Matthew 14:18

Easy-to-Read Version

Jesus said, "Bring the bread and the fish to me."

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
“Bring them here to me,”

King James Version (1611)
He said, Bring them hither to me.

King James Version
He said, Bring them hither to me.

English Standard Version
And he said, "Bring them here to me."

New American Standard Bible
And He said, "Bring them here to Me."

New Century Version
Jesus said, "Bring the bread and the fish to me."

Amplified Bible
He said, "Bring them here to Me."

Geneva Bible (1587)
And he saide, Bring them hither to me.

Legacy Standard Bible
And He said, "Bring them here to Me."

Berean Standard Bible
"Bring them here to Me," Jesus said.

Contemporary English Version
Jesus asked his disciples to bring the food to him,

Complete Jewish Bible
He said, "Bring them here to me."

Darby Translation
And he said, Bring them here to me.

George Lamsa Translation
Jesus said to them, Bring them here to me.

Good News Translation
"Then bring them here to me," Jesus said.

Lexham English Bible
So he said, "Bring them here to me."

Literal Translation
And He said, Bring them here to Me.

American Standard Version
And he said, Bring them hither to me.

Bible in Basic English
And he said, Give them to me.

Hebrew Names Version
He said, "Bring them here to me."

International Standard Version
He said, "Bring them here to me."

Etheridge Translation
Jeshu said to them, Bring them hither to me.

Murdock Translation
Jesus said to them: Bring them here to me.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
He sayde: bryng them hyther to me.

English Revised Version
And he said, Bring them hither to me.

World English Bible
He said, "Bring them here to me."

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
He said, Bring them hither to me. And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the grass;

Weymouth's New Testament
"Bring them here to me," He said,

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And he seide to hem, Brynge ye hem hidur to me.

Update Bible Version
And he said, Bring them here to me.

Webster's Bible Translation
He said, Bring them hither to me.

New English Translation
"Bring them here to me," he replied.

New King James Version
He said, "Bring them here to Me."

New Living Translation
"Bring them here," he said.

New Life Bible
Jesus said, "Bring them to Me."

New Revised Standard
And he said, "Bring them here to me."

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
But, he, said - Bring, them, to me, here.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Who said to them: Bring them hither to me.

Revised Standard Version
And he said, "Bring them here to me."

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
And he sayde: bringe the hyther to me.

Young's Literal Translation
And he said, `Bring ye them to me hither.'

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
And he sayde: bringe the hither.

Mace New Testament (1729)
bring them hither, said he.

THE MESSAGE
Jesus said, "Bring them here." Then he had the people sit on the grass. He took the five loaves and two fish, lifted his face to heaven in prayer, blessed, broke, and gave the bread to the disciples. The disciples then gave the food to the congregation. They all ate their fill. They gathered twelve baskets of leftovers. About five thousand were fed.

Simplified Cowboy Version
"Bring 'em over here," Jesus said.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
And He said, "Bring them here to Me."

Contextual Overview

¹³ When Jesus heard what happened to John, he left in a boat. He went alone to a place where no one lived. But the people heard that Jesus had left. So they left their towns and followed him. They went by land to the same place he went. ¹⁴ When Jesus got out of the boat, he saw a large crowd of people. He felt sorry for them, and he healed the ones who were sick. ¹⁵ Late that afternoon, the followers came to Jesus and said, "No one lives in this place. And it is already late. Send the people away so they can go to the towns and buy food for themselves." ¹⁶ Jesus said, "The people don't need to go away. You give them some food to eat." ¹⁷ The followers answered, "But we have only five loaves of bread and two fish." ¹⁸ Jesus said, "Bring the bread and the fish to me." ¹⁹ Then he told the people to sit down on the grass. He took the five loaves of bread and the two fish. He looked into the sky and thanked God for the food. Then he broke the bread into pieces, which he gave to the followers, and they gave the food to the people. ²⁰ Everyone ate until they were full. When they finished eating, the followers filled twelve baskets with the pieces of food that were not eaten. ²¹ There were about 5000 men there who ate. There were also women and children who ate.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Reciprocal: Mark 6:38 - General Mark 8:6 - to sit John 6:10 - Make

Cross-References

Genesis 14:10
There were many holes filled with tar in the Valley of Siddim. When the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah and their armies ran away, some of the soldiers fell into these holes, but the others ran away to the mountains.

