I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat

 Jesus departed from there, skirted the Sea of Galilee, and went up on the mountain and sat down there.  Then great multitudes came to Him, having with them the lame, blind, mute, maimed, and many others; and they laid them down at Jesus' feet, and He healed them.  So the multitude marveled when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed made whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel.

Now Jesus called His disciples to Himself and said, "I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat.  And I do not want to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way."  Then His disciples said to Him, "Where could we get enough bread in the wilderness to fill such a great multitude?"  Jesus said to them, "How many loaves do you have?"  And they said, "Seven, and a few little fish."  So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.  And He took the seven loaves and the fish and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitude.  So they all ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets full of the fragments that were left.  Now those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children.  And He sent away the multitude, got into the boat, and came to the region of Magdala.

- Matthew 15:29-39

Then Jesus went out from there and departed to the region of Tyre and Sidon.  And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out to Him, saying, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David!  My daughter is severely demon-possessed."  But He answered her not a word.  And His disciples came and urged Him, saying, "Send her away, for she cries out after us."  But He answered and said, "I was not sent except to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."  Then she came and worshiped Him, saying, "Lord, help me!"  But He answered and said, "It is not good to take the children's bread and throw it to the little dogs."  And she said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the little dogs eat the crumbs which fall from their masters' table."  Then Jesus answered and said to her, "O woman, great is your faith!  Let it be to you as you desire."  And her daughter was healed from that very hour.

 Jesus departed from there, skirted the Sea of Galilee, and went up on the mountain and sat down there.  Then great multitudes came to Him, having with them the lame, blind, mute, maimed, and many others; and they laid them down at Jesus' feet, and He healed them.  So the multitude marveled when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed made whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel.  My study bible comments that Christ's healing of these multitudes, following immediately the story of the Canaanite woman (see yesterday's reading above), shows that these Jews actually had less faith than she did.  St. John Chrysostom writes that Christ healed the woman "with much delay, but these immediately, because she is more faithful than they.  He delays with her to reveal her perseverance, while here He bestows the gift immediately to stop the mouths of the unbelieving Jews."  In terms of St. Chrysostom's comment, we must keep in mind that Jesus had withdrawn to the Gentile region of Tyre and Sidon in order to escape the Pharisees just after confrontation with them (see Saturday's reading).  Here He has returned to Jewish territory.

Now Jesus called His disciples to Himself and said, "I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat.  And I do not want to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way."  Then His disciples said to Him, "Where could we get enough bread in the wilderness to fill such a great multitude?"  Jesus said to them, "How many loaves do you have?"  And they said, "Seven, and a few little fish."  So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.  And He took the seven loaves and the fish and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitude.  So they all ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets full of the fragments that were left.  Now those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children.  And He sent away the multitude, got into the boat, and came to the region of Magdala.  This is a second feeding of the multitude, which should not be confused with the first (see this reading from Thursday).  They are two separate and distinct miracles.  My study bible tells us that the variation in the number of loaves has significance.  In the first feeding, there were five loaves, which symbolizes the Law.  Here there are seven.  Seven is a symbol of completeness.  Here, my study bible says, it indicates spiritual perfection.  Therefore, this tells us that in the first miraculous feeding, Christ is revealed as fulfilling the Law.  Here He shows that it is He who grants spiritual perfection.  My study bible also asks us to note that these crowds had been with Christ for three days -- the number of days He would rest in the tomb.  It reminds us that participation in Christ's perfection can only come through being united to Christ's death, as in baptism (see Romans 6:3-5). 

One of the things that become noticeable -- once we accept that this is the second of two separate miraculous feedings in the wilderness -- is the expansion of Jesus' ministry.  The healing of the daughter of the Canaanite woman is like a dividing line sandwiched between these two events, at least in symbolic terms.  She is a Gentile, and the power of her faith is surprising, eye opening -- and opens up new avenues of Christ's power in response to faith.  In the healing of the four thousand (today's reading) there is additional symbolism.  Four thousand is a number that symbolizes the world, magnified:  the four directions, or even the four points on the Cross.   The perfection of seven is hidden here within the message of the gospel being taken to the world, a faith that works in both Gentiles and Jews.  As Jesus went in the first place to Tyre and Sidon to remove Himself from the immediate wrath of the leadership (to be specific, the Pharisees), so this begins a new turn in the ministry, revealed in the healing of the Canaanite woman's daughter and also in this new feeding -- this time on a mountaintop.  How can we imagine the human Jesus proceeding with His ministry?  What are the feelings of this person who is both God and man?  Does He know what will happen, and where He will go?  While we can understand His vision as divine, He still goes through the evolution of His ministry, each encounter giving off new meaning and revealing more about where He is headed.  Regardless of what He knows about the final outcome of His ministry, He still tries to save at each juncture, even preaching and speaking the truth to His enemies.  We read that He marvels in His hometown at their lack of faith.  Although He knows He will bring His friend Lazarus back from death, He still weeps with compassion, being moved by the sadness and grief of His friends whom He loves.  While our Savior is divine, and understands human hearts, He still goes through each reasonable movement in His ministry, allowing things to play out, enabling people to make choices, speaking the gospel message to save even those who hate Him, spreading His word as it all must play out in accordance with the Father and the Holy Spirit.  This tells us something important about the world we live in and those who are faithful to Him and to His ways.  We can't take anything for granted.  He who knew the hearts of all yet spoke to the ones who wanted to kill Him.  He did it for the sake of all of us, He didn't leave out one step, not one iota (or "jot") of what He was supposed to be or do or preach.  In keeping with the lessons yesterday about humility in the encounter with the Canaanite woman, let us consider Christ's own humility in this "adventure" of His evolving ministry.  He follows faithfully the Father step after step.  He does not assume that, knowing the outcome of His "departure" from this world, He can skip anything (see John 8:21-28).  He must be faithful to His call.  We might think we have all the answers at times to our problems and in our encounters with others, but even Jesus does not make assumptions about where He is headed or what He is supposed to be doing.  His faith and confidence in the Father takes Him step by step through all that He must do, as each new thing evolves, and teaches the response of human beings to His word.  If we, too, wish to bear witness properly, let us adopt His humility and patience.  Let us remember the judgment is not now and is in His hands, and we may have things to do as well rather than assume we know where we are headed and try to take shortcuts.  We don't know what God asks of us, or will ask around the corner.  Let us be like Christ and make each step small so that we are led where we need to be, even if we don't always understand or know why.  Let us pray to find our own lives His way!  Even the symbolism in this crowd that remained with Him for three days reminds us of the Passion, death, and Resurrection to come.  But Jesus knows, and will continue, as each new step evolves as it must, and as He must live it for us.