Chapter 7:24-37 The Syrophoenician Woman and Healing of the Deaf and Dumb

7:24 And from thence He arose, and went into the borders of Tyre and Sidon, and entered into an house, and would have no man know it: but He could not be hid.
and went into the borders of Tyre and Sidon; two cities of Phoenicia: not into them, but into the borders of them; into those parts of Galilee, which bordered on Phoenicia; and would have no man know it; took all proper precaution as man, that nobody should know who, and where he was; that the, Gentiles, on whose borders he was, might not flock to him, which would create envy and disgust in the Jews.

7:25 For a certain woman, whose young daughter had an unclean spirit, heard of Him, and came and fell at His feet:

She heard of Him, and came, and fell at His feet. 

Note, Those that would obtain mercy from Christ, must throw themselves at His feet; must humble themselves before Him, and give up themselves to be ruled by Him. 

Christ never put any from Him, that fell at His feet, which a poor trembling soul may do, that has not boldness and confidence to throw itself into His arms.

7:26 The woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician by nation; and she besought Him that He would cast forth the devil out of her daughter.
The woman was a Greek - Or Gentile, an Heathen woman, which made her faith the more remarkable.

7:27 But Jesus said unto her, Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it unto the dogs.

Let the children first be filled: according to this method, our Lord directed His apostles, and they proceeded: as He Himself was sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, He ordered His disciples to go to them, and preach the Gospel to them, and work miracles among them; and not go in the way of the Gentiles, nor into any of the cities of the Samaritans; but when they had gone through the cities of Judea, He ordered them, after His resurrection, to go into all the world, and preach the Gospel to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem: for it is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it unto the dogs: as by "the children" are meant the Israelites, who were not only the children of Abraham by natural descent, but the children of God, to whom pertained the adoption; so by "the dogs", are meant the Gentiles, who were reckoned as such by the Jews; and by the "bread", which it was not fit and proper should be taken from the one for the present, and cast to the other, is designed the ministry of the Gospel; which is as bread, solid, substantial, wholesome, and nourishing.

7:28 And she answered and said unto Him, Yes, Lord: yet the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs.

yet the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs; which they leave, or let fall: signifying that she did not envy the blessings of the Jews, or desire any thing might be done injurious to them; only that this favor might be granted her, which she owned she was unworthy of, that her daughter might be healed.

7:29 And He said unto her, For this saying go thy way; the devil is gone out of thy daughter.

And He said unto her, for this saying - Or word of faith; in which she expressed such great faith in Him:

7:30 And when she was come to her house, she found the devil gone out, and her daughter laid upon the bed.

she found the devil gone out; of her daughter; that she was entirely dispossessed of him, and no more vexed and tormented with him, but in perfect ease, and at rest:
and her daughter laid upon the bed; without any violent motions, convulsions, and tossings to and fro, as before; but composed and still, taking some rest, having been for some time greatly fatigued with the possession.

7:31 And again, departing from the coasts of Tyre and Sidon, He came unto the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the coasts of Decapolis.

Decapolis; of this place, It was a country which consisted of ten cities, from whence it had its name: now not through the middle of these cities, or of this country, as the Ethiopic version reads; but through the midst of the borders of it Christ passed, which lay in His way from the coasts of Tyre and Sidon, to the sea of Galilee. 

The Syriac and Persic versions render the words, "unto the borders of Decapolis, or the ten cities"; and the Arabic version, "unto the middle of the coasts of the ten cities".

7:32 And they bring unto Him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech; and they beseech him to put His hand upon Him.

And they bring unto Him one that was deaf - There were two sorts of persons that were called deaf among the Jews; 

*one that could neither hear nor speak; such were they who were born deaf; and so having never heard any thing, it was impossible they should ever speak: 

*the other sort were they that could speak, but not hear; who lost their hearing by some disaster or another, but retained their speech 

--of this sort seems to be this man, who though he had some difficulty in speaking, yet could speak a little, and had an impediment in his speech; or could "scarcely speak", as the word signifies.

7:33 And He took him aside from the multitude, and put His fingers into his ears, and He spit, and touched his tongue;

(1.) He put his fingers into his ears, as if He would syringe them, and fetch out that which stopped them up. 

