2 Kings 4:42

Hebrew Bible

39 Someone went out to the field to gather some herbs and found a wild vine. He picked some of its fruit, enough to fill up the fold of his robe. He came back, cut it up, and threw the slices into the stew pot, not knowing they were harmful. 40 The stew was poured out for the men to eat. When they ate some of the stew, they cried out, “Death is in the pot, O prophet!” They could not eat it. 41 He said, “Get some flour.” Then he threw it into the pot and said, “Now pour some out for the men so they may eat.” There was no longer anything harmful in the pot. 42 Now a man from Baal Shalisha brought some food for the prophet—20 loaves of bread made from the firstfruits of the barley harvest, as well as fresh ears of grain. Elisha said, “Set it before the people so they may eat.” 43 But his attendant said, “How can I feed a hundred men with this?” He replied, “Set it before the people so they may eat, for this is what the Lord has said, ‘They will eat and have some left over.’” 44 So he set it before them; they ate and had some left over, just as in the Lord’s message.

Mark 6:43

New Testament

38 He said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” When they found out, they said, “Five—and two fish.” 39 Then he directed them all to sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 So they reclined in groups of hundreds and fifties. 41 He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. He gave them to his disciples to serve the people, and he divided the two fish among them all. 42 They all ate and were satisfied, 43 and they picked up the broken pieces and fish that were left over, 12 baskets full. 44 Now there were 5,000 men who ate the bread.

 Notes and References

"... The other nature miracles can be explained similarly. Elijah and Elisha both raised the dead and multiplied food. In 1 Kings 17, Elijah raises a widow's son, and Jesus does the same in Luke 7. In 2 Kings 4, Elisha multiplies food. We can see just how closely the story concerning Jesus was shaped by the one about Elisha by comparing Mark and 2 Kings ..."

Murphy, Frederick James Apocalypticism in the Bible and Its World: A Comprehensive Introduction (p. 302) Baker Academic, 2012

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