And a Canaanite woman from that region came to Him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is miserably possessed by a demon.”
Parallel translations
- WEB Behold, a Canaanite woman came out from those borders, and cried, saying, “Have mercy on me, Lord, you son of David! My daughter is severely possessed by a demon!”
- KJV And, behold, a woman of Canaan 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.
- NKJV And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! My daughter is severely demon-possessed.”
- NASB And a Canaanite woman from that region came out and began to cry out, saying, “Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely demon-possessed.”
- NLT A Gentile woman who lived there came to him, pleading, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! For my daughter is possessed by a demon that torments her severely.”
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
A Canaanite woman cries out to Jesus as 'Son of David' to heal her demon-tormented daughter. It matters because a Gentile shows surprising faith in Israel's Messiah.
Overview
This woman, a Gentile from a people historically opposed to Israel, addresses Jesus with the messianic title 'Son of David.' Her plea reveals both desperate need and remarkable insight into who Jesus is. That such faith appears outside Israel highlights the contrast with the unbelieving religious leaders. Her cry for mercy anticipates the many Gentiles who would come to trust in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 17
- Matt 9:27As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed Him, crying out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!”
- Mark 7:25–26Instead, a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit soon heard about Jesus, and she came and fell at His feet.
- Matt 17:15“Lord, have mercy on my son,” he said. “He has seizures and is suffering terribly. He often falls into the fire or into the water.
- Ps 45:12The Daughter of Tyre will come with a gift; men of wealth will seek your favor.
- Ezek 3:6not to the many peoples of unfamiliar speech and difficult language whose words you cannot understand. Surely if I had sent you to them, they would have listened to you.
- Ps 4:1For the choirmaster. With stringed instruments. A Psalm of David. Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness! You have relieved my distress; show me grace and hear my prayer.
- Luke 18:38–39So he called out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”
- Matt 1:1This is the record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham:
- Luke 17:13and raised their voices, shouting, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”
- Mark 9:17–22Someone in the crowd replied, “Teacher, I brought You my son, who has a spirit that makes him mute.
- Luke 18:13But the tax collector stood at a distance, unwilling even to lift up his eyes to heaven. Instead, he beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner!’
- Matt 3:8–9Produce fruit, then, in keeping with repentance.
- Matt 20:30–31And there were two blind men sitting beside the road. When they heard that Jesus was passing by, they cried out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!”
- Matt 22:42–45“What do you think about the Christ? Whose son is He?” “David’s,” they answered.
- Matt 4:24News about Him spread all over Syria, and people brought to Him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering acute pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed—and He healed them.
- Ps 6:2Be merciful to me, O LORD, for I am frail; heal me, O LORD, for my bones are in agony.
- John 7:41–42Others declared, “This is the Christ.” But still others asked, “How can the Christ come from Galilee?
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'
How Matthew 15:22 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.