Mark 8 Mark 8:1–9 Christ miraculously feedeth four thousand persons. Mark 8:10–13 He refuseth the Pharisees a sign. Mark 8:14–21 He warns his disciples against the leaven of the Pharisees and of Herod, and explains his meaning. Mark 8:22–26 He giveth a blind man sight.

These verses give us an account of another miracle wrought by our Saviour, of the same nature with the one which we had in Mark 6:30–44; only there five thousand (besides women and children) were fed with five loaves and two fishes, here four thousand are fed with seven loaves and a few fishes;…

Matthew saith, he came into the coasts of Magdala; it is probable they were two contiguous tracts of land. We often read of the Pharisees coming to our Saviour to ask a sign.

We met with this whole history, with some additions, in Matt. 16:5–12; See Poole on “Matt. 16:5”, and following verses to Matt. 16:12. It teacheth us both a lesson of human frailty, and what is our Christian duty: of our frailty, in not considering the works of the Lord for us, so as to make any…

This miracle is only mentioned by Mark particularly, possibly because of two singularities in it: 1. With reference to the signs he used. 2. With reference to the gradual cure.

Herod, and those that followed him, judged Christ to be John the Baptist raised from the dead, or to have the soul of John the Baptist clothed with other flesh. Others conceived him to be Elias, of whom they were in expectation that he should come before the Messias.

Luke reports no more of this than Mark, but Matthew reports it much larger, giving us a further reply of Christ to Peter; See Poole on “Matt. 16:15”, and following verses to Matt. 16:20, which we have there discoursed largely upon.

Our Lord is elsewhere said to have taught his disciples, according as they were able to bear, or to hear, what he spake unto them. He did not at the first teach them that he must suffer death: the doctrine of the cross of Christ was like new wine not fit to be put into old bottles; yet necessary to…

It is from hence manifest, that notwithstanding the confession of Peter, that he was the Christ, yet they had a very imperfect knowledge of the business of the redemption of man by the blood of Christ, and a very imperfect faith as to the hypostatical union of the Divine and human nature in the one…

Our Saviour hearing Peter so stumble at the news, he told him, and the rest, of the cross which himself was to endure; and taking notice of his exceeding fondness to gratify himself, to the prejudice of a far greater good, he now tells them the law of his discipleship, that as he was not to please…

We met with this argument twice in Matthew, to the notes upon which I refer the reader. See Poole on “Matt. 10:39”. Mark adds those words, and the gospel’s, thereby teaching us that a suffering for the sake of the gospel, with therefore owning the propositions of it, or living up to the precepts,…

Luke saith, if he lose himself and be cast away. Though ψυχην was rightly translated life in the former verse, the sense justifying that translation of it there, yet here it is as truly translated soul; for there are many things which men value in proportion with their lives, their honour, estates,…

These words occurring twice in Matthew, Matt. 10:33, Matt. 16:27, have been before spoken to: See Poole on “Matt. 10:33”. See Poole on “Matt. 16:27”. Luke repeats them most perfectly, as here they are recorded.