Four Thousand Fed

8 In those days, when there was again a large crowd [gathered before Him] and they had nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples and told them,^{(A) 2} “I feel compassion for the crowd; they have been with Me now for three days and have nothing [left] to eat. ³ If I send them away to their homes hungry, they will faint [from exhaustion] on the road; because some of them have come a long way.” ⁴ His disciples replied to Him, “Where will anyone be able to find enough bread here in this isolated place to feed these people?” ⁵ He asked them, “How many loaves [of bread] do you have?” They said, “Seven.” ⁶ He directed the people to sit down on the ground; and taking the seven loaves, He gave thanks and broke them, and [repeatedly] gave them to His disciples to set before them, and they served the crowd. ⁷ They also had a few small fish; and when Jesus had blessed them [and given thanks], He ordered these [fish] to be set before them as well. ⁸ And the people ate and were satisfied; and they picked up seven large baskets full of the broken pieces that were left over. ⁹ About four thousand [men] were there [besides women and children]; and He sent them away.