Matthew 15:23 Commentary and Bible Study

The Lord Jesus Christ. first of all answered her not a word. He said nothing to her. It would be unfair to say he ignored her; there is no note of that. He would have looked at her on the ground at his feet, but he was silent. And yet she did not give up. He was the Messiah, the man of compassion. She could see it in his eyes. He had sympathy; he had compassion. He looked at her, but he said nothing and she wondered what to make of this. Was she being refused or wasn’t she? Not a word came from the Lord, and yet by his look, she saw he was his usual entirely compassionate self. But when she got no answer, she turned to the disciples. They wanted to send her away. They seem to have concluded that the Lord was not going to deal with her, and yet she was persisting. It was upsetting them. She needed to hear it from his lips that he would not deal with her, and so they ask him to send her away. Was she hoping the disciples could heal her daughter? Oh no, she was surely trying to prevail on the disciples to persuade Christ to hear her, and to respond to her. She thought they would have some influence on him, so she came after them. Perhaps she wondered if she had the wrong protocol, the wrong approach, and that they needed to introduce her to him or something of that kind. So she appeals to them. But they are filled with impatience: ‘Lord, send her away.’