Mark 8:20 - Printer Friendly

ESV: "And the seven for the four thousand, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?" And they said to him, "Seven."

NIV: "And when I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand, how many basketfuls of pieces did you pick up?" They answered, "Seven."

NASB: When I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of broken pieces did you pick up?' And they *said to Him, 'Seven.'

CSB: "When I broke the seven loaves for the four thousand, how many baskets full of pieces did you collect?" "Seven," they said.

NLT: And when I fed the 4,000 with seven loaves, how many large baskets of leftovers did you pick up?' 'Seven,' they said.

KJV: And when the seven among four thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up And they said, Seven.

NKJV: “Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?” And they said, “Seven.”

Jesus is teaching the disciples how to look past their stubbornly-held, preconceived ideas and the events and miracles that surround them and find the deeper personal and spiritual truths. Very shortly before, they had watched Jesus take seven loaves and a few small fish and feed four thousand Jewish and Gentile men plus women and children (Mark 8:1–10). After, the disciples had gathered seven large hampers of left-overs. Before this, they had seen a similar miracle with five thousand-plus people (Mark 6:34–44). And yet they are still anxious when they realize they have one overlooked loaf of bread to split among thirteen men.

Their response is to discuss the situation amongst themselves. It was Jesus who took the bread, thanked God for it, broke the loaves into pieces, and fed the people. It was Jesus who blessed the few small fish and had the disciples pass them out. It was Jesus who taught them that God sees all their needs (Matthew 6:32), that God will provide what they need as they seek His kingdom (Matthew 6:33), and they have only to ask and God will provide like a loving father (Matthew 7:7–11).

It's easy to scoff at the disciples for being unable or unwilling to see, hear, understand, and remember what Jesus has done for them (Mark 8:17–18), but we do the same. We forget the ways in which God has provided for us and choose to worry or feel guilty for not taking care of things ourselves. If we really believe Jesus is our Savior, we will trust Him to give us what we need. If we believe God is loving, we will trust Him to take care of us. If we believe that our commission as believers is to spread the gospel and seek God's kingdom, however, we will understand that our "needs" are a lot simpler than we thought, and may very well be covered by a single loaf of bread.

Mark 8:14–21 is the fourth of a series of stories about bread and righteousness, in which the disciples again miss Jesus' point. ''Bread'' represents God's provision, whether that be literal (Mark 6:30–44; 8:1–9), or metaphorical (Mark 7:24–30). The Pharisees are careful to ensure nothing, even themselves, make their literal bread unclean (Mark 7:1–5). But Jesus warns that spiritually, their teaching acts as tainted leaven that permeates God's truth and fundamentally changes its constitution. The disciples get confused and think He's scolding them about forgetting to bring rations. Matthew 16:5–12 also records this account. Luke 12:1–3 speaks of the leaven of the Pharisees as hypocrisy.

This chapter describes another miraculous feeding of thousands by Jesus. He also counters the hard-hearted and selfish hypocrisy of the Pharisees in seeking even more miraculous signs. Speaking to the disciples, Jesus rebukes their short memories and reminds them about God's intent to provide for His followers. After healing a blind man, Jesus accepts Peter's proclamation that Jesus is the Messiah. Almost immediately, though, Jesus rebukes Peter for resisting the idea that the Messiah must suffer and die.

Mark 8 continues Jesus' attempts to teach the disciples God's plan for the Messiah. Jesus has not come for the religious Pharisees but for the meek who willingly respond to Him. He has not yet come as the glorious and victorious champion of Israel, but to die for the whole world. And His followers must also be willing to sacrifice their lives. The chapter marks a turning point in Jesus' ministry as His miracles grow fewer and His teaching increases. Interestingly, Jesus also faces a repeat of the temptations He experienced in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1–11).

The Gospel of Mark emphasizes both Jesus' servanthood and His role as the promised Messiah: the Son of God. This is done through a concise, action-packed style. Mark provides relatively few details, instead focusing on actions and simple statements. This relates to the Gospel's authorship, which is believed to be based on the memories of the apostle Peter. These include many of Jesus' miracles, in contrast to other Gospels which include many more of Jesus' teachings and parables. Mark also makes frequent mention of Jesus' ministry being misunderstood by others.