32Now Jesus called His disciples to Himself and said, “I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat. And I do not want to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.” 33Then His disciples said to Him, “Where could we get enough bread in the wilderness to fill such a great multitude?” 34Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” And they said, “Seven, and a few little fish.” 35So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground. 36And He took the seven loaves and the fish and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitude. 37So they all ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets full of the fragments that were left. 38Now those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children. 39And He sent away the multitude, got into the boat, and came to the region of Magdala.
Now we come to the miracle of the feeding of the 4,000. The feeding of the 4,000 is not the same as the feeding of the 5,000 (14:14-21). Note the seven contrasts:
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The feeding of the 5,000 men was for Jews; feeding of the 4,000 men was for Gentiles.
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The feeding of 5,000 was near Bethsaida; feeding of 4,000 was in Decapolis.
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The feeding of 5,000 used five loaves; feeding of 4,000 used seven loaves.
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The feeding of 5,000 resulted in twelve baskets left over; feeding of 4,000 left seven baskets.
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With the feeding of 5,000, the crowd was with Jesus one day; with the feeding of 4,000, the crowd was with Him three days.
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The feeding of 5,000 was in spring; feeding of 4,000 in summer.
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Those at the feeding of 5,000 tried to make Jesus King; feeding of 4,000 saw no response like that.
Both Matthew and Mark included both events in their narratives.
15:32
Now Jesus called His disciples to Himself and said, “I have compassion [literally, moved in inward parts] on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat. And I do not want to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.”
Jesus expressed compassion for the crowds because they did not have enough to eat. If He sent them away without food, they could faint on the way home. There were no McDonalds on the way home.
15:33
Then His disciples said to Him, “Where could we get enough bread in the wilderness to fill such a great multitude?”
Once again the disciples expressed doubt about how to feed such a large crowd. Their viewpoint was to procure bread on a human level. They had to go through the same lesson as they had with the feeding of the 5,000 men. The disciples may have thought that Jesus would not perform a miracle to the Gentiles.
15:34
Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” And they said, “Seven, and a few little fish.”
Jesus took the initiative in resolving the hunger problem.
15:35
So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.
Jesus directed the crowd to prepare for the meal.
15:36
And He took the seven loaves and the fish and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitude.
The Greek indicates that Jesus repeatedly gave food to the disciples for distribution to others.
15:37
So they all ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets full of the fragments that were left.
The crowd ate until they satisfied their hunger. There was plenty left over. The basket in the previous feeding of the 5,000 was a smaller container that individuals used on a journey. The wicker baskets here were large, such as the one used to let Paul down the wall when escaping Damascus (Ac 9:25). There was more food left over from the feeding of 4,000 than the feeding of 5,000.
15:38
Now those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children.
The 4,000 were adult men, not counting women and children. There may have been double or triple 4,000 people.
15:39
And He sent away the multitude, got into the boat, and came to the region of Magdala.
Magdala was a town north of Tiberius on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee (other side of the lake from Decapolis). This town lies in ruins today.
PRINCIPLE:
All God expects of us is to do what we can with what we have.
APPLICATION:
God gives us all the resources we need to do ministry. He does not expect anything more than what He Himself provides. All He expects of us is to do what we can with what we have.
