On one occasion a Gentile woman begged him to cure her badly demonized daughter. In three different ways, Jesus initially indicated that he was not going to help her​—first, by refraining from answering her; second, by stating directly that he was sent forth, not to the Gentiles, but to the Jews; and third, by giving an illustration that kindly made the same point. However, the woman persisted through all of this, giving evidence of extraordinary faith. In the light of this exceptional circumstance, Jesus could see that this was no time to enforce a general rule; it was time to bend in response to higher principles.a Thus, Jesus did exactly what he had three times indicated he would not do. He cured the woman’s daughter!​—Matthew 15:21-28.

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When a woman showed extraordinary faith, Jesus saw that it was no time to enforce a general rule