Mark 8:1-10

Feeding Thousands Again?

Devotional 38 of 50 · Mark chapter 8

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After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, rolled away the stone, and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards trembled in fear of him and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; He has risen, just as He said! Come, see the place where He lay. Then go quickly and tell His disciples, ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see Him.’ See, I have told you.” So they hurried away from the tomb in fear and great joy, and ran to tell His disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” They came to Him, grasped His feet, and worshiped Him. “Do not be afraid,” said Jesus. “Go and tell My brothers to go to Galilee. There they will see Me.” While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests all that had happened. And after the chief priests had met with the elders and formed a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money and instructed them: “You are

Mark 8:1-10 · BSB

¹In those days the crowd once again became very large, and they had nothing to eat. Jesus called the disciples to Him and said, ²“I have compassion for this crowd, because they have already been with Me three days and have nothing to eat. ³If I send them home hungry, they will faint along the way. For some of them have come a great distance.” ⁴His disciples replied, “Where in this desolate place could anyone find enough bread to feed all these people?” ⁵“How many loaves do you have?” Jesus asked. “Seven,” they replied. ⁶And He instructed the crowd to sit down on the ground. Then He took the seven loaves, gave thanks and broke them, and gave them to His disciples to set before the people. And they distributed them to the crowd. ⁷They also had a few small fish, and Jesus blessed them and ordered that these be set before them as well. ⁸The people ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. ⁹And about four thousand men were present. And when Jesus had dismissed the crowd, ¹⁰He immediately got into the boat with His disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha.

Jesus

In case you missed the feeding of the 5,000, it appears we have an encore with 4,000. However, this is not a mere repetition, and the differences between these similar miracles will give greater revelation.

In the feeding of the 5,000, the disciples noticed the people’s hunger and brought it to Jesus, suggesting He send the crowd home as a solution. Instead of their suggestion, Jesus miraculously fed them. With the feeding of the 4,000, we see Jesus moved with compassion for the crowd. The reason for Jesus' compassion is based on the fact that they have been with Him for three days, giving themselves to His teachings. Because of their devotion to Him, He was concerned that they would faint on the journey home if they were sent home without food.

In this, we see the character of Christ: Jesus takes care of those who seek after Him, even at risk of their own self-care and comforts. This crowd prioritized being with Jesus above all else, and He, in turn, taught them and provided for their needs.

Remember how earlier the disciples had a hard time with the feeding of the 5,000. It says in chapter six that they were “utterly astounded, for they had not understood about the loaves, but their hearts had been hardened.” They did not understand this miracle, and as a result, their hearts were hardened. As we follow this perplexing thread, we can wonder if Jesus did this miracle a second time to help the disciples better understand and soften their hearts.

How often are our hearts hardened by what we do not understand? The wonders and miracles of God are to draw our hearts to love, trust, worship, and revere Him. Why did the disciples not make this connection? Was the reality of His deity still setting in within their hearts? Was there a part of them resisting the revelation of Jesus—not only as the Messiah, but the Holy One of God? We will see at the end of this chapter Jesus ask the disciples point-blank, “Who do you say that I am?” The repetition of this miracle may have broken through their hardened hearts and brought about the revelation that Peter soon confesses.

His Desires

Jesus desires that the disciples would not have hard hearts driven by a lack of understanding of who He is. Jesus goes the extra mile and repeats this miracle to reveal Himself to His disciples. Jesus longs to make His glory, deity, and character known. And even if we don’t understand, He continues to bear witness to His majesty. He fights for the softening of our hearts unto Him.

He also longs to take care of those who seek Him out and prioritize His teachings, even overlooking their own physical needs at times. He desires to provide for those who seek Him and ensures that they will not faint on their journey home.

Follow Through

Sit under His teachings by looking at the Gospel accounts.
Trust in Him to take care of you as you seek Him.
Seek to truly see the true glory of Christ revealed in these miracles.

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