In Mark 6,7,8, the series of stories seem oddly placed, but instead offer the rather direct lesson that seeing is not believing. The text discusses the miracle of the feeding of the 4,000 and of the 5,000. Nowhere is the mechanism of multiplication seen. The text seems to be deliberate in its omission. Further, the sleight of hand and the unseen multiplication is offered as the central reason for believing in seemingly unrelated matters. To drive the point home, the Pharisees arrive demanding to see, and are given only a rebuke.
Most people who come to the cozy cabal of creationism here come with assurance on what Gen. 1 says (be it YEC or TE). So no one need convince them on the basis of Mark 6-8. For those of us who don't need to a see a mechanism for Gen 1 creation, here is your text.
In Mark 6, we have these interesting allusions to Ps. 23. The people are like sheep without a shephard, made to sit down in green grass. The loves and fish are taken up and blessed. Not multiplied, but blessed verbally. The Apostles eat. It seems that only as the fragments are gathered is the miracle apparent.
Jesus reinforces the point in Mark 8 by asking how many baskets were taken up at the first and second feeds of the multitudes. Not, "did you seem the fish multiplied in my hand," but "how many baskets did you take up?"
God moves mysteriously in other places. Jesus first covers the blind man's eyes with mud before he is healed. The widow visited by Elijah seems to take food out of a magic, but closed, cupboard. The point is, what do you have when you have something from nothing in the Bible? All that is in "view" is the spoken Word.
The hidden mechanism of God's creation is underlined the inability of the Disciples and Pharisees to get it. The first demonstration of ignorance is when Jesus orders the disciples to sail ahead of him. During a storm, he walks upon the water.
(Lest anyone say we YECs fail to appreciate metaphor, during the literal calming of the storm, there is a metaphor for our lives. Funny how metaphor doesn't take away from literal, narrative truth there. Is that also an example for us?)
During the storm and Jesus' appearance, the disciples freak. Jesus calms the storm and them by his spoken word. The odd thing is that he rebukes them because they didn't get the whole miracle of the feeding of the 5,000 thing. Well, of what relevance is bread crumbs to violent storms? The common link is of course the Word of God spoken for men. The other common link is the lack of a mechanism in either example. It is just spoken.
Enter the Pharisees, who came down from Jerusalem asking for a sign. And what kind of sign do you supposed that they wanted? Obviously asking witnesses about the feeding of so many was not what they wanted. I rather suppose that taking up an unaccountably large volume of fragments might not have been enough. In Grim's fairy tales, the "miraculous" involves spinning gold from straw, riding spoons through the air or planting magic beans -- all, quite frankly being signs of the occult and all the more curious for being so much more obvious and and apparent, yet unsatisfying next to the spoken, authoritative Word of God. But, that sounds more like what the Pharisees were after.
Also of note is that while food is apparently being blessed by the creator, they can't seem to get over the lack of Levitical washing. The ignore the blessing and get hung up on a religious mechanism.
When the disciples later forget to bring bread, they are warned of the leaven of the Pharisees. Now, it is personally comforting that the screw-ups still have access to miraculous grace. But of note is the continuing hang up with bread. The Pharisees wanted to see a sign. No other obvious manifestation of leaven is in view. The Disciples think Jesus is talking about shopping for bread the right way, apparently, since they have none.
Jesus asks them to glean what he finds to be an obvious lesson from the amount of broken bread and fish taken up. Like the disciples, I am thinking, what has a surprisingly large pile of crumbs got to do with my bad planning, my storm and God's identity? The sufficiency and authority of the Word is again in the foreground. There is no mechanism in the background and no context but the Word. It is of universal application.
And lets not forget the Syrophoenician woman with the possessed daughter -- a hallmark of living among the occultic peoples. How many times have you read this and wondered at the cruelty of Jesus, saying that the children's bread is not for her (well, that isnt exactly what he says)? What does she speak of? Crumbs. Multplied crumbs. Surprisingly she is the only one who seems to be get the relevance of crumbs to completely dissimilar contexts, like demon possession. By the way, God is speaking to all of us here. None of us deserve any of the bread. So, I have no problem with the lack of political correctness displayed by Jesus.
Lest we completely miss the point, yet another witness is offered Mark 8. That is, another miraculous feeding. Again, the multiplication is only apparent as the crumbs are taken up. Again the Pharisees demand a sign and are denied. And again they are sailing.
I remember studying about how many of these oral histories weren't particularly well constructed. The stories seemed assembled in a somewhat haphazard fashion. Yet this series of stories seems to make the point rather emphatically that the logic and structure is really very appropriate. It simply centers on the spoken Word of God, not how we view our circumstances and not based upon the demands of human logic and need for proof.
