Jesus Heals Many People
29 Then Jesus went from there to the shore of Lake Galilee. He went up on a hill and sat down.
30 A large crowd of people came to him. They brought many other sick people and put them before him. There were people who could not walk, people who were blind, crippled, or deaf, and many others. Jesus healed them all. 31 People were amazed when they saw that those who could not speak were now able to speak. Crippled people were made strong. Those who could not walk were now able to walk. The blind were able to see. Everyone thanked the God of Israel for this.
Jesus Feeds More Than 4000
32 Jesus called his followers to him and said, “I feel sorry for these people. They have been with me three days, and now they have nothing to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry. They might faint while going home.”
33 The followers asked Jesus, “Where can we get enough bread to feed all these people? We are a long way from any town.”
34 Jesus asked, “How many loaves of bread do you have?”
They answered, “We have seven loaves of bread and a few small fish.”
35 Jesus told the people to sit on the ground. 36 He took the seven loaves of bread and the fish. Then he gave thanks to God for the food. He broke the bread into pieces, which he gave to the followers, and they gave the food to the people. 37 All the people ate until they were full. After this, the followers filled seven baskets with the pieces of food that were not eaten. 38 There were about 4000 men there who ate. There were also some women and children.39 After they all ate, Jesus told the people they could go home. He got into the boat and went to the area of Magadan.
The gospels give us a sneak peek at the future kingdom. Jesus' ministry on earth is like a picture of what is to come. And is also a clear picture of how we are to serve those around us until then. When we see someone in need, we should be moved with compassion to meet that need - be it spiritual or physical.
The feeding of the 4000 is different from the feeding of the 5000 in several ways. But the most important different, I think, is that the feeding of the 5000 was for the people of Israel, and the feeding of the 4000 was for the Gentiles. Truly Jesus is the Bread of Life for both the Jew and the Gentile - and these two miracles show that perfectly.
Tomorrow's scripture focus: Matthew 16:1-12
1 comment:
I never realized that before - that the 5,000 were Jews and the 4,000 Gentiles. Interesting.
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