And they had a few small fishes: and he blessed, and commanded to set them also before them.
Parallel translations
- WEB They had a few small fish. Having blessed them, he said to serve these also.
- BSB They also had a few small fish, and Jesus blessed them and ordered that these be set before them as well.
- NKJV They also had a few small fish; and having blessed them, He said to set them also before them.
- NASB They also had a few small fish; and after He had blessed them, He told the disciples to serve these as well.
- NLT A few small fish were found, too, so Jesus also blessed these and told the disciples to distribute them.
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
A few small fish are also blessed and distributed. Jesus brings even modest resources under his blessing.
Overview
As with the loaves, Jesus gives thanks before distributing, modeling gratitude to the Father as the source of every good gift. The fish supplement the meal, showing the fullness of his provision. Nothing offered to Christ is too small for him to use and multiply for others' good.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Matt 14:19And he commanded the multitude to sit down on the grass, and took the five loaves, and the two fishes, and looking up to heaven, he blessed, and brake, and gave the loaves to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude.
- Luke 24:41–42And while they yet believed not for joy, and wondered, he said unto them, Have ye here any meat?
- John 21:5Then Jesus saith unto them, Children, have ye any meat? They answered him, No.
- John 21:8–9And the other disciples came in a little ship; (for they were not far from land, but as it were two hundred cubits,) dragging the net with fishes.
- Luke 6:41And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but perceivest not the beam that is in thine own eye?
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 8:7 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.