The Feeding of the Four Thousand (Matthew 15:29–39)

[Stephan Choe]

June 27, 2026

Key Verse 34: “And Jesus said to them, ‘How many loaves do you have?’ They answered, ‘Seven, and a few fish.’”

 Previously, Jesus had fed 5,000 people with five loaves and two fish (14:13–21). Today’s text recounts how Jesus once again provided for a large crowd—this time 4,000 people—using seven loaves and a few fish.

We can learn much about Jesus Christ: about His glory, His greatness, His omnipotence, His love, and His care for people. Yet the focus of this passage is the Lord Jesus Himself. He is the One who acts.

He always had an eye for people. He saw the individual and helped everyone, yet He also took note of the great crowds. No person escapes the attention of the Lord Jesus. Today’s text tells how Jesus provided for four thousand people.

1. Jesus’ Healings in Gentile Territory (29–31)

Jesus' withdrawal from the region of Tyre and Sidon to the territory of the Ten Cities (Decapolis) [1],[2], and his journey to Magadan[3].

Jesus deliberately avoided the territory of Herod Antipas, who ruled as tetrarch over Galilee. For this reason, he had traveled to a Phoenician village near Sidon and Tyre. There, he delivered the daughter of a Canaanite woman from an evil spirit (15:21–28).

Afterwards, he crossed the Sea of and arrived in the region of the ten cities known as the Decapolis (15:29; cf. Mark 7:31). The Decapolis was a league of ten Greek cities east of the Jordan River. Thus, Jesus came near Hippos. It was in this area that he had previously fed 5,000 people.

What did he do there?

Verse 30 tells us that he healed many sick people there—including the paralyzed, the maimed, the blind, and the mute, as well as many others suffering from a wide variety of ailments.

People are considered paralyzed if they cannot properly use their limbs due to paralysis; conversely, those unable to properly use their arms or legs as a result of an injury are considered maimed.

Some people ask me if I had polio. But I had an injury to the hip joint of my thigh.

A paralyzed or maimed person may have difficulty walking or be unable to use their hands properly.

A blind person cannot gaze upon the beauty of nature. Above all, however, he cannot see the beautiful face of his wife or his beloved children.

A mute person cannot—sadly—say to his beloved wife, "I love you!"

For healthy people, walking, seeing, or speaking are things taken for granted. Consequently, they do not thank God for their health. Yet those who cannot speak, hear, walk, or see know what a blessing it is to be able to do so. Jesus feels deep compassion for those who cannot speak, hear, walk, or see.

What did He do for them? He granted them healing. He restored healthy arms or legs to the paralyzed. Once healed, the paralyzed would leap about, raise their restored arms, and praise God.

Jesus restored sight to the blind, enabling them to marvel at the beauty of nature and people and to praise God.

He restored speech to the mute, so that they praised God. Their words were wonderful songs of praise to Him.

We recall Jesus’s answer to the question posed by John the Baptist. When John the Baptist sent his disciples to ask Jesus if He was the promised Messiah, Jesus replied, “Report to John what you have seen and heard: <the blind see and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, the dead are raised and the Gospel is proclaimed to the poor>” (11:4–5).

Our Lord Jesus feels deep compassion for all the sick and restores their health and joy of life. He wants us to be healthy and to lead happy lives.

He desires to help us in every way so that we may be healthy and full of joy, and attain eternal life through faith in the Gospel. Praised be God, who sent us Jesus Christ.

2. The Feeding of the Four Thousand (32–39)

At that time, Jesus was in one of the cities of the Decapolis, likely Hippos. The people who gathered around Jesus came predominantly from the Decapolis region. The crowd numbered 4,000—counting only the adult men. It was thus roughly the same size as the crowd at the feeding of the five thousand.

Perhaps these people had originally intended to listen to His preaching for only two or three hours before returning home. Yet His sermons and healings captivated them so completely that they ended up staying with Jesus for three days.

On the third day, Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “I feel deep compassion for these people; they have been with Me for three days now and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they might collapse on the way” (32).

We can identify three reasons why Jesus wanted to give bread to this crowd:

First, Jesus feels compassion for the hungry people (32).

That is why He said to His disciples, “I have compassion for the people, because they have already been with Me for three days and have nothing to eat” (32).

The well-being of the people is very close to Jesus’ heart—both their health and their need for food.

The crowd’s situation was far worse than on that earlier occasion when Jesus fed 5,000 people; for they had already been with Him for three days without having eaten anything.

Jesus had a great heart for all the hungry, because He regarded them as His own children.

We should realize that Jesus is the Giver of our life and that we are His children. He loves us dearly. Whenever one of us suffers hunger, He feels deep compassion for us.

The disciples considered the actual situation. That is why they said to Jesus,

“Where are we to get enough bread in the wilderness to satisfy such a large crowd?” (33).

They felt there was nothing they could do for the people anyway. Faced with this vast crowd, they lacked a heart for the people.

Yet Jesus wanted to help His disciples have a heart for the crowd and to treat these hungry people as shepherds would. That is why He said to them: "I am deeply concerned that these people have been with Me for three days now and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, lest they collapse on the way."

