◄ Mark 7:31 ►
Then Jesus left the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee and into the region of the Decapolis.
Study Bible
Then Jesus left the region of Tyre

This phrase indicates a transition in Jesus' ministry. Tyre was a significant Phoenician city, known for its wealth and trade. Jesus' presence here highlights His ministry's reach beyond Jewish territories, emphasizing the inclusivity of His message. This movement also fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah 42:6, where the Messiah is a light to the Gentiles.

Mat 15:21 Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the district…
Isa 23:1 This is the burden against Tyre: Wail, O ships of Tarshish,…
Ezk 26:2 Son of man, because Tyre has said of Jerusalem,…

and went through Sidon

Sidon, like Tyre, was a prominent Phoenician city. Jesus' journey through Sidon further underscores His mission to reach Gentile populations. This route is unusual, as it takes Him north before heading south again, suggesting a deliberate choice to engage with these regions. It reflects the theme of God's salvation extending to all nations, as seen in the Abrahamic covenant (Genesis 12:3).

Act 27:3 The next day we landed at Sidon, and Julius treated Paul…
Mrk 3:8 Jerusalem, Idumea, the region beyond the Jordan…
Luk 6:17 Then Jesus came down with them and stood on a level place.…

to the Sea of Galilee

The Sea of Galilee is central to Jesus' ministry, serving as the backdrop for many miracles and teachings. It is a freshwater lake, vital for the surrounding communities. This location is significant for its Jewish population, contrasting with the Gentile regions of Tyre and Sidon. The return to Galilee marks a shift back to a predominantly Jewish audience, aligning with Jesus' initial mission focus (Matthew 15:24).

Mat 15:29 Moving on from there, Jesus went along the Sea of Galilee.…
Mat 4:18 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee,…
Jhn 6:1 After this, Jesus crossed to the other side…

and into the region of the Decapolis.

The Decapolis was a group of ten cities on the eastern frontier of the Roman Empire, predominantly Gentile in culture and governance. This area was known for its Hellenistic influence, with Greek language and customs prevalent. Jesus' entry into the Decapolis signifies His authority and message transcending cultural and religious boundaries. It also foreshadows the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19), where the disciples are instructed to make disciples of all nations.

Mrk 5:20 So the man went away and began to proclaim.…
Mat 4:25 Large crowds followed Him, having come from Galilee,…

Persons / Places / Events
1. Jesus
The central figure of the New Testament, the Son of God, who performs miracles and teaches about the Kingdom of God.

2. Tyre
A city in ancient Phoenicia, known for its wealth and commerce, located in what is now Lebanon.

3. Sidon
Another ancient Phoenician city, north of Tyre, also in modern-day Lebanon.

4. Sea of Galilee
A freshwater lake in Israel, significant in Jesus' ministry as a place where He performed miracles and taught.

5. Decapolis
A group of ten cities on the eastern frontier of the Roman Empire, known for their Greek culture and influence.
Teaching Points
Jesus' Intentional Ministry
Jesus' journey through Gentile regions like Tyre, Sidon, and the Decapolis demonstrates His mission to reach all people, not just the Jews. This challenges us to broaden our outreach and embrace diversity in our ministry efforts.

Breaking Cultural Barriers
By traveling through predominantly Gentile areas, Jesus breaks cultural and religious barriers. We are called to follow His example by engaging with people from different backgrounds and cultures, showing God's love to all.

Fulfillment of Prophecy
Jesus' actions in healing and teaching fulfill Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah. This reinforces the reliability of Scripture and encourages us to trust in God's promises.

The Importance of Geography in Ministry
Jesus' strategic movement through various regions highlights the importance of being intentional about where we minister. We should seek God's guidance in where He wants us to serve and be open to His leading.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does Jesus' journey through Tyre, Sidon, and the Decapolis reflect His mission to reach all nations, and how can we apply this in our own lives?

2. In what ways does Jesus' ministry in Gentile regions challenge our understanding of cultural and religious boundaries?

3. How does the fulfillment of prophecy in Jesus' ministry strengthen your faith in the reliability of Scripture?

4. What can we learn from Jesus' intentional travel routes about being strategic in our own ministry efforts?

5. How can we ensure that our outreach efforts are inclusive and reflect the diversity of God's kingdom?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Matthew 15:29-31
This passage parallels Mark 7:31 and provides additional context to Jesus' journey and the miracles He performed in the region.

Isaiah 35:5-6
This Old Testament prophecy speaks of the Messiah's healing works, which are fulfilled in Jesus' ministry, including His actions in the Decapolis.

