Mark 8 · The Lantern

The Feeding of the Four Thousand

In those days, the crowd again being much and not having what they may eat, having called the disciples to Him, He says to them,

“I am moved with compassion upon the crowd, because already three days they continue with Me and they have nothing that they may eat.

And if I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way; and some of them have come from afar.”

(in Luc. 6:73) The good Lord indeed whilst He requires diligence, gives strength; nor will He dismiss them fasting, lest they faint by the way, that is, either in the course of this life, or before they have reached the fountainhead head of life, that is, the Father, and have learnt that Christ is of the Father, lest haply, after receiving that He is born of a virgin, they begi…

(Mor. 1, 19) He does not however wish to dismiss them fasting, lest they should faint by the way; for it is necessary that men should find in what is preached the word of consolation, lest hungering through want of the food of truth, they sink under the toil of this life.

Some of them have come from afar. For there is one who, having experienced no deceit and no corruptions of the flesh, hastened to the service of the Almighty God. He did not come from afar, because through incorruption and innocence he was near. Another, tainted by no impurity, no disgrace, but having experienced only marriage, turned to spiritual ministry.

And His disciples answered Him that “From where will anyone be able to satisfy these with bread here in this desolate place?”

And He was asking them, “How many loaves do you have?” And they said, “Seven.”

And He directs the crowd to recline on the ground. And having taken the seven loaves, having given thanks, He broke them and was giving them to His disciples that they may set before them; and they set it before the crowd.

In expounding holy Scriptures, I am, so to speak, now breaking bread for you. If you hunger to receive it, your heart will sing out with the fullness of praise. And if you are thus made rich in your banquet, why would you then be niggardly in good works and deeds of mercy? What I am distributing to you is not my own. What you feast upon, I also feast upon.

And he commanded the people to sit down on the ground. In the former feeding they lay down on grass, in this one on the ground. And he took the seven loaves, and gave thanks, and brake. In giving thanks, He has left us an example, that for all gifts conferred on us from heaven we should return thanks to Him.

And taking the seven loaves, giving thanks, he broke them and gave to his disciples to set before the crowd. The Lord, taking the loaves, gave them to his disciples so that they might distribute them to the crowd, because, bestowing the spiritual gifts of knowledge upon the apostles, he wanted the nourishment of life to be distributed through their ministry to his Church throug…

And they had a few small fish; and having blessed them, He ordered these also to be set before them.

And not only the bread, but the fish also He blessed, and ordered to be set before them. For there comes after, And they had a few small fishes: and he blessed, and commanded to set them also before them.

And they had some small fishes, and he blessed them and ordered them to be set before them. If in the seven loaves is signified the Scripture of the New Testament, in the reading of which we find internal feasts for the mind through the grace of the Holy Spirit, what do we accept in the small fishes which the Lord blessed and likewise ordered to be set before the crowd, except…

The small fishes blessed are the books of the New Testament, for our Lord when risen asks for a piece of broiled fish; or else in these little fishes, we receive the saints, seeing that in the Scriptures of the New Testament are contained the faith, life, and sufferings of them who, snatched away from the troubled waves of this world, have given us by their example spiritual re…

And they ate and were satisfied, and they took up seven baskets of the overflow of fragments.

Now there were about four thousand; and He sent them away.

And immediately, having climbed into the boat with His disciples, He came into the district of Dalmanutha.

Now in Matthew we read that He entered into the parts of Magdala. But we cannot doubt that it is the same place under another name; for several manuscripts even of St. Mark have only Magdala.

And immediately getting into the boat with His disciples, He came to the region of Dalmanutha. For in Matthew we read: "And after sending away the crowd, He got into the boat and came to the region of Magadan" (Matthew 15). It is not to be doubted that it is the same place under either name. For many Codices do not have, even according to Mark, except Magadan.

After the miracle of the loaves, the Lord immediately departs to another place, fearing that the people, as a result of such a miracle, might revolt and decide to make Him king.

The Demand for a Sign

And the Pharisees went out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.

And having sighed deeply in His spirit, He says, “Why does this generation seek a sign? Amen I say to you, if a sign will be given to this generation!”

But for what sign from heaven were they asking? Maybe that he should hold back the sun, or curb the moon, or bring down thunderbolts, or change the direction of the wind, or something like that?… In Pharaoh's time there was an enemy from whom deliverance was needed. But for one who comes among friends, there should be no need of such signs.

