John Calvin Commentary Matthew 14:13

"Now when Jesus heard [it], he withdrew from thence in a boat, to a desert place apart: and when the multitudes heard [thereof,] they followed him on foot from the cities." — Matthew 14:13 (ASV)

When Jesus heard it. John, who relates the same narrative, does not mention the reason why Jesus crossed over to the opposite bank (John 6:5). Mark and Luke differ somewhat from Matthew; for they describe the occasion of the journey to have been to give some rest to his disciples, after they had returned from their mission. But there is no contradiction here; for it is possible that he intended to withdraw his disciples into a desert place, so that he might be more at leisure to train them for higher labors, and that, about the same time, an additional reason arose from the death of John. Minds that were still feeble might have been terrified by the death of John, learning from the melancholy end of that eminent prophet what condition awaited them all. Certainly, as it was previously related that, when John was imprisoned, Christ removed from Herod’s territory to avoid his fury for the time, so we may now infer that Christ, to keep his trembling disciples at a distance from the flame, withdrew into a desert place.

How long the Apostles were employed in their first mission we cannot determine; for the Evangelists, as we have previously remarked, either did not attend to dates, or did not observe them with great exactness. I think it highly probable that their commission to proclaim the kingdom of Christ was not confined to a single occasion, but that, as opportunities were offered, they either repeated their visit to some places, or went to others after a lapse of time. The words, they came together to him, I interpret as meaning that from then on they were his constant attendants; as if the Evangelist had said that they did not leave their Master to be individually and constantly employed in the ordinary office of teaching, but that, having discharged a temporary commission, they went back to school to make greater advances in learning.

They followed him on foot out of the cities. Though Christ, who foresaw all things before they happened, was in no way ignorant of what would take place, yet he wished, as a man, to forewarn his disciples, so that the fact might testify to the anxiety he had about them. The vast crowd that had assembled shows how widely his fame was spread in every direction. This left the Jews without excuse for depriving themselves, by their own carelessness, of the salvation that was offered to them; for even out of this great multitude, which was inflamed by a sudden zeal to follow Christ, it is evident from what John states (John 6:66, 12:37), that not more than a very small number yielded a true and steady adherence to his doctrine.