Charles Spurgeon Commentary Matthew 14:15

"And when even was come, the disciples came to him, saying, The place is desert, and the time is already past; send the multitudes away, that they may go into the villages, and buy themselves food." — Matthew 14:15 (ASV)

And when it was evening, his disciples came to him, saying, This is a desert place, and the time is now past; send the multitude away, that they may go into the villages, and buy themselves victuals.

Human compassion might have moved the disciples to say something more kind than that heartless request, "Send the multitude away." Perhaps they wished to spare themselves the sight of so much distress; but they evidently did not expect the answer that Christ gave them:

The disciples had the compassion of men who see the need, but to their human thinking, there seemed to be only one poor way out of it: essentially, to shirk the difficulty by sending the multitudes away. The short way out of a perplexity is generally a very poor approach. To this day, many Christians get no further than leaving the masses to themselves or to some unknown influences that may arise.

One thing was wise in the disciples: they did bring the matter to Jesus. When it was evening, his disciples came to him. They represented the place as barren, the time as late, the people as many, and their needs as great. They were well informed about all discouraging matters. The proposed course of action was the one weak point in their representation. Our schemes are, for the most part, wretched affairs. It is almost a wonder that we dare to state them. Do we forget that our Lord Jesus hears our pitiful proposals?

Note the disciples’ word: The time is now past. We usually think the times are unfavorable for large attempts. As for the situation, it is hopeless: This is a desert place. What can be done here? As for the disciples’ proposal, it was of a kind that is common enough: “Don’t let the people die under our noses. Pull down the run-down housing in the next street. Clear out the disreputable houses from our district.” Send the multitude away.

Or better still, show the people the dignity of self-help! Talk to them about thrift and emigration. Urge them to go into the villages and buy themselves provisions. This is a favorite scheme today for those who want to save their own loaves and fishes. Our Lord has nobler thoughts than theirs. He will display His royal bounty among the hungry crowd.

And when it was evening, his disciples came to him, saying, This is a desert place, and the time is now past; send the multitudes away, that they may go into the villages, and buy themselves victuals.

This really meant "Get us out of the difficulty." There was no hope that so many of them could get food in the villages; but the disciples as good as said "We cannot bear to see them starving. Help us to forget it."