Mark, Ch. 6
37But He replied to them, Give them something to eat yourselves. And they said to Him, Shall we go and buy 200 [q]denarii [about forty dollars] worth of bread and give it to them to eat? [II Kings 4:42-44.] 38And He said to them, How many loaves do you have? Go and see. And when they [had looked and] knew, they said, Five [loaves] and two fish.
39Then He commanded the people all to recline on the green grass by companies.
40So they threw themselves down in ranks of hundreds and fifties [with the [r]regularity of an arrangement of beds of herbs, looking [s]like so many garden plots].
41And taking the five loaves and two fish, He looked up to heaven and, praising God, gave thanks and broke the loaves and kept on giving them to the disciples to set before the people; and He [also] divided the two fish among [them] all.
42And they all ate and were satisfied.
43And they took up twelve [[t]small hand] baskets full of broken pieces [from the loaves] and of the fish.
44And those who ate the loaves were 5,000 men.
45And at once He insisted that the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side to Bethsaida, while He was sending the throng away.
46And after He had taken leave of them, He went off into the hills to pray.
47Now when evening had come, the boat was out in the middle of the lake, and He was by Himself on the land.
48And having seen that they were troubled and tormented in [their] rowing, for the wind was against them, about the fourth watch of the night [between 3:00-6:00 a.m.] He came to them, walking [directly] on the sea. And He acted as if He meant to pass by them,
49But when they saw Him walking on the sea they thought it was a ghost, and [u]raised a [deep, throaty] shriek of terror. 50For they all saw Him and were agitated (troubled and filled with fear and dread). But immediately He talked with them and said, Take heart! I AM! Stop being alarmed and afraid.(B)
51And He went up into the boat with them, and the wind ceased ([v]sank to rest as if exhausted by its own beating). And they were astonished exceedingly [beyond measure],
52For they failed to consider or understand [the teaching and meaning of the miracle of] the loaves; [in fact] their hearts had [w]grown callous [had become dull and had [x]lost the power of understanding].
Mark, Ch. 7
5And the Pharisees and scribes kept asking [Jesus], Why do Your disciples not order their way of living according to the tradition handed down by the forefathers [to be observed], but eat with hands unwashed and ceremonially not purified?
6But He said to them, Excellently and truly [[e]so that there will be no room for blame] did Isaiah prophesy of you, the pretenders and hypocrites, as it stands written: These people [constantly] honor Me with their lips, but their hearts hold off and are far distant from Me.
7In vain (fruitlessly and without profit) do they worship Me, ordering and teaching [to be obeyed] as doctrines the commandments and precepts of men.(A)
8You disregard and give up and ask to depart from you the commandment of God and cling to the tradition of men [keeping it carefully and faithfully].
27And He said to her, First let the children be fed, for it is not becoming or proper or right to take the children's bread and throw it to the [little house] dogs.
28But she answered Him, Yes, Lord, yet even the small pups under the table eat the little children's scraps of food.
29And He said to her, Because of this saying, you may go your way; the demon has gone out of your daughter [permanently].
Mark, Ch 8
7And they had a few small fish; and when He had [a]praised God and given thanks and asked Him to bless them [to their use], He ordered that these also should be set before [them].
8And they ate and were satisfied; and they took up seven [[b]large provision] baskets full of the broken pieces left over.
9And there were about 4,000 people. And He dismissed them,
10And at once He got into the boat with His disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha (or Magdala).
11The Pharisees came and began to argue with and question Him, demanding from Him a sign (an attesting miracle from heaven) [maliciously] to test Him.
12And He groaned and sighed deeply in His spirit and said, Why does this generation demand a sign? Positively I say to you, no sign shall be given this generation.
13And He went away and left them and, getting into the boat again, He departed to the other side.
14Now they had [[c]completely] forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat.
15And Jesus [repeatedly and expressly] charged and admonished them, saying, Look out; keep on your guard and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod [d]and the Herodians.
16And they discussed it and reasoned with one another, It is because we have no bread.
17And being aware [of it], Jesus said to them, Why are you reasoning and saying it is because you have no bread? Do you not yet discern or understand? Are your hearts in [a settled state of] hardness?(A)
18Having eyes, do you not see [with them], and having ears, do you not hear and perceive and understand the sense of what is said? And do you not remember?
19When I broke the five loaves for the 5,000, how many [[e]small hand] baskets full of broken pieces did you take up? They said to Him, Twelve.
