Mark 8:4 kjv
And his disciples answered him, From whence can a man satisfy these men with bread here in the wilderness?
Mark 8:4 nkjv
Then His disciples answered Him, "How can one satisfy these people with bread here in the wilderness?"
Mark 8:4 niv
His disciples answered, "But where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them?"
Mark 8:4 esv
And his disciples answered him, "How can one feed these people with bread here in this desolate place?"
Mark 8:4 nlt
His disciples replied, "How are we supposed to find enough food to feed them out here in the wilderness?"
Mark 8 4 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Mk 6:35-44 | "...How much bread do you have? Go and see." ...and He fed 5,000 men. | Previous miracle, showing disciples' forgetfulness/lack of understanding. |
| Matt 14:15-21 | "...We have only five loaves and two fish... So they all ate and were satisfied." | Synoptic parallel of feeding 5,000, underscoring previous experience. |
| Luke 9:12-17 | "...The day was far spent; and the Twelve said... 'Send them away...'" | Synoptic parallel, disciples focus on human solution before the miracle. |
| John 6:5-7 | "Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?" This He said to test him... | John's account, showing similar human questioning and Jesus testing faith. |
| Matt 15:32 | "I have compassion on the crowd, because they have been with me now three days..." | Jesus' repeated compassion leading to another feeding. |
| Matt 15:33 | "From where are we to get enough bread in this desolate place...?" | Matthew's parallel to Mark 8:4, showing repeated questioning. |
| Mk 8:17-21 | "Do you not yet perceive or understand? Are your hearts hardened?..." | Jesus directly rebukes disciples for their lack of understanding after two feeding miracles. |
| Psa 78:19 | "Can God prepare a table in the wilderness?" | OT question echoing human doubt about God's provision in impossible settings. |
| Ex 16:4 | "Behold, I will rain bread from heaven for you..." | God's miraculous provision of manna in the wilderness. |
| Deut 8:3 | "...man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD." | Dependence on God's word, not just physical provision, relevant to trust. |
| Phil 4:19 | "And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus." | Divine assurance of abundant provision for all needs. |
| 2 Cor 12:9 | "My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness." | God's power is demonstrated through human insufficiency and limitation. |
| Zech 4:6 | "...Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,' says the LORD of hosts." | Emphasizes reliance on God's Spirit, not human ability. |
| Matt 6:31-33 | "Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ ... But seek first the kingdom of God..." | Jesus teaches not to worry about provisions, but to trust God. |
| John 6:35 | "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger..." | Jesus is the ultimate source of spiritual sustenance and provision. |
| Heb 4:15-16 | "For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses... | God's understanding of human limitation and the ability to give grace. |
| Rom 4:19-21 | "...he did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body... No unbelief made him waver..." | Example of Abraham trusting God despite human impossibility. |
| Eph 3:20 | "Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think..." | God's exceeding power goes beyond human imagination and requests. |
| Mk 4:40 | "Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?" | Jesus rebukes disciples for lack of faith in a different situation of crisis. |
| Mk 10:27 | "With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God." | Highlights the contrast between human limits and God's boundless capability. |
| Luke 18:27 | "What is impossible with man is possible with God." | Another direct statement of divine omnipotence vs. human impotence. |
Mark 8 verses
Mark 8 4 Meaning
Mark 8:4 records the disciples' bewildered response to Jesus' concern about the hungry crowd in a desolate place. Their question, "From whence can a man satisfy these men with bread here in the wilderness?", reveals their human limitations, skepticism, and failure to grasp Jesus' divine power and past provision, despite having witnessed the feeding of five thousand a short time before. It highlights their struggle to see beyond natural means and trust in supernatural supply.
Mark 8 4 Context
Mark chapter 8 begins with Jesus seeing a large crowd that has been with Him for three days and is without food (Mk 8:1-2). His compassion (Mk 8:2) drives Him to seek a solution for their hunger, fearing they might faint on the way home. The disciples' question in verse 4 comes as a response to Jesus' initiation of solving this immediate problem. The historical context involves large numbers of people traveling on foot to follow Jesus in regions that were often sparse in resources, especially in the "wilderness" areas where there were no towns or markets. The phrase "here in the wilderness" emphasizes the challenging logistics for human provision. This entire scene stands as a deliberate echo of the feeding of the five thousand in Mark 6:35-44, which underscores the disciples' shocking spiritual forgetfulness or continued misunderstanding of Jesus' power to supernaturally provide. Their inability to connect Jesus' past miracle to the present need forms a polemic against human self-reliance and limited vision, pointing instead to the absolute necessity of divine intervention.
