Like a finding a treasure buried in a field. Like a pearl merchant finding the prize jewel of a lifetime. Straight from those parables of the kingdom, Matthew launches us into the story of the feeding of 5,000. A huge crowd has gathered around Jesus once again to be healed by him, and he has been doing just that out of his great compassion for them. Jesus, you see, feels the same way about people as his Father does.
Compassion runs in the divine family.
There are a lot of sick people in this crowd, and Jesus becomes absorbed in his work, failing to notice that dinner time has come and gone. It is the disciples who remind him of the lateness of the hour and offer a very practical suggestion, that people really ought to get going into the neighboring towns where they can find some food for themselves. Now the story gets interesting. They don t need to do that , Jesus replies to their very reasonable suggestion. You give them something to eat.