“We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.
Parallel translations
- WEB They told him, “We only have here five loaves and two fish.”
- KJV And they say unto him, We have here but five loaves, and two fishes.
- NKJV And they said to Him, “We have here only five loaves and two fish.”
- NASB They *said to Him, “We have nothing here except five loaves and two fish.”
- NLT “But we have only five loaves of bread and two fish!” they answered.
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 reply that they have only five loaves and two fish. Their meager resources seem hopelessly inadequate.
Overview
Faced with the impossible task, the disciples report their tiny supply of five loaves and two fish. Their honest assessment underscores the gap between the need and their ability to meet it. This small offering, placed in Jesus' hands, becomes the means through which His miraculous abundance is revealed.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Luke 9:13But Jesus told them, “You give them something to eat.” “We have only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered, “unless we go and buy food for all these people.”
- John 6:5–9When Jesus looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward Him, He said to Philip, “Where can we buy bread for these people to eat?”
- Mark 6:37–38But Jesus told them, “You give them something to eat.” They asked Him, “Should we go out and spend two hundred denarii to give all of them bread to eat?”
- Matt 15:33–34The disciples replied, “Where in this desolate place could we find enough bread to feed such a large crowd?”
- Mark 8:4–5His disciples replied, “Where in this desolate place could anyone find enough bread to feed all these people?”
- Matt 16:9Do you still not understand? Do you not remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered?
- Ps 78:19–20They spoke against God, saying, “Can God really prepare a table in the wilderness?
- Num 11:21–23But Moses replied, “Here I am among 600,000 men on foot, yet You say, ‘I will give them meat, and they will eat for a month.’
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'
How Matthew 14:17 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.