Mark 6:41-45
Mark 6:41 (KJB)
And when he had taken the five loaves and the two fishes, he looked up to
heaven, and blessed, and brake the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set
before them; and the two fishes divided he among them all.
There was much order in the way that Jesus had them sit. They didn’t just sit
anywhere or any way they wanted to, instead there was order in this miracle.
This is important to keep in mind because ministry done with order will be
ministry accomplished. The custom was for the people to lie on their left side
and to lean on their left elbow. It must have been some scene when you looked
out and saw the people sitting in ranks of fifty and hundred. It probably looked
like a flower bed with all the colors of the different robes which were worn. As
long as there was order, it was easier for the disciples to distribute the food.
Once the people were seated, then Jesus took the loaves and the fishes and
looked to Heaven and asked for the Father’s blessing while giving Him thanks for
the food. After He blessed the food, He then brake the bread and gave it to His
disciples. What we have here is a picture of the Lord’s Supper. (1 Cor 11:24
KJV) And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my
body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. Just as the
bread was broken and given to the people, the body of Jesus was also broken at
Calvary for those He came to save. (John 6:48 KJV) I am that bread of life.
Jesus being the bread of eternal life. After Jesus blessed the bread, and broke
it, He then gave of the loaves to the disciples and they in turn gave it to the
multitude on the grass.
Mark 6:42 (KJB)
And they did all eat, and were filled.
Every person who was there ate until they were full, and none suffered from
hunger. The word for “filled” in the Greek carries with it the meaning of
“satisfied or satiated.” From “but what are they among so many” speaking of the
small amount of loaves and fish to “and they did all eat and were filled.” This
tells us that even small donations in the hand of God can be multiplied greatly.
In some countries where the Bible is prohibited, one Bible will be taken apart
and the pages given to the congregation and they will copy the words down until
a complete hand written Bible exists. One Bible can feed hundreds spiritually.
Mark 6:43 (KJB)
And they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments, and of the fishes.
Right after everyone ate, they picked up the leftovers. Gathering leftovers at a
Jewish meal was mandatory and they used strict guidelines in doing this. If you
notice that Jesus did not only concern himself with the need at hand but there
was concern for the future also. What started out as one basket now grew into
twelve baskets, one for each of the disciples who worried at the beginning that
they were short of food. I have a question which I cannot answer. Since the
crowd had assembled in a hurry and stayed with Jesus on the hillside all day,
the basket that the initial lunch was in, was the basket also multiplied into
many baskets or did the people bring baskets with them as one prepares to stay
away all day? I don’t know the answer to that one but whatever the answer, they
ended up with twelve times more than they started and yet we still worry.
Mark 6:44 (KJB)
And they that did eat of the loaves were about five thousand men.
There could have been as much as 15,000 who ate at this hillside. The five
thousand only included the males and if they brought their wives and children,
then that number is huge. This makes the miracle greater than initially thought.
There is nothing recorded as to the reaction of the crowd in being fed. The
crowd was so huge that probably some way back on the hillside thought that
somebody may have been supplying the food like a caterer. This miracle was not
done only for the people but it was primarily done for the teaching of the
disciples. The disciples now know that through the Lord Jesus Christ, they could
feed the poor and the bigger lesson, they can spiritually feed the Gospel to
billions and they would wind up stronger because of all the Gospel they gave
away. We remain faithful and God will supply the tools that we need for
ministry.
Mark 6:45 (KJB)
And straightway he constrained his disciples to get into the ship, and to go to
the other side before unto Bethsaida, while he sent away the people.
It was a long day for the disciples because this miracle had begun about evening
time and went way into the night. It would have taken the disciples quite a long
time to feed 15,000 in companies of 50 and 100. Now Jesus dispatches the
disciples to go into a ship and go before Him to the other side of the Sea of
Galilee. They were now heading to the western side of the sea. They were to go
to Bethsaida. The north end of the sea would yield them a trip of about four
miles on the sea. Jesus then sent the crowds home and was about to rejoin His
disciples. His intention was to spend the day with them but once everyone knew
that Jesus was back in the area, there was no peace and quiet that day and He
could spend very little time with His disciples.