Matthew 15:32-39

The Feeding of the Four Thousand

15:32 Then Jesus called the ¹  disciples and said, “I have compassion on the crowd, because they have already been here with me three days and they have nothing to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry since they may faint on the way.” 15:33 The disciples said to him, “Where can we get enough bread in this desolate place to satisfy so great a crowd?” 15:34 Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” They replied, “Seven – and a few small fish.” 15:35 After instructing the crowd to sit down on the ground, 15:36 he took the seven loaves and the fish, and after giving thanks, he broke them and began giving them to the disciples, who then gave them to the crowds. ²  15:37 They ³  all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. 15:38 Not counting children and women, ⁴  there were four thousand men who ate. ⁵  15:39 After sending away the crowd, he got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan. ⁶ 

[15:32]  ¹ tc ‡ Although the external evidence is not great (א W Θ 700 pc), the internal evidence for the omission of αὐτοῦ (autou, “his”) after “disciples” is fairly strong. The pronoun may have been added by way of clarification. NA²⁷, however, includes the pronoun, on the basis of the much stronger external evidence.

[15:36]  ² tn Grk “was giving them to the disciples, and the disciples to the crowd.”

[15:37]  ³ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

[15:38]  ⁴ tc ‡ Although most witnesses (B C L W ˹³ 33 Ï f sy^s,p,h mae) read “women and children” instead of “children and women,” it is likely that the majority’s reading is a harmonization to Matt 14:21. “Children and women” is found in early and geographically widespread witnesses (e.g., א D [Θ Ë¹] 579 lat sy^c sa bo), and has more compelling internal arguments on its side, suggesting that this is the original reading. NA²⁷, however, agrees with the majority of witnesses.

[15:38]  ⁵ tn Grk “And those eating were four thousand men, apart from children and women.”

[15:39]  ⁶ sn Magadan was a place along the Sea of Galilee, the exact location of which is uncertain.