Luke 9:13

13 Jesus replied, "You give them something to eat." The disciples answered, "We have only five loaves of bread and two fish. We would have to go and buy food for all this crowd."

Luke 9:13 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 9:13

And he said to them, give ye them to eat
Signifying, that it was not his will to dismiss people, and send them scattering abroad into the adjacent cities, towns, or houses; and that there was no need of it, but that his will was, that they should be supplied with provisions out of their stock:

and they said, we have no more than five loaves and two fishes;
and these loaves were barley loaves, and the fishes small, ( John 6:9 )

except we should go and buy meat for all this people;
which would at least cost them two hundred pence; and which they represent as impossible to be done, either through want of so much money, or the scarcity of provision in those parts; where, had they money, it would be difficult, at least to get such a quantity of provisions at once, which so great a number of persons required.

Luke 9:13 In-Context

11 But the crowds learned about it and followed Jesus. He welcomed them and spoke to them about God's kingdom. He also healed those who needed to be healed.

12 Late in the afternoon the Twelve came to him. They said, "Send the crowd away. They can go to the nearby villages and countryside. There they can find food and a place to stay. There is nothing here."

13 Jesus replied, "You give them something to eat." The disciples answered, "We have only five loaves of bread and two fish. We would have to go and buy food for all this crowd."

14 About 5,000 men were there. But Jesus said to his disciples, "Have them sit down in groups of about 50 each."

15 The disciples did so, and everyone sat down.