Mark 7:26

Mar 7:26. Ἑλληνὶς, a Greek) The term being taken in a wide sense.—Συροφοίνισσα τῷ γένει) Clemens Al., in Protrept., makes mention of τῶν τὴν Φοινίκην Σύρων κατοικούντων. Tertullian mentions Syrophœnice: see ad Marcion: also Justin M. against Trypho. Juvenal speaks of Syrophœnix udus, The feminine Φοίνισσα, which Herodian has, is formed on the same analogy as Κρῆσσα, Λίβυσσα, Θρᾷσσα, Κίλισσα.—[τὸ δαιμόνιον, the demon) that unclean spirit which had taken possession of the girl.—V. g.]

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Mar 7:26 . Ἑλληνὶς , Σύρα , φοινίκισσα , a Greek in religion, a Syrian in tongue, a Phenician in race (Euthy. Zig.). The two last epithets combined into one ( Συροφ .) would describe her as a Syrophenician as distinct from a Phenician of Carthage. Mk. is careful to define the nationality and religion of the woman to throw light on the sequel.

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

By profession, profane.

Neighbor or near to Damascus.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

Verse 26. The woman was a Greek] Rosenmuller has well observed, that all heathens or idolaters were called Ἑλληνες, Greeks, by the Jews; whether they were Parthians, Medes, Arabs, Indians, or AEthiopians. Jews and Greeks divided the whole world at this period.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(26) A Greek—i.e., in the sense which the word had gained in Palestine, a Gentile, as in Rom_1:16; Rom_2:9-10. The modern use of “Frank” in the East for Europeans of every country, offers an analogous extension of the original meaning of a name.

Syrophenician.—The word, which occurs in Juvenal (Sat. viii. 159), may be noted as an instance of St. Mark’s tendency to use Latin forms. The Emperor Adrian divided the province of Syria into three parts—Syria proper, Syro-Phœnicia, and Syria-Palæstina—and we may well believe that this official distinction rested on a pre-existing nomenclature.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

26. a Greek] St Matthew describes her as a “woman of Canaan” (Mat_15:22), St Mark calls her a Greek, a Syrophœnician. The first term describes her religion, that she was a Gentile; the second the stock of which she came, “which was even that accursed stock once doomed of God to total excision, but of which some branches had been spared by those first generations of Israel that should have extirpated them root and branch. Everything, therefore, was against this woman, yet she was not hindered by that everything from drawing nigh, and craving the boon that her soul longed after.” Trench on the Parables, p. 339. She is called a Syrophœnician, as distinguished from the Libyphœnicians, the Phœnicians of Africa, that is, Carthage. Phœnicia belonged at this time to the province of Syria.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

But Jesus said unto her,.... Not directly and immediately, upon her first request; for he answered not a word to that; but after his, disciples had desired she might be sent away, her cries being so troublesome to them; and after she had renewed her request to him; see Mat 15:23.

Let the children first be filled: according to this method, our Lord directed his apostles, and they proceeded: as he himself was sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, he ordered his disciples to go to them, and preach the Gospel to them, and work miracles among them; and not go in the way of the Gentiles, nor into any of the cities of the Samaritans; but when they had gone through the cities of Judea, he ordered them, after his resurrection, to go into all the world, and preach the Gospel to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem: and this order they observed in other places, where there were Jews; they first preached to them, and then to the Gentiles; knowing that it was necessary, that the word of God should be first spoken to them; and it was the power of God to the Jew first, and then to the Gentile: and the expression here used, though it gives the preference to the Jew, does not exclude the Gentile; nay, it supposes, that after the Jews had had the doctrines of Christ, confirmed by his miracles, sufficiently ministered unto them, for the gathering in the chosen ones among them, and to leave the rest inexcusable; and so long as until they should despise it, and put it away from them, judging themselves unworthy of it; that then the Gentiles should have plenty of Gospel provisions set before them, and should eat of them, and be filled; and should have a large number of miracles wrought among them, and a fulness of the blessings of grace bestowed on them. The Jews are meant, who were the children of God by national adoption; who were first to be filled with the doctrines and miracles of Christ, before the Gentiles were to have them among them; as they were, even to a loathing and contempt of them:

for it is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it unto the dogs: as by "the children" are meant the Israelites, who were not only the children of Abraham by natural descent, but the children of God, to whom pertained the adoption, by virtue of the national covenant made with them; so by "the dogs", are meant the Gentiles, who were reckoned as such by the Jews; and by the "bread", which it was not fit and proper should be taken from the one for the present, and cast to the other, is designed the ministry of the Gospel; which is as bread, solid, substantial, wholesome, and nourishing; and the miraculous cures wrought on the bodies of men, which accompanied it: now it was not meet and convenient as yet, that these things should be taken away from the Jewish nation, until they had answered the ends for which they were designed, and the Jews should express their loathing and abhorrence of them: which when they did, they were taken away from them, and were ministered to the nations of the world, they contemptuously called dogs; See Gill on Mat 15:26.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

26 The woman was a Greek, a Syrophenician by nation; and she besought him that he would cast forth the devil out of her daughter.

Ver. 26. A Greek] i.e. a Gentile, as Rom 2:9, profane by profession; a Canaanite, St Matthew saith she was: confer Zec 14:21.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The woman was a Greek (that is, a Gentile, not a Jew) a Syrophenician or Canaanite. Canaan was also called Syrophenicia, as lying between Syria, properly so called, and Phenicia.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

Greek

(See Scofield "Mat 15:21")

The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

26. Ἑλληνίς, Συροφοινίκισσα τῷ γένει. A Greek-speaking woman, a Phoenician of Syria by race. In this context, Ἑλληνίς can hardly mean anything else (Act 17:12). She spoke Greek, but she was not a Greek. The conversation, like that with Pilate, would be in Greek. Syr-Sin. has “a widow, from the borders of Tyre of Phoenicia.” These Phoenicians came from the Canaanites, and Mt. calls her Χαναναία. The Clem. Hom. (ii. 19, iii. 73, iv. 6) calls her Justa, and her daughter Bernice. Syr-Sin. omits Ἑλληνίς and τῷ γένει.

ἠρώτα αὐτὸν ἵνα. See on Mar 3:9. The change from aor. (προσέπεσεν) to imperf. is accurate. Mt. gives her words, in which she addresses Him as “Son of David,” an address which Mk does not record until the healing of Bartimaeus, near the time of the Passion (Mar 10:47-48). In Mt. the woman makes three appeals, of which Mk omits one and also the appeal of the disciples that He would grant her request and send her away.

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

26.] Σύρα Φ., because there were also Λιβυφοίνικες, Carthaginians.

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

26. Ἑλληνίς, Συροφοινίκισσα τῷ γένει—a Greek, a Syrophœnician by race. That is, she was in general a Gentile, and more particularly a Syrophœnician.

Ἑλληνίς is literally, a Greek, but used by the Jews to designate any Gentile, owing to the wide diffusion of the Greek race and language. Syrophœnician is a more particular designation of the race to which she belonged. The prefix denotes that part of Phœnicia which belonged to Syria, in distinction from Libophœnicia, or the Carthaginian district in the north of Africa.

Συροφοινίκισσα, instead of Συροφοίνισσα, Tisch. WH. txt. א AKLS marg. V marg. ΔΠ 1.

καὶ ἠρώτα αὐτὸν ἵνα … ἐκβάλῃ—and she asked him to cast out.1

ἐκβάλῃ, instead of ἐκβάλλῃ, Tisch. Treg. WH. א ABDE, etc.

International Critical Commentary — older volumes (1896–1929), various authors — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Syro - Phoenician. Phoenician of Syria, as distinguished from a Libyo - Phoenician of North Africa, Libya being often used for Africa.

Marvin R. Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament (1887–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.