Matthew 14:13

The Feeding of the Five Thousand

14:13 Now when Jesus heard this he went away from there privately in a boat to an isolated place. But when the crowd heard about it, ¹  they followed him on foot from the towns. ² 

Matthew 14:15-21

14:15 When evening arrived, his disciples came to him saying, “This is an isolated place ³  and the hour is already late. Send the crowds away so that they can go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” 14:16 But he ⁴  replied, “They don’t need to go. You ⁵  give them something to eat.” 14:17 They ⁶  said to him, “We have here only five loaves and two fish.” 14:18 “Bring them here to me,” he replied. 14:19 Then ⁷  he instructed the crowds to sit down on the grass. He took the five loaves and two fish, and looking up to heaven he gave thanks and broke the loaves. He gave them to the disciples, ⁸  who in turn gave them to the crowds. ⁹  14:20 They all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up the broken pieces left over, twelve baskets full. 14:21 Not counting women and children, there were about five thousand men who ate.

Mark 6:31-32

6:31 He said to them, “Come with me privately to an isolated place and rest a while” (for many were coming and going, and there was no time to eat). 6:32 So they went away by themselves in a boat to some remote place.

Mark 6:34-44

6:34 As Jesus ¹⁰  came ashore ¹¹  he saw the large crowd and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So ¹²  he taught them many things.

6:35 When it was already late, his disciples came to him and said, “This is an isolated place ¹³  and it is already very late. 6:36 Send them away so that they can go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy something for themselves to eat.” 6:37 But he answered them, ¹⁴  “You ¹⁵  give them something to eat.” And they said, “Should we go and buy bread for two hundred silver coins ¹⁶  and give it to them to eat?” 6:38 He said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” When they found out, they said, “Five – and two fish.” 6:39 Then he directed them all to sit down in groups on the green grass. 6:40 So they reclined in groups of hundreds and fifties. 6:41 He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. He ¹⁷  gave them to his ¹⁸  disciples to serve the people, and he divided the two fish among them all. 6:42 They all ate and were satisfied, 6:43 and they picked up the broken pieces and fish that were left over, twelve baskets full. 6:44 Now ¹⁹  there were five thousand men ²⁰  who ate the bread. ²¹ 

Luke 9:10-17

The Feeding of the Five Thousand

9:10 When ²²  the apostles returned, ²³  they told Jesus ²⁴  everything they had done. Then ²⁵  he took them with him and they withdrew privately to a town ²⁶  called Bethsaida. ²⁷  9:11 But when the crowds found out, they followed him. He ²⁸  welcomed them, spoke to them about the kingdom of God, ²⁹  and cured those who needed healing. ³⁰  9:12 Now the day began to draw to a close, ³¹  so ³²  the twelve came and said to Jesus, ³³  “Send the crowd away, so they can go into the surrounding villages and countryside and find lodging ³⁴  and food, because we are in an isolated place.” ³⁵  9:13 But he said to them, “You ³⁶  give them something to eat.” They ³⁷  replied, ³⁸  “We have no more than five loaves and two fish – unless ³⁹  we go ⁴⁰  and buy food ⁴¹  for all these people.” 9:14 (Now about five thousand men ⁴²  were there.) ⁴³  Then ⁴⁴  he said to his disciples, “Have ⁴⁵  them sit down in groups of about fifty each.” 9:15 So they did as Jesus directed, ⁴⁶  and the people ⁴⁷  all sat down.

9:16 Then ⁴⁸  he took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven he gave thanks ⁴⁹  and broke them. He gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. 9:17 They all ate and were satisfied, and what was left over ⁵⁰  was picked up – twelve baskets of broken pieces.

[14:13]  ¹ tn The word “it” is not in the Greek text but is implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

[14:13]  ² tn Or “cities.”

[14:15]  ³ tn Or “a desert” (meaning a deserted or desolate area with sparse vegetation).

[14:16]  ⁴ tc ‡ The majority of witnesses read ᾿Ιησοῦς (Ihsous, “Jesus”) here, perhaps to clarify the subject. Although only a few Greek mss, along with several versional witnesses (א* D Z^vid 579 1424 pc e k sy^s,c,p sa bo), lack the name of Jesus, the omission does not seem to be either accidental or malicious and is therefore judged to be most likely the original reading. Nevertheless, a decision is difficult. NA²⁷ has the word in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.

