In Matthew 15:21-28 a woman asked Jesus for help. He said, “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs” (Matthew 15:26). Did Jesus call a woman a dog? Read on for the answer.
An interesting – and possibly confusing – account took place between Jesus and a woman He called a “little dog”:
Then Jesus went out from there and departed to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 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.”
Matthew 15:21-22
The woman is a Canaanite, which makes her one of the Jews’ ancient enemies and a surprising person to seek Jesus’ help. When Israel entered the Promised Land they were supposed to destroy these people, because of their wickedness.
But He answered her not a word. And His disciples came and urged Him, saying, “Send her away, for she cries out after us.”
Matthew 15:23-24
But He answered and said, “I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
Why Did Jesus Call the Woman a Dog?
- God told Abraham, “And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 12:3). Primarily this referred to the Messiah coming from Israel, but it also referred to Israel being the witness nation. The Jews would receive the Gospel first and spread it to the surrounding world.
- Romans 1:16 says, “the gospel is…for the Jew first.”
- When Jesus sent out the Twelve, He said, “Do not go into the way of the Gentiles, and do not enter a city of the Samaritans. But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matthew 10:5a-6). Jesus didn’t forbid the disciples from preaching to Gentiles if they encountered them along the way, but they were to go first to Israel.
Jesus told the Canaanite woman the Jews had to have the first opportunity to accept Him:
Then she came and worshiped Him, saying, “Lord, help me!”
Matthew 15:25-26
But He answered and said, “It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs.”
The “children” are the Jews, and the “bread” is the spiritual food or Gospel.
The Greek word for “dog” is kyōn, and it is a derogatory term the Jews used for Gentiles. The word Jesus used for “little dogs” is kynarion, and it’s not derogatory or cruel. It can be used affectionately, even of a family pet. Look at her response:
And she said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.”
Matthew 15:27-28
Then Jesus answered and said to her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour.
The Canaanite Woman Was Humble and Persistent
She couldn’t stop the Gospel from going to the Jews first, and she couldn’t change her ethnicity. But she could be persistent and demonstrate her faith. She even says, “I’m not asking for the portion that belongs to the Jews. I just want some of the crumbs.”
Jesus rewarded the woman. The irony is many Jews would miss out on God’s salvation, because they didn’t have this woman’s faith, persistence, or humility. Many Gentiles would find salvation. They received the crumbs the Gentiles rejected, or that “fell from the table.”
Consider the progression:
- Jesus ignores her in verse 23.
- Jesus tells her, “No,” in verse 24.
- She asks again in verse 25.
- Jesus says, “No,” again in verse 26.
- She asks again in verse 27.
- Jesus helps her in verse 28.
This is a great illustration of the persistence needed in prayer.
Dear friend, possibly someone has whispered in your ear, ‘Suppose you are not one of the elect.’ Well, that was very much what our Lord’s expression meant to her. She was not one of the chosen people, and she had heard Christ say, ‘I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.’ Notice that this woman does not battle with that truth at all, she does not raise any question about it; she wisely waives it, and she just goes on praying, ‘Lord, help me! Lord, have mercy upon me!’ I invite you, dear friend, to do just the same.
C. H. Spurgeon
16 Responses
The Canaanite woman was an Israelite in a race mixed marriage. God Yahweh condemns race mixing. She was an Israelite, of the white race. Deuteronomy 23:2-3, “A bastard child shall not enter inter the congregation of Yahweh up to its tenth generation and forever.” The Hebrew word that is translated bastard is “mamzer,” which means a race mixed child. This also means that the race mixed couple that had the child will also not enter into the congregation of Yahweh up to their tenth generation and forever. If you are in a race mixed marriage, get out of it.
Hello James,
I don’t understand how you could support all this. To say she is a Canaanite woman simply means she was from Canaan and remained in the land since Joshua’s day because the Israelites did not destroy all of the people.
Jesus Christ did not come for the Jews. He went to the Pharisees and Sadducees and told them to let his people go. However, Jesus Christ was not a Jew, and his people Israel are not Jews. The Jews back then as well as today are Edomites. They have nothing to do with the bible. Jesus Christ only came for the lost sheep of Israel (Matthew 15:24) who are the white Caucasian, Celtic, Anglo Saxon, Germanic, Scandinavian, and kindred people in the world today. The Jews are of the Synagogue of Satan.
Hello James,
If you mean that Jesus did not come for the Jews, because He came for everyone, I agree with you. But if you mean that he did not come for the Jews at all, I disagree. Can you provide a verse that supports your point that he went to the religious leaders to tell them to let His people go?
I don’t know how you could say that Jesus was not a Jew. The people from the tribe of Judah are Jews, and Jesus is from that tribe.
No, the Jews are not Edomites. The Jews are descendants of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Judah, but the Edomites are descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Esau.
“Jews began to call themselves ‘Hebrews and Israelites’ in 1860”
-Judaica Encyclopedia 1971
“Esau-Edom is modern Jewry”
-1925 Jewish Encyclopedia Vol. 5 Page 41
“Strictly speaking, it is incorrect to call an ancient Israelite a “jew” or to call a contemporary jew and Israelite or Hebrew.”
