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Friday, August 15th, 2025
the Week of Proper 14 / Ordinary 19
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Read the Bible

International Standard Version

John 6:9

"There's a little boy here who has five barley loaves and two small fish. But what are they among so many people?"2 Kings 4:43;">[xr]

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Barley;   Jesus, the Christ;   Thompson Chain Reference - Andrew;   Bible Stories for Children;   Children;   Extremity, Man's;   Helpful Children;   Home;   Instrumentalities, Weak;   Man;   Man's;   Pleasant Sunday Afternoons;   Power;   Religion;   Small Things God Uses;   Stories for Children;   Weak;   Weakness, Human;   Weakness-Power;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Bread;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Andrew;   Food;   John, gospel of;   Miracles;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Jesus Christ;   Miracle;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Holy Ghost;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Andrew;   Barley;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Bread;   Elisha;   Food;   John, the Gospel According to;   Kibroth Hattaavah;   Philip the Apostle;   Tiberias;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Barley;   Bread;   Cooking and Heating;   John, the Gospel of;   Plants in the Bible;   Sign;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Barley;   English Versions;   Food;   Gospels;   Jesus Christ;   John, Theology of;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Animals;   Barley;   Bread;   Children;   Christ in Art;   Dispersion ;   Feeding the Multitudes;   Fish, Fisher, Fishing;   Food;   Man (2);   Manna;   Necessity;   Numbers (2);   Sacrifice (2);   Trade and Commerce;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Barley;   Bethsaida ;   Miracles;   Numbers as Symbols;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Andrew;   Chief parables and miracles in the bible;   Jesus christ;   Smith Bible Dictionary - Barley;   Bread;   Phil'ip;   Sabbath;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Barley;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Barley;   Bread;   Food;   Jesus Christ (Part 1 of 2);   Jesus Christ (Part 2 of 2);   John, Gospel of;   Lad;   Lord's Supper (Eucharist);   Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia - Barley;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - New Testament;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
“There’s a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish—but what are they for so many?”
King James Version (1611)
There is a lad here, which hath fiue barley loaues, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many?
King James Version
There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many?
English Standard Version
"There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?"
New American Standard Bible
"There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what are these for so many people?"
New Century Version
"Here is a boy with five loaves of barley bread and two little fish, but that is not enough for so many people."
Amplified Bible
"There is a little boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what are these for so many people?"
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many people?"
Legacy Standard Bible
"There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many people?"
Berean Standard Bible
"Here is a boy with five barley loaves and two small fish. But what difference will these make among so many?"
Contemporary English Version
"There is a boy here who has five small loaves of barley bread and two fish. But what good is that with all these people?"
Complete Jewish Bible
"There's a young fellow here who has five loaves of barley bread and two fish. But how far will they go among so many?"
Darby Translation
There is a little boy here who has five barley loaves and two small fishes; but this, what is it for so many?
Easy-to-Read Version
"Here is a boy with five loaves of barley bread and two little fish. But that is not enough for so many people."
Geneva Bible (1587)
There is a little boy heere, which hath fiue barlie loaues, and two fishes: but what are they among so many?
George Lamsa Translation
There is a boy here, who has with him five barley loaves and two fishes; but what are these for all of them?
Good News Translation
"There is a boy here who has five loaves of barley bread and two fish. But they will certainly not be enough for all these people."
Lexham English Bible
"Here is a boy who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many people?"
Literal Translation
A little boy is here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what are these for so many?
American Standard Version
There is a lad here, who hath five barley loaves, and two fishes: but what are these among so many?
Bible in Basic English
There is a boy here with five barley cakes and two fishes: but what is that among such a number?
Hebrew Names Version
"There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these among so many?"
Etheridge Translation
There is here a certain youth, who hath with him five cakes of barley and two fishes; but these what are they for these all ?
Murdock Translation
There is a lad here, who hath with him five cakes of barley, and two fishes; but what are these for all those [fn] ?
Bishop's Bible (1568)
There is a litle ladde here, whiche hath fyue barly loaues and two fisshes, but what are they among so many?
English Revised Version
There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two fishes: but what are these among so many?
World English Bible
"There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these among so many?"
Wesley's New Testament (1755)
but what are they among so many?
Weymouth's New Testament
"There is a boy here with five barley loaves and a couple of fish: but what is that among so many?"
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
seith to him, A child is here, that hath fyue barli looues and twei fischis; but what ben these among so manye?
Update Bible Version
There is a lad here, who has five barley loaves, and two fish: but what are these among so many?
Webster's Bible Translation
There is a lad here, who hath five barley-loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many?
New English Translation
"Here is a boy who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what good are these for so many people?"
New King James Version
"There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two small fish, but what are they among so many?"
New Living Translation
"There's a young boy here with five barley loaves and two fish. But what good is that with this huge crowd?"
New Life Bible
"There is a boy here who has five loaves of barley bread and two small fish. What is that for so many people?"
New Revised Standard
"There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But what are they among so many people?"
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
There is a little lad here, that hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes, - but, these, - what are they, for such numbers?
Douay-Rheims Bible
There is a boy here that hath five barley loaves and two fishes. But what are these among so many?
Revised Standard Version
"There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish; but what are they among so many?"
Tyndale New Testament (1525)
There ys a lad here which hath fyve barly loves and two fisshes: but what is that amoge so many?
Young's Literal Translation
`There is one little lad here who hath five barley loaves, and two fishes, but these -- what are they to so many?'
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
There is a lad here, yt hath fyue barlye loaues, and two fishes, but what is that amoge so many?
Mace New Testament (1729)
there is a lad here, who hath five barley-loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many?
Simplified Cowboy Version
"Is this boy's five biscuits and two pieces of jerky close, Phil?"

