Daily Devotional For Wednesday, December 3, 2025
Good morning Southside and this is the day the Lord has made and every single one of us can rejoice and be glad. If you are reading these daily devotionals, you know we are making our way through Matthew’s Gospel. Today, we come to Matthew 15:32-39:
“And Jesus called His disciples to Him, and said, ‘I feel compassion for the people, because they have remained with Me now three days and have nothing to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, for they might faint on the way.’ (33) The disciples said to Him, ‘Where would we get so many loaves in this desolate place to satisfy such a large crowd?’ (34) And Jesus said to them, ‘How many loaves do you have?’ And they said, ‘Seven, and a few small fish.’ (35) And He directed the people to sit down on the ground; (36) and He took the seven loaves and the fish; and giving thanks, He broke them and started giving them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. (37) And they all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up what was left over of the broken pieces, seven large baskets full. (38) And those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children. (39) And sending away the crowds, Jesus got into the boat and came to the region of Magadan” (NASB).
This story is almost similar to the feeding of the 5,000 we read in Matthew 14:13-21. We know these were two separate feedings based on Jesus’ question later to His disciples in Matthew 16:9-10. So, what is different about these two feedings other than the number of people and the amount of limited food Jesus used to feed so many. Pastor and author Chuck Swindoll writes this about the differences between the feeding of the 5,000 and the feeding of the 4,000:
“This is reinforced by the differences between the very similar accounts. The sizes of the crowds were different, the quantities of original loaves and fish were different, the amounts of leftovers were different, and even the Greek words for the “baskets” were distinct, with the term in the second event indicating larger containers” (Source: Charles R. Swindoll, Swindoll’s Living Insights New Testament Bible Commentary, “Matthew 1-15,” Vol. 1A, p. 336).
In Matthew 14:13-21, Jesus and the disciples had desired rest, but the crowd had interrupted that rest. Out of compassion, Jesus had taught them. Jesus’ compassion means that he was deeply moved by the extreme needs of the people. Jesus exhibited God’s compassion for His sheep as recorded by the prophet Ezekiel in Ezekiel 34. Jesus’ compassion was not just mere pity for hungry people that might be seen by us. The Greek New Testament word translated as “compassion” in Mark 8:3 is [σπλαγχνίζομαι, splangchnizomai].
This is a tongue-twister, isn’t it? It literally means “to feel in the bowels, to feel in the viscera.” How true this is. When we get upset, so does our digestive system. We say things like, “I love him/her with all my heart.” We also say, “I hate him/her with all my guts.” We can have such strong emotions we feel them in our viscera or bowels. In the Bible, “compassion” describes God’s deep inner mercy to us. He gives us what we need, not what we deserve. We see this word used repeatedly to describe Jesus (see Matt. 9:36; Matt. 14:14; and Matt. 20:34).
The disciples had to come to Jesus, suggesting that the crowd would be getting hungry and that He should send them away to get their own food. In this episode, the crowd had been following Jesus for three days, listening to His teaching and observing and experiencing His miracles.
You would have thought that to the disciples this was sort of a deja-vu moment. One has to wonder why the disciples did not say to Jesus, “Lord, the people are hungry. We know nothing is impossible for you. We have 7 loaves of bread and some fish. Will you feed these people like You did the 5,000?” Jesus knew the people were hungry and expressed His awareness of the people’s hunger to His disciples. The text does not imply that the people had not eaten anything in 3 days, but that at this point after 3 days, whatever food they had brought with them was now gone through their consumption. Jesus did not want to send them home hungry.
For the disciples to question Jesus’ ability to use what food was available, implies the lesson of the feeding of the 5,000 had not been learned. Are we any different? God helps us with a problem in the past and then we question His ability to help us with one in the present. In this story, 7 loaves of bread and some fish were available. New Testament scholar Bruce B. Barton sheds some light on the significance of the number 7 in this passage:
“In the Bible, the number seven often signifies perfection or completeness, as in the seven days of creation (see Gen. 1) and forgiving seven times (see Matt. 18:21). Yet the numbers seven and seventy were also associated with Gentiles. In Jewish tradition, Gentile nations numbered seventy (see Gen. 10:1-32, and Gentiles were sometimes said to be bound, not by the Israelite covenant, but by God’s covenant with Noah that was said to have seven commandments (see Gen. 9:1-17). In Acts 6:1-7, seven leaders were chosen to minister to the Greek-speaking Christians. Thus, in this passage some have seen the number seven to have symbolic significance. It may hint at the worldwide scope of Jesus’ message. Probably the connection to the Gentiles is coincidental, but the church used that connection to enlarge the Gentile mission” (Source: Bruce B. Barton, The Life Application Bible Commentary, “Matthew,” p. 214).
As with the feeding of the 5,000, Jesus had the people divided into groups. Jewish men would have been in separate groups from the women and children. Literally, the Greek text says, “Jesus kept on giving bread to the disciples, and they kept on distributing it” to the crowd. Jesus always thanked God the Father for food and we should as well. As in the feeding of the 5,000, there was food left over. In the feeding of the 5,000, there were 12 baskets full left over. In the feeding of the 5,000, the Greek New Testament word translated as “basket” is [κόφινος, kofinos]. These were traditional hand baskets.
In Matthew 15:37, the word translated as “basket” is [σπυρίς, spurs]. These baskets were large enough to hold a person. This is the type of basket the Apostle Paul was let down over a wall in Damascus (see Acts 9:25). Now that is some leftovers, folks. Having done this, Jesus and His disciples got in a boat and set sail for Magadan, also known as Dalmanutha in Mark 8:10. Jesus leaves Gentile territory and returns to Jewish territory where the Jewish religious leaders will begin to harass, threaten and attempt to undermine Jesus ministry (see Matt. 16:1-4). We know this was also the hometown of Mary Magdalene (see Luke 8:2-3).
Assignment: Do you give thanks to God before you eat? If so, is it more a ritual to get to the meal or is your heart flooded with gratitude to God the Father for providing you this food so that even the words of your prayers are different each time for each time you say “grace?” Reaching people outside of your own personal world with the Gospel is commanded by God the Father. How are you personally doing that? What problem, concern, need, anxiety or worry have you had in the past that God helped you with it? What problem, concern, need, anxiety or worry do you have today causes you to question if God will help you with it? Why?
Scripture To Meditate On: Philippians 4:19, “And my God will supply all your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus” (NASB).
Prayer To Pray: “Dear Lord, please forgive me when I let my circumstances create doubt in my heart against You. Morning by morning new mercies I see. All that I have, Your hand has provided. Convict me to reach outside of my own personal little world with the Gospel. I love You Lord. In Jesus’ name, Amen!”
I love you Southside! – Pastor Kelly