lay the beautiful blue Lake. The disciples stood
around their Master while He taught the people in simple language that
they could understand the greatest truths the world has ever heard.
All the afternoon He spoke to them, and when the sun was slowly going
down over the hills of Galilee they still wished to stay. They were as
sheep having no shepherd. The disciples were troubled about them, for
they were far from the villages where bread could be bought, and they
had nothing to eat. They begged Jesus to send them away.

"Give ye them to eat," said Jesus. Then the disciples were astonished,
for there were about five thousand men, beside the women and children.
"Shall we go and buy two hundred pennyworth of bread, and give them to
eat?" said Philip. Then Jesus, who knew what He would do, said, "How
many loaves have ye? Go and see."

They went among the people, and Andrew came back, saying,

"There is a lad here which hath five barley loaves, and two small
fishes; but what are they among so many?"

Then Jesus told His disciples to seat all the people in order upon the
green grass, and soon there were little companies of fifty, and larger
ones of an hundred sitting all over the hillside with their faces
turned toward Jesus, who stood looking out upon them as a father would
look upon his children. What were they waiting for? No one knew, but
they saw Him take the little lad's basket of bread and the two little
fishes and look up to heaven, blessing them as He did so. Then He
began to break the bread and divide the fishes. As He broke the bread
and gave to the disciples they took it away to the people sitting on
the grass, and when they came back to Jesus there was still more
waiting for them. In this way all the people were fed.

[Illustration: Feeding the five thousand]

When they were satisfied Jesus said to His disciples,

"Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost."

And they filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the barley loaves
that were left.

What a silent and wonderful supper of bread fresh from the hand of its
Creator!

At last they began saying to each other in a low voice,

"This is of a truth that Prophet that should come into the world!" and
they began to ask each other if it would not be best to take Him at
once and make Him king whether he would or would not consent, but when
He saw what they wished to do, He slipped away and went farther up
among the hills to re