15 Then some from the Pharisees’ party and teachers of the law from Yerushalem arrived and asked Yeshua, 2 “Why do your followers break the traditions handed down by our elders? They’re not practicing the washing hands ceremony before eating.”

3 “Well why also do you break God’s commandment because of your tradition?” Yeshua responded. 4 [ref]“God told us to honour our father and our mother, and also that anyone who speaks evil about their father or mother deserves the death penalty. 5 But you all say that anyone who tells their father or mother that whatever help they may have expected from you is now given as a gift, 6 then you say that they’re not actually dishonouring their parents. So by saying that, you’re overriding God’s message with your own tradition. 7 You hypocrites! The prophet Isayah was right about you all when he wrote:[ref]

8 ‘These people honour me with their lips,

But their hearts are far away from me.

9 Their worship of me is useless,

They teach human ideas as if they’re commandments.’ ”

7 Some from the Pharisee party and some of the law teachers had come from Yerushalem to observe Yeshua 2 and noticed that some of his followers were eating their food without following their religious customs, i.e., without washing their hands. 3 (The Pharisees and, in fact, all the Jewish religious leaders do not eat without first ceremonially washing their hands as taught by their elders over the generations. 4 They won’t eat at the market if they can’t do this first, and have many other regulations about ceremonial washing of cups and jugs and copper kettles.)

5 And the Pharisees and religious teachers asked Yeshua, “How come your followers don’t follow our Jewish traditions, but eat without the ceremonial washing of hands?”

6 And he answered, “Isayah got it exactly right when he expressed God’s thoughts about you hypocrites and wrote:[ref]

‘These people honour me with their lips,

but their real desires are far away from mine.

7 Their worship of me is worthless,

teaching man-made rules as if they are from God.’

8 You’ve ignored God’s commands instead accepting human traditions.”

9 And Yeshua continued, “You all simply dismiss God’s commands in favour of your own customs. 10 [ref]Mosheh teaches us,

‘Honour your parents,’

and

‘Anyone dishonestly slandering their parents deserves the death penalty.’

11 But when you all encourage people to say, ‘Whatever I had that may have helped you guys has been given to God’, 12 you are actively discouraging them from helping their parents— 13 overriding God’s voice for your very convenient teaching that you disseminate instead. And that’s not the only example!”