Mark 8:9Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

After the Lord had performed the former miracle concerning the multiplication of the loaves, now again, a fitting occasion presents itself, and He takes the opportunity of working a similar miracle; wherefore it is said, In those days, the multitude being very great, and having nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples unto him, and, saith unto them, I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now been with me three days, and have nothing to eat. For He did not always work miracles concerning the feeding of the multitude, lest they should follow Him for the sake of food; now therefore He would not have performed this miracle, if He had not seen that the multitude was in danger. Wherefore it goes on: And if I send them away fasting to their own houses, they will faint by the way: for divers of them came from far.

Or else, the seven loaves are the gifts of the Holy Spirit, the fragments of the loaves are the mystical understanding of the1 first week.

The good Lord indeed whilst He requires diligence, gives strength; nor will He dismiss them fasting, lest they faint by the way, that is, either in the course of this life, or before they have reached the fountainhead head of life, that is, the Father, and have learnt that Christ is of the Father, lest haply, after receiving that He is born of a virgin, they begin to esteem His virtue not that of God, but of a man. Therefore the Lord Jesus divides the food, and His will indeed is to give to all, to deny none; He is the Dispenser of all things, but if thou refusest to stretch forth thy hand to receive the food, thou wilt faint by the way, nor canst thou find fault with Him, who pities and divides.

He does not however wish to dismiss them fasting, lest they should faint by the way; for it is necessary that men should find in what is preached the word of consolation, lest hungering through want of the food of truth, they sink under the toil of this life.

The typical difference between this feeding and the other of the five loaves and two fishes, is, that there the letter of the Old Testament, full of spiritual grace, is signified, but here the truth and grace of the New Testament, which is to be ministered to all the faithful, is pointed out. Now the multitude remains three days, waiting for the Lord to heal their sick, as Matthew relates, when the elect, in the faith of the Holy Trinity, supplicate for sins, with persevering earnestness; or because they turn themselves to the Lord in deed, in word, and in thought.

Ignorance was not His reason for asking them, but that from their answering seven, the miracle might be noised abroad, and become more known in proportion to the smallness of the number. It goes on: And he commanded the people to sit down on the ground. In the former feeding they lay down on grass, in this one on the ground. It continues, And he took the seven loaves, and gave thanks, and brake. In giving thanks, He has left us an example, that for all gifts conferred on us from heaven we should return thanks to Him. And it is to be remarked, that our Lord did not give the bread to the people, but to His disciples, and the disciples to the people; for it goes on, and gave to his disciples to set before them; and they did set them before the people.

At the end of His time with the people, following numerous teachings that they attentively absorbed over several days, the Lord provided them with a physical meal. The seven loaves and a few fish, which were multiplied through His blessing, were sufficient to nourish about four thousand individuals, excluding women and children. Furthermore, the disciples collected additional fragments, filling seven baskets in accordance with the leftover pieces of bread.

Clearly, the first account specifies two fish, whereas the second account refers to them as a few (Matthew 14:17, Mark 8:7). In the first miracle, twelve baskets of leftover pieces were gathered, while seven were collected after the second miracle. Furthermore, Matthew uniquely notes that 4,000 men were present for the meal, not counting the women and children.

The confusion of the apostles was quickly resolved as Jesus executed his second miracle by multiplying the loaves to nourish the crowd. On this occasion, four thousand individuals were fed, excluding women and children, and they gathered seven baskets of leftovers. (For details on the first miracle, refer to Mt. 14:15-21)

The throng of individuals drawn by the news of miraculous events (Mk. 7:31-37) gathered around the extraordinary Teacher. The people came to Him in great numbers, facilitated by the mild, dry climate of the region, where the simplicity of life allowed for comfortable outdoor living during the summer months. However, similar to the current experiences of pilgrims in Jerusalem, many in the crowd lacked sufficient supplies, leading to a crisis where they faced severe hunger. Yet, as this physical hunger arose in the pursuit of spiritual nourishment, Christ once again showed compassion towards His followers. He instructed His apostles to organize the multitude across the land and, through divine intervention, provided for their needs with the limited resources at hand. With just seven loaves of bread and five small fish, He fed four thousand individuals, not counting the women and children, and afterward, seven baskets full of leftovers were collected.

The account of the second miraculous feeding of the multitudes is presented in the Gospel of Mark, closely paralleling the version found in Matthew. In this story, unique to Mark's narrative, when recounting the multiplication of the loaves, it is noted that Christ, having 'given thanks,' broke the bread and distributed it to the disciples, who in turn gave it to the crowd. However, regarding the fish, he is described as having 'blessed' them. The act of blessing signifies a deeper expression of prayer compared to mere thanksgiving, embodying the highest form of devotion. It can be observed that in this moment, the Lord, in His humanity and role as high priest, offers thanks to the Father in heaven, while as God and Almighty Lord, He bestows a blessing. The narrative notes that there were 'about four thousand' men, excluding women and children.

The area where the Lord Jesus Christ was present was deserted, yet the crowds that had gathered from distant places remained with Him for three days. Their food supplies, if there were any, had run out, and with the villages far away, there seemed to be no hope for the hungry multitude. However, the compassionate Lord recognized the people's needs and aimed to address them miraculously, just as He had in the wilderness of Bethsaida. To remind His disciples of the inaugural feeding of the loaves and inspire their faith in His omnipotent nature, He spoke to them, saying, "I have compassion on the crowd, for they have been with me for three days and have nothing to eat. I do not wish to send them away hungry, lest they faint on their journey, for many have come from afar."