Syrophoenician Woman

Biblical Account

The story of the Syrophoenician woman appears in Mark 7:24-30 and Matthew 15:21-28. Scripture does not give her name. Syrophoenician means "Phoenician of Syria." The term refers to the Phoenician coastal region within the Roman province of Syria, corresponding roughly to present-day southern Lebanon.

According to Mark, Jesus entered the region of Tyre and wished to remain hidden, but "he could not be hid." A woman whose young daughter had an unclean spirit fell at his feet and pleaded with him. Mark describes her as "a Greek, a Syrophenician by nation." Jesus replied that "it is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it unto the dogs." The woman accepted this, saying, "Yes, Lord," yet answered that "the dogs under the table eat of the children's crumbs." Jesus told her, "For this saying go thy way," and when she returned home, she found that the demon had gone out of her daughter.

Matthew calls her a woman of Canaan. In Matthew's account, the woman cries out, "O Lord, thou Son of David." Jesus at first did not answer her, and the disciples urged him to send her away. Jesus said that he was "not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel." At the end of the same exchange, Jesus declared, "O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt," and her daughter was made whole from that very hour.

Significance Within Scripture

Both Gospels place this story immediately after the dispute over clean and unclean (Mark 7:18-19) and before the ministry that continues in Gentile territory and the feeding of the multitude. For this reason, the passage is read as illustrating the movement by which the gospel is opened to the Gentiles. In Matthew, the only people praised for great faith are this woman and the Gentile centurion (Matthew 8:10). Her story also stands in contrast to Matthew 14:31, where Peter is addressed as "O thou of little faith."

Interpretation and Points of Discussion

• Jesus' harsh words: Traditionally, these words are read as a means of testing the woman's faith and bringing it to light, reflecting the order of salvation history, "to the Jew first." Some scholars soften the sharpness of the expression by noting that the original word for "dog" (Greek kynarion) refers to a small household dog. Some modern scholars, particularly in feminist theology, emphasize that the woman's reply drew forth Jesus' response.
• The nature of faith: Emphasis is placed on her attitude of humbly acknowledging her position while persistently seeking help. The text says nothing about how she lived afterward.
• Later traditions: The early Christian writing known as the Pseudo-Clementine Homilies is reported to give the woman's name as Justa and her daughter's as Bernice. These are later traditions not found in the biblical text.

In the Korean Church

In Korean Protestant churches, this passage is frequently used in sermons on persistent prayer, humble faith, and intercessory prayer for one's children. The woman is especially often presented as a model of a mother praying for her child. Together with other figures from outside Israel, such as the Samaritan woman and Cornelius, she is also discussed under the theme of the gospel crossing ethnic boundaries.