Matthew 15:26. It is not meet. The reply is not harsh, nor is it a refusal (Mark: ‘Let the children first be fed'). It calls forth the woman's faith, and convinces the disciples that it is ‘proper' to bless this heathen woman.

To take (lit., ‘to take away') the children's bread. All present understood this as referring to the blessings provided for the Jews.

To the dogs, lit., ‘little dogs.' A reference to the large savage dogs so common in the East, would be very contemptuous; household dogs are meant; a sense the woman skilfully used.

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Old Testament