Chapter XLVI.—Of the Question as to How the Four Evangelists Harmonize with Each Other on This Same Subject of the Miracle of the Five Loaves.

95. Matthew then proceeds and carries on his narrative in due consecution to the said incident connected with the five loaves in the following manner: “And when it was evening, His disciples came to Him, saying, This is a desert place, and the time is now past; send the multitude away, that they may go into the villages, and buy themselves victuals. But Jesus said unto them, They need not depart; give ye them to eat;” and so forth, down to where we read, “And the number of those who ate was five thousand men, besides women and children.”561    Matt. xiv. 15–21. This miracle, therefore, which all the four evangelists record,562    Mark vi. 34–44; Luke ix. 12–17. and in which they are supposed to betray certain discrepancies with each other, must be examined and subjected to discussion, in order that we may also learn from this instance some rules which will be applicable to all other similar cases in the form of principles regulating modes of statement in which, however diverse they may be, the same sense is nevertheless retained, and the same veracity in the expression of matters of fact is preserved. And, indeed, this investigation ought to begin not with Matthew, although that would be in accordance with the order in which the evangelists stand, but rather with John, by whom the narrative in question is told with such particularity as to record even the names of the disciples with whom the Lord conversed on this subject. For he gives the history in the following terms: “When Jesus than lifted up His eyes, and saw a very great company come unto Him, He saith unto Philip, Whence shall we buy bread, that these may eat? And this He said to prove him; for He Himself knew what He would do. Philip answered Him, Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little. One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, saith unto Him, There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two fishes; but what are they among so many? Jesus said therefore, Make the men sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. Jesus then took the loaves; and when He had given thanks, He distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were set down; and likewise of the fishes as much as they would. And when they were filled, He said unto His disciples, Gather up the fragments that remain, that they be not lost. Therefore they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, which remained over and above unto them that had eaten.” 563    John vi. 5–13.

96. The inquiry which we have here to handle does not concern itself with a statement given by this evangelist, in which he specifies the kind of loaves; for he has not omitted to mention, what has been omitted by the others, that they were barley loaves. Neither does the question deal with what he has left unnoticed,—namely, the fact that, in addition to the five thousand men, there were also women and children, as Matthew tells us. And it ought now by all means to be a settled matter, and one kept regularly in view in all such investigations, that no one should find any difficulty in the mere circumstance that something which is unrecorded by one writer is related by another. But the question here is as to how the several matters narrated by these writers may be [shown to be] all true, so that the one of them, in giving his own peculiar version, does not put out of court the account offered by the other. For if the Lord, according to the narrative of John, on seeing the multitudes before Him, asked Philip, with the view of proving him, whence bread might be got to be given to them, a difficulty may be raised as to the truth of the statement which is made by the others,—namely, that the disciples first said to the Lord that He should send the multitudes away, in order that they might go and purchase food for themselves in the neighbouring localities, and that He made this reply to them, according to Matthew: “They need not depart; give ye them to eat.”564    Matt. xiv. 16. With this last Mark and Luke also agree, only that they leave out the words, “They need not depart.” We are to suppose, therefore, that after these words the Lord looked at the multitude, and spoke to Philip in the terms which John records, but which those others have omitted. Then the reply which, according to John, was made by Philip, is mentioned by Mark as having been given by the disciples,—the intention being, that we should understand Philip to have returned this answer as the mouthpiece of the rest; although they may also have put the plural number in place of the singular, according to very frequent usage. The words here actually ascribed to Philip—namely, “Two hundred pennyworth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may take a little”565    John vi. 7.—have their counterpart in this version by Mark, “Shall we go and buy two hundred pennyworth of bread, and give them to eat?”566    Mark vi. 37. The expression, again, which the same Mark relates to have been used by the Lord, namely, “How many loaves have ye?” has been passed by without notice by the rest. On the other hand, the statement occurring in John, to the effect that Andrew made the suggestion about the five loaves and the two fishes, appears in the others, who use here the plural number instead of the singular, as a notice referring the suggestion to the disciples generally. And, indeed, Luke has coupled Philip’s reply together with Andrew’s answer in one sentence. For when he says, “We have no more but five loaves and two fishes,” he reports Andrew’s response; but when he adds, “except we should go and buy meat for all this people,” he seems to carry us back to Philip’s reply, only that he has left unnoticed the “two hundred pennyworth.” At the same time, that [sentence about the going and buying meat] may also be understood to be implied in Andrew’s own words. For after saying, “There is a lad here which hath five barley loaves and two fishes,” he likewise subjoined, “But what are they among so many?” And this last clause really means the same as the expression in question, namely, “except we should go and buy meat for all this people.”

