21 And Jesus went away from there and withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. 22 And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and was crying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely oppressed by a demon.” 23 But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, for she is crying out after us.” 24 He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 25 But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” 26 And he answered, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” 27 She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” 28 Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly.
29 Jesus went on from there and walked beside the Sea of Galilee. And he went up on the mountain and sat down there. 30 And great crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute, and many others, and they put them at his feet, and he healed them, 31 so that the crowd wondered, when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled healthy, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they glorified the God of Israel.
32 Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion on the crowd because they have been with me now three days and have nothing to eat. And I am unwilling to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way.” 33 And the disciples said to him, “Where are we to get enough bread in such a desolate place to feed so great a crowd?” 34 And Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” They said, “Seven, and a few small fish.” 35 And directing the crowd to sit down on the ground, 36 he took the seven loaves and the fish, and having given thanks he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 37 And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up seven baskets full of the broken pieces left over. 38 Those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children. 39 And after sending away the crowds, he got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan.
(ESV)
STOP! Think a little 🤔 What is God saying to you?
- What is the writer saying?
- How do I apply this to my life?
Jesus withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon where a Canaanite woman (a Gentile) came to Him. She cried to Him for mercy calling him “Lord, Son of David.” She acknowledged Him as the rightful king of Israel which most Jews had not done. Jesus does not answer initially and she persists until the disciples get irritated and want her sent away. Jesus answered that his mission was to the lost sheep of Israel. Only Israel was being offered salvation and blessing at this point. The woman remains undeterred and persists in seeking Jesus’ help for her daughter. Jesus uses the illustration of a household mealtime. He is the master providing bread for the children (Israel). It would not be right to take the food meant for the children and throw it to the dogs (Gentiles). Jesus is not refusing her, but testing her. Her reply acknowledges Israel’s status and that she is not looking to take away Israel’s blessing. Instead, she recognises that even the leftovers are sufficient for her. Jesus praises her great faith and immediately heals her daughter.
From there Jesus walks along the Sea of Galilee and goes to sit on a mountain. The crowds follow him bringing along their various sick to Jesus’s feet where He healed them. The phrase “they glorified the God of Israel” strongly suggests that these people were Gentiles and show that the leftovers the woman had spoken of were indeed sufficient to bless the Gentiles.
The crowd stayed with Jesus for three days so He had compassion on them. He told His disciples that He wasn’t willing to send them away in case they fainted on the way home. The disciples seem to have forgotten Jesus’ previous miracle feeding the five thousand men because they ask where they are going to get enough bread to feed such a large crowd. Again Jesus asks what food they do have. Taking the seven loaves of bread and the few fish they have, He tells the crowds to sit, gives thanks, and breaks the bread giving it to the disciples to distribute to the crowds. Everyone eats to their satisfaction and there are seven baskets of bread leftover. This crowd was four thousand men along with women and children. This is a similar but different miracle to the feeding of the five thousand (Jesus refers to both as separate instances in Mat 16:9-10). There are differences in the size of the crowds, the food Jesus blessed and broke, and the number of baskets of food leftover.
It can be so easy to remember and focus on our limitations and forget the power of God that has previously worked in our lives. What can you do to remember what God has done so that when you face difficulty you focus on God’s power to work rather than your limitation?