Mark 8

¹In those days the multitude being very great, and having nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples unto him, and saith unto them,

²I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now been with me three days, and have nothing to eat:

³And if I send them away fasting to their own houses, they will faint by the way: for divers of them came from far.

⁴And his disciples answered him, From whence can a man satisfy these men with bread here in the wilderness?

⁵And he asked them, How many loaves have ye? And they said, Seven.

⁶And he commanded the people to sit down on the ground: and he took the seven loaves, and gave thanks, and brake, and gave to his disciples to set before them; and they did set them before the people.

⁷And they had a few small fishes: and he blessed, and commanded to set them also before them.

⁸So they did eat, and were filled: and they took up of the broken meat that was left seven baskets.

⁹And they that had eaten were about four thousand: and he sent them away.

See this passage explained in Mt 15:32-39.

Verse 1. In those days. While in the wilderness, where he had cured the deaf and dumb man.

Having nothing to eat. Having come unprovided, or having consumed what they had brought.

²I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now been with me three days, and have nothing to eat:

I have compassion. I pity their condition. I am disposed to relieve them.

⁹And they that had eaten were about four thousand: and he sent them away.

Four thousand. Four thousand men, besides women and children. See Mt 15:38.

¹⁰And straightway he entered into a ship with his disciples, and came into the parts of Dalmanutha.

Dalmanutha. In Mt 15:39, it is said that he came into the coasts of Magdala. Mt 15:39.

¹¹And the Pharisees came forth, and began to question with him, seeking of him a sign from heaven, tempting him.

¹²And he sighed deeply in his spirit, and saith, Why doth this generation seek after a sign? verily I say unto you, There shall no sign be given unto this generation.

¹³And he left them, and entering into the ship again departed to the other side.

¹⁴Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, neither had they in the ship with them more than one loaf.

¹⁵And he charged them, saying, Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod.

¹⁶And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have no bread.

¹⁷And when Jesus knew it, he saith unto them, Why reason ye, because ye have no bread? perceive ye not yet, neither understand? have ye your heart yet hardened?

¹⁸Having eyes, see ye not? and having ears, hear ye not? and do ye not remember?

¹⁹When I brake the five loaves among five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up? They say unto him, Twelve.

²⁰And when the seven among four thousand, how many baskets full of fragments took ye up? And they said, Seven.

²¹And he said unto them, How is it that ye do not understand?

See this passage explained in Mt 16:1-12.

¹²And he sighed deeply in his spirit, and saith, Why doth this generation seek after a sign? verily I say unto you, There shall no sign be given unto this generation.

Sighed deeply in his spirit. His soul, his heart, was deeply affected at their wickedness and hypocrisy. The word spirit, here, means human soul. He drew groans deeply from his breast.

No sign be given. That is, no such sign as they asked--to wit, a sign from heaven. He said a sign should be given, the same as was furnished by Jonas, Mt 16:1. But this was not what they asked, nor would it be given because they asked it.

¹⁵And he charged them, saying, Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, and of the leaven of Herod.

Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees. See Mt 16:6. Of the Herodians--of Herod and his followers. Matthew, instead of “Herod,” has “the Sadducees.” It is not improbable that he cautioned them against them all. The Pharisees sought his life, and were exceedingly corrupt in their doctrine and practice; the Sadducees denied some of the essential doctrines of religion; and the Herodians, it is supposed, maintained the opinion that it was lawful for the Jews to acknowledge a foreign prince, and join equally with the Pharisees and Sadducees in opposing the claims of Jesus. Matthew has recorded his caution to avoid the Pharisees and Sadducees, and Mark has added, what Matthew had omitted, the caution likewise to beware of the Herodians.

Thus the evangelists speak the same thing.

²²And he cometh to Bethsaida; and they bring a blind man unto him, and besought him to touch him.

To Bethsaida. Mt 11:21.

Besought him to touch him. That is, to heal him; for they believed that his touch would restore his sight.

²³And he took the blind man by the hand, and led him out of the town; and when he had spit on his eyes, and put his hands upon him, he asked him if he saw ought.

Led him out of the town. Why this was done the sacred writers have not told us. It might have been to avoid the collecting of a multitude, and thus to have escaped the designs of the Pharisees who were attempting to take his life, and chiefly on a charge of sedition, and of exciting the people. On this account Jesus chose to perform the miracle alone; thus showing, that while he did good he desired to do it in such a way as to avoid the appearance of evil, and to prevent, at the same time, ostentation, and the malice of his enemies.