Genesis 14:22
But Abram said to the king of Sodom, "I promise to the Lord , the God Most High, the one who made heaven and earth.

Ruth 3:10
Then Boaz said, "May the Lord bless you, young woman. You have been very kind to me. Your kindness to me is greater than the kindness you showed to Naomi in the beginning. You could have looked for a young man to marry, rich or poor. But you did not.

2 Samuel 2:5
David sent messengers to the men of Jabesh Gilead. These messengers told the men in Jabesh: "The Lord bless you, because you have shown kindness to your lord Saul by burying him.

Psalms 7:17
I praise the Lord because he is good. I praise the name of the Lord Most High.

Psalms 50:14
You made promises to God Most High, so give him what you promised. Bring your sacrifices and thank offerings.

Psalms 57:2
I pray to God Most High for help, and he takes care of me completely!

Psalms 76:2
His Temple is in Salem. His house is on Mount Zion.

Micah 6:6
What must I bring when I come to meet with the Lord ? What must I do when I bow down to God above? Should I come to him with burnt offerings and a year-old calf?

Acts 7:48
"But the Most High God does not live in houses built by human hands. This is what the prophet writes:

Gill's Notes on the Bible

He said, bring them hither to me. The loaves and the fishes, signifying that they were sufficient; or that he would make them so: this he said, to try their faith in him, their obedience to him, and their liberality to others: and indeed, the best way to have an increase of temporal supplies, is to bring what we have, and put it into Christ's hands; whereby not only good is done to others, but that with an overplus is returned to the giver.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

A full narrative of the feeding the five thousand is given in each of the other evangelists: in Mark 6:32-44; in Luke 9:10-17; in John 6:1-14.

Matthew 14:13

And when Jesus heard of it, he departed - He went to a place of safety.

He never threw himself unnecessarily into danger. It was proper that he should secure his life until the appointed time had come for him to die.

By a ship into a desert place - That is, he crossed the Sea of Galilee. He went to the country east of the sea, into a place little inhabited. Luke says Luke 9:10 he went to a place called Bethsaida. See the notes at Matthew 11:21. “A desert place” means a place little cultivated, where there were few or no inhabitants. On the east of the Sea of Galilee there was a large tract of country of this description rough, uncultivated, and chiefly used to pasture flocks.

Matthew 14:14

Was moved with compassion - That is, pitied them.

Mark 6:34 says he was moved with compassion because they were as sheep having no shepherd. A shepherd is one who takes care of a flock. It was his duty to feed it; to defend it from wolves and other wild beasts; to take care of the young and feeble; to lead it by green pastures and still waters, Psalms 23:1-6. In Eastern countries this was a principal employment of the inhabitants. When Christ says the people were as sheep without a shepherd, he means that they had no teachers and guides who cared for them and took pains to instruct them. The scribes and Pharisees were haughty and proud, and cared little for the common people; and when they did attempt to teach them, they led them astray. They therefore came in great multitudes to him who preached the gospel to the poor Matthew 11:5, and who was thus the good shepherd, John 10:14.

Matthew 14:15

The time is now past - That is, the day is passing away; it is near night, and it is proper to make some provision for the temporal wants of so many.

Perhaps it may mean it was past the usual time for refreshment.

Matthew 14:16

Jesus said They need not depart; give ye them to eat - John adds John 6:5-6 that previous to this Jesus had addressed Philip, and asked, Whence shall we buy bread that these may eat? and that he “said this to prove him; for he himself knew what he would do;” that is, he said this to try his faith; to test the confidence of Philip in himself.