(2.) He spit upon His own finger, and then touched his tongue, as if he would moisten his mouth, and so loosen that with which his tongue was tied; 

---these were no causes that could in the least contribute to his cure, but only signs of the exerting of that power which Christ had in Himself to cure him.

The application was all from Himself, it was His own fingers that He put into his ears, and His own spittle that he put upon his tongue; for He alone heals.

7:34 And looking up to heaven, He sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened.

He sighed; not as unequal to the work of healing the man, or as despairing of doing it; but as commiserating the case of the poor man, Ephphatha - - This was a word of SOVEREIGN AUTHORITY, not an address to God for power to heal: such an address was needless; for Christ had a perpetual fund of power residing in Himself, to work all miracles whenever He pleased, even to the raising the dead.

7:35 And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain.

He spake plain - Ορθως, distinctly, without stammering.

7:36 And He charged them that they should tell no man: but the more he charged them, so much the more a great deal they published it;

that they should tell no man; of the cure that was wrought, being not desirous of the applause of men; and knowing it would bring upon Him the envy of the Scribes and Pharisees; but the more He charged them, so much the more a great deal they published it; or "spake of Him", as the Ethiopic version reads it.

7:37 And were beyond measure astonished, saying, He hath done all things well: He maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak.

He hath done all things well; whereas there were those that hated and persecuted Him as an evil-doer, they are ready to witness for Him, not only that He has done no evil, but that He has done a great deal of good, without money and without price, which added much to the luster of His good works. He maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak; and that is well, it is well for them, it is well for their relations, to whom they had been a burthen; and therefore they are inexcusable who speak ill of Him.

Chapter 7:14-23 The Heart of Man

7:14 And when He had called all the people unto Him, He said unto them, Hearken unto Me every one of you, and understand:
He said unto them, hearken to Me every one of you, and understand - signifying, He had something of moment to say to them.

7:15 There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man.
There is nothing from without a man - As any sort of food and drink, whether it be received, with, or without washing of the hands:
that entering into him can defile him; in a moral sense, or render him loathsome and unacceptable in the sight of God:
but the things which come out of him - the Arabic: version reads, "out of the mouth of man", for all sinful words which proceed from the imaginations and lusts of the heart; as all idle, unchaste, blasphemous, and wrathful words and expressions: and may include evil thoughts, words, and actions; which actions first in thought, take their rise from the corrupt heart of man; 

--and in word, come out of the mouth; 

--and in action, are performed by some one or other of the members of the body.

7:16 If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.
let him hear - A way of speaking used by Christ, when anything serious, and of great importance, was delivered; and which required attention, and was not easily understood.

7:17 And when He was entered into the house from the people, His disciples asked Him concerning the parable.
His disciples, asked in private, an explication of the instructions He gave the people. They asked Him, when they had Him by Himself, concerning the parable; for to them, it seems, it was a parable.

7:18 And He saith unto them, Are ye so without understanding also? Do ye not perceive, that whatsoever thing from without entereth into the man, it cannot defile him;
He reproves their dulness; Are ye so without understanding also?

7:19 Because it entereth not into his heart, but into the belly, and goeth out into the draught, purging all meats?
Because it entereth not into his heart - Which is the seat and fountain of all moral pollution.

7:20 And He said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man.
It is that which comes out from the heart, the corrupt heart, that defiles us.

7:21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,
The inside of man is very bad, his inward part is not only wicked, but wickedness itself, yea, very wickedness, in him dwells no good thing naturally, his heart is wicked, and desperately so; it is full of evil; and out of the abundance of it, proceed the evil things hereafter mentioned; all its powers and faculties are vitiated, there is no place clean; 

--the understanding and judgment are dreadfully corrupted; 

--the mind and conscience are defiled; 

--the affections are inordinate; 

--not only the thought, but every imagination of the thought of the heart is evil.

7:22 Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:
Thefts, etc.-.... These also are mentioned in Matthew, but Mark omits "false witnesses", and adds the following; which, excepting "blasphemy".

7:23 All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.

Of all these He concludes 

1. That they come from within, from the corrupt nature, the carnal mind, the evil treasure in the heart; all this comes from within. 

2. That they defile the man; they render a man unfit for communion with God, they bring a stain upon the conscience; and, if not mortified and rooted out, will shut men out of the new Jerusalem, into which no unclean thing shall enter.