17 And Jesus, hearing it, said to them, Why are you reasoning among yourselves because you have no bread? do you still not see, and is it still not clear to you? are your hearts so hard?
For it was not clear to them about the bread; but their hearts were hard.
O Lord, why do you send us wandering from your ways, making our hearts hard, so that we have no fear of you? Come back, because of your servants, the tribes of your heritage.
And Jesus, seeing it, said, O you of little faith, why are you reasoning among yourselves, because you have no bread? Do you still not see, or keep in mind the five cakes of bread of the five thousand, and the number of baskets you took up?
And Jesus, having knowledge in his spirit of their thoughts, said to them, Why are you reasoning about these things in your hearts?
And later he was seen by the eleven themselves while they were taking food; and he said sharp words to them because they had no faith and their hearts were hard, and because they had no belief in those who had seen him after he had come back from the dead.
And he said, O foolish men! how slow you are to give belief to what the prophets have said.
Now we are certain that you have knowledge of all things and have no need for anyone to put questions to you: through this we have faith that you came from God.
He said to him a third time, Simon, son of John, am I dear to you? Now Peter was troubled in his heart because he put the question a third time, Am I dear to you? And he said to him, Lord, you have knowledge of all things; you see that you are dear to me. Jesus said to him, Then give my sheep food.
For the word of God is living and full of power, and is sharper than any two-edged sword, cutting through and making a division even of the soul and the spirit, the bones and the muscles, and quick to see the thoughts and purposes of the heart. And there is nothing made which is not completely clear to him; there is nothing covered, but all things are open to the eyes of him with whom we have to do.
Of whom we have much to say which it is hard to make clear, because you are slow of hearing. And though by this time it would be right for you to be teachers, you still have need of someone to give you teaching about the first simple rules of God's revelation; you have become like babies who have need of milk, and not of solid food.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Mark 8
Commentary on Mark 8 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 8
In this chapter, we have,
Mar 8:1-9
We had the story of a miracle very like this before, in this gospel (ch. 6:35), and of this same miracle (Mt. 15:32), and here is little or no addition or alternation as to the circumstances. Yet observe,
Mar 8:10-21
Still Christ is upon motion; now he visits the parts of Dalmanutha, that no corner of the land of Israel might say that they had not had his presence with them. He came thither by ship (v. 10); but, meeting with occasions of dispute there, and not with opportunities of doing good, he entered into the ship again (v. 13), and came back. In these verses, we are told,
Mar 8:22-26
This cure is related only by this evangelist, and there is something singular in the circumstances.
Mar 8:27-38
We have read a great deal of the doctrine Christ preached, and the miracles he wrought, which were many, and strange, and well-attested, of various kinds, and wrought in several places, to the astonishment of the multitudes that were eye-witnesses of them. It is now time for us to pause a little, and to consider what these things mean; the wondrous works which Christ then forbade the publishing of, being recorded in these sacred writings, are thereby published to all the world, to us, to all ages; now what shall we think of them? Is the record of those things designed only for an amusement, or to furnish us with matter for discourse? No, certainly these things are written, that we may believe that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God (Jn. 20:31); and this discourse which Christ had with his disciples, will assist us in making the necessary reflections upon the miracles of Christ, and a right use of them. Three things we are here taught to infer from the miracles Christ wrought.