The feeding of the 5,000 is recorded in all four Gospels: Matthew 14:13–21, Mark 6:30–44, Luke 9:10–17, and John 6:1–14. It is the only miracle, apart from the resurrection, found in all four accounts, underscoring its significance.
This miracle took place after Jesus had been ministering and teaching. When He crossed the Sea of Galilee, a great multitude followed Him because they saw the signs He performed on the sick. Moved with compassion for the crowd, Jesus taught them and healed their diseases (Matthew 14:14).
As evening approached, the disciples urged Jesus to send the people away to buy food. But Jesus said, “They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat” (Matthew 14:16). The disciples replied that they only had five loaves and two fish, brought by a boy (John 6:9).
Jesus instructed the people to sit down in groups on the grass. He took the five loaves and two fish, looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples to distribute to the crowd (Matthew 14:19). All ate and were filled. The number of men fed was about 5,000, besides women and children, and twelve baskets full of fragments were gathered afterward (Matthew 14:20–21).
This miracle demonstrated Jesus’ divine power to provide abundantly and His compassion for the needs of the people. It also served as a sign pointing to Jesus as the Bread of Life. In John’s Gospel, after this miracle, Jesus said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven… I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger” (John 6:32–35).
The feeding of the 5,000 reveals Jesus as the provider of both physical and spiritual nourishment. It teaches trust in His sufficiency, the value of obedience in serving others, and the truth that God can multiply even the smallest offering when given to Him.