20And [when I broke] the seven loaves for the 4,000, how many [[f]large provision] baskets full of broken pieces did you take up? And they said to Him, Seven.
21And He [g]kept repeating, Do you not yet understand?
Most people who come to the cozy cabal of creationism here come with assurance on what Gen. 1 says (be it YEC or TE). So no one need convince them on the basis of Mark 6-8. For those of us who don't need to a see a mechanism for Gen 1 creation, here is your text.
In Mark 6, we have these interesting allusions to Ps. 23. The people are like sheep without a shephard, made to sit down in green grass. The loves and fish are taken up and blessed. Not multiplied, but blessed verbally. The Apostles eat. It seems that only as the fragments are gathered is the miracle apparent.
Jesus reinforces the point in Mark 8 by asking how many baskets were taken up at the first and second feeds of the multitudes. Not, "did you seem the fish multiplied in my hand," but "how many baskets did you take up?"
God moves mysteriously in other places. Jesus first covers the blind man's eyes with mud before he is healed. The widow visited by Elijah seems to take food out of a magic, but closed, cupboard. The point is, what do you have when you have something from nothing in the Bible? All that is in "view" is the spoken Word.
The hidden mechanism of God's creation is underlined the inability of the Disciples and Pharisees to get it. The first demonstration of ignorance is when Jesus orders the disciples to sail ahead of him. During a storm, he walks upon the water.
(Lest anyone say we YECs fail to appreciate metaphor, during the literal calming of the storm, there is a metaphor for our lives. Funny how metaphor doesn't take away from literal, narrative truth there. Is that also an example for us?)
During the storm and Jesus' appearance, the disciples freak. Jesus calms the storm and them by his spoken word. The odd thing is that he rebukes them because they didn't get the whole miracle of the feeding of the 5,000 thing. Well, of what relevance is bread crumbs to violent storms? The common link is of course the Word of God spoken for men. The other common link is the lack of a mechanism in either example. It is just spoken.
Enter the Pharisees, who came down from Jerusalem asking for a sign. And what kind of sign do you supposed that they wanted? Obviously asking witnesses about the feeding of so many was not what they wanted. I rather suppose that taking up an unaccountably large volume of fragments might not have been enough. In Grim's fairy tales, the "miraculous" involves spinning gold from straw, riding spoons through the air or planting magic beans -- all, quite frankly being signs of the occult and all the more curious for being so much more obvious and and apparent, yet unsatisfying next to the spoken, authoritative Word of God. But, that sounds more like what the Pharisees were after.
Also of note is that while food is apparently being blessed by the creator, they can't seem to get over the lack of Levitical washing. The ignore the blessing and get hung up on a religious mechanism.
When the disciples later forget to bring bread, they are warned of the leaven of the Pharisees. Now, it is personally comforting that the screw-ups still have access to miraculous grace. But of note is the continuing hang up with bread. The Pharisees wanted to see a sign. No other obvious manifestation of leaven is in view. The Disciples think Jesus is talking about shopping for bread the right way, apparently, since they have none.
Jesus asks them to glean what he finds to be an obvious lesson from the amount of broken bread and fish taken up. Like the disciples, I am thinking, what has a surprisingly large pile of crumbs got to do with my bad planning, my storm and God's identity? The sufficiency and authority of the Word is again in the foreground. There is no mechanism in the background and no context but the Word. It is of universal application.
And lets not forget the Syrophoenician woman with the possessed daughter -- a hallmark of living among the occultic peoples. How many times have you read this and wondered at the cruelty of Jesus, saying that the children's bread is not for her (well, that isnt exactly what he says)? What does she speak of? Crumbs. Multplied crumbs. Surprisingly she is the only one who seems to be get the relevance of crumbs to completely dissimilar contexts, like demon possession. By the way, God is speaking to all of us here. None of us deserve any of the bread. So, I have no problem with the lack of political correctness displayed by Jesus.
Lest we completely miss the point, yet another witness is offered Mark 8. That is, another miraculous feeding. Again, the multiplication is only apparent as the crumbs are taken up. Again the Pharisees demand a sign and are denied. And again they are sailing.
I remember studying about how many of these oral histories weren't particularly well constructed. The stories seemed assembled in a somewhat haphazard fashion. Yet this series of stories seems to make the point rather emphatically that the logic and structure is really very appropriate. It simply centers on the spoken Word of God, not how we view our circumstances and not based upon the demands of human logic and need for proof.
