Mark 8
International Standard Version
Jesus Feeds More than Four Thousand People(A)
8 At that time, after a large crowd again had gathered together with nothing to eat, Jesus[a] called his disciples and told them, 2 “I have compassion for the crowd, because they’ve already been with me for three days and have nothing to eat. 3 If I send them away to their homes hungry, they’ll faint on the road. Some of them have come a long distance.”
4 His disciples answered him, “Where could anyone get enough bread to feed these people out here in the wilderness?”
5 He asked them, “How many loaves of bread do you have?”
“Seven,” they said.
6 So he ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground. Then he took the seven loaves and gave thanks. He broke them in pieces and kept giving them to his disciples to distribute. So they served them to the crowd. 7 They also had a few small fish. He blessed them and said that the fish[b] should also be distributed. 8 The people[c] ate and were filled. Then the disciples[d] picked up the leftover pieces—seven large baskets full. 9 Now about 4,000 men were there. Then he sent them on their way. 10 Immediately he got into a boat with his disciples and went to the region of Dalmanutha.[e]
Interpreting the Time(B)
11 The Pharisees arrived and began arguing with Jesus.[f] They tested him by demanding from him a sign from heaven. 12 He sighed deeply in his spirit and remarked, “Why do those living today[g] demand a sign? I tell all of you[h] with certainty, no sign will be given to this generation.” 13 Leaving them, he got into a boat again and crossed to the other side.
The Yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees(C)
14 Now the disciples[i] had forgotten to take any bread along, but they had one loaf with them in the boat. 15 Jesus[j] had been warning them, “Watch out! Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and the yeast of Herod!”[k]
16 So they were discussing with one another the fact that they didn’t have any bread. 17 Knowing this, Jesus[l] asked them, “Why are you discussing the fact that you don’t have any bread? Don’t you understand or perceive yet? Are your hearts hardened? 18 Do you have eyes, but fail to see? Do you have ears, but fail to hear?[m] Don’t you remember? 19 When I broke the five loaves for the 5,000, how many baskets did you fill with leftover pieces?”
They told him, “Twelve.”
20 “When I broke[n] the seven loaves[o] for the 4,000, how many large baskets did you fill with the leftover pieces?”
They told him, “Seven.”
21 Then he asked them, “Don’t you understand yet?”
Jesus Heals a Blind Man in Bethsaida
22 As they came to Bethsaida, some people[p] brought a blind man to Jesus[q] and begged him to touch him.[r] 23 Jesus[s] took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village. He spit into his eyes, placed his hands on him, and asked him, “Do you see anything?”
24 The man[t] looked up and said, “I see people, but they look like trees walking around.” 25 Then Jesus[u] placed his hands on the man’s[v] eyes again, and he saw clearly. His sight was restored, and he saw everything perfectly, even from a distance.
26 Then Jesus[w] sent him home, saying, “Don’t go into the village or tell anyone in the village.”[x]
Peter Declares His Faith in Jesus(D)
27 Then Jesus and his disciples set out for the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he was asking his disciples, “Who do people say I am?”
28 They answered him, “Some say[y] John the Baptist, others Elijah, and still others one of the prophets.”
29 Then he began to ask them, “But who do you say I am?”
Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah!”[z] 30 Jesus[aa] sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.
Jesus Predicts His Death and Resurrection(E)
31 Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man would have to suffer a great deal and be rejected by the elders, the high priests, and the scribes. Then he would be killed, but after three days he would rise again. 32 He was speaking about this matter quite openly.
Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But turning and looking at his disciples, Jesus[ab] rebuked Peter, saying, “Get behind me, Satan, because you’re not thinking God’s thoughts, but human thoughts!”
34 Then Jesus[ac] called the crowd to himself along with his disciples and told them, “If anyone wants to follow me, he must deny himself, pick up his cross, and follow me continuously, 35 because whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and for the gospel will save it. 36 What profit will a person have if he gains the whole world and forfeits his life? 37 Indeed, what can a person give in exchange for his life? 38 If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes with the holy angels in his Father’s glory.”
Footnotes
- Mark 8:1 Lit. he
- Mark 8:7 Lit. these
- Mark 8:8 Lit. They
- Mark 8:8 Lit. they
- Mark 8:10 Other mss. read Mageda; still other mss. read Magdala
- Mark 8:11 Lit. him
- Mark 8:12 Lit. Why does this generation
- Mark 8:12 The Gk. pronoun you is pl.