And sighing deeply in spirit, he said, "Why does this generation seek a sign? Truly, I say to you, if a sign will be given to this generation." He, who above thanked the crowd believing for heavenly benefit to be restored, now sighed and was saddened over the foolish petition of the Pharisees who did not believe and tempted, because truly bearing the nature of man, with real fe…

Now the reason why the Lord did not listen to them was, that the time of signs from heaven had not arrived, that is, the time of the second Advent, when the powers of the heaven shall be shaken, and the moon shall not give her light. But in the time of the first Advent, all things are full of mercy, and such things do not take place.

And having left them, having climbed in again, He went away to the other side.

The Leaven of the Pharisees and of Herod

And they forgot to take loaves, and they did not have with themselves in the boat except one loaf.

And He was instructing them, saying, “Watch out, take heed of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the leaven of Herod.”

And they were reasoning with one another because they have no loaves.

And having known it, He says to them, “Why do you reason because you have no loaves? Do you not yet perceive nor understand? Do you have your heart hardened?

Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember?

When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many hand-baskets full of fragments did you take up?” They say to Him, “Twelve.”

“When the seven to the four thousand, of how many baskets did you take up the fillings of fragments?” And they speak to Him, “Seven.”

And He was saying to them, “Do you not yet understand?”

The Blind Man at Bethsaida

And they come to Bethsaida. And they bring to Him a blind man and implore Him that He may touch him.

They came, then, to Bethsaida, into the village of Andrew and Peter, James and John. Bethsaida means "house of fishers," and, in truth, from this house, hunters and fishermen are sent into the whole world. Ponder the text. The historical facts are clear, the literal sense is obvious. But we must now search into its spiritual message.

For Bethsaida appears to have been infected with much infidelity, wherefore the Lord reproaches it, (Matt. 11:21) Woe to thee, Bethsaida, for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.

(non occ.) After the feeding of the multitude, the Evangelist proceeds to the giving sight to the blind, saying, And they come to Bethsaida, and they bring a blind man to him, and besought him to touch him.

And having taken hold of the hand of the blind man, He brought him out of the village, and having spit upon his eyes, having laid the hands upon him, He was asking him, “Do you see anything?”

Therefore, he recognizes himself as a human who seeks refuge in the baptism of Christ. And so, he put clay on you, that is, modesty, prudence, consideration of your weakness; and he said to you: Go to Siloam. What is Siloam?

(Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) He spat indeed, and put His hand upon the blind man, because He wished to show that wonderful are the effects of the Divine word added to action; for the hand is the symbol of working, but the spittle, of the word proceeding out of the mouth.

And He brings him out of the town, that is, out of the neighbourhood of the wicked; and He puts spittle into his eyes, that he may see the will of God, by the breath of the Holy Ghost; and putting His hands upon him, He asked him if he could see, because by the works of the Lord His majesty is seen.

And having looked up, he was saying, “I see the men, for as trees I see them walking.”

Then again He put the hands upon his eyes, and he looked, and he was restored, and he was seeing everything clearly.

Christ laid his hands upon his eyes that he might see all things clearly, so through visible things he might understand things invisible, which the eye has not seen, that after the film of sin is removed, he might clearly behold the state of his soul with the eye of a clean heart.

(Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) From the commencement, however, of the return of his senses, He leads him to apprehend things by faith, and thus makes him see perfectly; wherefore it goes on, After that, he put his hands again upon his eyes, and he began to see, and afterwards he adds, And he was restored, and saw all things clearly; that is, being perfectly healed in his senses a…

But He put His hands again upon his eyes, that he might see all things clearly, that is, understand invisible things by visible, and with the eye of a pure mind contemplate, what the eye hath not seen, the glorious state of his own soul after the rust of sin.

And He sent him to his home, saying, “Do not enter into the village.”

IN TOBIT IT IS SAID: “TO REVEAL AND CONFESS THE WORK OF GOD IS HONORABLE” (Tob. 12:7). BUT THE SAVIOR, WHEN PERFORMING THE WORK OF GOD, SAYS: “TELL NO ONE” (Mark 8:26). — The Savior did not say that the work of God ought to be concealed; for elsewhere he says: “Go and tell how great things God has done for you” (Mark 5:19).

And he sent him to his home, saying: Go to your home: and if you enter the village, say to no one. That He ordered him to go to his home mystically admonishes all who are enlightened by the knowledge of truth to return to their hearts and consider with anxious mind how much has been granted to them, and responding to the benefits conferred upon them with the worthy execution of…

And He says to him, If thou enter into the town, tell it not to any one, that is, relate continually to thy neighbours thy blindness, but never tell them of thy virtue.

