Jesus Provides A Messianic Fellowship Meal In The Wilderness For His Symbolic New Community (14:13-21).
Jesus, having been rejected by His home country and by the powers that be, has compassion on those who do follow Him into ‘a wilderness place' and feeds them with bread from Heaven. There may here be a deliberate connection with the Exodus. (Note that Psalms 77:19 LXX (Psalms 78:19 MT) with the Exodus in mind also has no article on ‘wilderness'). In the words of Psalms 78 (already in mind in Matthew 13:35), ‘They said, “Can God prepare a table in the wilderness? -- Can He give bread also?” -- He commanded the skies above and opened the doors of Heaven, and He rained down manna on them to eat, and gave them of the corn of Heaven. Man did eat the bread of the mighty. He sent them food to the full' (Psalms 78:19-25). Note the parallel connections, firstly with the wilderness (Matthew 14:15; Psalms 78:19), secondly with the provision from Heaven (Matthew 14:19; Psalms 78:24), and thirdly the fact that they received food to the full (Matthew 14:20; Psalms 78:25). So the One Who had enlightened them with parables in ‘fulfilment' of Psalms 78:2 (see Matthew 13:35), now fed them with a full sufficiency of bread in the terms of that Psalm.
We are reminded again of Matthew 2:15 where God ‘brought His Son out of Egypt', and here He now was, feeding His people in a wilderness place, as He had done originally. Here was the new congregation of Israel in embryo, fleeing in the face of the cruel king (Herod), and being fed with the bread of Heaven in the wilderness. Here was the greater than Elisha feeding the crowds by a miracle (2 Kings 4:42-44). That feeding followed the re-entry into the land via the crossing of the Jordan, Jericho and Bethel (2 Kings 2:13-23), thus repeating the Exodus. Here was the prelude to the coming Messianic feast (Isaiah 25:6; Isaiah 55:2 ff) fulfilling the expectation that when the Messiah came He would feed His people with the manna (see Revelation 2:17, and compare 2 Baruch 29:8 for the Jewish tradition). Here was the One Who was providing ‘bread for the eater' (as He had provided seed for the sower) in terms of His word going forth to do His will (Isaiah 55:10). Here was One Who was Himself the Bread of Life symbolically feeding His people on Himself through their coming and believing (John 6:32-35; John 6:47-51). Note that in fact John 6:31 quotes from Psalms 78:24 demonstrating that Jesus had that Psalm in mind. But in a sense this idea of the bread of life was not new. Isaiah 55:2 very much brings out the significance of bread as symbolising what is good and life-giving in the spiritual sphere.
The connection with Elisha is strengthened by Jesus words, ‘YOU give them to eat' for in 2 Kings 4:42 we read that Elisha said, ‘Give to the people that they may eat', and the final conclusion is also significant, ‘thus says the LORD, they will eat and will leave thereof' (2 Kings 4:43). And ‘they did eat and left thereof according to the word of the LORD' (2 Kings 4:44). The connection with Elisha is significant, for Elisha followed Elijah, and now Jesus, revealing Himself as a greater than Elisha, is following John, the new Elijah. It is not accidental that this incident follows immediately on the description of the death of John. Were it not for Elisha the death of Elijah would have been a huge body blow to the righteous in Israel, especially the ‘sons of the prophets' (2 Kings 2:3), but Elisha had successfully replaced Elijah and triumphantly entered Israel in his place (Crossing the Jordan - Jericho - Bethel (2 Kings 2:13-23)). Now in the same way on the death of John, the new Deliverer, as One on Whom John's followers can fix their hopes, is revealed in the wilderness, just as John had appeared in the wilderness before Him (Matthew 3:1), and the crowds flock to Him as they had flocked to John (Matthew 3:5).
We should note also the emphasis that there is in Matthew 14:19 on the fact that this is a family meal with the master of the feast dispensing the bread and fishes. This clearly stresses the oneness of the community.
We should note further that the initial feeding with manna in the wilderness was closely connected with the glory of God. ‘As Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the people of Israel, and they looked towards the wilderness, and behold the glory of the Lord appeared in the cloud, and the Lord said to Moses, -- say to them -- in the morning you will be filled with bread, then you will know that I am YHWH your God' (Exodus 16:10-12). So by feeding the people Jesus was calling on them to recognise that the glory of God was there.
That Jesus intended this feeding of the people to be highly significant comes out in that, along with His walking on the water, it is the only miracle that Jesus performed that was not ‘forced on Him', (for in those days people were used to fending for themselves so that His feeding of them was a ‘voluntary' act), either as a result of having compassion on someone who needed something extraordinary doing, responding to an appeal, or being forced by circumstances. Here it was totally and deliberately a self-revelation which no one expected from Him. As we see above, it demonstrated that a new Deliverance had begun, and that these were His new Messianic people. (Indeed it got so close to the mark that some of the people, catching the point, even if wrongly interpreting it, began to plan to make him king (John 6:15), and He had quickly to withdraw from the scene, but the Synoptics are not interested in that. They want it to have a positive message about His Messiahship, and ignore the adverse happenings. Incidentally this is strong evidence of how miraculous it was. Men do not get so stirred up by sharing a picnic, or partaking of a symbolic meal).
Analysis.
a Now when Jesus heard it, He withdrew from there in a boat, to a wilderness place apart, and when the crowds heard of it, they followed Him on foot from the cities, and he came forth, and saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, and healed their sick (Matthew 14:13-14)
b And when even was come, the disciples came to him, saying, “The place is wilderness, and the time is already past. Send the crowds away, that they may go into the villages, and buy themselves food” (Matthew 14:15).
c But Jesus said to them, “They have no need to go away. You give them to eat” (Matthew 14:16).
d And they say to him, “We have here but five loaves, and two fishes” (Matthew 14:17).
e And he said, “Bring them here to me”, and he commanded the crowds to sit down on the grass
d And he took the five loaves, and the two fishes (Matthew 14:19 a)
c And looking up to heaven, he blessed, and broke and gave the loaves to the disciples, and the disciples to the crowds (Matthew 14:19 b).
b And they all ate, and were filled, and they took up what remained over of the broken pieces, twelve baskets full (Matthew 14:20).
a And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children (Matthew 14:21).
Note that in ‘a' the crowds gathered to Jesus and He had compassion on them, and in the parallel all the crowds who are fed by Him are five thousand plus women and children. In ‘b' the disciples want the crowd sent away because they are in the wilderness, so that they may find something to eat, and in the parallel they all ate and were filled in the wilderness without departing, with plenty to spare. In ‘c' Jesus says that they have no need to go away and that the disciples are to feed them, and in the parallel he commits the bread that He has to God and the disciples are thus able to feed them. In ‘d' they declare that they have only five loaves and two fishes, and in the parallel Jesus commandeers the five loaves and the two fishes. Centrally in ‘e' what is available is to be brought to Jesus, and He commands the crowds to sit down.