Matthew 15:2

“Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? etc.] Having observed, for some little time, the conduct of Christ and his disciples, they thought proper to take no notice of him as yet, but of them; and of them, not as transgressing any command of God, but of men; not being able to charge them with any breach of the law of God: and could they have done this with any show of truth, yet they might choose rather to accuse them of breaking the rules of the elders; by whom they mean, not the elders of the present sanhedrim, but Hillell and Shammai; the two heads of their famous schools, and other ancient doctors; from whom were delivered by one to another, certain rules and laws of…”

“Why do thy disciples transgress the tradition of the elders? for they wash not their hands when they eat bread.”

“See also Mark 7:1-9. Then came to Jesus ... - Mark says that they saw the disciples of Jesus eating with unwashed hands. Matthew 15:2 Transgress the tradition of the elders - The world “elders” literally means “old men.” Here it means the “ancients,” or their “ancestors.” The “tradition of the elders” meant something handed down from one to another by memory; some precept or custom not commanded in the written law, but which scribes and Pharisees held themselves bound to observe. They supposed that when Moses was on Mount Sinai two sets of laws were delivered to him: one, they said, was recorded, and is that contained in the Old Testament; the other was handed down from father to son, and…”

“The elders - The chief doctors or, teachers among the Jews. Matthew 15:3”

“15:2 The Jewish teachers’ age-old tradition sought to apply the written Torah to common circumstances in the ordinary course of life. This tradition was memorized and passed on orally from teacher to student (cp. 1 Cor 11:23; 15:1-5). • To ignore the tradition of . . . hand washing (see Mark 7:2-4; Luke 11:38) was considered disobedient to the Torah and unfaithful to God’s will for Israel (cp. Matt 23:25-26).”

“transgress: Mar 7:2, Mar 7:5; Gen 1:14; Col 2:8, Col 2:20-23; Pe1 1:18 tradition: Tradition, in Latin traditio from trado I deliver, hand down, exactly agreeing with the original παραδοσις \[Strong's G3862\], from παραδιδωμι \[Strong's G3860\], I deliver, transmit. Among the Jews it signifies what is called oral law, which they say has been successively handed down from Moses, through every generation, to Judah the Holy, who compiled and digested it into the Mishneh, to explain which the two Gemaras, or Talmuds, called the Jerusalem and Babylonish, were composed. Of the estimation in which these were held by the Jews, the following may serve as an example: "The words of the Scribes are…”