18 And he says to them, Are ye also thus unintelligent? Do ye not perceive that all that is outside entering into the man cannot defile him, 19 because it does not enter into his heart but into his belly, and goes out into the draught, purging all meats? 20 And he said, That which goes forth out of the man, that defiles the man. 21 For from within, out of the heart of men, go forth evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, 22 thefts, covetousness, wickednesses, deceit, licentiousness, a wicked eye, injurious language, haughtiness, folly; 23 all these wicked things go forth from within and defile the man.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Mark 7:18-23
Commentary on Mark 7:14-23
(Read Mark 7:14-23)
Our wicked thoughts and affections, words and actions, defile us, and these only. As a corrupt fountain sends forth corrupt streams, so does a corrupt heart send forth corrupt reasonings, corrupt appetites and passions, and all the wicked words and actions that come from them. A spiritual understanding of the law of God, and a sense of the evil of sin, will cause a man to seek for the grace of the Holy Spirit, to keep down the evil thoughts and affections that work within.