Marcos 7

A ‘crumb’ for a ‘little dog’

24 Then He got ready and went from there into the region of Tyre and Sidon. He went into a house and did not want anyone to know it, but He could not escape notice. 25 In fact, as soon as she heard about Him, a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit came and fell at His feet.*The parallel account in Matthew makes clear that this happened before He reached the house. 26 Now the woman was a Greek, a Syro-Phoenecian by birth, and she kept asking Him to cast the demon out of her daughter.*Matthew 15:21-28 gives more detail, which see. 27 But Jesus said to her, "Let the children be filled first; it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the little dogs."*Big dogs would not be in the house, so these would be little house pets, or perhaps puppies. This episode always moves me. In effect, Jesus called the woman a ‘dog’ (that is what Jews called Gentiles), and she accepted the classification. She was determined to get her ‘crumb’, and she did! And she left us a great example of humility and faith! 28 So she answered and said to Him, "Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs under the table eat from the children’s crumbs." 29 So He said to her, "Because of this saying you may go; the demon has gone out of your daughter." 30 She went away to her house and found that the demon was gone and the daughter had been placed on the bed.*The verb ‘place’ is perfect passive; evidently the child was too small, or too weak, to have gotten there by herself.