Acts 10:34-35
Peter's realization that God shows no favoritism and accepts those from every nation who fear Him connects to Jesus' ministry in Gentile regions like the Decapolis.
Sermons
A Miracle of RestorationJ.J. Given Mark 7:31-37
Alone with JesusW. Forsyth, M. A.Mark 7:31-37
Bringing Men to JesusH. J. Wilmot Buxton, M. A.Mark 7:31-37
Christ the Opener of Locked DoorsBishop Boyd Carpenter.Mark 7:31-37
Christ's SighH. J. Wilmot Buxton, M. A.Mark 7:31-37
Deaf MutesR. Glover.Mark 7:31-37
EphphathaT. D. Bernard.Mark 7:31-37
EphphathaA.F. Muir Mark 7:31-37
Glimpses of JesusW. Forsyth, M. A.Mark 7:31-37
He Took Him AsideF. R. Wynne, M. A.Mark 7:31-37
He Took Him AsideW. Denton, M. A.Mark 7:31-37
Healing the Deaf and Dumb ManT. M. Lindsay, D. D.Mark 7:31-37
His Ears Were OpenedPontanus.Mark 7:31-37
Impediment in SpeechH. J. Wilmot Buxton, M. A.Mark 7:31-37
Leading Our Friends to JesusDr. Arndt.Mark 7:31-37
Leading Our Friends to JesusAnon.Mark 7:31-37
Love and SorrowJ. P. Barnett.Mark 7:31-37
Meaning of Christ's ActionH. Melvill, B. D.Mark 7:31-37
SighsQuesnel.Mark 7:31-37
Sorrow in HealingC. J. Vaughan, D. D.Mark 7:31-37
The Abuses and Uses of SpeechCanon S. R. Hole.Mark 7:31-37
The Deaf and DumbE. Johnson Mark 7:31-37
The Deaf Man CuredD. Moore, M. A.Mark 7:31-37
The Healing of the Deaf and Dumb ManR. Green Mark 7:31-37
The Heavy Ear and Speech of FaithDean Bramston.Mark 7:31-37
The Pattern of ServiceA. Maclaren, D. D.Mark 7:31-37
The Saviour's SighT. R. Stevenson.Mark 7:31-37
The Sigh of ApprehensionH. J. Wilmot Buxton, M. A.Mark 7:31-37
The Sigh of Disappointed DesireH. Melvill, B. D.Mark 7:31-37
The Sigh of JesusJ. Vaughan, M. A.Mark 7:31-37
The Sigh of JesusC. S. Robinson, D. D.Mark 7:31-37
The Successive Steps in the Conversion of the SinnerW. Denton, M. A.Mark 7:31-37
The Touch of ChristThe Quiver.Mark 7:31-37
Why Jesus SighedCanon F. W. Farrar, D. D., J. A. Seiss, D. D.Mark 7:31-37
Words not Necessary to PrayerG. Hunt Jackson.Mark 7:31-37
People
Esaias, Isaiah, Jesus
Places
Decapolis, Galilee, Jerusalem, Sea of Galilee, Sidon, Tyre
Topics
Borders, Coasts, Decapolis, Decap'olis, Departed, Departing, District, Forth, Galilee, Lake, Midst, Neighbourhood, Passing, Region, Returned, Returning, Sidon, Ten, Towns, Tyre, Within
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Mark 7:31-37

     5168   muteness
     5285   cures
     5296   disabilities

Library
The Pattern of Service
'He touched his tongue; and looking up to heaven, He sighed, and saith Ephphatha, that is, Be opened.'--Mark vii 33, 34. For what reason was there this unwonted slowness in Christ's healing works? For what reason was there this unusual emotion ere He spoke the word which cleansed? As to the former question, a partial answer may perhaps be that our Lord is here on half-heathen ground, where aids to faith were much needed, and His power had to be veiled that it might be beheld. Hence the miracle is …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Children and Little Dogs
'And from thence He arose, and went into the borders of Tyre and Sidon, and entered Into an house, and would have no man know it: but He could not be hid. 25. For a certain woman, whose young daughter had an unclean spirit, heard of Him, and came and fell at His feet: 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. 87. But Jesus said unto her, Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the children's …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Influence of Tradition.
"Making the word of God of none effect through your traditions: and many such like things ye do."--ST. MARK vii. 13. Such was our Lord's word to the Pharisees; and if we turn to our own life it is difficult if not impossible for us fully to estimate the influence which traditions exercise upon it. They are so woven into the web of thought and opinion, and daily habits and practices, that none of us can claim to escape them. Moreover, as any institution or society grows older, this influence of the …
John Percival—Sermons at Rugby

