August 16, 2026; Isaiah 56:1,6-7

Please read the passage before the commentary.

ish. She had no standing in the Jewish community.  She recognizes Jesus as Lord, that is as the God of Israel.  She also calls him Son of David and recognizes him as the long-awaited Christ figure who would fulfill all the hopes of Israel.  Both of these names are dear to God’s people.

She admits that dogs lick up the scraps that fall from the master’s table.

Observe what the prophet Isaiah says about his future.  Foreigners, like this Canaanite woman and her daughter, who love the name of the Lord and become the Lord’s servants (or slaves), and who hold to his covenant, the Lord would bring to his holy mountain and make them at home among God’s people.

Jesus may seem to have discriminated against the Canaanite woman, but in the end, Jesus praises her faith and grants her request.

Who are the Canaanite women in our lives?  Who are the foreigners in our lives?  Who are the ones we want to throw away, discard, disown, or marginalize in our lives?

Is it possible that we could be like the Canaanite woman, begging for God’s mercy, looking or scraps, whereas God is looking to feed us with the main course from God’s own table?

Observe what the prophet Isaiah said about the future.  See its fulfilment in the Canaanite woman.  See its fulfilment in our own lives where God has called us through Christ to share his life, his banquet, his family, his home with each one of us.