Bible Strands
Mark 8:9
And about four thousand men were present. And when Jesus had dismissed the crowd,
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Mark 8:9 occurs immediately after the crowd finishes eating the multiplied food, placing Jesus at a transitional moment before He boards a boat. The narrative shifts from communal satisfaction to Jesus' directive action regarding the assembled multitude.
The words — The Greek ἀπέλυσεν (apelusen) literally means "He sent away," indicating a formal discharge of the gathering. The phrase ὡς τετρακισχίλιοι (hōs tetrakischilioi) quantifies the group as "about four thousand," establishing a specific numerical boundary for this feeding event.
The thread — The dismissal of a fed crowd reappears in Mark 6:45-46 following the feeding of the five thousand. Both passages place the departure between a miraculous meal and a subsequent journey by water.
Why it lands — The text records a factual sequence: provision, satisfaction, dismissal, departure. It requires the reader to track Jesus' deliberate pacing and the logistical reality of managing large groups without adding spiritual commentary to the administrative action.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
And they that had eaten were about four thousand: and he sent them away.