Philip, it seems, had not the kind of confidence which he ought to have had. He immediately began to think of their ability to purchase food for them. Two hundred pennyworth of bread, said he, would not be enough, John 6:7. In the original it is two hundred denarii. These were Roman coins amounting to about fourteen cents (7d.) each. The whole two hundred, therefore, would have been equal to about twenty-eight dollars. In the view of Philip this was a great sum, a sum which twelve poor fishermen were by no means able to provide. It was this fact, and not any unwillingness to provide for them, which led the disciples to request that they should be sent into the villages around in order to obtain food. Jesus knew how much they had, and he required of them, as he does of all, implicit faith, and told them to give them to eat. He requires us to do what he commands, and we need not doubt that he will give us strength to accomplish it.

Matthew 14:17

We have here but five loaves ... - These loaves were in the possession of a lad, or young man, who was with them, and were made of barley, John 6:9

It is possible that this lad was one in attendance on the apostles to carry their food, but it is most probable he was one who had provision to sell among the multitude. Barley was a cheap kind of food, scarcely one-third the value of wheat, and was much used by poor people. A considerable part of the food of the people in that region was probably fish, as they lived on the borders of a lake that abounded in fish.

Matthew 14:19

And he commanded the multitude to sit down - In the original it is “to recline” on the grass, or to lie as they did at their meals.

The Jews never sat, as we do, at meals, but reclined or lay at length. See the notes at Matthew 23:6. Mark and Luke add that they reclined in companies, by hundreds and by fifties.

And looking up to heaven, he blessed - Luke adds, he blessed “them;” that is, the loaves. The word “to bless” means, often, to give thanks; sometimes to pray for a blessing; that is, to pray for the divine favor and friendship; to pray that what we do may meet his approbation. In seeking a blessing on our food, it means that we pray that it may be made nourishing to our bodies; that we may have proper gratitude to God, the giver, for providing for our wants; and that we may remember the Creator while we partake the bounties of his providence. Our Saviour always sought a blessing on his food. In this he was an example for us. What he did we should do. It is right thus to seek the blessing of God. He provides for us; he daily opens his hand and satisfies our wants, and it is proper that we should render suitable acknowledgments for his goodness.

The custom among the Jews was universal. The form of prayer which they used in the time of Christ has been preserved by their writers, the Talmudists. It is this: “Blessed be thou, O Lord our God, the King of the world, who hast produced this food and this drink from the earth and the vine.”

And brake - The loaves of bread, among the Jews, were made thin and brittle, and were therefore broken and not cut.

Matthew 14:20

And they did all eat, and were filled - This was an undoubted miracle.

The quantity must have been greatly increased to have supplied so many. He that could increase that small quantity so much had the power of creation; and he that could do that could create the world out of nothing, and had no less than divine power.

Twelve baskets full - The size of these baskets is unknown. They were probably such as travelers carried their provisions in. They were used commonly by the Jews in their journeys. In traveling among the Gentiles or Samaritans, a Jew could expect little hospitality. There were not, as now, public houses for the entertainment of strangers. At great distances there were caravansaries, but they were intended chiefly as lodging-places for the night, and not to provide food for travelers. Hence, in journeying among strangers or in deserts, they carried baskets of provisions, and this is the reason why they were furnished with them here. It is probable that each of the apostles had one, and they were all filled. John John 6:12 says that Jesus directed them to gather up these fragments, that nothing might be lost - an example of economy. God creates all food; it has, therefore, a kind of sacredness; it is all needed by some person or other, and none should be lost.

Matthew 14:21

Five thousand men, besides ... - Probably the whole number might have been ten thousand, To feed so many was an act of great benevolence and a stupendous miracle.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Matthew 14:18. Bring them hither to me. — No creature of God should be considered as good or safe without the blessing of God in it. If thou have but even a handful of meal and a few herbs, bring them to Christ by prayer and faith, and he will make them a sufficiency for thy body, and a sacrament to thy soul. Let the minister of the Gospel attend also to this-let him bring all his gifts and graces to his Maker - let him ever know that his word can be of no use, unless the blessing of Christ be in it.