[14:16]  ⁵ tn Here the pronoun ὑμεῖς (Jumeis) is used, making “you” in the translation emphatic.

[14:17]  ⁶ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[14:19]  ⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “Then.”

[14:19]  ⁸ tn Grk “And after instructing the crowds to recline for a meal on the grass, after taking the five loaves and the two fish, after looking up to heaven, he gave thanks, and after breaking the loaves he gave them to the disciples.” Although most of the participles are undoubtedly attendant circumstance, there are but two indicative verbs – “he gave thanks” and “he gave.” The structure of the sentence thus seems to focus on these two actions and has been translated accordingly.

[14:19]  ⁹ tn Grk “to the disciples, and the disciples to the crowds.”

[6:34]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[6:34]  ¹¹ tn Grk “came out [of the boat],” with the reference to the boat understood.

[6:34]  ¹² tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “So” to indicate this action is the result of Jesus’ compassion on the crowd in the narrative.

[6:35]  ¹³ tn Or “a desert” (meaning a deserted or desolate area with sparse vegetation).

[6:37]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “answering, he said to them.” The participle ἀποκριθείς (apokriqeis) is redundant, but the syntax of the sentence has been changed for clarity.

[6:37]  ¹⁵ tn Here the pronoun ὑμεῖς (Jumeis) is used, making “you” in the translation emphatic.

[6:37]  ¹⁶ sn The silver coin referred to here is the denarius. A denarius, inscribed with a picture of Tiberius Caesar, was worth approximately one day’s wage for a laborer. Two hundred denarii was thus approximately equal to eight months’ wages. The disciples did not have the resources in their possession to feed the large crowd, so Jesus’ request is his way of causing them to trust him as part of their growth in discipleship.

[6:41]  ¹⁷ tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[6:41]  ¹⁸ tc ‡ Most mss (Ì⁴⁵ A D W Θ Ë^1,13 Ï lat sy) have αὐτοῦ (autou, “his”) after τοῖς μαθηταῖς (toi" maqhtai", “the disciples”), but several excellent witnesses (א B L Δ 33 579 892 1241 1424 2427 pc) lack the pronoun. This kind of variant is often a predictable expansion of the text; further, that many important mss lack the pronoun gives support for the shorter reading. For these reasons, the pronoun is considered to be secondary. NA²⁷ puts αὐτοῦ in brackets, indicating some doubts as to its authenticity.

[6:44]  ¹⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate a somewhat parenthetical remark by the author.

[6:44]  ²⁰ tn The Greek word here is ἀνήρ, meaning “adult male” (BDAG 79 s.v. 1). According to Matt 14:21, Jesus fed not only five thousand men, but also an unspecified number of women and children.

[6:44]  ²¹ tc Many good mss (Ì⁴⁵ א D W Θ Ë^1,13 28 565 700 2542 lat sa) lack τοὺς ἄρτους (tous artous, lit. “the loaves” [here translated “the bread”]). On the other hand, just as weighty mss (A B L 33 2427 Ï) have the words. Although a decision is not easy, the most satisfactory explanation seems to be that scribes were more prone to delete than to add the words here. They may have been puzzled as to why “the bread” should be mentioned without a corresponding mention of “fish.” Since neither Matt 14:21 or Luke 9:17 explicitly mention the bread, a desire for harmonization may have motivated the copyists as well. On the other hand, D and W are prone to longer, explanatory readings. Since they both lack the words here, it is likely that their archetypes also lacked the words. But given Mark’s pleonastic style, the good witnesses with “the bread,” and a reasonable explanation for the omission, “the bread” is most likely part of the original text of Mark.

[9:10]  ²² tn Grk “And when.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[9:10]  ²³ tn The participle ὑποστρέψαντες (Jupostreyante") has been taken temporally.