Second Sermon for the Twelfth Sunday after Trinity
(From the Gospel for the day) This sermon tells us how a man who truly loves God, whose ears have been opened to receive the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit, is neither lifted up in joy nor cast down in sorrow. Mark vii. 37.--"He hath done all things well: He maketh both the deaf to hear and the dumb to speak." WE read in the Gospel for this day, that as our blessed Lord was going from one place to another, they brought unto Him a man who was born deaf and dumb; as must needs be; for he who is …
Susannah Winkworth—The History and Life of the Reverend Doctor John Tauler

Deaf Ears and Stammering Tongues.
(Twelfth Sunday after Trinity.) S. MARK vii. 37. "He hath done all things well. He maketh both the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak." Such was the verdict of the people who saw one of our Lord's miracles. How far more strongly may we say the same, having seen the work of Christ in the life of the Church at large, and in each of our individual souls! We cannot look on the world of nature without echoing the words of the text. No thoughtful man can mark the spring-time coming to the woods and …
H. J. Wilmot-Buxton—The Life of Duty, a Year's Plain Sermons, v. 2

Perfection to be Sought.
12th Sunday after Trinity. S. Mark vii., 37. "He hath done all things well." INTRODUCTION.--It was said by an old heathen writer that God cares for Adverbs rather than for Substantives. That is to say, God had rather have things done well, than that the things should be merely done. He had rather have you pray earnestly than pray, communicate piously than merely communicate, forgive your enemies heartily than say you forgive, work diligently than spend so many hours at work, do your duty thoroughly …
S. Baring-Gould—The Village Pulpit, Volume II. Trinity to Advent

The Sighs of Christ
(Twelfth Sunday after Trinity.) Mark vii. 34, 35. And looking up to heaven, he sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain. Why did the Lord Jesus look up to heaven? And why, too, did he sigh? He looked up to heaven, we may believe, because he looked to God the Father; to God, of whom the glorious collect tells us, that he is more ready to hear than we to pray, and is wont to give more …
Charles Kingsley—Town and Country Sermons

The Deaf and Dumb.
ST MARK VII. 32-37. And they bring unto Jesus one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech; and they beseech Him to put His hand upon him. And He took him aside from the multitude, and put His fingers into his ears, and He spit, and touched his tongue; and looking up to heaven, He sighed, and said, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. And straightway his ears were opened, and the string of his tongue was loosed, and he spake plain. . . . And they were beyond measure astonished, saying, He hath …
Charles Kingsley—Westminster Sermons

Things which Defile
"And He called to Him the multitude again, and said unto them, Hear Me all of you, and understand: there is nothing from without the man, that going into him can defile him: but the things which proceed out of the man are those that defile the man. And when He was entered into the house from the multitude, His disciples asked of Him the parable. And He saith unto them, Are ye so without understanding also? Perceive ye not, that whatsoever from without goeth into the man, it cannot defile him; because …
G. A. Chadwick—The Gospel of St. Mark

The Children and the Dogs
"And from thence He arose, and went away into the borders of Tyre and Sidon. And He entered into a house, and would have no man know it; and He could not be hid. But straightway a woman, whose little daughter had an unclean spirit, having heard of Him, came and fell down at His feet. Now the woman was a Greek, a Syrophoenician by race. And she besought Him that He would cast forth the devil out of her daughter. And He said unto her, Let the children first be filled: for it is not meet to take the …
G. A. Chadwick—The Gospel of St. Mark

The Deaf and Dumb Man
"And again He went out from the borders of Tyre, and came through Sidon unto the sea of Galilee, through the midst of the borders of Decapolis. And they bring unto Him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech; and they beseech Him to lay His hand upon him. And He took him aside from the multitude privately, and put His fingers into his ears, and He spat, and touched his tongue; and looking up to heaven, He sighed, and saith unto him, Ephphatha, that is, Be opened. And his ears were …
G. A. Chadwick—The Gospel of St. Mark

The Law.
ITS NATURE AND EFFECTS. THE law is the chief and most pure resemblance of the justice and holiness of the heavenly Majesty, and doth hold forth to all men the sharpness and keenness of his wrath. This is the rule and line and plummet whereby every act of every man shall be measured; and he whose righteousness is not found every way answerable to this law, which all will fall short of but they that have the righteousness of God by faith in Jesus Christ, he must perish. The law is spiritual, I am carnal. …
John Bunyan—The Riches of Bunyan

