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The Gospel of Matthew

Loaves are multiplied for the first time

Chapter 14:13-21

This was the first of four exits the Lord Jesus made from the area controlled by Herod Antipas (Galilee and Perea): the others are in chapters 15:21-28, 29-38 and 16:5-12. In all of them, He climbs mountains. On this occasion, the disciples had returned from their evangelistic mission in Galilee, and the third Passover close, one year before last, when Christ was crucified.

The reason to move away on this occasion was that He knew that Antipas had heard of His fame, and thought He was John the Baptist whom he had killed, now  perhaps raised from the dead.

This episode is the only one, before his last visit to Jerusalem, told in the four Gospels (Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-13), giving us ample testimony to the authenticity of this extraordinary event and stressing its importance.

Mark tells us that the Lord saw that His disciples were tired and unable to eat because of the movement, and invited them to go to a solitary place to rest a little. Starting from Capernaum, they went by boat to a desert place near a town called Bethsaida (Luke 9:10).

However, the crowds learned of it, and left their cities and came on foot to find them there, arriving even before them. They had already seen the signs that the Lord Jesus was doing, healing diseases, and were eager to hear Him again (Luke 9:11) and benefit from His power to heal.

Seeing them waiting, the Lord had compassion for them, "because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So he began to teach them many things"(Mark 6:34) and healed their sick. Then He climbed the mountain, and settled with His disciples.

From there they could see the crowds below. It was getting late. John tells us He looked up, saw the large crowd, and tested Philip, asking, "Where shall we buy bread that these may eat?"

Philip did a quick calculation, concluding that it would be a huge expense: more than 200 denarii for everyone to have a little (200 daily earnings of a handyman of those days) (John 6: 5-7). Then the disciples suggested that the Lord send the people away, so they could go to neighbouring villages to buy food. However, He told them “You give them something to eat”.  

The disciples said they had only five loaves and two fish, unless they went and bought food for all those people.  It seemed hard and not even advisable to obey orders of the Master in these conditions. He was wanting too much.

We have to make tough decisions, when obedience to the Lord seems to be beyond our possibilities. Like those disciples, it is easy for us to forget that He is all-powerful, and that, when He requires something from us, He has full power to supply what we lack.

The Lord Jesus then took over:

1. He ordered the loaves and fish to be brought to him. We have few resources to fulfil the task He assigned us, but the first thing we have to do is to put them at His feet so He can have them.

2. He ordered the crowd to settle down in the grass. It was necessary to have obedience, although they did not understand the purpose of it. Mark explains that they had to sit in groups of a hundred and fifty, which made it easier to count them and to serve them. It was done with a lot of order, because the Lord Jesus was the One who was ordering, and there had been great expectations, a figure of the Gospel that is a feast for the people (Isaiah 25:6).

3. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, He raised His eyes to heaven and blessed them. We always thank God for the food we eat, because all of our supply comes from Him, and we ask His blessing on our meals, as the Lord Jesus blessed those loaves and fish (1 Timothy 4:3-5, Acts 27:35).

4. He "broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them" (Mark 6:41). There were about five thousand men, besides women and children. God supplies our material and spiritual needs, and He uses His servants to convey spiritual supplies for His people, as the disciples did here. The Gospel was first preached by the apostles, and continues until today being preached by men that are the gift of the Spirit to the church of Christ on earth.

5. Similarly, He divided the two fish; all ate and were satisfied or satiated as John informs us. It was not just a small snack, but there was plenty for all. It reminds us “the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abounded to many” (Romans 5:15), “supplying all our need according to His riches in glory” (Philippians 4:19). (Those who say that eating fish meat is a form of fasting are censoring the food that Christ gave on this occasion ...).

6. All satisfied, He told his disciples to collect what was left, so that nothing was lost. We should explain here that it was customary among the Jews always to  leave a little bread on the table after each meal, considering that not having anything left over was a curse of the wicked (Job 20:21). The disciples filled twelve baskets full of pieces left over, which is consistent with the crowd that had been present. They were fragments, not crumbs, of bread which had been broken by the Lord (Mark 6:41) and was not consumed, and fish (Marcos 6:43). There was no waste of the munificence of Christ. The Jews were very careful not to waste bread, or drop it on the ground to be trampled. Among them, there was a saying: "He who despises bread falls into the depths of poverty". Although Christ could commandeer supplies whenever he wanted, He made sure that the pieces were collected. When satisfied, we must remember that others may be in need, even ourselves.

7. The Jews had the custom of leaving something for those who served at the table, and here was a basket full for each apostle. They were thus paid generously for their readiness to give what they had for service of the public (see 2 Chronicles 31: 10).

Those who had eaten were about five thousand men, besides women and children, and  John 6:14 informs us that this extraordinary sign convinced those men that "He was truly the Prophet that was to come into the world ".

There was a great expectation among the people at that time about the arrival of the Prophet foretold by Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15) and that He was the Messiah (John 1:21, 11:27).

They were beginning to believe that the Lord Jesus was the political Messiah, the hope of the Pharisees. The Pharisees despised the people for not knowing the law as well as themselves; yet the people showed that they knew He that was the Author and Finisher of the law better than the Pharisees. In his Gospel, John reports the speech where the Lord declares Himself the real Bread of God, shortly after this event (6:33,35).

 

R David Jones

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13 When Jesus heard it, He departed from there by boat to a deserted place by Himself. But when the multitudes heard it, they followed Him on foot from the cities.

14 And when Jesus went out He saw a great multitude; and He was moved with compassion for them, and healed their sick.

15 When it was evening, His disciples came to Him, saying, "This is a deserted place, and the hour is already late. Send the multitudes away, that they may go into the villages and buy themselves food."

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

16 But Jesus said to them, "They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat."

 

17 And they said to Him, "We have here only five loaves and two fish."

 

 

 

 

 

18 He said, "Bring them here to Me."

 

19 Then He commanded the multitudes to sit down on the grass. And He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke and gave the loaves to the disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitudes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

20 So they all ate and were filled, and they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments that remained.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

21 Now those who had eaten were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Gospel of Matthew chapter 14, verses 13 to 21