Mark 7 · Verse 9

Mark 7:9

And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.
Mark 7:9, King James Version

Mark 7:9 in other translations

BSBHe went on to say, “You neatly set aside the command of God to maintain your own tradition.
WEBHe said to them, “Full well do you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition.
ASVAnd he said unto them, Full well do ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your tradition.
YLTAnd he said to them, ‘Well do ye put away the command of God that your tradition ye may keep;
DARBYAnd he said to them, Well do ye set aside the commandment of God, that ye may observe what is delivered by yourselves to keep.
BBEAnd he said to them, Truly you put on one side the law of God, so that you may keep the rules which have been handed down to you.
WebsterAnd he said to them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition,

What does Mark 7:9 mean?

Barnes' Notes
Verse 9. Full well. These words are capable of different interpretations. Some read them as a question: "Do ye do well in rejecting?" etc. Others suppose they mean skilfully, cunningly. "You show great cunning, or art, in laying aside God's commands, and substituting in their place those of men." Others suppose them to be ironical. "How nobly you act! From conscientious attachment to your traditions, you have made void the law of God;" meaning to intimate by it, that they had acted wickedly and basely.

(1) "reject" or, "frustrate"

Albert Barnes, 1834 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 9 Full well - Καλως, - a strong irony. How noble is your conduct! From conscientious attachment to your own traditions ye have annihilated the commandments of God! That ye may keep - But στησητε, that ye may establish, is the reading of D, three others, Syriac, all the Itala, with Cyprian, Jerome, and Zeno. Griesbach thinks it should be received instead of the other. God's law was nothing to these men, in comparison of their own: hear a case in point. "Rabba said, How foolish are most men! They observe the precepts of the Divine law, and neglect the statutes of the rabbins!" Maccoth, fol. 22.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Mark 7:1-13

One great design of Christ's coming was, to set aside the ceremonial law; and to make way for this, he rejects the ceremonies men added to the law of God's making. Those clean hands and that pure heart which Christ bestows on his disciples, and requires of them, are very different from the outward and superstitious forms of Pharisees of every age. Jesus reproves them for rejecting the commandment of God. It is clear…

Read the full comment on Mark 7:1-13 →

Mark 7:9 in the original Greek

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

καὶkaiAndG2532
ἔλεγενelegenHe was sayingG3004
αὐτοῖς·autoisto them;G846
καλῶςkalōsNeatlyG2573
ἀθετεῖτεatheteitedo you set asideG114
τὴνtēntheG3588
ἐντολὴνentolēncommandmentG1785
τοῦtou<the>G3588
θεοῦtheouof GodG2316
ἵναinathatG2443
τὴνtēntheG3588
παράδοσινparadosintraditionG3862
ὑμῶνhumōnof youG4771
στήσητε.stēsēteyou may maintain.G2476

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Mark 7:9

  • Isaiah 29:13

    Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men:

  • Jeremiah 44:16-17

    As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the Lord, we will not hearken unto thee. But we will certainly do whatsoever thing goeth forth out of our own mouth, to burn incense unto the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her, as we have done, we, and our fathers, our kings, and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem: for then had we plenty of victuals, and were well, and saw no evil.

  • Galatians 2:21

    I do not frustrate the grace of God: for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is dead in vain.

  • Isaiah 24:5

    The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant.

  • Matthew 15:3-6

    But he answered and said unto them, Why do ye also transgress the commandment of God by your tradition? For God commanded, saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death. But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift, by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me; And honour not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition.

  • Psalms 119:126

    It is time for thee, Lord, to work: for they have made void thy law.

  • Mark 7:13

    Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.

  • Romans 3:31

    Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.

  • Mark 7:3

    For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, except they wash their hands oft, eat not, holding the tradition of the elders.

  • 2 Kings 16:10-16

    And king Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath–pileser king of Assyria, and saw an altar that was at Damascus: and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the fashion of the altar, and the pattern of it, according to all the workmanship thereof. And Urijah the priest built an altar according to all that king Ahaz had sent from Damascus: so Urijah the priest made it against king Ahaz came from Damascus. And when the king was come from Damascus, the king saw the altar: and the king approached to the altar, and offered thereon. And he burnt his burnt offering and his meat offering, and poured his drink offering, and sprinkled the blood of his peace offerings, upon the altar. …

  • 2 Thessalonians 2:4

    Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.

  • Daniel 7:25

    And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Full.
2Ki 16:10-16; Isa 24:5; 29:13; Jer 44:16,17; Da 7:25; 11:36
Mt 15:3-6; 2Th 2:4
reject. or, frustrate.
13; Ps 119:126; Ro 3:31; Ga 2:21

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Mark 7:8

    For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, as the washing of pots and cups: and many other such like things ye do.

  • Mark 7:9

    And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.

  • Mark 7:10

    For Moses said, Honour thy father and thy mother; and, Whoso curseth father or mother, let him die the death:

Read all of Mark 7

Mark 7:9 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Les decía también: Bien invalidáis el mandamiento de Dios para guardar vuestra tradición.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et il leur dit: Vous annulez bien le commandement de Dieu, afin de garder votre tradition.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und er sprach zu ihnen: Trefflich hebet ihr das Gebot Gottes auf, auf daß ihr eure Überlieferung haltet.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Et dicebat illis: Bene irritum facitis præceptum Dei, ut traditionem vestram servetis.