- Mark 8:14 Lit. they
- Mark 8:15 Lit. He
- Mark 8:15 Other mss. read of the Herodians
- Mark 8:17 Lit. he
- Mark 8:18 Cf. Jer 5:21
- Mark 8:20 The Gk. lacks I broke
- Mark 8:20 The Gk. lacks loaves
- Mark 8:22 Lit. they
- Mark 8:22 Lit. him
- Mark 8:22 The Gk. lacks him
- Mark 8:23 Lit. Then he
- Mark 8:24 Lit. He
- Mark 8:25 Lit. he
- Mark 8:25 Lit. his
- Mark 8:26 Lit. he
- Mark 8:26 Other mss. lack or tell anyone in the village
- Mark 8:28 The Gk. lacks Some say
- Mark 8:29 Or Christ
- Mark 8:30 Lit. He
- Mark 8:33 Lit. he
- Mark 8:34 Lit. he
Mark 8
International Children’s Bible
More Than 4,000 People Fed
8 Another time there was a great crowd with Jesus. They had nothing to eat. So Jesus called his followers to him. He said, 2 “I feel sorry for these people. They have been with me for three days, and now they have nothing to eat. 3 I cannot send them home hungry. If they leave without eating, they will faint on the way home. Some of them live a long way from here.”
4 Jesus’ followers answered, “But we are far away from any towns. Where can we get enough bread to feed all these people?”
5 Jesus asked, “How many loaves of bread do you have?”
They answered, “We have seven loaves.”
6 Jesus told the people to sit on the ground. Then he took the seven loaves and gave thanks to God. Jesus divided the bread and gave the pieces to his followers. He told them to pass out the bread to the people, and they did so. 7 The followers also had a few small fish. Jesus gave thanks for the fish and told his followers to give the fish to the people. 8 All the people ate and were satisfied. Then the followers filled seven baskets with the pieces of food that were not eaten. 9 There were about 4,000 men who ate. After they had eaten, Jesus told them to go home. 10 Then he went in a boat with his followers to the area of Dalmanutha.
The Leaders Ask for a Miracle
11 The Pharisees came to Jesus and asked him questions. They wanted to trap him. So they asked Jesus to do a miracle to show that he was from God. 12 Jesus sighed deeply. He said, “Why do you people ask for a miracle as proof? I tell you the truth. No miracle will be given to you.” 13 Then Jesus left the Pharisees. He went in the boat to the other side of the lake.
Guard Against Wrong Teachings
14 The followers had only one loaf of bread with them in the boat. They had forgotten to bring more bread. 15 Jesus warned them, “Be careful! Guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and the yeast of Herod.”
16 Among themselves, his disciples discussed the meaning of this. They said, “He said this because we have no bread.”
17 Jesus knew what his followers were talking about. So he asked them, “Why are you talking about having no bread? You still don’t see or understand? Are your minds closed? 18 You have eyes, but you don’t really see. You have ears, but you don’t really listen. Remember what I did before, when we did not have enough bread? 19 I divided five loaves of bread for 5,000 people. Remember how many baskets you filled with pieces of food that were not eaten?”
They answered, “We filled 12 baskets.”
20 “And remember that I divided seven loaves of bread for 4,000 people. Remember how many baskets you filled with pieces of food that were not eaten?”
They answered, “We filled 7 baskets.”
21 Then Jesus said to them, “You remember these things I did, but you still don’t understand?”
Jesus Heals a Blind Man
22 Jesus and his followers came to Bethsaida. Some people brought a blind man to Jesus and begged him to touch the man. 23 So Jesus took the blind man’s hand and led him out of the village. Then he spit on the man’s eyes. He put his hands on the blind man and asked, “Can you see now?”
24 The man looked up and said, “Yes, I see people, but they look like trees walking around.”
25 Again Jesus put his hands on the man’s eyes. Then the man opened his eyes wide. His eyes were healed, and he was able to see everything clearly. 26 Jesus told him to go home, saying, “Don’t go into the town.”[a]
Peter Says Jesus Is the Christ
27 Jesus and his followers went to the towns around Caesarea Philippi. While they were traveling, Jesus asked them, “Who do people say I am?”
28 They answered, “Some people say you are John the Baptist. Others say you are Elijah.[b] And others say that you are one of the prophets.”
29 Then Jesus asked, “Who do you say I am?”
Peter answered, “You are the Christ.”
30 Jesus ordered his followers, “Don’t tell anyone who I am.”
31 Then Jesus began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things. He taught that the Son of Man would not be accepted by the Jewish elders, the leading priests, and the teachers of the law. He taught that the Son of Man must be killed and then rise from death after three days. 32 Jesus told them plainly what would happen. Then Peter took Jesus aside and began to criticize him. 33 But Jesus turned and looked at his followers. Then he criticized Peter and said, “Go away from me, Satan![c] You don’t care about the things of God. You care only about things men think are important.”
34 Then Jesus called the crowd to him, along with his followers. He said, “If anyone wants to follow me, he must say ‘no’ to the things he wants. He must be willing to die on a cross, and he must follow me. 35 Whoever wants to save his life will give up true life. But whoever gives up his life for me and for the Good News will have true life forever. 36 It is worth nothing for a person to have the whole world, if he loses his soul. 37 A person could never pay enough to buy back his soul. 38 The people who live now are living in a sinful and evil time. If anyone is ashamed of me and my teaching, then I will be ashamed of him. I will be ashamed of him when I come with the glory of my Father and the holy angels.”
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
