The Word Made Fresh
1He left that village and returned to his hometown with his disciples following him. 2On the Sabbath he began teaching in the synagogue, and many of those who heard him were astounded. They said, “Where did this fellow learn all of this? What kind of education has he received? And how does he perform these powerful acts? Isn’t this the carpenter, Mary’s son? Aren’t James and Joseph and Judas and Simon his brothers? And aren’t his sisters still living here?” They couldn’t understand how this could be happening.
4Jesus said to them, “Prophets are honored, except in their hometowns and in their own families and households.” 5And he was unable to perform powerful acts there except for a few sick people he had healed. 6He was amazed at their refusal to believe.
He left there and went to teach in the other villages. 7He gathered the twelve together and began to send them out in pairs, with power over the troubling spirits. He told them not to take anything with them except a staff; they were to carry no bread, no supplies and no money. 9They were to wear sandals, but they were not to wear any extra clothing. 10He told them, “Whenever you are offered lodging in a house, stay there until you leave that village. 11If a village refuses to welcome you and the people there won’t listen to you, then shake the dust of that place off your feet to let them know what you think of them.”
12So, they went on their mission and announced that everyone should repent. 13They healed many who were demon possessed.
14King Herod heard about all this because Jesus had become popular. Some were actually saying, “John the Baptizer has been raised from the dead! That’s how these powers are at work in him.” 15Others said, “Elijah has returned,” and still others thought, “He is a prophet like one of the prophets of old.”
16But when Herod heard about what was going on, he said, “I had John beheaded, but he has come back to life.” 17Herod had sent men to arrest John, and they had bound him and thrown him into prison, all because of Herod’s wife, Herodias, who had been his brother Philip’s wife. 18John had said of Herod, “It is not lawful for you to take your brother’s wife.” So, Herodias had a grudge against John and wanted him killed. But she couldn’t, 20because Herod was afraid of John. He knew John was an upright and holy man, and so he protected him. Whenever he heard John preach he was deeply disturbed. Even so, he liked listening to him.
21But then an opportunity to kill him came when Herod threw himself a birthday party and invited those who courted his approval, along with his government officials and the important people of Galilee. 22When Herodias’ daughter came in and danced for them, Herod and his guests were so impressed that he told her, “Ask for anything and it’s yours. 23I swear I will give you whatever you ask, even half of my kingdom.” 24She went to her mother and said, “What should I ask for?” Herodias replied, “The head of John the Baptizer.” 25She hurried back to Herod and said, “I want the head of John the Baptizer on a platter.”
26The king was deeply distressed, but because he had made the promise in front of his guests he didn’t want to turn her down. 27So, he immediately sent a soldier with orders to bring John’s head. The soldier went and beheaded John in his cell, 28then brought his head on a platter and gave it to the girl, who gave it to her mother.
29When John’s disciples heard what had happened they came and claimed his body and buried it in a tomb.
30Jesus’ apostles gathered around Jesus and told him what they had done and taught. 31He said, “Come with me to a private place and rest for a while,” because a lot of people were constantly coming and going and they had had no time to even eat. 32So they took the boat and went over to a deserted area by themselves. 33But a lot of people had seen them leaving and had recognized them. They hurried to the place from all the towns around there, and actually arrived before the disciples. 34Jesus saw a huge crowd when they went ashore, and he pitied them because they were like sheep with no shepherd. He began to teach them a lot of things.
35When it grew late, his disciples came to him. “We’re a long way out, and it’s going to be dark. 36Send them away to the villages around here so they can buy something to eat.”
37But Jesus replied, “You feed them.”
They said, “Do you want us to go and spend two hundred days’ wages to buy bread for them to eat?”
38Jesus said, “How much bread do you have? Go and see.”
They went to find out what they had all together and came back to Jesus and said, “We have five loaves, and two fish.”
39Jesus told them to get all the people seated on the grass in groups. 40So, they were seated in groups of hundreds and of fifties. 41Jesus took the loaves and the fish, looked up to heaven, blessed the bread and broke it and gave it to his disciples to pass along to the people. And then he divided the two fish among them.
42Everybody ate until they were full. 43And they took up twelve baskets of the broken bread and the fish.
