Luke 9:14

14 For there were about 5,000 men there. Jesus replied, “Tell them to sit down in groups of about fifty each.”

Luke 9:14 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 9:14

For they were about five thousand men
Beside women and children, ( Matthew 14:21 ) ,

and he said to his disciples, make them to sit down by fifties
in a company;
and by hundreds also; some companies had a hundred apiece in them, and others fifty; and which was done partly, for the more easy numbering of them, and partly and chiefly for the more convenient distribution of food to them; (See Gill on Mark 6:39). (See Gill on Mark 6:40).

Luke 9:14 In-Context

12 Late in the afternoon the twelve disciples came to him and said, “Send the crowds away to the nearby villages and farms, so they can find food and lodging for the night. There is nothing to eat here in this remote place.”

13 But Jesus said, “You feed them.” “But we have only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered. “Or are you expecting us to go and buy enough food for this whole crowd?”

14 For there were about 5,000 men there. Jesus replied, “Tell them to sit down in groups of about fifty each.”

15 So the people all sat down.

16 Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he kept giving the bread and fish to the disciples so they could distribute it to the people.