And He was saying to her, “Let the children be satisfied first, for it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”
Parallel translations
- WEB But Jesus said to her, “Let the children be filled first, for it is not appropriate to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.”
- KJV 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.
- BSB “First let the children have their fill,” He said. “For it is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”
- NKJV But Jesus said to her, “Let the children be filled first, for it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs.”
- NLT Jesus told her, “First I should feed the children—my own family, the Jews. It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Jesus said the children must be fed first, not the dogs, testing her faith. His words affirm Israel's priority while inviting her persistence.
Overview
Jesus' saying reflected the divine order that the gospel came first to Israel (Romans 1:16), using a household image of children and pet dogs rather than an insult. The term He used for dogs was a gentle, domestic one, leaving room for hope. His apparent refusal was in fact a test that drew out and displayed the woman's remarkable faith.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Matt 15:23–28But he answered her not a word. His disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away; for she cries after us.”
- Matt 7:6“Don’t give that which is holy to the dogs, neither throw your pearls before the pigs, lest perhaps they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.
- Matt 10:5Jesus sent these twelve out, and commanded them, saying, “Don’t go among the Gentiles, and don’t enter into any city of the Samaritans.
- Acts 22:21“He said to me, ‘Depart, for I will send you out far from here to the Gentiles.’”
- Eph 2:12that you were at that time separate from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of the promise, having no hope and without God in the world.
- Rom 15:8Now I say that Christ has been made a servant of the circumcision for the truth of God, that he might confirm the promises given to the fathers,
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'
How Mark 7:27 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.