We, too, ought to have a heart for the multitudes. If we were to think only of our own strength, we would lose that heart for them. We must remember, however, that all people are ultimately our brothers and sisters. We must not stand idly by when one of our siblings suffers from hunger. Despite the size of the crowd, we should have a heart for them and offer our small gift to Jesus. When we offer our gift to Him—in faith in Jesus—no matter what kind of gift it may be, we will experience His wonderful work.

Secondly, through this feeding, Jesus wanted to remind the Twelve—and us as well—of His person and His power.

When Jesus said He wanted to give the hungry crowd something to eat, the disciples replied,

"Where are we to get enough bread here in the wilderness to satisfy so many people?" (33). The disciples had already forgotten that Jesus had recently fed 5,000 people with five loaves and two fish. They had also forgotten that Jesus had walked on the waters of the Sea of Galilee as if it were dry land, prompting them to exclaim: "You are truly the Son of God!" (14:33).

They forgot such experiences so quickly and said to Him, "Where are we to get bread for so many people?"

How could the disciples forget such a mighty miracle?

We recall the story of Israel’s exodus from Egypt. Out of mercy and through His power, God had freed Israel from Egyptian bondage. Yet when the people of Israel encountered difficulties, they forgot God’s grace and grumbled against Him. People very easily forget divine grace. Jesus’ twelve disciples were no exception; they quickly forgot Jesus and His power.

Knowing of their forgetfulness, Jesus performed a similar miracle once again to remind them of who He was and the power He possessed. In doing so, He strengthened their faith in Him.

We, too, quickly forget Jesus and the power we have experienced. Consequently, our life of faith becomes dry and powerless, and we grumble against God. We ought to recognize our forgetfulness as a serious problem and take appropriate measures to counter it.

What should we do about our forgetfulness? We must continually remind ourselves of Jesus and the help He has given us, so that our faith in Him remains fresh and alive.

Our God is just as almighty and alive today as He was yesterday. That is why God’s Word states in Hebrews 13:8: “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”

A modern translation puts it this way: “Jesus Christ is and remains the same. As He was yesterday, so He is today, and so He will remain for all eternity.”

Therefore, Jesus can faithfully stand by our side today and tomorrow. Whoever constantly thinks of Jesus and His power—and thanks Him for it—will lead a victorious life of faith and experience God’s abundant blessing. We should always keep His help and power in mind and thank Him for them.

We want to give spiritual bread to students in Bochum. Driven by this desire, Dunja and Denis began inviting students to Bible study and worship services back in 2014. Today, students and young people such as Yean, Darja, Arman, and Tony attend the Bible study. Of course, their numbers are tiny—like the five loaves and two fish—when compared to the 50,000 students in Bochum. Yet Jesus warmly welcomes these few students and young people and thanks God for their presence. God will bless these individuals so that, ultimately, countless people will receive the bread of eternal life. God will bless them so that, ultimately, countless people may receive the bread of eternal life.

During my studies in Korea, I invited some fellow students to a Bible study group, and they came to faith. Many of them are now actively involved in spreading the Gospel. One of them is Pastor David Lim; he was my first Bible student. He has founded three new churches in Seoul, Ilsan, and Paju. Currently, an estimated 10,000 people attend the Sunday services at his three churches.

This is an example of how our Lord blesses countless people through work that might initially seem insignificant. God will richly bless our efforts for the Gospel if we simply do what is within our power. We should trust in God’s blessing and—acting out of that faith—invite friends to a Bible study group.

Thirdly, Jesus teaches us to thank God for the gift we possess and to bring it to Him.

Jesus did not ask His disciples for anything they did not already have. No! Rather, He wanted them to bring Him what they actually possessed. That is why He asked them, "How many loaves do you have?" And they answered, "Seven loaves and a few fish."

He did not respond by saying, "That is far too little for this huge crowd!" Instead, He gratefully accepted the seven loaves and the few fish and thanked God for this small offering.

His prayer of thanksgiving brought about a miracle: God multiplied the gift and fed more than 4,000 people! This miracle began with giving thanks.

Maintain a living faith!

Jesus once fed 5,000 people with just a few loaves and fish. Now, He fed 4,000 people. Through this renewed miracle of feeding the multitude, Jesus teaches us to believe in Him as the Son of God and in His power, and to keep our faith alive at all times. When we maintain a living faith in Jesus Christ, we continually experience His presence, His goodness, His power, and His blessing. We can praise God and give Him the glory.

We should ask ourselves: Do we maintain a living faith in Jesus Christ? Are we aware of the Lord’s presence? Do we trust in His grace and His omnipotence? Are we grateful to Him for His goodness and His blessing? May God help us to keep our faith in Jesus Christ truly alive and to experience His presence and His blessing in abundance. Amen!

---

[1] http://dioezese-linzold.at/redsys/data/bibelwerk/DEKAPOLIS_Karte_m.jpg

[2] http://www.evangeliumszentrum.at/bs/bibelueberblick/images/TN06_1.gif

[3] https://de.pinterest.com/pin/bible-map-dalmanutha-magadan--285345326384566530/