And they began to discuss with one another the fact that they had no bread.
Parallel translations
- WEB They reasoned with one another, saying, “It’s because we have no bread.”
- KJV And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have no bread.
- BSB So they began to discuss with one another the fact that they had no bread.
- NKJV And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “It is because we have no bread.”
- NLT At this they began to argue with each other because they hadn’t brought any bread.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The disciples mistakenly think Jesus is rebuking them for forgetting bread. They miss his spiritual point entirely.
Overview
Their literal-minded reasoning shows how preoccupation with material concerns blinds them to deeper truth. The misunderstanding sets up Jesus' pointed questions about their hardened hearts. It mirrors the human tendency to reduce Jesus' words to earthly matters while missing his real meaning.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Matt 16:7–8They reasoned among themselves, saying, “We brought no bread.”
- Luke 9:46There arose an argument among them about which of them was the greatest.
- Luke 20:5They reasoned with themselves, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why didn’t you believe him?’
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Mark drives urgently to the cross, showing Jesus the Son of God as the suffering Servant who 'came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'
How Mark 8:16 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.