Why does Jesus refuse to help the Canaanite woman who he refers to as a dog?

Question

[Luke 6:26]
"But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.

[Matthew 15:22-26]
A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is suffering terribly from demon-possession." Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, "Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us." He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel." The woman came and knelt before him. "Lord, help me!" she said. He replied, "It is not right to take the children's bread and toss it to their dogs."

m_ryan_a: That doesn't really help you, dude. He still thinks of her as a dog, and only decided to help her when she acknowledged that she was a dog. Sounds like a jerk to me.

Yeah....I won't help you unless you admit that you are a dog. There, see that was easy.....dog! Wonderful sentiment.

How is my question wrong? He did refuse to help her - until she admitted her dogliness.

Answer 1

Very nice way to not give the full context of the passage.

Let's look at verse 27 and 28.

27"Yes, Lord," she said, "but even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table."

28Then Jesus answered, "Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted." And her daughter was healed from that very hour.


Yes...way to attempt to prove your point and failing.

Answer 2

Many of Jesus' actions are incomprehensible unless we take into account the people who witnessed them. Often He did what He did for the sake of these observers. Remember that He did not go immediately to Lazarus on being told Lazarus was sick. He waited until Lazarus died and had lain in the tomb three days, timing His arrival in the village at the time when the Jews would conventionally consider Lazarus' spirit to have departed from him. And then he raised him from the dead. Everyone who saw this, understood the significance. Lazarus had truly died, and Jesus raised Him, by calling him forth from the tomb. In the same way, Jesus' refusal of the woman's entreaty was done for those around Him. It was part of the lesson He was intent on teaching. Interestingly these lessons were intended not only for His immediate audience but also for all those down through the ages. A rather more evident example of this took place at His baptism. John at first said that he ought no tot be baptizing Him, but Jesus explained (partly) why this had to be. (Check it out, its right there in the Bible.)

Answer 3

Jesus was a basically orthodox Jew from the West Bank. His goal was in getting the Jews to get back to Torah observance. He was concerned with the Jews, not so much with Gentiles. But after this Samaritan woman "proved" herself to him, Jesus agrees to help her.

He didn't do too well in this mission however. And he became angrier and angrier. People think of Jesus as such a nice guy, but he's sure not someone I would have wanted as a friend ...

A picture emerges of Jesus as kind at first, yes, but after no one accepts him as a great rabbi or teacher, he gets angry and nasty.
He set out to be a big rabbi, but only wound up with a following of 12 country bumpkins from the Galilee.

He winds up being rude to his mother, cursing the learned elders, even cursing a fig tree? ... He violates the laws concerning the Passover, the burying of the dead, and not changing the Law from Mt. Sinai. In Matthew 26 a woman pours expensive oil on his head, which makes him feel good, but which could have been better sold to feed the poor (as Jesus' students rightly point out).

Answer 4

If I'm not mistaken, He said this because the Canaanite woman was not a believer, in the sense that she probably didn't care or know who He was or why He was here, only that He could heal the sick and she needed help for her daughter. It would be like having a glass of water that can give eternal life but only if you believe, and then some guy asks to drink it because he's thirsty, not because he believes the water will save him. You wouldn't waste the precious water like that. Make sense?

However, I think she did acknowledge Him for Who He was, and He healed her daughter, an act of mercy and love from Jesus.

Answer 5

Jesus rewarded the Greek woman’s persistence by commending her faith and acting favorably on her supplications. Imagine her joy when she returned home to find her daughter completely healed!—Matthew 15:21-28; Mark 7:24-30.

But in Matthew 18:17 Jesus could not have meant that his disciples were to refuse to do an act of human kindness, as in a case of accident or of desperate need. Jesus showed such kindness to some Gentiles. For example, he did so to a Syro-phoenician woman. Though Jesus, his disciples and the woman acknowledged that her situation was unusual because she was a Gentile and Jesus was sent to the Jews, Christ nevertheless healed her daughter. (Matt. 15:21-28; Mark 7:24-30)

Answer 6

You forgot the other 2 verses where Jesus healed her daughter

27 But she said, Yes, Lord, but even the dogs feed on the crumbs which fall from their masters' table.
28 then Jesus said to her, O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish.." And her daughter was healed at once.

Jesus came to the Israelites who believed in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The Canaanite woman believed in Canaanite Mythology of many gods and goddesses of wood and stone. However, when He healed her daughter I'm sure that woman believed in Jesus Christ. Jesus ascended to heaven and left His disciples and us to preach the gospel into all the world. Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit to guide and teach us.

Answer 7

How interesting that you omitted verse :28 of that same chapter, where Jesus then tells the woman "'Oh woman, great is your faith; let it happen to you as you wish.' and her daughter was healed from that hour on."

Jesus was merely stating a fact. At that time he was sent to minister to the Nation of Israel and no one else. Yet this woman's faith moved him to mercy.

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Body of Shonuf? This is true but that is because he was fulfilling a promise made to Abraham and then repeated to Isaac. It also fulfilled prophecy. The Nation of Israel was originally chosen to make up the promised seed of God's "woman" mentioned at Genesis 3:15. It was never God's purpose, however, that the "word" would be limited to the Jews. This is why he gave Peter the keys to the Kingdom which opened "the Way" to rest of the nations.

Answer 8

Because at that time the gospel was to only be preached to the Jews. It came to the Gentiles later on. Kind of like when African Americans couldn't get the priesthood in the LDS faith until later on. It is just how God has always worked.

Answer 9

to build her faith. she does get what she ask for .he told the disciples that he came for the lost sheep they thought that she did not belong and wanted her gone Christ say that the disciples thought only a few would be given the life bread but this passage shows that everyone can be saved as we are all lost sheep

Answer 10

Naughty, naughty.

Continue the quote.

Matthew 15: 27,28
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 her daughter was healed from that hour.

Two lessons from these passages:

1) The Good News is to go to the Children of Israel FIRST.
2) Then, ANYONE of ANY heritage, whose faith is in Jesus as the Christ, may come to Him for healing and salvation and be sure of receiving it.

Answer 11

Meat Machine, can you imagine if someone who has so much faith like the cananite woman is only a DOG to Jesus, what about you?

You must be a pig!

Don't you agree?