Mark 8

Four Thousand Fed

1In those days, when there was again a large crowd and they had nothing to eat, 1Jesus called His disciples and said to them, 2“2I feel compassion for the 3people because they have remained with Me now three days and have nothing to eat. 3If I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way; and some of them have come from a great distance.” 4And His disciples answered Him, “Where will anyone be able to find enough 4bread here in this desolate place to satisfy these people?” 5And He was asking them, “How many loaves do you have?” And they said, “Seven.” 6And He directed the 5people to 6sit down on the ground; and taking the seven loaves, He gave thanks and broke them, and started giving them to His disciples to 7serve to them, and they served them to the 8people. 7They also had a few small fish; and 9after He had blessed them, He ordered these to be 10served as well. 8And they ate and were satisfied; and they picked up seven large 11baskets full of what was left over of the broken pieces. 9About four thousand were there; and He sent them away. 10And immediately He entered the boat with His disciples and came to the district of 12Dalmanutha.

1113The Pharisees came out and began to argue with Him, 14seeking from Him a 15sign from heaven, 16to test Him. 1217Sighing deeply 18in His spirit, He said, “Why does this generation seek for a 19sign? Truly I say to you, 2021no 22sign will be given to this generation.” 13Leaving them, He again embarked and went away to the other side.

14And they had forgotten to take bread, and did not have more than one loaf in the boat with them. 15And He was giving orders to them, saying, “23Watch out! Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of 24Herod.” 16They began to discuss with one another the fact that they had no bread. 17And Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you discuss the fact that you have no bread? 25Do you not yet see or understand? Do you have a 26hardened heart? 1827Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember, 19when I broke 28the five loaves for the five thousand, how many 29baskets full of broken pieces you picked up?” They said to Him, “Twelve.” 20“When I broke 30the seven for the four thousand, how many large 31baskets full of broken pieces did you pick up?” And they said to Him, “Seven.” 21And He was saying to them, “32Do you not yet understand?”

22And they came to 33Bethsaida. And they brought a blind man to Jesus and implored Him to 34touch him. 23Taking the blind man by the hand, He 35brought him out of the village; and after 36spitting on his eyes and 37laying His hands on him, He asked him, “Do you see anything?” 24And he 38looked up and said, “I see men, for 39I see them like trees, walking around.” 25Then again He laid His hands on his eyes; and he looked intently and was restored, and began to see everything clearly. 26And He sent him to his home, saying, “Do not even enter 40the village.”

Peter’s Confession of Christ

2741Jesus went out, along with His disciples, to the villages of 42Caesarea Philippi; and on the way He questioned His disciples, saying to them, “Who do people say that I am?” 2843They told Him, saying, “John the Baptist; and others say Elijah; but others, one of the prophets.” 29And He continued by questioning them, “But who do you say that I am?” 44Peter answered and said to Him, “You are 45the Christ.” 30And 46He 47warned them to tell no one about Him.

3148And He began to teach them that 49the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32And He was stating the matter 50plainly. And Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him. 33But turning around and seeing His disciples, He rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind Me, 51Satan; for you are not setting your mind on 52God’s interests, but man’s.”

34And He summoned the crowd with His disciples, and said to them, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and 53take up his cross and follow Me. 35For 54whoever wishes to save his 55life will lose it, but whoever loses his 56life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. 36For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul? 37For what will a man give in exchange for his soul? 38For 57whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, 58the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He 59comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”