Jesus feeds five thousand (Mark 6:30–44)

After the Twelve returned from their preaching mission, Jesus invited them to go away to a place where they could get some rest. If that was what they wanted, they were surely disappointed, for Jesus did not lead them to a location where they would be insulated from the throngs that pressed upon them. Jesus did not have them ship off to the far side of the Sea of Galilee. Their boat put out into the water and turned along the coastline. Apparently they did not travel very quickly or very far, for a crowd was waiting when they landed. The crowd was not there by accident. The swelling throng that raced ahead to meet them had gathered in response to the disciples’ preaching mission.

I. Jesus looked at the growing crowd and saw them as sheep without a shepherd.

32 So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves. 33 But the multitudes saw them departing, and many knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities. They arrived before them and came together to Him. 34 And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things.

A. Jesus had “compassion” on them.

It suggests something more than mere pity; it suggests actual help. Here the compassion is not just for physical need but for lostness. “Sheep without a shepherd” is an Old Testament picture of Israel without spiritual leadership.

Jesus is pictured as the Good Shepherd who feeds the new Israel. First he “fed” the crowd with his teaching.

B. Jesus looked at the situation, not as a problem, but as an opportunity to trust the Father and glorify His name.

An effective leader is someone who sees potential in problems and is willing to act by faith.

The leaderless condition of the people moved Jesus and he taught them despite his need for quiet time. Jesus does not turn them away, even if he seeks at times to protect his disciples from them.

II. The disciples saw the problem but not the potential.

35 When the day was now far spent, His disciples came to Him and said, “This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late. 36 Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread; for they have nothing to eat.” 37 But He answered and said to them, “You give them something to eat.”And they said to Him, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?”

A. The crowd could not get enough of them, but the disciples had apparently had enough of the crowd.

In the late afternoon when the question of what to do with thousands of hungry people became an inescapable problem, the disciples wanted to send them home.

The disciples notice how late it is getting, how many people there are, and how far they are from adequate sources of food. The crowds seem not to be noticing. Jesus seems not to be caring. The disciples, however, were maybe wanting their private time with Jesus, or even just a quiet rest.

B. Jesus gave them an impossible task: You give them something to eat.

Five thousand men and an untold number of women and children had followed them unbidden into a remote place, and nobody had thought to make arrangements for food. Not surprisingly, perhaps, they answered Jesus with more than a hint of sarcasm, suggesting that he adopt a more realistic view.

Again the disciples are pictured as not understanding. Jesus told them to feed the crowd. He emphasized the word you. The disciples’ reply showed the inadequacy of their resources and the impossibility of meeting His demand.

Two hundred denarii would be the equivalent of a year’s wages for the average laborer! The first step is not to measure our resources, but to determine God’s will and trust Him to meet the need. How many times have God’s people complained, “If we only had enough money, we could do something!”

III. Jesus had them find out what bread was available.

38 But He said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.”And when they found out they said, “Five, and two fish.” 39 Then He commanded them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties. 41 And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all. 42 So they all ate and were filled. 43 And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish. 44 Now those who had eaten the loaves were about five thousand men.

A. The only food that they could find was five loaves and fish.

To insure orderly distribution, Jesus commanded the disciples to have everyone sit down in groups on the green grass. The command was a challenge to faith for both the disciples and the crowd.

Jesus took the little lunch, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to the disciples to distribute to the hungry people. The miracle took place in His hands, not in theirs; for whatever we give to Him, He can bless and multiply. We are not manufacturers; we are only distributors.

B. In multiplying the loaves and fish God did in one moment what He does every day.

To us, it is a miracle; to Him, it is natural. Then He broke the loaves into pieces, divided the fish into portions, and gave (lit., “kept giving”) them to His disciples to set before the people. How the miracle itself took place is not stated, but the imperfect tense of the verb “gave” indicates the bread multiplied in Jesus’ hands.

Mark emphasized that all ate and were fully satisfied. This was confirmed by the fact that the disciples collected 12 basketfuls of leftovers, probably a basket for each disciple. The count of 5,000 men, a very large crowd by local standards, did not include women and children, who were probably grouped separately for the meal according to Jewish custom.