurate understandings of the text, which significantly impacted their understanding of what π€π€π€ π€ wants:
- Amplified (AMP) – (By this, He declared all foods ceremonially clean.)
- New International Version (NIV) – “(In saying this, J e s u s declared all foods clean.)”
- English Standard Version (ESV) – “(Thus he declared all foods clean.)”
- New Living Translation (NLT) – “(By saying this, he declared that every kind of food is acceptable in God’s eyes.)”
- Message (MSG) – “(That took care of dietary quibbling; J e s u s was saying that all foods are fit to eat.)”
- Christian Standard Bible (CSB) – “(As a result, He made all foods clean.)”
- Complete Jewish Bible (CJB) – “(Thus he declared all foods ritually clean.)”
Another Witness With the Same Food Story
Further evidence of the context of these Scriputse is found in the parallel passage in Matthew 15:1-2, 3, 8-11, 15-20 (HRB) shown below.
1. Then the scribes and Pharisees came to Yahshua from Jerusalem, saying,
2. Why do Your disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat BREAD.
3. But answering He said to them, Why do you also transgress the commandment of π€π€π€ π€ on account of your tradition?
8. “This people draws near to Me with their mouth, and with their lips honor Me; but their heart holds far off from Me.
9. But in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the command-ments of men.” (Isaiah_29:13)
10. And calling the crowd near, He said to them, Hear and understand
11. It is not the thing entering into the mouth that defiles the man, but the thing coming forth out of the mouth, this defiles the man.
15. And answering, Kefa (Simon Peter) said to Him, Explain this parable to us.
16. But Yahshua said, until now, even you do not understand?
17. Do you not yet perceive that everything entering into the mouth goes into the belly, and is thrown out into the waste bowl?
18. But whatever that proceeds from the mouth proceeds from the heart and becomes a defilement to a man.
19. For from the heart go out evil thoughts Murder, fornication, theft, false witness, blasphemy.
20. These things are the things defiling the man. BUT EATING WITH UNWASHED HANDS DOES NOT DEFILE THE MAN.Matthew 15:1-2, 3, 8-11, 15-20 (HRB)
In this and all Food for Thoughts I recommend you read the Scripture(s) provided and the entire chapter they are from to obtain more insight.
This passage makes it extremely clear that Mark 7:1-23 is not about Yahshua cleansing all foods or meats. Again, it has absolutely nothing to do with clean or unclean food. This ordeal is about the Pharisees complaining to Yahshua that His disciples were not following their man-made traditions of pouring the water in a particular fashion up to the elbow to display washing of the hands. Yahshua, as always, turns this into a teaching moment for all to hear. He contrasts digestive impurity with mental impurity, illustrating how easily the digestive system cleans physical or digestive impurities, unlike what comes out of a person through their heart. Yahshua also illustrates that humanity continually makes their made-up traditions more significant, or dare I say superior to the commandments, precepts, and words of π€π€π€ π€.
Food in the Sheets
While the “Conflict Over Unwashed Hands” is still fresh on your mind, notice in Mark 7:17 and Matthew 15:15 how the Scriptures recorded how Yahshua’s disciples did not understand and needed further explanation. Matthew explicitly points out that Kefa (Peter) needs further explanation. Now look at Acts 10:11-14.
11. And he saw the heaven being opened and a certain vessel like a great sheet coming down on him, being bound by four corners, and let down onto the earth;
12. in which were all the four-footed animals of the earth, and the wild beasts, and the creeping things, and the birds of the heaven.
13. And a voice came to him, Rise up, Kefa (Peter), slay and eat.
14. But (Kefa) Peter said, Elohim forbid my Master, because I NEVER DID EAT ANYTHING COMMON OR UNCLEAN.Acts 10:11-14 (HRB)
In this and all Food for Thoughts I recommend you read the Scripture(s) provided and the entire chapter they are from to obtain more insight.
Acts 10:13-14 provides even more compelling evidence that Yahshua did not abolish or annul the dietary law. Chapter 10 of Acts was written 10 to 12 years after Yahshua’s resurrection and about 13 to 15 years after the “Conflict Over Unwashed Hands”. Yet we have Kefa (Peter), one of Yahshua’s closest disciples, the one who asked for clarification and understanding in the earlier Scriptures (Matthew 15:15), who, all these years later, is still observing the dietary law.
In Acts 10:11-14, Kefa saw a sheet full of both clean and unclean animals. And a voice from Heaven said to slay and eat, to which “Kefa (Peter) said, Elohim forbid my Master, because I NEVER DID EAT ANYTHING COMMON OR UNCLEAN.” This statement clearly indicates that the dietary law was still in effect as Kefa was still calling foods clean and unclean. This also indicates that Yahshua did not abolish the Torah, which includes the dietary law. Therefore, we can conclude that the dietary law remains relevant and valid today.
Questions?
- Would Yahshua (Jesus) go against His own words and Annul the Torah? (Matthew 5:17)
- Would Yahshua loosen the commands of π€π€π€ π€ and teach men things contrary to His Father’s Commands? (Matthew 5:19)
- Would Yahshua rebuke the Pharisees for creating and following their own laws but not the laws of π€π€π€ π€, only to turn around and do the same thing? (Mark 7:6-9)
- Would Kefa (Peter), who walked with Yahshua and got specific instructions from Yahshua about what he meant still call some foods unclean if Yahshua cleansed them? (Acts 10:14)
Conclusion
We will cover “Food in the Sheets” and more in next week’s Food For Thought.
By:Β David EdwardsΒ β HalleluYAH β Praise YAH β PraiseΒ π€π€π€ π€
