Jesus, wishing to try her faith still more, said: “It is not good to take the bread of the children, and to cast it to the dogs.” [1] But she, nowise discouraged, answered: “Yea, Lord, for the whelps also[2] eat of the crumbs that fall from the table of their master.” Jesus was pleased with the humility of her answer, and said: “O woman, great is thy faith. Be it done to thee as thou wilt.” At the same moment her daughter was cured.
After this Jesus returned to the Sea of Galilee[3], and they[4] brought to Him a man who was deaf and dumb, and they besought Him that He would lay His hand[5] upon him. He took him aside[6] from the multitude, put His fingers into the man’s ears, touched his tongue with spittle, sighed[7], and said: “Ephpheta”, that is, “be opened”, and immediately he was able to speak [8] and hear. The people cried out: “He hath done all things well[9]. He hath made both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak.” “And he charged them that they should tell no man. But the more He charged them, so much the more a great deal did they publish it.”
- ↑ The dogs. The children (of the kingdom) are the Jews, the members of the chosen race. The “dogs’* are the heathen, so called on account of their idolatry and impurity. Our Lord’s answer appeared to be a refusal, and was a great trial to the poor woman; but she stood the test.
- ↑ The whelps also. She did not protest against our Lord’s words. She admitted that Israel must have the preference, and humbly numbered herself among the “dogs”. “But”, she urged, “even the dogs pick up the crumbs.” Thou art so rich in grace, she meant to say, and Thou hast done so much for the children (of Israel) that they are satiated, and will lose nothing if Thou art merciful to me, and showest me only a crumb of Thy power and goodness by answering my prayer.
- ↑ The Sea of Galilee. On the east side of the Lake. The towns in that neighbourhood were heathen.
- ↑ And they. The compassionate relatives of the deaf and dumb man.
- ↑ Lay His hand. They knew that Jesus usually wrought His cures by the imposition of hands, and were quite convinced that this of itself would be enough to restore hearing and speech to the man.
- ↑ Aside. So as to turn the man’s attention from the crowd, and fix it entirely on Himself, and on what He was going to do.
- ↑ Sighed. At the misery both spiritual and corporal which sin had brought upon man.
- ↑ Able to speak. He could use his tongue, which had been hitherto, as it were, tied. He could speak fluently and correctly, not like one who was just beginning to learn the use of speech. It was this that most astounded the on-lookers.
- ↑ Well. i. e. excellently, perfectly.