Peter’s Confession of Christ

And Jesus and His disciples went forth into the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way He was questioning His disciples, saying to them, “Whom do men pronounce Me to be?”

And they said to Him, saying, “John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and others that one of the prophets.”

And He Himself was questioning them, “But whom do you yourselves pronounce Me to be?” Answering, Peter says to Him, “You are the Christ.”

(in Matt. Tom. xii. 15) Or else, Mark and Luke, as they wrote that Peter answered, Thou art the Christ, without adding what is put down in Matthew, the Son of the living God, so they omitted to relate the blessing which was conferred on this confession. It goes on, And he charged them that they should tell no man of him.

Then he says to them: But who do you say that I am? Note, prudent reader, from the following text that the apostles are not at all called men, but gods. For when he had said: Who do men say I am, he added: But who do you say that I am? To them who are men giving human opinions, he says: But you, who are gods, who do you think I am?

(Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) He asks the question with a purpose, for it was right that His disciples should praise Him better than the crowd.

And He warned them that they may tell no one concerning Him.

Christ’s Passion Foretold

And He began to teach them that it is necessary for the Son of Man to suffer many things and to be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and to be killed, and after three days to rise again.

And openly He was speaking the word. And Peter, having taken Him, began to rebuke Him.

But having turned and having looked upon His disciples, He rebuked Peter and speaks, “Go behind Me, Satan, for you do not have in mind the things of God but the things of men.”

For you are not mindful of the things of God, but of the things of men. It is of my will, and of the Father's, whose will I have come to do, that I should die for the salvation of men. Considering only your will, you do not wish the grain of wheat to fall into the ground, that it might bring forth much fruit.

But the Lord, showing that His suffering would be for the salvation of them and of many, and that Satan alone does not want Him to suffer and save people, calls Peter "Satan" for his thoughts befitting Satan, for his not wanting Christ to suffer but contradicting Him; Satan means adversary.

(Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) But He saith not to the devil, when tempting Him, Get thee behind me, but to Peter He saith, Get thee behind me, that is, follow Me, and resist not the design of My voluntary Passion. There follows, For thou savourest not the things which be of God, but which be of men.

Take Up Your Cross

And having called the crowd to Him with His disciples, He said to them, “If anyone desires to follow after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me.

For whoever desires to save his life will lose it; but whoever will lose his life on account of Me and of the gospel, he will save it.

(ubi sup.) And this He says, because it may happen that a man may suffer and yet not follow Christ, that is, when he does not suffer for Christ's sake; for he follows Christ, who walks after Him, and conforms himself to His death, despising those principalities and powers under whose power, before the coming of Christ, he committed sin.

When the Lord tells us in the Gospel that anyone who wants to be his follower must renounce himself, the injunction seems harsh; we think he is imposing a burden on us. But an order is no burden when it is given by one who helps in carrying it out. To what place are we to follow Christ if not where he has already gone?

Since the command to give oneself over to death would seem harsh and cruel, the Lord says that on the contrary it is most merciful; for whoever loses his soul, but for My sake — and not as a robber being executed or a suicide (for in that case the death would not be for My sake) — he, He says, will find his soul, while the one who thinks to save his soul will lose it, if during…

For what profits a man to gain the whole world and to lose his soul?

Those who neglect good works may fail to grasp just how much the good work of God has benefited them. Hence they are less capable of praying fittingly so as to receive good things from God. And even if they receive them, they will likely be unaware of what has been given them. And even if they enjoy them, they will not enjoy worthily what they have not understood.

While there is much in the world to love, it is best loved in relation to the One who made it. The world is beautiful, but much fairer is the One who fashioned it. The world is glorious, but more delightful is the One by whom the world was established.

Do not tell Me that this latter person will preserve his life, for even if he were to gain the whole world, it is all useless. Salvation cannot be purchased with any wealth.

For what may a man give as an exchange for his soul?

For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man also will be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”

Whatsoever is unworthy of God, is of gain to me. I am safe, if I am not ashamed of my Lord. "Whosoever," says He, "shall be ashamed of me, of him will I also be ashamed." Other matters for shame find I none which can prove me to be shameless in a good sense, and foolish in a happy one, by my own contempt of shame.

Often moreover we overcome greed, but there still remains this obstacle: that we hold to the ways of righteousness with too little guardianship of perfection.

(Vict. Ant. e Cat. in Marc.) He then who has learned this, is bound zealously to confess Christ without shame. And this generation is called adulterous, because it has left God the true Bridegroom of the soul, and has refused to follow the doctrine of Christ, but has prostrated itself to the devil and taken up the seeds of impiety, for which reason also it is called sinful.