¹³ When Jesus heard about John, He withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place. But the crowds found out about it and followed Him on foot from the towns. ¹⁴When He stepped ashore and saw a large crowd, He had compassion on them and healed their sick. ¹⁵When evening came, the disciples came to Him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is already late. Dismiss the crowds so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.” ¹⁶“They do not need to go away,” Jesus replied. “You give them something to eat.” ¹⁷“We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered. ¹⁸“Bring them here to Me,” Jesus said. ¹⁹And He directed the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, He spoke a blessing. Then He broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. ²⁰They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. ²¹About five thousand men were fed, in addition to women and children.