Then
Jesus answered her, “Woman, great is your faith! Be it done to you even as you desire.” And her daughter was healed from that hour.
Matthew 15:28
Matthew 15 [27.] But she said, “Yes, Lord, but even the dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.”
Matthew 15 [28.] Then Jesus answered her, “Woman, great is your faith! Be it done to you even as you desire.” And her daughter was healed from that hour.
Matthew 15 [29.] Jesus departed there, and came near to the sea of Galilee; and he went up into the mountain, and sat there. Great multitudes came to him, having with them the lame, blind, mute, maimed, and many others, and they put them down at his feet. He healed them, so that the multitude wondered when they saw the mute speaking, injured whole, lame walking, and blind seeing—and they glorified the God of Israel.
Meaning:
This verse is the joyful climax of Jesus' meeting with a Canaanite mother near Tyre and Sidon. After silence, a statement about his mission to Israel, and a hard saying about the children's bread, Jesus now praises her faith in the warmest terms and grants her request. Her daughter is healed at that very hour.
- "Woman, Great Is Your Faith!"
Jesus rarely praised anyone's faith as "great." The other person who received such praise was also a Gentile, the Roman centurion, of whom Jesus said, "I haven’t found so great a faith, not even in Israel" (Matthew 8:10-13). By contrast, Jesus often had to tell his own disciples, "You of little faith" (Matthew 14:29-31). Matthew, writing especially for Jewish readers, does not hide the fact that two outsiders displayed the faith that Israel's leaders lacked.
What made her faith great? It was humble: she accepted Jesus' words and called him "Lord." It was persistent: she kept asking despite silence and discouragement. And it was confident: she believed that even a crumb of his mercy would be enough (Mark 7:28). Great faith is not great because of the person who has it, but because of the great Lord in whom it trusts.
- "Be It Done to You Even as You Desire"
Jesus gives her exactly what she asked for. Her desire was not selfish; it was a mother's longing for her child's freedom. Mark records his words, "For this saying, go your way. The demon has gone out of your daughter" (Mark 7:29). Matthew's wording emphasizes Jesus' generous response to faith, much like his word to the centurion: "Let it be done for you as you have believed."
- Healed from That Hour
The healing took place at a distance and immediately. Mark adds that the mother went home and found the child lying on the bed, the demon gone (Mark 7:30). Matthew then describes Jesus returning to Galilee, where great crowds brought the lame, blind and mute, "and they glorified the God of Israel." The God of Israel was proving himself the God of all nations.
The Significance of Matthew 15:28
- Faith That Pleases God
"Without faith it is impossible to be well pleasing to him" (Hebrews 11:6). The Canaanite woman had no religious credentials, but she had faith, and that pleased the Lord. Our standing before God depends not on background but on trust in Jesus.
- Hope for Every Parent
This mother's persistence on behalf of her daughter encourages every parent who prays for a child. Like the father who cried, "Help my unbelief!" (Mark 9:24), we may come with weak or struggling faith, and still find Jesus ready to hear and to act.
Cross-References:
Matthew 8:13: "Jesus said to the centurion, “Go your way. Let it be done for you as you have believed.” His servant was healed in that hour." Another Gentile, another great faith, another healing at a distance.
Mark 7:28: "But she answered him, “Yes, Lord. Yet even the dogs under the table eat the children’s crumbs.”" Mark's record of the reply that Jesus praised.
Matthew 14:31: "Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand, took hold of him, and said to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?”" Even the disciples could show little faith where this woman showed great faith.
Hebrews 11:6: "Without faith it is impossible to be well pleasing to him, for he who comes to God must believe that he exists, and that he is a rewarder of those who seek him." God rewards those who seek him in faith.
Conclusion: Matthew 15:28 celebrates the great faith of a Gentile mother and the generous response of Jesus. Her humble, persistent trust was rewarded at once, and her daughter was set free. The verse invites everyone, whatever their background, to come to Jesus with confident faith in his mercy.
PIB Scriptures are derived from the World English Bible