Church Fathers Commentary Mark 8:1-9

"In those days, when there was again a great multitude, and they had nothing to eat, he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, I have compassion on the multitude, because they continue with me now three days, and have nothing to eat: and if I send them away fasting to their home, they will faint on the way; and some of them are come from far. And his disciples answered him, Whence shall one be able to fill these men with bread here in a desert place? And he asked them, How many loaves have ye? And they said, Seven. And he commandeth the multitude to sit down on the ground: and he took the seven loaves, and having given thanks, he brake, and gave to his disciples, to set before them; and they set them before the multitude. And they had a few small fishes: and having blessed them, he commanded to set these also before them. And they ate, and were filled: and they took up, of broken pieces that remained over, seven baskets. And they were about four thousand: and he sent them away." — Mark 8:1-9 (ASV)

Theophylact of Ohrid: After the Lord had performed the previous miracle of multiplying the loaves, a fitting occasion presented itself again, and He took the opportunity to work a similar miracle.

For this reason, 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 perform miracles to feed the multitude, so that they would not follow Him just for food. Therefore, He would not have performed this miracle now if He had not seen that the crowd was in danger.

For this reason, it continues, And if I send them away fasting to their own houses, they will faint by the way: for divers of them came from far.

The Venerable Bede: Matthew explains more fully why those who came from afar remained for three days: And He went up into a mountain, and sat down there, and great multitudes came unto Him, having with them many sick persons, and cast them down at Jesus' feet, and He healed them (Matthew 15:29-30).¹

Theophylact of Ohrid: The disciples did not yet understand, nor did they believe in His power, despite the previous miracles. For this reason, the text continues, And His disciples said unto Him, From whence can a man satisfy these men with bread here in the wilderness?

But the Lord Himself does not blame them, teaching us that we should not be severely angry with ignorant people or those who do not understand, but should bear with their ignorance.

After this, the text continues, And He asked them, How many loaves have ye? And they answered, "Seven."

Remigius of Auxerre: He did not ask them out of ignorance, but so that their answer of "seven" would cause the miracle to be proclaimed and become more widely known in proportion to the small number of loaves.

The text continues, And He commanded the people to sit down on the ground.

In the previous feeding, they sat on the grass; in this one, on the ground.

It continues, And He took the seven loaves, and gave thanks, and brake.

In giving thanks, He left us an example to return thanks to Him for all gifts bestowed on us from heaven. It should also be noted that our Lord did not give the bread to the people directly, but to His disciples, and the disciples gave it to the people.

For the text continues, and gave to His disciples to set before them; and they did set them before the people.

He blessed not only the bread but also the fish, and ordered them to be set before the people as well.

For it says afterward, And they had a few small fishes: and He blessed, and commanded to set them also before them.

The Venerable Bede: In this passage, then, we should notice in our one Redeemer a distinct operation of both His Divinity and His Manhood. Thus, the error of Eutychesⁱ, who presumes to establish the doctrine of only a single operation in Christ, must be cast far from the Christian fold. For who does not see here that our Lord's pity for the multitude is a feeling and sympathy of His humanity, while at the same time, His satisfying four thousand men with seven loaves and a few fish is a work of divine power?

The text continues, And they took up of the broken meat that was left seven baskets.

Theophylact of Ohrid: The crowds who ate and were filled did not take the leftover bread with them; instead, the disciples gathered it. In this, the narrative teaches us that we should be content with what is sufficient and not seek anything beyond it. The number of those who ate is recorded when it says, And they that had eaten were about four thousand: and He sent them away. From this, we may see that Christ sends no one away fasting, for He desires all to be nourished by His grace.

The Venerable Bede: The symbolic difference between this feeding and the other one with five loaves and two fish is this: the first signifies the letter of the Old Testament, full of spiritual grace, while this one points to the truth and grace of the New Testament, which is to be ministered to all the faithful.

The multitude remains for three days waiting for the Lord to heal their sick, as Matthew relates, just as the elect, in the faith of the Holy Trinity, supplicate for their sins with persevering earnestness. Or, it is because they turn to the Lord in deed, word, and thought.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Or, by "those who wait for three days," He means the baptized, for baptism is called illumination and is performed by true immersion.

St. Gregory the Great: He does not, however, wish to dismiss them fasting, lest they faint along the way. For it is necessary that people find the word of consolation in what is preached, so that they do not, hungering for the food of truth, sink under the toil of this life.²

St. Ambrose of Milan: Indeed, while the good Lord requires diligence, He also gives strength. He will not dismiss them fasting, lest they faint by the way. This means they might faint either in the course of this life or before they have reached the fountainhead of life, which is the Father. He feeds them so they may learn that Christ is from the Father, lest perhaps, after accepting that He was born of a virgin, they begin to consider His power to be that of a man and not of God.³

Therefore, the Lord Jesus divides the food. His will is to give to all and to deny none; He is the Dispenser of all things. But if you refuse to stretch out your hand to receive the food, you will faint along the way, and you cannot find fault with Him who pities and provides.

The Venerable Bede: But those who return to repentance after sins of the flesh—after theft, violence, and murder—come to the Lord from afar. For the farther a person has wandered in doing evil, the farther they have wandered from Almighty God. The Gentile believers came to Christ from afar, but the Jews came from near, for they had been taught about Him by the letter of the law and the prophets. In the previous feeding with five loaves, the multitude sat on the green grass. Here, however, they sit on the ground. This is because the law commands us to keep the desires of the flesh under control, but the New Testament commands us to leave even the earth itself and our temporal goods.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Furthermore, the seven loaves represent spiritual discourses, for seven is the number that points to the Holy Spirit, who perfects all things. Our life itself is perfected in the cycle of seven days.ⁱ

Pseudo-Jerome: Alternatively, the seven loaves are the gifts of the Holy Spirit, and the fragments of the loaves are the mystical understanding of the first week of creation.

The Venerable Bede: Our Lord's breaking of the bread signifies the opening of mysteries. His giving of thanks shows the great joy He feels in the salvation of the human race. His giving the loaves to His disciples to set before the people signifies that He entrusts the spiritual gifts of knowledge to the Apostles, and that it was His will for the food of life to be distributed to the Church through their ministry.

Pseudo-Jerome: The blessed small fish represent the books of the New Testament, for our Lord, when risen, asks for a piece of broiled fish.

Alternatively, in these little fish, we receive the saints. For the Scriptures of the New Testament contain the faith, life, and sufferings of those who, snatched from the troubled waves of this world, have given us spiritual refreshment by their example.

The Venerable Bede: Again, the leftovers that remained after the multitude was refreshed are gathered by the Apostles. This is because the higher precepts of perfection, which the multitude cannot attain, belong to those whose lives transcend that of the ordinary people of God. Nevertheless, the multitude is said to have been satisfied because, although they cannot leave all that they possess or live up to the standard spoken of for virgins, they can still attain everlasting life by obeying the commands of God's law.

Pseudo-Jerome: Again, the seven baskets represent the seven Churches. The four thousand signify the era of the new dispensation, with its four seasons. It is also fitting that there were four thousand, so that the number itself might teach us that they were filled with the food of the Gospel.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Alternatively, the four thousand represent people made perfect in the four virtues. For this reason, being more advanced, they ate more and left fewer fragments. In this miracle, seven baskets full remain, but in the miracle of the five loaves, twelve baskets remained. This is because there were five thousand men, signifying people enslaved to the five senses. For this reason, they could not eat as much and were satisfied with little, leaving many more fragments.

1. in Marc., 2, 32
2. Mor. 1, 19
3. in Luc., 6, 73