Mk 8:14-21
Understand: Mark is making this statement: the crowds had their hunger satisfied. The disciples witnessed this, but they did not understand. Therefore, they have no bread. Jesus recalls the feeding of the five thousand and the feeding of the four thousand when twelve and seven baskets of leftovers were collected (vv 19-20). The disciples should have understood. Twelve signifies the tribes of Israel, a people chosen by God. Seven indicates fullness or completion. Mark is telling the reader to not miss this significance. Jesus has chosen a new group of Twelve. Jesus is the fullness of the kingdom of God. When Jesus asks the disciples, “Are your hearts hardened?” (v 17), he is posing an explosive question to them. The Israelites were constantly warned by the prophets about allowing their hearts to become hardened because they were forever turning away from worship of the one true God. To ask/accuse the disciples of hardened hearts is one of the worst things Jesus could have said. However, this portrayal of the disciples is in keeping with Mark’s theme of the misunderstanding Twelve. He is, of course, questioning the reader: “Do you still not understand?” (v 21). This is equivalent to asking, “Do you still not believe?”