Mark 8 4 Word analysis
- And: Connects the disciples' response directly to Jesus' expressed compassion and concern for the hungry crowd in Mark 8:1-3, showing their immediate reaction.
- his disciples: These are the individuals who have been living with and learning from Jesus, witnessing His miracles and teachings, yet still struggling to comprehend His divine capacity.
- answered him: This indicates a direct conversational reply to Jesus' implied query about how to feed the crowd, highlighting their human-centric viewpoint.
- From whence: (Greek: Pothen). A interrogative adverb asking "from what place?" or "from what source?". It conveys bewilderment and a complete lack of any imaginable natural origin for such a vast amount of food. Significance: It exposes their narrow, earthly perspective.
- can: (Greek: dynēsetai, future indicative of dynamai). Implies capability or possibility. "Will it be possible?" The use of the future tense underscores their assessment of the present impossibility. Significance: Expresses deep doubt regarding the means.
- a man: (Greek: tis, indefinite pronoun). Referring to "anyone" or "one," universally applicable. Significance: Their question highlights the sheer human inability to address the scale of the need, explicitly excluding any divine or supernatural source from their consideration at this moment.
- satisfy: (Greek: chortasai, aorist infinitive of chortazō). Meaning "to feed to the full," "to gorge," or "to satisfy completely." It implies more than just providing a meager ration; it suggests abundance. Significance: Even the idea of complete satisfaction through human means for such a crowd is presented as ludicrous.
- these men: Referring to the specific large crowd, possibly numbering in the thousands (though not stated as 4,000 until 8:9), making the task humanly overwhelming.
- with bread: (Greek: artōn, genitive plural of artos). The specific basic necessity required to satisfy hunger. This refers to physical sustenance.
- here: (Greek: hōde). Emphasizes the immediate location, stressing the specific problem of resource scarcity in their precise position. Significance: Highlights the environmental challenge.
- in the wilderness: (Greek: en erēmia, "in a desolate place," "deserted region"). This location is key, symbolizing a place without infrastructure, shops, or ready access to provisions. Significance: A classic biblical setting for God's miraculous provision, but the disciples overlook this pattern.
Words-group by words-group analysis:
- "From whence can a man satisfy": This phrase encapsulates the disciples' human-limited, almost desperate, assessment of the situation. It points to a fundamental question of origin and capability, implying that no human source could meet such a vast requirement, without acknowledging Jesus' divine power. It indicates a critical failure to recall or apply the previous miraculous feeding event.
- "here in the wilderness": This specific detail grounds their problem in practical logistics. It emphasizes the lack of resources, markets, and infrastructure in the immediate vicinity, thus amplifying the apparent impossibility of the task from a purely natural standpoint. It also has a theological resonance, echoing the desert wanderings of Israel where God miraculously provided.
Mark 8 4 Bonus section
The disciples' question in Mark 8:4 functions as a rhetorical device in Mark's narrative, inviting the reader to contrast their limited understanding with Jesus' divine nature. It foreshadows a consistent theme throughout Mark's Gospel where the disciples repeatedly struggle with comprehension, serving as foils to Jesus' clear messianic identity. This persistent lack of insight despite abundant evidence prepares the reader for Jesus' later direct challenge to their understanding (Mark 8:17-21) and the pivotal confession of Peter in Mark 8:29. Their bewilderment in 8:4 is a critical element in the "messianic secret" and the overall narrative progression toward Jesus revealing His true identity more explicitly, contrasting it with the dullness even of those closest to Him. This constant pattern underscores the divine necessity of revelation for true understanding, not merely intellectual observation.
Mark 8 4 Commentary
Mark 8:4 serves as a crucial moment highlighting the disciples' spiritual blindness and amnesia. Despite having previously witnessed and even participated in the feeding of 5,000, they posed the exact same human-centric, logic-bound question. This reveals not merely a practical challenge but a deep spiritual dullness. Their focus was entirely on what man could do in the desolate wilderness — two factors emphasizing natural limitations — rather than on what the omnipotent Jesus, whom they followed, could accomplish. The question exposes their short-sighted faith, unable to remember God's faithfulness in the immediate past or in the historical past (like the manna in the wilderness). This spiritual struggle is preparatory for Jesus' later gentle rebuke (Mark 8:17-21), where He challenges their inability to perceive and understand the spiritual meaning behind the bread miracles. It demonstrates that following Jesus requires moving beyond human reasoning to embrace faith in God's supernatural provision and power, often precisely in circumstances where human solutions are exhausted.