When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things. 35 By now it was already late and his disciples approached him and said, “This is a deserted place and it is already very late. 36 Dismiss them so that they can go to the surrounding farms and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” 37 He said to them in reply, “Give them some food yourselves.” But they said to him, “Are we to buy two hundred days’ wages worth of food and give it to them to eat?” 38 He asked them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” And when they had found out they said, “Five loaves and two fish.” 39 So he gave orders to have them sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 The people took their places in rows by hundreds and by fifties. 41 Then, taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he said the blessing, broke the loaves, and gave them to [his] disciples to set before the people; he also divided the two fish among them all. 42 They all ate and were satisfied. 43 And they picked up twelve wicker baskets full of fragments and what was left of the fish. 44 Those who ate [of the loaves] were five thousand men.
Mark begins with what Jesus sees and what He feels. He steps ashore, notices the vast crowd, and is moved with pity because they are “like sheep without a shepherd.” In the Old Testament, that image describes Israel’s need for true leadership (Num. 27:17; 1 Kgs. 22:17). The prophets also promise that God Himself will shepherd His people through the one He sends (Ez. 34). Mark is telling the reader that Jesus is not only meeting a need, He is acting as the Shepherd God promised.
That is why Mark says Jesus “began to teach them many things” before anyone mentions food. The crowd’s deeper hunger is for guidance. Mark keeps the focus on teaching because the people are leaderless. They need direction as much as they need bread. Matthew and Luke tell the same feeding miracle, but Mark highlights this first act of shepherding—Jesus teaches them first, because their deepest need is guidance before food. (Mt. 14:13-21; Lk. 9:10-17).
As the day runs late, the disciples think in practical terms. The place is “deserted” and the hour is late, so they urge Jesus to dismiss the crowd so they can buy food in nearby villages. Mark’s wording can echo Israel’s wilderness story. Even if this is not a remote desert, the scene feels like the wilderness: a large company, limited supplies, and no simple solution. Jesus’ reply shows the difference between the disciples’ reasonable plan and His shepherding purpose: “Give them some food yourselves.” Their response about “two hundred days’ wages” shows how impossible the task appears.
Jesus then asks what they already have. The miracle begins with counting what is present: five loaves and two fish. Mark makes it clear that the Shepherd works with what is placed in His hands. The disciples bring what they can, and Jesus provides what they cannot.
Mark also describes how the crowd is arranged. Jesus orders them to sit in groups “on the green grass,” and they take their places in rows by hundreds and by fifties. The detail about green grass is striking because it can recall the psalm of the shepherd who leads to green pastures and rest (Ps. 23:2). The ordered seating turns a restless crowd into a gathered people. It also gives the scene the feel of a set meal rather than a scramble. In Scripture, the hope of God’s reign is sometimes expressed with banquet language (cf. Is. 25:6). Mark’s picture of the crowd seated in orderly groups fits that atmosphere.
When Jesus takes the loaves and fish, Mark describes His actions with careful verbs: He takes, looks up to heaven, says the blessing, breaks, and gives the bread to the disciples to set before the people. Mark uses closely related language again at the Last Supper (Mk. 14:22). The point is not that this feeding is the Last Supper, but that Mark wants the reader to hear a recognizable pattern. Jesus provides bread in the wilderness in a way that points forward to the meal He will later institute, and to the Church’s worship where believers are fed at the table of God’s word and at the table of the Body and Blood of Christ, the foundation and highest point of our faith.
This feeding also points back into Israel’s story. God fed Israel with manna in the wilderness (Ex. 16). Elisha fed a large company with bread and had leftovers (2 Kgs. 4:42-44). Mark’s story stands in that line of biblical memory, but it also surpasses it. The whole crowd eats, and all are satisfied. Then the fragments are gathered—twelve wicker baskets full. The leftovers are not an accident. They show abundance rather than bare survival. The number twelve naturally evokes Israel as a whole. Mark’s Shepherd is not providing for a few. He is caring for God’s people with fullness.
In a deserted place like Israel’s wilderness, Jesus teaches the leaderless as the true Shepherd and provides bread with God’s own generosity.
Lord Jesus, true Shepherd, teach us what we need to learn, and provide what we cannot supply. Form us into a people who receive Your gifts with gratitude and reverence. Amen.
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Sources and References
- The Holy Bible, New American Bible, Revised Edition (2011), including NABRE notes on Mk. 6:34-44.
- The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: The Gospel of Mark, commentary on Mk. 6:34-45 (p. 76).
- Faculty of the University of Navarre, The Navarre Bible: Mark, commentary on Mk. 6:30-44 (p. 185).
- José Enrique Aguilar Chiu et al., eds., The Paulist Biblical Commentary (2018), commentary on Mk. 6:30-52 (pp. 992-993).
- Raymond E. Brown et al., The New Jerome Biblical Commentary (1990), commentary on Mk. 6:35-44 (p. 610, par. 44).
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