-Jewish Almanac 1980, p. 3
Hello Watchman,
Why not study Scripture to see when these terms were used?
I don’t know how you can associate Esau and the Edomites with the Jews. The Jews are the descendants of Judah, Jacob’s son. But the Edomites are descendants of Jacob’s brother, Esau.
I do agree with you that we can make a distinction between Israelites and Jews and Hebrews.
I tried very hard to get past this verse but I couldn’t. I don’t care how you try to spin this, it was clearly derogatory and insulting no matter her tribe, whether He said dog or little dog. I tried to find any translation that could clarify this for me but couldn’t. I have always had faith in Christ and this is devastating to me. To choose one race over another is racist. What place do Jews have to call others dogs if they are lost sheep? I’d rather have no religion than to follow one with a race of people thinking i’m less than them.
Hello,
Thanks for sharing your concerns. I understand many people are troubled by this account, and in particular, the way Jesus addressed this woman. You wrote that it is racist to choose one race over another. God does choose and he makes no apologies for it. Election is common throughout the Old and New Testaments. God chose Israel in the Old Testament, and believers are said to be chosen in the New Testament; hence, saints are called chosen and elect. But just because God chose one race for a purpose, does not mean that race is superior and others are inferior. The problem is that you have inserted your thoughts into the text and come to a wrong conclusion, because God’s word is also clear that all people are equal.
I have problems with this passage too. It not only seems totally out of Jesus’ character, but the snide dismissal of the disciples is shocking as well. Everyone seems downright annoyed that this gentile even dared approach them.
I have read dozens of wildly different explanations and rationalizations for this passage and NONE of them are convincing. Including this one.
I’m suspicious of this passage and wonder if it’s accurate … or perhaps Christianity is, as many are starting to claim, just an elaborate Jewish deception.
Hello Delaney,
There are definitely challenging passages in Scripture, like this one. But if we trust the Lord, then we trust the Bible. There could be confusion on our parts or God wants us to take the passage by faith.
Regarding Christianity being an elaborate Jewish deception is pretty ridiculous. The Jews saw Jesus and by extension Christianity as the greatest threat to Judaism. Why would they propagate that threat? And if they were going to make a deception, why would they make one that makes them look bad in so many respects? In particular, rejecting and murdering their own Messiah.
You have selective reading because you focus on the section where Jesus compares the woman to a house puppy while ignoring the part where he heals her daughter and praises her in the highest form by saying her faith is GREAT. In contrast, Jesus was continuously chastising and rebuking the Jews, even his own disciples, for having no or little faith. The point is, that Christ did not worry about bloodlines or races since he considers those who believe and follow him to be his brothers and sisters. Remember faith and not race saves and matters. Moreover, Christ used much harsher language to describe the Jews with whom he struggled, comparing them to vipers and even calling them devil’s children.
Acts 10:34 states: “God is no respecter of persons.”
The statement “God is no respecter of persons” means that God does not show favoritism or partiality.
And in Romans 3:29, it’s said, “Or is God the God of Jews only? Is he not also the God of the Gentiles? Yes, of Gentiles also.” Since there is only one true God, he’s the God of all humans.
Please read John 1:13-14 “But to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God— children born not of blood, nor of the desire or will of man, but born of God. The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.…”
As a Gentile Christian, you are a valued and beloved child of the living God because of your faith in Christ.
Thus there’s no reason to be upset just because Christ compared a gentile woman to a puppy. He was testing the woman’s faith who believed in Baal and other Gods and teaching his disciples a lesson. Besides, his apostles tried to sent away Israelite children who came to Christ for blessings because they did not want him to be bothered by any annoying children. However, Christ intervened and urged them to allow the youngsters approach him, where he hugged and blessed them.
Sam,
Well said. I appreciate you responding to A Dog with these insightful thoughts. I completely agree with what you wrote.
This encounter with Jesus is about me and you. We could be offended by His words, accuse Him of racism, and then go away. And then we could lose His blessings!
Hello Baksan,
I’m sorry, but I might not understand what you are saying. Are you saying that if we read this account and think Jesus is being racist that He will no longer bless us, or we will lose His favor?
I cannot help it if God Yahweh is racist. However, he only came for one race of people who are Israel. These people are the white Caucasian, Celtic, Anglo Saxon,Germanic, Scandinavian, and kindred people in the world today. The Canaanite woman wasn’t Jewish. If she was, she wouldn’t have gone to Jesus in the first place. She was an Israelite. The Jews are Edomites and Canaanites, and have nothing to do with the bible. In fact, gentile means nation. A person cannot be a nation. However, only white people created any nations. The Jews have never created any nations.
Hello again James,
God is not a racist. James: 21, Deuteronomy 10:17, and Acts 10:34-38 all state that God shows no partiality.
Are you saying the Israelites are white? This is untrue. They are Middle Eastern and would look darker than lighter.
You are correct that the Canaanite woman was not Jewish, but she was not an Israelite. The Israelites are not Canaanites and the Canaanites are not Israelites.
No, the Jews are not Edomites or Canaanites. I wrote in a previous post about where the Jews and Edomites came from. The Canaanites are descendants of Noah’s son, Ham.