The apostles gathered together with Jesus and reported all they had done and taught. 31 He said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” People were coming and going in great numbers, and they had no opportunity even to eat. 32 So they went off in the boat by themselves to a deserted place. 33 People saw them leaving and many came to know about it. They hastened there on foot from all the towns and arrived at the place before them. 34 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.
In this brief passage, Mark shows the apostles returning to Jesus and giving an account of their work. The word “apostle” here has its basic sense: those who have been sent. They report what they did and what they taught, showing that their actions and teaching followed the mission he gave them (Mk. 6:7, 12-13). Their work is real, yet it remains a share in His work.
Jesus responds to their return with a practical act of care. He calls them to come away together to a deserted place and rest. Mark adds a concrete detail: people were coming and going in great numbers, and the crowds kept coming in such numbers that even a meal became difficult. Jesus’ invitation to rest shows that service in His name includes a rhythm. Work and renewal belong together.
They leave by boat for a deserted place. The crowds see them go. People recognize what is happening and set out on foot from the towns, arriving ahead of them. Mark keeps the story moving. The point is simple: the people’s desire to be near Jesus is strong, and the demand for His presence continues to grow.
When Jesus disembarks, He sees a vast crowd. Mark says His heart is moved with pity. Then Mark gives the reason Jesus’ compassion takes this form: they are like sheep without a shepherd. In Israel’s Scriptures, that image describes a people who need true guidance and faithful care. Moses prayed that God would provide a leader so that the people would not be “like sheep without a shepherd” (Num. 27:17). The prophets later spoke with the same image when leaders failed to guard the flock, and they looked to God’s own promise to shepherd His people and to set over them a shepherd who would care for them (Ezek. 34:11-16, 23).
Mark presents Jesus as the one who acts in line with that promise. He meets the crowd’s condition first by teaching them “many things.” Mark presents Jesus’ teaching as an act of shepherding. Jesus gives direction, truth, and understanding. He forms the mind and heart of a people who have gathered around Him, and He does it with compassion.
The setting also carries an “exodus” flavor. Mark’s repeated mention of a “deserted place” evokes Israel’s wilderness journey, where God formed His people and provided for them. In this passage, the first provision is instruction. Jesus gathers a people around His word. That pattern fits with the wider biblical portrait of God leading His people toward rest and guidance, and it prepares the reader for what follows in Mark’s narrative.
This passage also helps keep the apostles’ mission in view. They return with a report, and they return to the One who sent them. Jesus draws them close, gives them rest, and continues to lead both them and the crowd. In Mark’s telling, the growth of Jesus’ ministry is shown by the steady movement of people toward Him, and by His steady response: compassion expressed through faithful leadership, beginning with teaching.
Lord Jesus, you look upon your people with compassion. Form us by your word. Give your Church shepherds after your own heart, and make us attentive listeners who receive what you teach and live by it. Amen.
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Sources and References
- The Holy Bible, New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE), Mark 6:30-34, with NABRE notes.
- The Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: The Gospel of Mark, p. 76.
- The New Jerome Biblical Commentary, p. 610 (para. 42).
- The Navarre Bible: St Mark, p. 185.
- The Paulist Biblical Commentary, pp. 992-993.
- The Jerome Biblical Commentary for the Twenty-First Century, p. 1257.
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