Bible Questions Answered:
“Wasn't it really unkind not to want to heal the syrophenician womans request of healing for her daughter?...”
Karen/ Clharlotte, North Carolina U.S.A.
Bible Answer:
Bible Texts:
No, and the reasons are:
Matthew 15:21-28 KJV
21 Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon.
22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan (Syro-Phoenician, mixed race, Gentiles) came out of the same coasts, and cried unto Him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son Of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.
23 But He answered her not a word. And His disciples came and besought Him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.
24 But He answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel (The Jews).
25 Then came she and worshiped Him, saying, Lord, help me.
26 But He answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's (Jewish) bread, and to cast it to dogs (Gentiles).
27 And she said, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.
28 Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.
How had this woman of Canaan, heard about Jesus? The fame of Jesus had spread far beyond Galilee. Perhaps she had heard news of Jesus from various Caravan routes, or through sacred Jewish books speaking of a promised Messiah.
This Gentile woman cried out to Jesus as Lord, and as The Son Of David (Messianic title).
23 But He answered her not a word. And His disciples came and besought Him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.
Reasons why He did not answer her:
- 24 But He answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
- 26 But He answered and said, It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs (Gentiles).
But the woman replied, “Lord, help me.”
The disciples were tired of her bawling, and besought The Master saying...
Vs 23 ...And His disciples came and besought Him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.
Did this woman, take the hint and leave, No she did not! Her daughter was very sick, and she as her mother would intercede for her, at any cost!
Friends, we need an intercessor like that, and we have one!
Our High Priest:
Isaiah 53:12 KJV
Therefore will I divide Him (The Lord) a portion with the great, and He shall divide the spoil with the strong; because He hath poured out His soul unto death: and He was numbered with the transgressors; and He bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
Luke 22:32 KJV (Jesus prays for Peter)
But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.
Luke 23:34 KJV
Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do. And they parted His raiment, and cast lots.
John 14:16 KJV
And I will pray The Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you for ever;
John 17:9 KJV
I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given Me; for they are thine.
Romans 8:34 KJV
Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.
Hebrews 7:24-26 KJV (The Lord Jesus)
24 But this Man, because He continueth ever, hath an unchangeable Priesthood.
25 Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make intercession for them.
26 For such an High Priest became us, who is Holy, Harmless, Undefiled, Separate from sinners, and made Higher than the heavens;
Now we have already listed two reasons why Jesus had not answered this woman, but here again are another two more reasons!
- Jesus was trying to draw out, her faith. He had taught His disciples that one needs to be “persistent,” in ones prayers.
Luke 18:1-8 NLT
1 One day Jesus told His disciples a story to show that they should always pray and never give up.
2 “There was a judge in a certain city,” He said, “who neither feared God nor cared about people.
3 A widow of that city came to him repeatedly, saying, ‘Give me justice in this dispute with my enemy.’
4 The judge ignored her for a while, but finally he said to himself, ‘I don’t fear God or care about people,
5 but this woman is driving me crazy. I’m going to see that she gets justice, because she is wearing me out with her constant requests!’”
6 Then The Lord said, “Learn a lesson from this unjust judge.
7 Even he rendered a just decision in the end. So don’t you think God will surely give justice to His chosen people who cry out to Him day and night? Will He keep putting them off?
8 I tell you, He will grant justice to them quickly! But when The Son Of Man returns, how many will He find on the earth who have faith?”
- Another reason, for His delay, this encounter shows exactly, how through history, it would be between the Jews and Gentiles.
The Jews rejected The Messiah, while the Gentiles (For the most part), will accept Him. Glad to have the crumbs from His Life giving table.
John 1:11 KJV
He came unto his own, and his own received him not.
Was there any hope in the woman's heart? Yes, for (Martin Luther says), “Christ had not compared her people and her family to the street-dogs, but to the house-dogs that live with their masters in the home.”
So, she responded to The Master....
27 “... Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.
28 Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith:
be it unto thee even as thou wilt.
And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.
National origin, meant nothing, this woman was a child of God, a member of The Master's house, and
she would be thankful for just the crumbs of her Masters table.
Romans 9:7,8 GNT
7 Nor are all of Abraham's descendants the children of God. God said to Abraham, “It is through Isaac that you will have the descendants I promised you.”
8 This means that the children born in the usual way are not the children of God; instead, the children born as a result of God's promise are regarded as the true descendants.
Galatians 4:28 GNT
Now, you, my friends, are God's children as a result of His promise, just as Isaac was.
John 16:23 KJV
And in that day ye shall ask Me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask
The Father in My name, He will give it you.
Dear friend, are you a member of The Master's house?
Prayer:
Ephesians 2:8,9 KJV 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is The Gift Of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. II Timothy 1:9 KJV Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to
His own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, I John 1:8,9 KJV 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and The Truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is Faithful and Just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness. I John 5:11-13 KJV 11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal Life, and this Life is in His Son. 12 He that hath The Son hath Life; and he that hath not The Son Of God hath not Life. 13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of The Son Of God; that ye may
know that ye have eternal Life, and that ye may believe on the name of The Son Of God.