97. From all this variety of statement which is found in connection with a genuine harmony in regard to the matters of fact and the ideas conveyed, it becomes sufficiently clear that we have the wholesome lesson inculcated upon us, that what we have to look to in studying a person’s words is nothing else than the intention of the speakers; in setting forth which intention all truthful narrators ought to take the utmost pains when they record anything, whether it may relate to man, or to angels, or to God. For the subjects’ mind and intention admit of being expressed in words which should leave no appearance of any discrepancies as regards the matter of fact.

98. In this connection, it is true, we ought not to omit to direct the reader’s attention to certain other matters which may turn out to be of a kindred nature with those already considered. One of these is found in the circumstance that Luke has stated that they were ordered to sit down by fifties, whereas Mark’s version is that it was by hundreds and by fifties. This difference, however, creates no real difficulty. The truth is, that the one has reported simply a part, and the other has given the whole. For the evangelist who has introduced the notice of the hundreds as well as the fifties has just mentioned something which the other has left unmentioned. But there is no contradiction between them on that account. If, indeed, the one had noticed only the fifties, and the other only the hundreds, they might certainly have seemed to be in some antagonism with each other, and it might not have been easy to make it plain that both instructions were actually uttered, although only the one has been specified by the former writer, and the other by the latter. And yet, even in such a case, who will not acknowledge that when the matter was subjected to more careful consideration, the solution should have been discovered? This I have instanced now for this reason, that matters of that kind do often present themselves, which, while they really contain no discrepancies, appear to do so to persons who pay insufficient attention to them, and pronounce upon them inconsiderately.

CAPUT XLVI. In ipso de quinque panibus miraculo quemadmodum inter se omnes quatuor conveniant.

95. Sequitur ergo Matthaeus, et ad ipsum de quinque panibus factum narrationem suam ex ordine ita perducit: Vespere autem facto accesserunt ad eum discipuli ejus dicentes: Desertus est locus, et hora jam praeteriit; dimitte turbas, ut euntes in castella emant sibi escas. Jesus aatem dixit eis: Non habent necesse ire; date illis vos manducare, etc., usque ad illud ubi ait, Manducantium autem fuit numerus quinque millia virorum, exceptis mulieribus et parvulis (Matth. XIV, 15-21). Hoc ergo miraculum quod omnes quatuor Evangelistae commemorant (Marc. VI, 34-44, et Luc. IX, 12-17), et putantur inter se aliquid discrepare, considerandum atque tractandum est, ut ex hoc etiam ad caetera similia regulae locutionum discantur, quibus tam diversis eadem tamen sententia retinetur, et eadem rerum veritas custoditur. Et inchoanda quidem est consideratio, non a Matthaeo secundum ordinem Evangelistarum, sed a Joanne potius, a quo ita expressa est ista narratio, ut etiam nomina discipulorum diceret, cum quibus de hac re locutus est Dominus. Ita enim dicit: Cum sublevasset ergo oculos Jesus, et vidisset quia multitudo maxima venit ad eum, dicit ad Philippum: Unde ememus panes ut manducent hi? Hoc autem dicebat tentans eum; ipse enim sciebat quid esset facturus. Respondit ei Philippus: Ducentorum denariorum panes non sufficiunt eis, ut unusquisque modicum quid accipiat. Dicit ei unus ex discipulis ejus, Andreas frater Simonis Petri: Est puer unus hic, qui habet quinque panes hordeaceos et duos pisces; sed haec quid sunt inter tantos? Dixit ergo Jesus: Facite homines discumbere. Erat autem fenum multum in loco: discubuerunt ergo viri numero quasi quinque millia. Accepit ergo panes Jesus, et cum gratias egisset, distribuit discumbentibus: 1126similiter et ex piscibus quantum volebant. Ut autem impleti sunt, dixit discipulis suis: Colligite quae superaverunt fragmenta, ne pereant. Collegerunt ergo, et impleverunt duodecim cophinos fragmentorum ex quinque panibus hordeaceis, quae superfuerunt his qui manducaverant (Joan. VI, 5-13).

