Mt 15:21-28
At that time, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon.
And behold, a Canaanite woman of that district came and called out,
“Have pity on me, Lord, Son of David!
My daughter is tormented by a demon.”
But Jesus did not say a word in answer to her.
Jesus’ disciples came and asked him,
“Send her away, for she keeps calling out after us.”
He said in reply,
“I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
But the woman came and did Jesus homage, saying, “Lord, help me.”
He said in reply,
“It is not right to take the food of the children
and throw it to the dogs.”
She said, “Please, Lord, for even the dogs eat the scraps
that fall from the table of their masters.”
Then Jesus said to her in reply,
“O woman, great is your faith!
Let it be done for you as you wish.”
And the woman’s daughter was healed from that hour.
BACKGROUNDER
Everything that Jesus does fulfills God’s promises to his people, Israel. God has a Covenant relationship with Israel, which really began with his calling of Abraham and Sarah (Genesis 12-23). Abraham’s grandson, Jacob, was re-named Israel by and angel. It is the twelve sons of Israel who are the patriarchs, the fathers, of the twelve tribes of Israel. The Covenant with Israel culminates when Moses leads the people out of slavery in Egypt, and to Mt. Sinai. But, as the raw honesty of the Old Testament reveals, Israel repeatedly falls short of their part of the Covenant.
Who can possibly fulfill the Covenant? Can God ever find a human partner for his love? The answer is, only Jesus. God himself becomes one of us, and we learn that the Son, human and divine, will be our mediator with the Father. At last, the promises made Israel would be fulfilled.
All of this background may help us to understand this one simple conversation between Jesus and the woman. Who is she? She is a foreigner, descended from the enemies of Israel. Her ancestors, the Canaanites, were in the land promised to Abraham. After Moses led Israel to the Promised Land, his successor, Joshua, led them in to conquer the Canaanites.
Jesus has gone to Tyre and Sidon because he has begun to face opposition in Israel. Eventually, after he fulfills his mission by going to Jerusalem, the opposition from the religious leaders of Israel and the political leaders of Rome will bring him to the cross. But for now, Jesus is foreign territory.
And the woman is desperate because her daughter is tormented by a demon. Her need is so great as to lead her to Jesus: a Canaanite mother goes to an Israelite teacher. Does the God of Israel have power outside of Israel? Or, is he like other gods, thought to be local, and only for Israel?
Jesus’s blunt, seemingly rude answer to the woman (“I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”) is necessary to begin a massive shift from a Covenant based on lineal descent from Abraham, i.e., only Israel is God’s people, to a new Covenant based on faith – specifically, trust in Jesus. So that he now declares, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.”
Christians follow in the Canaanite woman’s footsteps, because we enter into the Covenant with God only if we trust in Jesus. She has prepared the way for other foreigners to come in.
We also need to hear Jesus’s lesson for the disciples. The many people who are currently not in the Covenant with God also need to know that in their hour of need, when they or their children face the power of evil, the power of Jesus will be available to them. The mission of Christians is to help others know that they too can trust Jesus, and can learn how to put their trust in him.
