Font Size
Matthew 14:12-14
New Catholic Bible
Matthew 14:12-14
New Catholic Bible
12 John’s disciples came and removed the body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus.
13 Jesus Feeds Five Thousand Men.[a]When Jesus received this news, he withdrew from there in a boat by himself to a deserted place, but when the people learned of it, they followed him on foot from the towns.[b] 14 When he came ashore and saw the vast crowd, he had compassion on them and healed those who were sick.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Matthew 14:13 Exegetes have named this the “Section of the Loaves” because of the frequency with which the word “bread” is used therein. It seems to symbolize the teaching and salvific acts of Jesus, with a particular reference to the founding of the Church.
- Matthew 14:13 At the time of the temptation in the desert, Jesus had refused to renew the miracle of the manna either for himself or to attain his own success. Moreover, six times in the Gospels (two of which are in Matthew) we read an account like this one. Thus, the first generation of Christians attached a particular importance to the deed. It is first of all an act of mercy, a sign of the goodness of God, who satisfies material and spiritual hunger at the last days. It is also the manifestation of Jesus as the new Moses, as the new founder of the people—he too feeds the crowd in the desert (Ex 16); he acts like the great men of God such as Elisha (2 Ki 4:42-44). In addition, something even more mysterious is part of this extraordinary moment. How can one not discern in this account a climate of Liturgy? For Christians the giving of bread announces the joy of the Eucharist: the Lord present in the assembly, satisfying every hunger with the Bread of Life that is himself (see Jn 6).