Contextual Overview

1 After this, Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (or Tiberias).Matthew 14:15; Mark 6:35; Luke 9:10,12;">[xr] 2 A large crowd kept following him because they had seen the signs that he was performing on the sick. 3 But Jesus went up on a hillside and sat down there with his disciples. 4 Now the Passover, the festival of the Jews, was near.Leviticus 23:5,7; Deuteronomy 16:1; John 2:13; 5:1;">[xr] 5 When Jesus looked up and saw that a large crowd was coming toward him, he said to Philip, "Where can we buy bread for these people to eat?"Matthew 14:14; Mark 6:35; Luke 9:12;">[xr] 6 JesusHe">[fn] said this to test him, for he himself knew what he was going to do. 7 Philip answered him, "Two hundred denarii[fn] worth of bread is not enough for each of them to get a little."Numbers 11:21-22;">[xr] 8 One of his disciples, Andrew, who was Simon Peter's brother, said to him, 9 "There's a little boy here who has five barley loaves and two small fish. But what are they among so many people?"2 Kings 4:43;">[xr] 10 Jesus said, "Have the people sit down." Now there was plenty of grass in that place. So the men sat down, numbering about 5,000.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

which: Matthew 14:17, Matthew 16:9, Mark 6:38, Mark 8:19, Luke 9:13

barley: Deuteronomy 8:8, Deuteronomy 32:14, 1 Kings 4:28, 2 Kings 7:1, Psalms 81:16, Psalms 147:14, Ezekiel 27:17, 2 Corinthians 8:9, Revelation 6:6

but: John 6:7, John 11:21, John 11:32, 2 Kings 4:42-44, Psalms 78:19, Psalms 78:41

Reciprocal: Numbers 11:22 - General 2 Kings 4:43 - What Proverbs 27:7 - to Matthew 15:33 - to fill

Cross-References

Luke 2:25
Now a man named Simeon was in Jerusalem. This man was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the one who would comfort Israel,for the comfort of Israel">[fn] and the Holy Spirit rested on him.Isaiah 40:1; Mark 15:43; Luke 2:38;">[xr]
Luke 23:50
Now there was a man named Joseph, a member of the Council, a good and righteous man - Matthew 27:57; Mark 15:42; John 19:38;">[xr]
Acts 10:22
The men replied, "Cornelius, a centurion and an upright and God-fearing man who is respected by the whole Jewish nation, was instructed by a holy angel to send for you to come to his home to hear what you have to say."Acts 10:1-2; 22:12;">[xr]
Romans 1:17
For in it God's righteousness is being revealed from faith to faith, as it is written, "The righteous will live by faith."Habakkuk 2:4">[fn]Habakkuk 2:4; John 3:36; Romans 3:21; Galatians 3:11; Philippians 3:9; Hebrews 10:38;">[xr]
Galatians 3:11
Now it is obvious that no one is justified in the sight of God by the law, because "The righteous will live by faith."Habakkuk 2:4">[fn]Habakkuk 2:4; Romans 1:17; Galatians 2:16; Hebrews 10:38;">[xr]
Hebrews 11:7
By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, reverently prepared an ark to save his family, and by it he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.Genesis 6:13,22; Romans 3:22; 4:13; Philippians 3:9; 1 Peter 3:20;">[xr]
1 Peter 2:5
you, too, as living stones, are building yourselves up into a spiritual house and a holy priesthood, so that you may offer spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.Isaiah 61:6; 66:21; Hosea 14:2; Malachi 1:11; Romans 12:1; Ephesians 2:21-22; Philippians 4:18; Hebrews 3:6; 13:15-16; 1 Peter 4:11; 2:9;">[xr]
2 Peter 2:5
and if he did not spare the ancient world but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others when he brought the flood on the world of ungodly people;Genesis 7:1,7, 23; Hebrews 11:7; 1 Peter 3:19-20; 2 Peter 3:6;">[xr]

