The children
in his statement in Matthew 15:26 are the Jews, the natural sons of the kingdom (see Matthew 8:12), and the children of the house of Israel built by God himself (Matthew 10:6, Matthew 15:24). The dogs
are the Gentiles, but the term is not an insult. The word used here, kunaria, refers to little house dogs or puppies that are allowed inside the home and are given scraps of bread so they do not starve. The image shows the difference in order and portion between the children and the dogs at the household table. Jesus is restating the principle stated in Matthew 15:24: first to the Jew (see Mark 7:27). Dogs
does not mean the despised, wandering scavengers commonly roaming in Palestine (see Philippians 3:2; Revelation 22:15). Jesus thus does not draw a chasm between Israel and the nations. There is both a distinction and a relationship. Gentiles who come to Jesus are like household dogs that share the home and the company of the children. Similarly, the phrase it is not right
does not mean something forbidden, but rather something that must be kept in proper order: that the bread is first for the children. Jesus does not mean to show antithesis—that the bread is for people, not for dogs
—but rather to show a temporal order. Even if there were no domestic dogs at the time, it would still not mean that the dogs are being rejected, so the right of dogs to food is not the issue, but rather the priority of the children.
Jesus spoke sternly to the Jews, but when he spoke about them—and to the Gentiles—he spoke with kindness. The children
in his statement here in Matthew 15:26 refer to the Jews, the natural sons of the kingdom (see Matthew 8:12), and the children of the house of Israel built by God himself (Matthew 10:6, Matthew 15:24). The dogs
here refer to the Gentiles. Yet the term is not meant as an insult. The word used here, kunaria, refers to little house dogs or puppies that are allowed inside the home and are given scraps of bread so that they do not starve. The image, therefore, serves only to illustrate the difference in order and portion between the children and the dogs at the household table. Jesus here reaffirms the same principle stated earlier in Matthew 15:24: first to the Jew (see Mark 7:27)1.
The term is not meant to be contemptuous, for kunaria means lapdog
or house dog.
We must not think of the despised, wandering scavengers commonly roaming in Palestine (see Philippians 3:2; Revelation 22:15). Jesus therefore does not draw an unbridgeable gulf between Israel and the nations. Though there remains a clear distinction, there is also a type of relationship, as Gentiles who come to Jesus are likened to household dogs that share the home and the company of the children. Similarly, the expression it is not right
does not denote something impossible or forbidden, but rather something that must be kept in proper order: that the bread is first for the children.
In other words, the words of Jesus in Matthew 15:26 ought not to be understood in an antithetical sense, as if the bread is for people, not for dogs,
but rather as indicating a temporal priority. Even if the position of some exegetes, namely that there were no domestic dogs at the time were to be accepted, it would still be true that the dogs referred to here are not being rejected. The right of dogs to food is therefore not the key issue, but rather the priority of the children.2
26 Il répondit: Il n'est pas bien de prendre le pain des enfants, et de le jeter aux petits chiens.