96. Non hic quaeritur quod iste dixit, cujusmodi essent panes; hordeaceos enim fuisse non tacuit, quod caeteri tacuerunt: neque hoc quaeritur, quod iste non dixit, fuisse ibi etiam praeter quinque millia virorum, mulieres et parvulos, quod dicit Matthaeus. Et omnino jam certum esse debet, et regulariter teneri in talibus quaestionibus, neminem moveri oportere, cum ab alio dicitur quod ab alio praetermittitur. Sed quaeritur quomodo ea quae dixerunt, vera sint omnia, ne narrationem alterius narrans aliud alter excludat. Si enim Dominus, secundum narrationem Joannis, prospectis turbis, quaesivit a Philippo, tentans eum, unde illis escae dari possent; potest movere quomodo sit verum, quod alii narraverunt, prius dixisse Domino discipulos, ut dimitteret turbas, quo possent sibi alimenta emere de proximis locis: quibus ille respondit secundum Matthaeum, Non habent necesse ire; date eis vos manducare. Cui etiam Marcus Lucasque consentiunt, tantum hoc praetermittentes quod ait, Non habent necesse ire. Intelligitur ergo post haec verba Dominum inspexisse multitudinem, et dixisse Philippo quod Joannes commemorat, isti autem praetermiserunt. Deinde quod Philippus apud Joannem respondit, hoc Marcus a discipulis responsum esse commemorat, volens intelligi hoc ex ore caeterorum Philippum respondisse: quanquam et pluralem numerum pro singulari usitatissime ponere potuerunt. Quod ergo ait Philippus, Ducentorum denariorum panes non sufficiunt eis, ut unusquisque modicum quid accipiat; hoc est dicere, quod ait Marcus, Euntes ememus ducentis denariis panes, et dabimus eis manducare. Quod autem commemorat idem Marcus dixisse Dominum, Quot panes habetis? praetermiserunt caeteri. Quod autem Andreas apud Joannem de quinque panibus et duobus piscibus suggessit, hoc caeteri pluralem numerum pro singulari ponentes, ex discipulorum persona retulerunt. Et Lucas quidem responsionem Philippi et responsionem Andreae in unam sententiam constrinxit: quod enim ait, Non sunt nobis plus quam quinque panes et duo pisces, Andreae retulit responsionem: quod vero adjunxit, Nisi forte nos eamus, et emamus in omnem hanc turbam escas, videtur ad responsionem Philippi pertinere; nisi quod de ducentis denariis tacuit: quanquam et in ipsius Andreae sententia potest hoc intelligi. Cum enim dixisset, Est puer unus hic, qui habet quinque panes hordeaceos, et duos pisces; adjunxit etiam ipse, Sed haec quid sunt inter tantos? hoc est dicere, Nisi forte nos eamus, et emamus in omnem hanc turbam escas.

97. Ex qua universa varietate verborum, rerum autem sententiarumque concordia, satis apparet, salubriter nos doceri, nihil quaerendum in verbis nisi loquentium voluntatem: cui demonstrandae invigilare 1127 debent omnes veridici narratores, cum de homine, vel de angelo, vel de Deo aliquid narrant; horum enim voluntas verbis promi potest, ne de ipsa inter se aliquid discrepent.

98. Sane praetermittere non oportet hoc loco intentum et ad caetera, quae talia forte occurrerint, facere lectorem, quia Lucas dixit quinquagenos jussos esse discumbere, Marcus vero et quinquagenos et centenos. Quod hic ideo non movet, quia unus partem dixit, alter totum: qui enim etiam de centenis retulit, hoc retulit quod ille praetermisit: nihil itaque contrarium est. Verumtamen si alius de quinquagenis tantum commemoraret, alius tantum de centenis, valde videretur esse contrarium; nec facile dignosceretur utrumque dictum esse, unum autem ab altero, alterum ab altero esse commemoratum: et tamen attentius consideratum inveniri debuisse quis non fateatur? Hoc ideo dixi, quia existunt saepe aliqua ejusmodi, quae parum intendentibus et temere judicantibus contraria videantur, et non sint.