Mark, Ch. 6
37But He replied to them, Give them something to eat yourselves. And they said to Him, Shall we go and buy 200 [q]denarii [about forty dollars] worth of bread and give it to them to eat? [II Kings 4:42-44.] 38And He said to them, How many loaves do you have? Go and see. And when they [had looked and] knew, they said, Five [loaves] and two fish.
39Then He commanded the people all to recline on the green grass by companies.
40So they threw themselves down in ranks of hundreds and fifties [with the [r]regularity of an arrangement of beds of herbs, looking [s]like so many garden plots].
41And taking the five loaves and two fish, He looked up to heaven and, praising God, gave thanks and broke the loaves and kept on giving them to the disciples to set before the people; and He [also] divided the two fish among [them] all.
42And they all ate and were satisfied.
43And they took up twelve [[t]small hand] baskets full of broken pieces [from the loaves] and of the fish.
44And those who ate the loaves were 5,000 men.
45And at once He insisted that the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side to Bethsaida, while He was sending the throng away.
46And after He had taken leave of them, He went off into the hills to pray.
47Now when evening had come, the boat was out in the middle of the lake, and He was by Himself on the land.
48And having seen that they were troubled and tormented in [their] rowing, for the wind was against them, about the fourth watch of the night [between 3:00-6:00 a.m.] He came to them, walking [directly] on the sea. And He acted as if He meant to pass by them,
49But when they saw Him walking on the sea they thought it was a ghost, and [u]raised a [deep, throaty] shriek of terror. 50For they all saw Him and were agitated (troubled and filled with fear and dread). But immediately He talked with them and said, Take heart! I AM! Stop being alarmed and afraid.(B)
51And He went up into the boat with them, and the wind ceased ([v]sank to rest as if exhausted by its own beating). And they were astonished exceedingly [beyond measure],
52For they failed to consider or understand [the teaching and meaning of the miracle of] the loaves; [in fact] their hearts had [w]grown callous [had become dull and had [x]lost the power of understanding].
Mark, Ch. 7
5And the Pharisees and scribes kept asking [Jesus], Why do Your disciples not order their way of living according to the tradition handed down by the forefathers [to be observed], but eat with hands unwashed and ceremonially not purified?
6But He said to them, Excellently and truly [[e]so that there will be no room for blame] did Isaiah prophesy of you, the pretenders and hypocrites, as it stands written: These people [constantly] honor Me with their lips, but their hearts hold off and are far distant from Me.
7In vain (fruitlessly and without profit) do they worship Me, ordering and teaching [to be obeyed] as doctrines the commandments and precepts of men.(A)
8You disregard and give up and ask to depart from you the commandment of God and cling to the tradition of men [keeping it carefully and faithfully].
27And He said to her, First let the children be fed, for it is not becoming or proper or right to take the children's bread and throw it to the [little house] dogs.
28But she answered Him, Yes, Lord, yet even the small pups under the table eat the little children's scraps of food.
29And He said to her, Because of this saying, you may go your way; the demon has gone out of your daughter [permanently].
Mark, Ch 8
7And they had a few small fish; and when He had [a]praised God and given thanks and asked Him to bless them [to their use], He ordered that these also should be set before [them].
8And they ate and were satisfied; and they took up seven [[b]large provision] baskets full of the broken pieces left over.
9And there were about 4,000 people. And He dismissed them,
10And at once He got into the boat with His disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha (or Magdala).
11The Pharisees came and began to argue with and question Him, demanding from Him a sign (an attesting miracle from heaven) [maliciously] to test Him.
12And He groaned and sighed deeply in His spirit and said, Why does this generation demand a sign? Positively I say to you, no sign shall be given this generation.
13And He went away and left them and, getting into the boat again, He departed to the other side.
14Now they had [[c]completely] forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat.
15And Jesus [repeatedly and expressly] charged and admonished them, saying, Look out; keep on your guard and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod [d]and the Herodians.
16And they discussed it and reasoned with one another, It is because we have no bread.
17And being aware [of it], Jesus said to them, Why are you reasoning and saying it is because you have no bread? Do you not yet discern or understand? Are your hearts in [a settled state of] hardness?(A)
18Having eyes, do you not see [with them], and having ears, do you not hear and perceive and understand the sense of what is said? And do you not remember?
19When I broke the five loaves for the 5,000, how many [[e]small hand] baskets full of broken pieces did you take up? They said to Him, Twelve.
20And [when I broke] the seven loaves for the 4,000, how many [[f]large provision] baskets full of broken pieces did you take up? And they said to Him, Seven.
21And He [g]kept repeating, Do you not yet understand?