Gill's Notes on the Bible

There is a lad here,.... Who either belonged to Christ and his disciples, and was employed to carry their provisions for them; which, if so, shows how meanly Christ and his disciples lived; or he belonged to some in the multitude; or rather he came here to sell what he had got:

which hath five barley loaves. The land of Canaan was a land of barley, as well as wheat, Deuteronomy 8:8; this sort of grain grew there in plenty, and was in much use; the Jews had a barley harvest, Ruth 1:22, which was at the time of the passover; for on the second day after the passover, the sheaf of the first fruits was waved before the Lord, which was of barley; hence the Targumist on the place just cited, paraphrases it thus;

"they came to Bethlehem in the beginning of the passover, and on the day the children of Israel began to reap the sheaf of the wave offering, which was of barley.''

And it was now about the time of the passover, as appears from John 6:4, and had it been quite the time, and the barley sheaf had been waved, it might have been thought that these loaves were made of the new barley; but though barley was in use for bread among the Jews, as is evident, from the mention that is made of barley loaves and cakes, 2 Kings 4:42; yet it was bread of the coarsest sort, and what the meaner sort of people ate; see Ezekiel 4:12. Yea, barley was used for food for horses and dromedaries, 1 Kings 4:28; and since therefore these loaves were, if not designed for the use of Christ and his twelve apostles, yet for some of his followers, and which they all ate of; it is an instance of the meanness and poverty of them: but however, they had better bread than this, even the bread of life, which is afterwards largely treated of in this chapter, which some of them at least ate of; and as our countryman Mr. Dod used to say,

"brown bread and the Gospel are good fare:''

and it may be further observed, that the number of these loaves were but few; there were but "five" of them, for "five thousand" persons; and these do not seem to be very large ones, since one lad was able to carry them; and indeed, these loaves were no other than cakes, in which form they used to be made:

and two small fishes; there were but "two", and these "small"; it is amazing, that five thousand persons should everyone have something of them, and enough: these fishes seem to be what the Jews c call

מוניני, and which the gloss interprets "small fishes": and by the word which is used of them, they seem to be salted, or pickled fishes, and such it is very probable these were; Nonnus calls them,

ιχθυας οπταλεους, "fishes which were broiled", or perhaps dried in the sun; see Luke 24:42.

But what are they among so many? everyone cannot possibly have a taste, much less any refreshment, still less a meal.

c T. Bab. Cetubot, fol. 60. 2. & Sanhedrin, fol. 49. 1.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse John 6:9. There is a lad here — παιδαριον, a little boy, or servant, probably one who carried the apostles' provisions, or who came on purpose to sell his bread and fish.

Five barley loaves — Barley scarcely bore one-third of the value of wheat in the east: see Revelation 6:6. That it was a very mean fare appears from Ezekiel 13:19, where the false prophetesses are said to pollute the name of God for handfuls of barley, i.e. for the meanest reward. And Plutarch, in Apoph. p. 174, speaking concerning the flight of Artaxerxes Mnemon, says he was reduced to such distress as to be obliged to eat barley bread. See Kypke. From this and other circumstances we may plainly perceive that the self-denying doctrine preached by Christ and his apostles was fully exemplified in their own manner of living.

Two small fishes — δυο οψαρια. The word of οψαριον signifies whatever is eaten with bread, to perfect the meal, or to make it easy of deglutition, or to help the digestion. There is no word in the English language for it, which is a great defect. The inhabitants of Scotland, and of the north and north-west of Ireland, use the word kytshen, by which they express what ever is eaten with bread or potatoes, as flesh, fish, butter, milk, eggs, c., no satisfactory etymology of which word I am able to offer. In the parallel places in the other three evangelists, instead of οψαριαι, χθυας is used so that the word evidently means fish in the text of St. John: John 21:5.


 
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