3 Some of them are a long way from home and now they are hungry. If I send them away now, they will get weak and fall down.”
4 His followers said, “No-one lives in this country. Where can we get food for all these people?”
5 Jesus said, “How much bread have you got?”
6 Then Jesus told the people to sit down on the ground. He picked up the 7 loaves of bread and said to God, “Thank you for this bread.” Then he broke it up and gave it to his followers, and they gave the bread to all the people. Jesus gave food to 4,000 people|src="lll7-06 feeding 4000.tif" size="span" copy="Global Recordings Network ( Australia)" ref="8:6"
7 Someone had some little fish and gave them to Jesus, and again he said thank you to God for the fish. Then Jesus told his followers to give the fish to the people.
8 All the people ate as much bread and fish as they wanted. When they had finished eating, Jesus' followers picked up so much food they filled up 7 big baskets.
9 Then Jesus told the people that it was time to go home. There were about 4,000 people in that crowd.
10 Straight away, Jesus and his followers got into a boat and went across the lake to Dal-man-oo-tha (Dalmanutha).
11 Some Jewish lawmen went to Jesus. They wanted to trick him and so they asked him a question. They said, “Show us a powerful sign that comes from heaven.”
12 Jesus was upset. He took a deep breath and said, “Why do people always want to see a powerful sign? No! I will not give you any signs!”
13 Then Jesus and his followers got into their boat and went back across to the other side of the lake.
14 As they went across the lake in the boat, Jesus' followers looked in their food bag and saw that they had forgotten to get more bread. They only had one loaf.
15 Then Jesus gave his close followers a warning. He said, “You know how you stir baking powder into the flour to make a damper. That baking powder changes the flour. The Jewish lawmen and King Herod are like that baking powder. So look out for them!”
16 His followers did not understand what Jesus was talking about, and they started to argue with each other. They said, “We forgot to bring the food we need for the trip and that is why he said that.”
17 Jesus knew what they were talking about and so he said, “Why are you worrying about the bread? Can't you understand what I am trying to teach you? Have you closed your minds so that you can't learn?
20 Then Jesus said, “Do you remember the time we only had 7 loaves of bread and we gave food to 4,000 people? How many big baskets did we fill with the food that was left on the ground?”
21 Then Jesus said to them, “You don't understand what I am trying to teach you, do you?”
22 When Jesus and his followers got out of the boat at Beth-say-da (Bethsaida), some people took a blind man to Jesus. The people asked Jesus to touch the man and make him better.
23 Jesus held the man's hand and took him outside the town. Then Jesus spat on the man's eyes. Then Jesus put his hands on the man and said, “Can you see anything now?” Jesus made a blind man better|src="lll6-23 Jesus healed blind man.tif" size="col" copy="Global Recordings Network ( Australia)" ref="8:23"
24 The man looked around and said, “Yes, I can see a little bit. I can see people, but they look like trees walking around.”
25 So Jesus put his hands on the man's eyes again, and when the man opened his eyes, his eyes were better and he could see properly.
26 Jesus told the man to go home and said, “Do not go into your town, go straight home.”
27 Then Jesus and his followers left Galilee, and went north to some towns around See-za-ree-a Filip-pie (Caesarea Philippi). As they walked along, Jesus said to his followers, “When people talk about me, what do they call me? Who do they think I am?”
28 The followers said, “Some people call you John the Baptist come back to life. Some other people think that you might be that old man Elijah or one of those men from a long time ago that gave people God's messages.”
29 Then Jesus asked them, “But, who do you think I am?”
30 Jesus told them strongly, “Do not tell anyone what you just heard Peter say. Do not talk to anyone about me.”
31 Then Jesus told his followers about all the bad things that were going to happen to him very soon. He said, “I am God's special man from heaven, but the Jewish elders, the Chief Priests (Jewish ceremony leaders) and the law teachers are against me. They will really hurt me in different ways and they will kill me, but I will come alive again after 3 days. This is God's plan for me, and so it has to happen.”
32 Jesus talked really straight, but Peter did not like it. He took Jesus away from the other followers and growled at him for saying those things.
33 Jesus turned around and looked at the other followers, and then he growled at Peter. He said, “Go away from me Peter, you are just like the Devil. Peter, you don't understand and you are thinking the way people think. You are not thinking God's way.”
34 Then Jesus called out to his followers and all the other people standing there, to come close to him. He said, “If anyone wants to be my follower, that person must be ready to give up their old life and live just like me. They must do what I do and be ready to die in the same way that I am going to die, yes, even die on a cross.
35 I tell you, if anyone wants to live their own way and not have any trouble here on earth, they will lose their life, and they will not live with me forever. But if anyone stops living their own way and follows me, that person will save their life and live with me forever.
36 Think about this. You might get everything that you think will make you happy in this world, but all those things are useless if it means that you miss out on living with me.
37 If you are dead, what can you use to buy back your life?
38 You live in a world with a lot of people that live their own way and do not respect God. I am God's special man from heaven. One day I am going to come back with God's angels. When that happens, everyone will see me with all the great power that comes from my father. So, if anyone is ashamed of me and my message now, when I come back again, I will be ashamed of them.”