[9:10]  ²⁴ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:10]  ²⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[9:10]  ²⁶ tc There is a seeming myriad of variants for this text. Many mss read εἰς τόπον ἔρημον (ei" topon erhmon, “to a deserted place”; א*^,2 [1241]) or εἰς τόπον ἔρημον πόλεως καλουμένης Βηθσαϊδά (ei" topon erhmon polew" kaloumenh" Bhqsai>da, “to a deserted place of a town called Bethsaida”; [A] C W Ξ^mg [Ë^1,13] [565] Ï) here, while others have εἰς κώμην λεγομένην Βηδσαϊδά (ei" kwmhn legomenhn Bhdsai>da, “to a village called Bedsaida”; D), εἰς κώμην καλουμένην Βηθσαϊδά εἰς τόπον ἔρημον (ei" kwmhn kaloumenhn Bhqsai>da ei" topon erhmon, “to a village called Bethsaida to a deserted place”; Θ), or εἰς τόπον καλουμένον Βηθσαϊδά (ei" topon kaloumenon Bhqsaida, “to a place called Bethsaida”; Ψ). The Greek behind the translation (εἰς πόλιν καλουμένην Βηθσαϊδά, ei" polin kaloumenhn Bhqsai>da) is supported by (Ì⁷⁵) א¹ B L Ξ* 33 2542 pc co. The variants can be grouped generally into those that speak of a “deserted place” and those that speak of a place/city/town called Bethsaida. The Byzantine reading is evidently a conflation of the earlier texts, and should be dismissed as secondary. The variants that speak of a deserted place are an assimilation to Mark 6:32, as well a harmonization with v. 12, and should also be regarded as secondary. The reading that best explains the rise of the others – both internally and externally – is the one that stands behind the translation and is found in the text of NA²⁷.

[9:10]  ²⁷ sn Bethsaida was a town on the northeast side of the Sea of Galilee. Probably this should be understood to mean a place in the vicinity of the town. It represents an attempt to reconcile the location with the place of the miraculous feeding that follows.

[9:11]  ²⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[9:11]  ²⁹ sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong. See Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20-21.

[9:11]  ³⁰ sn Again the combination of word (spoke to them) and healing (cured, compassionate deed) is what summarizes Jesus’ ministry: See Luke 4:38-44; 6:17-19; 7:22 (as also the disciples, 9:6).

[9:12]  ³¹ tn Grk “the day began to decline,” looking to the approach of sunset.

[9:12]  ³² tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate that the disciples’ request was related to the approach of sunset.

[9:12]  ³³ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:12]  ³⁴ tn That is, find someone to show them hospitality. L&N 34.61 has “find lodging,” using this verse as an example.

[9:12]  ³⁵ tn Or “in a desert” (meaning a deserted or desolate area with sparse vegetation). Here ὧδε (Jwde) has not been translated.

[9:13]  ³⁶ tn Here the pronoun ὑμεῖς (Jumeis) is used, making “you” in the translation emphatic.

[9:13]  ³⁷ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[9:13]  ³⁸ tn Grk “said.”

[9:13]  ³⁹ tn This possibility is introduced through a conditional clause, but it is expressed with some skepticism (BDF §376).

[9:13]  ⁴⁰ tn The participle πορευθέντες (poreuqente") has been taken as indicating attendant circumstance.

[9:13]  ⁴¹ sn Not only would going and buying food have been expensive and awkward at this late time of day, it would have taken quite a logistical effort to get the food back out to this isolated location.

[9:14]  ⁴² tn The Greek text reads here ἄνδρες (andres) – that is, adult males. The actual count would be larger, since the use of this Greek term suggests that women and children were not included in this number (see the parallel in Matt 14:21).

[9:14]  ⁴³ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[9:14]  ⁴⁴ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[9:14]  ⁴⁵ tn Or “Make” (depending on how the force of the imperative verb is understood). Grk “cause them to recline” (the verb has causative force here).

[9:15]  ⁴⁶ tn Grk “And they did thus.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate that the disciples’ action was a result of Jesus’ instructions. The adverb οὕτως ({outw", “thus”) has been expanded in the translation to “as Jesus directed” to clarify what was done.

[9:15]  ⁴⁷ tn Grk “and they”; the referent (the people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:16]  ⁴⁸ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[9:16]  ⁴⁹ sn Gave thanks adds a note of gratitude to the setting. The scene is like two other later meals: Luke 22:19 and 24:30. Jesus gives thanks to God “with respect to” the provision of food. The disciples learn how Jesus is the mediator of blessing. John 6 speaks of him in this scene as picturing the “Bread of Life.”

[9:17]  ⁵⁰ sn There was more than enough for everybody, as indicated by the gathering of what was left over.