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Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught. And He said to them, "Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while." For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat. So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves. But the multitudes saw them departing, and many knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities. They arrived before them and came together to Him. And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things. When the day was now far spent, His disciples came to Him and said, "This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late. Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread; for they have nothing to eat." But He answered and said to them, "You give them something to eat." And they said to Him, "Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?" But He said to them, "How many loaves do you have? Go and see." And when they found out they said, "Five, and two fish." Then He commanded them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties. And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all. So they all ate and were filled. And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish. Now those who had eaten the loaves were about five thousand men.
Immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He sent the multitude away. And when He had sent them away, He departed to the mountain to pray.
- Mark 6:30-46
Yesterday, we read that the twelve apostles, in their first mission, cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them. Now King Herod heard of Jesus, for His name had become well known. And he said, "John the Baptist is risen from the dead, and therefore these powers are at work in him." Others said, "It is Elijah." And others said, "It is the Prophet, or like one of the prophets." But when Herod heard, he said, "This is John, whom I beheaded; he has been raised from the dead!" For Herod himself had sent and laid hold of John, and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife; for he had married her. Because John had said to Herod, "It is not lawful for you to have your brother's wife." Therefore Herodias held it against him and wanted to kill him, but she could not; for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a just and holy man, and he protected him. And when he heard him, he did many things, and heard him gladly. Then an opportune day came when Herod on his birthday gave a feast for his nobles, the high officers, and the chief men of Galilee. And when Herodias' daughter herself came in and danced, and pleased Herod and those who sat with him, the king said to the girl, "Ask me whatever you want, and I will give it to you." He also swore to her, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half my kingdom." So she went out and said to her mother, "What shall I ask?" And she said, "The head of John the Baptist!" Immediately she came in with haste to the king and asked, saying, "I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter." And the king was exceedingly sorry; yet, because of the oaths and because of those who sat with him, he did not want to refuse her. Immediately the king sent an executioner and commanded his head to be brought. And he went and beheaded him in prison, brought his head on a platter, and gave it to the girl; and the girl gave it to her mother. When his disciples heard of it, they came and took away his corpse and laid it in a tomb.
Then the apostles gathered to Jesus and told Him all things, both what they had done and what they had taught. And He said to them, "Come aside by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while." For there were many coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat. So they departed to a deserted place in the boat by themselves. It is interesting to note the role that "rest" plays in the Gospels. Jesus is the one who has taught us, in Mark's Gospel, that "the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath." His whole ministry has emphasized healing. Rest is an essential part of our wholeness, our healing. My study bible says that Christ shows that those engaged in preaching and teaching must not labor continuously, but also must take rest. A balanced life is perhaps the whole point of the gospel message of the Kingdom: we must not neglect that which truly makes us "whole."
But the multitudes saw them departing, and many knew Him and ran there on foot from all the cities. They arrived before them and came together to Him. The text also once again gives us a sense of just how popular Jesus' ministry has grown, how frantically people chase after Him.
And Jesus, when He came out, saw a great multitude and was moved with compassion for them, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. So He began to teach them many things. It's interesting to note how Jesus is always willing to accommodate whatever circumstances arrive. He has come for rest, but He's moved with compassion, because they were like sheep not having a shepherd. It's also important to note that the very first thing He offers in His compassion is His teaching. This is what they truly need.
When the day was now far spent, His disciples came to Him and said, "This is a deserted place, and already the hour is late. Send them away, that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy themselves bread; for they have nothing to eat." But He answered and said to them, "You give them something to eat." And they said to Him, "Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give them something to eat?" But He said to them, "How many loaves do you have? Go and see." And when they found out they said, "Five, and two fish." Then He commanded them to make them all sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in ranks, in hundreds and in fifties. And when He had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all. So they all ate and were filled. And they took up twelve baskets full of fragments and of the fish. Now those who had eaten the loaves were about five thousand men. This feeding miracle is in all the Gospels. The text notes five thousand men (a contemporary way of calculation), and we can assume that there were more women and children. Symbolically, the twelve remaining baskets are left for the twelve apostles, to take to all the world. But what's the substance here? There's a clear reference to and prefiguring of the Eucharist. The loaves and blessed, and distributed by the disciples. Fish are symbols of abundance; there will be enough for the world.
Immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He sent the multitude away. And when He had sent them away, He departed to the mountain to pray. Again, there is a theme of rest and of nurturing. Jesus sends the crowds away, and sends His disciples back to Bethsaida, in the home territory of His ministry. But He remains on the mountain to pray. Jesus does not neglect His own true needs. This is where His guidance for His ministry is going to be, where He is truly "fed" for His work. It is the kind of retreat we must all need consider.
It's a beautiful thing to see the progression of what Jesus does. He first tries to get away with His apostles, to a place where they can rest and presumably discuss their first mission from which they've just returned. But the people follow, and He's moved with compassion for their state. The description we're given, that the people are like sheep not having a shepherd, tells us so much. There's a sense of bewilderment described here, and of great need. Jesus feeds them what they need first: His teaching. When the time comes for rest and food, He does not send them away but rather continues to feed them, this time with literal food, but also with much more. In the prefiguring of the Eucharist, we are given the sense of what our true food is: Christ. When we pray the Lord's Prayer, and to "give us this day our daily bread," the translation from the Greek isn't absolutely complete. That's because the word that is translated as "daily" means more than that; literally it can be rendered "super-substantial." I have read one beautiful commentary that explains it as the bread of the new day of the Kingdom. This bread given by Christ, miraculously expanded and extended, blessed, and distributed by the disciples, is like Christ Himself, and it is a picture of the Eucharist: it is bread, made of the elements of our lives and the world, it nourishes our bodies, but it also nourishes all the rest of what we are. Christ will call Himself the "bread of life." It reminds us that "man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God" (Matthew 4:4, Deuteronomy 8:3). We remember that He is the Word. Our lives are to be whole, not partial, and not depleted. This bread of the new day of the Kingdom is something that is meant to feed all of what we are, just as Jesus "feeds" these sheep without a shepherd by His teaching. His sharing of His word with them is the result of His compassion. What we can take from all the elements of today's reading is the tie in with rest and true nurturing. Let us never forget all that we truly need.