44Five thousand had been fed.
45He immediately sent his disciples to the boat and told them to sail to the other side of the sea to Bethsaida while he stayed to dismiss all the people. 46Then, having said goodbye to them all he went up on the mountain to pray.
47When darkness fell, the boat with the disciples was out on the sea, and Jesus was alone on the land. 48When he saw that they were struggling with the oars because of the wind he came toward them in the early morning, walking on the water. He seemed to pass them by, 49but when they saw him walking on the water they thought he was a ghost. 50They were terrified, but Jesus quickly called out to them. “Courage! It’s me! Don’t panic!” 51Then he got into the boat with them, and the wind became calm. They were totally astounded. 52They hadn’t understood how the loaves had fed all the people because their hearts were hardened.
53When they had reached the other side, they landed at Gennesaret and tied the boat. 54As they were getting out of the boat, people at once began to recognize him. 55The word quickly reached that whole area and people began to bring their sick ones on mats to wherever they were told Jesus was. 56And wherever he went, into villages and towns and farms, they brought the sick to the marketplaces and begged to at least touch the edge of his clothing. Everyone who did was healed.
Commentary
1-6: All three synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) attest to the cool reception Jesus receives in his hometown (see Matthew 13:54 and Luke 4:24). Only Luke specifically names Nazareth, but we can assume Mark and Matthew intend the same location for this incident. Mark and Matthew name Jesus’ brothers: James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas, and mention his sisters as well. The brothers named here will join the ranks of the disciples after the resurrection (see Acts 1:14).
7-13: Jesus’ response to his rejection in Nazareth is to first go around the countryside teaching, and then to send his disciples out as apostles to rid the countryside of troubling spirits (or “unclean spirits,” or “evil spirits”). They are to go without visible means of support, depending on the hospitality of people in the villages they visit, and where hospitality is not found they are to shake the dust of that place off their feet, to let those people know what they think of them, and to make sure the rudeness of those people doesn’t stick to them.
14-29: The twelve will return at verse 30. While they are wandering about, Herod receives word of what is going on, and is afraid that John the Baptizer has come back to haunt him. Mark then flashes back to John’s execution at Herod’s hands.
30-44: Jesus’ fame has spread so that he cannot find a place of solitude. The crowds are now following him everywhere. He goes across the lake with his disciples for debriefing after their mission, but the “deserted place” they go to is no longer deserted. Through the centuries commentators have offered various explanations about how Jesus could feed 5000 people with five loaves and two fish. Don’t waste your time trying to figure it out; just consider what Mark is telling us about Jesus — he wants to take care of people’s needs, he expects his followers to use whatever means available to do the same, and when we practice that kind of generosity there is always enough for everyone.
45-46: Still, Jesus has been looking for time alone, and he sends the disciples to Bethsaida (near Capernaum on the north shore of the lake) and dismisses the crowds, then goes alone into the hills to pray.
47-52: There are elements of the creation story in this little vignette. It is evening when the disciples set out in their boat, and it is morning when Jesus comes walking on the waves. The waves also recall the “deep,” the waters of chaos in the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, and the wind, though it is against their boat, reminds us of the spirit of God blowing across the waters. Lots of sermons have been preached on the image of the storm ceasing when Jesus gets in the boat with them, but the reaction of the disciples is surprising. Rather than being filled with gratitude that Jesus has once again rescued them from a storm at sea, Mark tells us the disciples’ hearts are confused because they don’t understand about the loaves. This statement links the story to the previous one about the feeding of the five thousand. They do not yet understand who Jesus is. The hardening of their hearts indicates that their lack of understanding is increasing, not decreasing.
53-56: In contrast to the disciples’ reaction, wanting to send people home rather than share their five loaves, the people in the villages around the Gennesaret region are eager to bring their sick to be healed and, repeating the faith of the woman with the chronic menstrual flow, they are healed simply by touching his clothing.
Takeaway
All of us struggle with what is really expected of us as disciples of Jesus. That question is never resolved by listening to what other people say we should do. It is resolved in prayer. Time alone is a necessary strategy for God’s work in us to be accomplished.