Matthew 15:28

My Notes

What Does Matthew 15:28 Mean?

"Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour." After the silence, after the apparent rejection, after the 'dogs' metaphor — Jesus breaks through with the highest commendation he gives anyone in the Gospels: great is thy faith. Not adequate faith. Not surprising faith. Great faith. The word "great" (megalē) is the same word used for the great commandment and the great tribulation. The Canaanite woman's faith ranks with the greatest things in Jesus' vocabulary.

"Be it unto thee even as thou wilt" gives the woman the blank check no one else in the Gospels receives. Whatever you want. Done. The faith that endured silence and hostility is rewarded with unlimited authorization.

Reflection Questions

• 1.What makes this woman's faith 'great' — and how does it compare to your response when Jesus seems silent?
• 2.What does the 'crumb theology' (the overflow is enough) teach about approaching God from a position of apparent exclusion?
• 3.When has your persistence through rejection produced a breakthrough you didn't expect?
• 4.What would 'be it unto thee even as thou wilt' look like in the specific need you're bringing to Jesus right now?

Devotional

Great is thy faith. Jesus says it to a Canaanite woman. A Gentile. A foreigner. A person with zero covenant credentials. The person every system said should be last receives the commendation nobody else in the Gospels receives: great faith.

Be it unto thee even as thou wilt. Whatever you want. Name it. Done. Jesus gives this woman a blank check — unlimited authorization based on the quality of her faith. No one else in the Gospels gets this. Not Peter. Not John. Not any of the twelve. A Canaanite woman who was just compared to a dog receives the broadest authorization Jesus ever gives.

The greatness of her faith is measured by what it endured. She was silent-treated by Jesus. She was told to leave by the disciples. She was apparently excluded by Jesus' mission statement (v. 24: "I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel"). She was compared to a dog. And she took every obstacle, every insult, every closed door — and turned them into arguments for why she deserved the crumbs. Not the feast. The crumbs. Because even the crumbs from Jesus' table are enough.

The crumb theology is the theology of the desperate: I don't need the full meal. I don't need the covenant position. I don't need the official invitation. I just need the overflow. The scraps. The leftovers of your mercy are more than enough for what I need. And Jesus calls that faith great.

Her daughter was made whole from that very hour. Instant. Complete. From that very hour — the hour that faith was declared great. The healing wasn't gradual. It was immediate. The authorization Jesus gave ("as thou wilt") produced the result the woman wanted at the speed the authorization allowed: now.

Great faith isn't the faith of the insider who's comfortable at the table. It's the faith of the outsider who won't leave the room even when everyone says she doesn't belong. The faith that turns rejection into persistence and insults into arguments. The faith that says: the crumbs are enough. And hears back: your faith is great. Take whatever you want.

Commentary

Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.

Cross References

Related passages throughout Scripture