Mark 8:13-21 (NKJV) Beware of the Leaven of the Pharisees and Herod
(Matt. 16:5–12)
13 And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side. 14 Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat. 15 Then He charged them, saying, “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”
16 And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “It is because we have no bread.”
17 But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, “Why do you reason because you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive nor understand? Is your heart still hardened? 18 Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember? 19 When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?” They said to Him, “Twelve.”
20 “Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?” And they said, “Seven.”
21 So He said to them, “How is it you do not understand?”
V13 “And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.” They are again sailing. This time they sail from the west side of the Sea of Galilee to the east side. The population is sparser in that area.
V14 “Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.” Easy to forget when they’ve been so busy and so much to think about. The disciples were expected to remember that this is not a cause for hunger or worry, because the Lord Jesus has provided before and is able to do so again.
V15 “Then He charged them, saying, “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” Jesus knew their thoughts and wanted to teach His disciples a principle that they should have already learned. As a matter of interpretation, taking Jesus’s words literally would mean not to buy bread from any Pharisee or from Herod’s businesses or supporters.
Constable writes: “Jesus evidently used the leaven in the loaf of bread as an object lesson to illustrate the pervasive corrupting teaching of the Pharisees and of Herod. Leaven was a common metaphor for corruption in both Jewish and Hellenistic circles. [Note: Lane, p. 280.] The teaching of the Pharisees was that Jesus received His authority from Satan rather than from God (Mark 3:22; cf. Mark 7:8-13). It was a denial of His role as God’s anointed Servant, Messiah. The teaching of Herod Antipas, what he believed and articulated, was likewise that Jesus was not the Messiah. Herod told others that Jesus was just John the Baptist come back to life (Mark 6:14-16). The Pharisees and Herod, though so different from each other in many respects, promoted the same heretical view that Jesus was not the Messiah, much less divine. In short, this leaven was unbelief. Another view is that the yeast of the Pharisees was their hypocritical, self-righteous traditionalism and the yeast of Herod was his spirit of imperial pride. [Note: Bailey, p. 80.]”
V16 “And they reasoned among themselves, saying, “It is because we have no bread.” They were hungry and concerned about it. Jesus wanted to teach something much deeper than physical hunger. He teaches them that physical “bread” is without any benefit for the soul. He also wanted them to show faith. Faith is reasonable. They should have known that since Jesus provided for many with so little, He can easily provide a few. See Mark 8:8.
V17 “But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, “Why do you reason because you have no bread? Do you not yet perceive nor understand? Is your heart still hardened?” They should have realized that if Jesus spoke of physical bread, Jesus could multiply one loaf. He wanted to clarify and show the importance of spiritual bread. Compare John 6:35. Eating Jesus’s flesh is a symbol of Jesus being the Passover Lamb (1 Corinthians 5:7), which the Jews ate every Passover. It does not refer to cannibalism. Their hardness of heart refers to their not believing that Jesus could multiply the one load they have.
V18 “Having eyes, do you not see? And having ears, do you not hear? And do you not remember?” Jesus gently reminds and corrects them. Compare 2 Timothy 2:24 and James 3:17.
V19 “When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?” They said to Him, “Twelve.” Their answer is correct.
V20 “Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?” And they said, “Seven.” Again, their answer is correct.
V21 “So He said to them, “How is it you do not understand?” A gentle rebuke. There is a gentle humbling informing the disciples that they have much to learn.
We learn:
- Jesus is the greatest teacher.
- Jesus is trustworthy.
- We shouldn’t ignore the obvious when God has already taught us something.
Questions:
- Are we taught by God every day (by Bible reading and prayer)?
- Are we open to the idea that we always have more to learn?