Spit on his eyes. Why this was done is not known. It was evidently not intended to perform the cure by any natural effect of the spittle. It was to the man a sign, an evidence, that it was the power of Jesus. The eyes were probably closed. They were perhaps “gummed,” or united together by a secretion that had become hard. To apply spittle to them-- to wet them would be a sign, a natural expression of removing the obstruction and opening them. The power was not in the spittle, but it attended the application of it.

Saw ought. Saw anything.

²⁴And he looked up, and said, I see men as trees, walking.

I see men as trees, walking. I see men walking; but see them so indistinctly, that but for their motion I could not distinguish them from trees. I cannot distinctly see their shapes and features. Probably our Lord did not at once restore him fully to sight, that he might strengthen his faith. Seeing that Jesus had partially restored him, it was evidence that he could wholly, and it led him to exercise faith anew in him, and to feel more strikingly his dependence on him.

²⁵After that he put his hands again upon his eyes, and made him look up: and he was restored, and saw every man clearly.

Every man clearly. Could see their form and features. His sight was completely restored. Though our Lord did not by this, probably, intend to teach any lesson in regard to the way in which the mind of a sinner is enlightened, yet it affords a striking illustration of it. Sinners are by nature blind, 2Cor 4:4, 1Jn 2:11; Jn 9:39. The effect of religion, or of the influence of the Holy Spirit, is to open the eyes, to show the sinner his condition and his danger, and to lead him to look on him whom he has pierced. Yet at first he sees indistinctly. He does not soon learn to distinguish objects. When converted, he is in a new world. Light is shed on every object, and he sees the Scriptures, the Saviour, and the works of creation, the sun, and stars, and hills, and vales, in a new light.

He sees the beauty of the plan of salvation, and wonders that he has not seen it before. Yet he sees at first indistinctly. It is only by repeated applications to the Source of Light that he sees all things clearly. At first, religion may appear full of mysteries. Doctrines and facts appear on every hand that he cannot fully comprehend. His mind is still perplexed, and he may doubt whether he has ever seen aught, or has been ever renewed. Yet let him not despair. Light, in due time, will be shed on these obscure and mysterious truths. Faithful and repeated application to the Father of Lights in prayer, and in searching the Scriptures, and in the ordinances of religion, will dissipate all these doubts, and he will see all things clearly, and the universe will appear to be filled with one broad flood of light.

²⁶And he sent him away to his house, saying, Neither go into the town, nor tell it to any in the town.

The town. The town of Bethsaida.

Nor tell it, etc. Lest it excite the jealousy of the Pharisees, and produce commotion and danger.

²⁷And Jesus went out, and his disciples, into the towns of Caesarea Philippi: and by the way he asked his disciples, saying unto them, Whom do men say that I am?

²⁸And they answered, John the Baptist: but some say, Elias; and others, One of the prophets.

²⁹And he saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Peter answereth and saith unto him, Thou art the Christ.

³⁰And he charged them that they should tell no man of him.

³¹And he began to teach them, that the Son of man must suffer many things, and be rejected of the elders, and of the chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.

³²And he spake that saying openly. And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him.

³³But when he had turned about and looked on his disciples, he rebuked Peter, saying, Get thee behind me, Satan: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men.

³⁴And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

³⁵For whosoever will save his life shall lose it; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it.

³⁶For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

³⁷Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

³⁸Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.

See this passage illustrated in Mt 16:13-28.

³²And he spake that saying openly. And Peter took him, and began to rebuke him.

He spake that saying openly; With boldness or confidence, or without parables or figures; so that there could be no possibility, of misunderstanding him.

³⁸Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.

Ashamed of me. Ashamed to own attachment to me on account of my lowly appearance, and my poverty, contempt, and sufferings.

And of my words. My doctrines, my instructions.

This adulterous and sinful generation. This age given to wickedness, particularly to adultery.

In the glory of his Father. In the day of judgment. Mt 25:31. The meaning of this verse is, whosoever shall refuse, through pride or wickedness, to acknowledge and serve Christ here, shall be excluded from his kingdom hereafter. He was lowly, meek, and despised. Yet there was an inimitable beauty in his character even then. But he will come again in awful grandeur;--not as the babe of Bethlehem; not as the Man of Nazareth; but as the Son of God, in majesty and glory. They that would not acknowledge him here must be rejected by him there; they that would not serve him always, will never enjoy him; they that would cast him out and despise him, must be cast out by him, and consigned to eternal, hopeless sorrows.