And His disciples said to Him, “Where can we get so much bread in this deserted place, so that such a great crowd will be satisfied?”
Although the disciples had already once witnessed how Jesus miraculously fed 5,000 people (Matthew 14:13–21), here they are again astonished and ask a question, as if they had forgotten the earlier miracle. This shows that even Jesus’ closest followers often became confused when they faced a new problem. Their question, “Where are we to get so much bread,” testifies to the limited nature of human thinking. They looked at the situation with natural eyes, with wilderness conditions, and could not imagine the possibility of a new miracle. Yet through this testing Jesus is again preparing to reveal that God’s mercy and power are not confined within the limits of time and place. He who was able to feed the 5,000 can do the same again. This passage also reminds us that to forget previous blessings means to fall again into unbelief, whereas God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.