Matthew 15:33

33 The disciples said to him, "Where are we to get enough bread in the desert to feed so great a crowd?"

Matthew 15:33 Meaning and Commentary

Matthew 15:33

And his disciples said unto him
The former miracle of feeding five thousand men, besides women and children, with five loaves and two fishes, being quite out of their thoughts, they reply,

whence should we have so much bread in the wilderness, as to fill so
great a multitude?
The question is big with objections, and is put with some vehemency and astonishment: the people to be led were a multitude, a great multitude, a very great multitude, and these too had had but little, or no food, for a great while; and therefore would require the more to fill and satisfy them; and besides, it was a wilderness where they were, and where no provisions were to be had; and if they could have been got for money, they had not stock enough to purchase such a large number of loaves, as were necessary to feed so great a company with.

Matthew 15:33 In-Context

31 so that the crowd was amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.
32 Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, "I have compassion for the crowd, because they have been with me now for 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 are we to get enough bread in the desert to feed so great a crowd?"
34 Jesus asked them, "How many loaves have you?" They said, "Seven, and a few small fish."
35 Then ordering the crowd to sit down on the ground,
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.