John 6:11-13 11Jesus then took the loaves, and after having given thanks, he distributed to those who were seated, likewise also of the fish as much as they wanted. 12And when they were filled, he said to his disciples, “Gather up the leftover pieces so that nothing will be lost.” 13So they gathered and filled twelve baskets with pieces from the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten.
Jesus set the model for how believers should pray before a meal. The typical Jewish prayer of thanksgiving for food went, “Blessed art you, O Lord our God, King of the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth.” The word for thanks (eucharistēsas) is the one brought over into English as “eucharist” in reference to the Lord’s Supper. Verse 11 could prepare for the story that follows in verse 22. Jesus’ giving thanks for the bread could be symbolic of the prayer of thanksgiving his followers should give for Jesus having given his life as the Bread of Life. Every time we eat, we can follow Jesus’ example and give thanks for our food. We can also be reminded of his own sacrifice so that we might have eternal life.
The miracle occurs next, with the bread and fish being distributed to all the people seated on the nice grassy hill. The initiative is clearly with Jesus, who is the one who distributed the food. The disciples were the ones to collect it. Jesus could not have literally handed out the food to five or ten thousand people by himself because that would have taken all day, but John acknowledges Jesus as the source of it all. The disciples were involved in each step of the process as witnesses to the miracle.
Two significant miracles took place next. Verse 12 makes the significant point that everyone got filled up. They got all they wanted with plenty left over. God provides all we need, and sometimes, God goes even further and blesses us abundantly. Hunger was replaced by satisfaction. Every man, woman, and child present ate all they could and were content. Did they realize the spiritual significance of the One who did the miracle, or were they more interested in the sensation of a filled-up stomach and the physical energy it gave them?
The second miracle was the leftover pieces of bread that filled up twelve baskets. Jesus wanted each of his twelve inner disciples to gather one basket each. Each one participated in the great gathering of the blessing and witnessed the miracle firsthand in a vivid way. They saw that they had more at the end than they started with. The only explanation was the power of Jesus’ word. Each disciple had a basket to eat and share with others as long as the bread remained good. It probably took the disciples some time to reflect on the significance of these miracles. As the story the next day indicates, the crowd did not understand but only wanted the food and more miracles.
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