Then Jesus went from that place and withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And behold, a Canaanite woman of that district came and called out, “Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David! My daughter is tormented by a demon.” 23 But he did not say a word in answer to her. His disciples came and asked him, “Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us.” 24 He said in reply, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 But the woman came and did him homage, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26 He said in reply, “It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.” 27 She said, “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps that fall from the table of their masters.” 28 Then Jesus said to her in reply, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed from that hour.
Tyre and Sidon were ancient Phoenician cities and Jesus withdrew to that region to avoid the hostility of the Pharisees. A Canaanite (Syrophoenician) woman (Mk. 7:26), a Greek Gentile who the Jews consider unclean, approached Jesus and asked for a demon to be exorcised from her daughter. The woman addressed Jesus by a Messianic title, “Lord, Son of David (v. 22; Mt. 12:23),” which was an acknowledgement that Jesus had the power to heal her daughter.
Jesus did not answer the woman but told his disciples, that his ministry was to the "house of Israel (v. 24).” He had also sent the twelve, “To the lost sheep of the house of Israel (Mt. 10:5-6).” The Gentiles were not part of his ministry at that time as the Gospel was to be preached to the Jews first and then the Gentiles (Rom. 1:16). The woman begged Jesus a second time to help her, and Jesus’ harsh answer reflected the attitude Jews held towards Gentiles (vv. 25-26). The woman responded to Jesus in a bold, respectful, and humble way using the same imagery as Jesus to her advantage, and Jesus had compassion on her. Jesus praised the Gentile woman for her great faith and healed her daughter.
Almighty God, in your
mercy send your Holy Spirit to strengthen us spiritually and increase
our faith so that we may resolve any issues with wisdom and love. We make this prayer through Christ our Lord, Amen.
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
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