Ante-Nicene Fathers/Volume IX/The Diatessaron of Tatian/The Diatessaron/Section XX

Section XX.

[1] And Jesus knew within himself that his disciples were murmuring because of [2] that, and he said unto them, Doth this trouble you?&#160; What if ye should see the Son [3] of man then ascend to the place where he was of old?&#160; It is the spirit that quickeneth, and the body profiteth nothing:&#160; the words that I speak unto you are spirit [4] and life.&#160; But there are some of you that do not believe.&#160; And Jesus knew beforehand who they were who should not believe, and who it was that should betray [5] him.&#160; And he said unto them, Therefore I said unto you, No man can come unto me, if that hath not been given him by the Father.

[6] [Arabic, p. 78] And because of this word many of his disciples turned back and walked [7] not with him.&#160; And Jesus said unto the twelve, Do ye haply also wish to [8] go away?&#160; Simon Cephas answered and said, My Lord, to whom shall we go? thou [9] hast the words of eternal life.&#160; And we have believed and known that thou art the [10] Messiah, the Son of the living God.&#160; Jesus said unto them, Did not I choose you, [11] ye company of the twelve, and of you one is a devil?&#160; He said that because of Judas the son of Simon Iscariot; for he, being of the twelve, was purposed to betray him.

[12] And while he was speaking, one of the Pharisees came asking of him that he [13] would eat with him:&#160; and he went in, and reclined to meat.&#160; And that Pharisee, when [14] he saw it, marvelled that he had not first cleansed himself before his eating.&#160; Jesus said unto him, Now do ye Pharisees wash the outside of the cup and the dish, and ye think that ye are cleansed; but your inside is full of injustice and wickedness.

[15, 16] Ye of little mind, did not he that made the outside make the inside?&#160; Now give what ye have in alms, and everything shall be clean unto you.

[17, 18] And there came to him Pharisees and scribes, come from Jerusalem.&#160; And when they saw some of his disciples eating bread while they had not washed their hands, [19] they found fault.&#160; For all of the Jews and the Pharisees, if they wash not their [20] hands thoroughly, eat not; for they held to the ordinance of the elders.&#160; And they ate not what was bought from the market, except they washed it; and many other things did they keep of what they had received, such as the washing of cups, and [21] measures, and vessels of brass, and couches.&#160; And scribes and Pharisees asked him, [Arabic, p. 79] Why do thy disciples not walk according to the ordinances of the elders, but [22] eat bread without washing their hands?&#160; Jesus answered and said unto them, Why do ye also overstep the command of God by reason of your ordinance?&#160; [23] God said, Honour thy father and thy mother; and, Whosoever revileth his father and [24] his mother shall surely die.&#160; But ye say, If a man say to his father or to his mother, [25] What thou receivest from me is an offering,&#8212; and ye suffer him not to do anything [26] for his father or his mother; and ye make void and reject the word of God by reason of the ordinance that ye have ordained and commanded, such as the washing [27] of cups and measures, and what resembles that ye do much.&#160; And ye forsook [28] the command of God, and held to the ordinance of men.&#160; Do ye well to wrong [29] the command of God in order that ye may establish your ordinance?&#160; Ye hypocrites, well did Isaiah the prophet prophesy concerning you, and say,

[30] This people honoureth me with its lips;

But their heart is very far from me.

[31] But in vain do they fear me,

In that they teach the commands of men.

[32] And Jesus called all the multitude, and said unto them, Hear me, all of you, and [33] understand:&#160; nothing without the man, which then enters him, is able to defile him; [34] but what goeth out of him, that it is which defileth the man.&#160; He that hath ears [35] that hear, let him hear.&#160; Then his disciples drew near, and said unto him, Knowest [36] thou that the Pharisees which heard this word were angry?&#160; He answered and said unto them, Every plant which my Father which is in heaven planted not shall be [37] [Arabic, p. 80] uprooted.&#160; Let them alone; for they are blind leading blind.&#160; And if the blind lead the blind, both of them shall fall into a hollow.

[38] And when Jesus entered the house from the multitude, Simon Cephas asked him, [39] and said unto him, My Lord, explain to us that parable.&#160; He said unto them, Do ye also thus not understand?&#160; Know ye not that everything that entereth into the [40] man from without cannot defile him; because it entereth not into his heart; it entereth into his stomach only, and thence is cast forth in the cleansing which maketh [41] clean all the food? &#160; The thing which goeth forth from the mouth of the man proceedeth [42] from his heart, and it is that which defileth the man.&#160; From within the [43] heart of men proceed evil thoughts, fornication, adultery, theft, false witness, murder, injustice, wickedness, deceit, stupidity, evil eye, calumny, pride, foolishness:&#160; [44] these evils all of them from within proceed from the heart, and they are the things [45] which defile the man:&#160; but if a man eat while he washeth not his hands, he is not defiled.

[46] And Jesus went out thence, and came to the borders of Tyre and Sidon.&#160; And he entered into a certain house, and desired that no man should know it; and [47] he could not be hid.&#160; But straightway a Canaanitish woman, whose daughter had an [48, 49] unclean spirit, heard of him.&#160; And that woman was a Gentile of Emesa of Syria.&#160; And she came out after him, crying out, and saying, Have mercy upon me, my Lord, thou [50] son of David; for my daughter is seized in an evil way by Satan. &#160; And he answered [Arabic, p. 81] her not a word.&#160; And his disciples came and besought him, and said, Send [51] her away:&#160; for she crieth after us.&#160; He answered and said unto them, I was [52] not sent except to the sheep that are gone astray of the house of Israel.&#160; But she came and worshipped him, and said, My Lord, help me, have mercy upon me.

[53] Jesus said unto her, It is not seemly that the children&#8217;s bread should be taken and [54] thrown to the dogs.&#160; But she said, Yea, my Lord:&#160; the dogs also eat of the crumbs [55] that fall from their masters&#8217; tables, and live.&#160; Then said Jesus unto her, O woman, [56] great is thy faith:&#160; it shall be unto thee as thou hast desired.&#160; Go then thy way; and [57] because of this word, the devil is gone out of thy daughter.&#160; And her daughter was [58] healed in that hour.&#160; And that woman went away to her house, and found her daughter laid upon the bed, and the devil gone out of her.