Protesting Our Innocence?
We have all become so used to condemning the proud self-righteous attitude of the Pharisee in the parable of the Pharisee and the Publican,[footnote1:Luke 18:9-14] that we can hardly believe that the picture of him there is meant to apply to us--which only shows how much like him we really are. The Sunday School teacher was never so much a Pharisee, as when she finished her lesson on this parable with the words, "And now, children, we can thank God that we are not as this Pharisee!" In particular …
Roy Hession and Revel Hession—The Calvary Road

Second Withdrawal from Herod's Territory.
^A Matt. XV. 21; ^B Mark VII. 24. ^b 24 And from thence ^a Jesus ^b arose, and went ^a out ^b away ^a and withdrew into the parts { ^b borders} of Tyre and Sidon. [The journey here is indicated in marked terms because it differs from any previously recorded, for it was the first time that Jesus ever entered a foreign or heathen country. Some commentators contend from the use of the word "borders" by Mark that Jesus did not cross over the boundary, but the point is not well taken, for Mark vii. 31 …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Another Avoiding of Herod's Territory.
^A Matt. XV. 29; ^B Mark VII. 31. ^b 31 And ^a Jesus ^b again went out. ^a And departed thence, ^b from the borders of Tyre, and came through Sidon, ^a and came nigh unto the sea of Galilee; ^b through the midst of the borders of Decapolis. ^a and he went up into a mountain, and sat down there. [From Tyre Jesus proceeded northward to Sidon and thence eastward across the mountains and the headwaters of the Jordan to the neighborhood of Damascus. Here he turned southward and approached the Sea of Galilee …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Jesus Fails to Attend the Third Passover.
Scribes Reproach Him for Disregarding Tradition. (Galilee, Probably Capernaum, Spring a.d. 29.) ^A Matt. XV. 1-20; ^B Mark VII. 1-23; ^D John VII. 1. ^d 1 And after these things Jesus walked in Galilee: for he would not walk in Judæa, because the Jews sought to kill him. [John told us in his last chapter that the passover was near at hand. He here makes a general statement which shows that Jesus did not attend this passover. The reason for his absence is given at John v. 18.] ^a 1 Then there …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Healing a Phoenician Woman's Daughter.
(Region of Tyre and Sidon.) ^A Matt. XV. 22-28; ^B Mark VII. 24-30. ^b And he entered into a house, and would have no man know it [Jesus sought concealment for the purposes noted in the last section. He also, no doubt, desired an opportunity to impact private instruction to the twelve]; and he could not be hid. [The fame of Jesus had spread far and wide, and he and his disciples were too well known to escape the notice of any who had seen them or heard them described.] 25 But { ^a 22 And} behold, …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Deaf Stammerer Healed and Four Thousand Fed.
^A Matt. XV. 30-39; ^B Mark VII. 32-VIII. 9. ^b 32 And they bring unto him one that was deaf, and had an impediment in his speech [The man had evidently learned to speak before he lost his hearing. Some think that defective hearing had caused the impediment in his speech, but verse 35 suggests that he was tongue-tied]; and they beseech him to put his hand upon him. 33 And he took him aside from the multitude privately, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat, and touched his tongue [He separated …
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Cavils of the Pharisees Concerning Purification, and the Teaching of the Lord Concerning Purity - the Traditions Concerning Hand-Washing' and Vows. '
As we follow the narrative, confirmatory evidence of what had preceded springs up at almost every step. It is quite in accordance with the abrupt departure of Jesus from Capernaum, and its motives, that when, so far from finding rest and privacy at Bethsaida (east of the Jordan), a greater multitude than ever had there gathered around Him, which would fain have proclaimed Him King, He resolved on immediate return to the western shore, with the view of seeking a quieter retreat, even though it were …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

Jesus and the Syro-Phoenician Woman
THE purpose of Christ to withdraw His disciples from the excitement of Galilee, and from what might follow the execution of the Baptist, had been interrupted by the events at Bethsaida-Julias, but it was not changed. On the contrary, it must have been intensified. That wild, popular outburst, which had almost forced upon Him a Jewish Messiah-Kingship; the discussion with the Jerusalem Scribes about the washing of hands on the following day; the Discourses of the Sabbath, and the spreading disaffection, …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

A Group of Miracles among a Semi-Heathen Population
If even the brief stay of Jesus in that friendly Jewish home by the borders of Tyre could not remain unknown, the fame of the healing of the Syro-Phoenician maiden would soon have rendered impossible that privacy and retirement, which had been the chief object of His leaving Capernaum. Accordingly, when the two Paschal days were ended, He resumed His journey, extending it far beyond any previously undertaken, perhaps beyond what had been originally intended. The borders of Palestine proper, though …
Alfred Edersheim—The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah

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