The apostles gathered together with Jesus
and reported all they had done and taught.
The disciples had been given authority and sent off to preach, to heal, and to drive out demons. After watching Jesus they went and put into practice what they had seen. Now the disciples returned and reported back, almost incredulous at all of the powerful work that Jesus had accomplished through them. We imagine them all but tripping over themselves to express "all they had done and taught". In such a state they might not have even realized that they were tired.
He said to them,
“Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.”
People were coming and going in great numbers,
and they had no opportunity even to eat.
So they went off in the boat by themselves to a deserted place.
By inviting disciples to rest Jesus expressed the importance of not getting so caught up in anything, even the enthusiasm of ministry going well, that one would forget about the more basic needs of the body. They needed time of decreased activity to recover from their successful active period, no matter how supernatural it may have been. They hadn't even had time to eat because of the constant demand being placed on them now that they were seen by the masses to be conduits of the same power that Jesus himself possessed. His popularity was now their problem as well. But here again, they were to be attentive to their needs, and to take the time to eat, even at the expense of other possible engagements. Starved and burnt out disciples would be useful to no one.
The bodies of the disciples needed rest and food. But their minds and spirits had perhaps even more pressing needs. The needed time to process what had happened to them and been accomplished through them. They needed the space to reflect and to ponder them in their hearts as Mary had done (see Luke 2:19). There was much value that would be missed if they simply let these experiences of mission fade into the past and into forgetfulness. They contained lessons and possible paths for potential growth. Proper thanksgiving for all of the blessings Jesus unleashed was meant to be a slow a meditative movement rather than a burst of speech in which they tried to express everything all at once.
Above all, the rest that the disciples needed after their mission was time with Jesus himself. Just as Jesus himself was dependent on the Father and spent the time necessary with him so too did his disciples need to constantly return to Jesus as their source. The world was full of cacophonous voices and competing claims, alternative priorities, and different narratives about truth. The disciples needed to commit to quality time with Jesus in order to remain grounded in his way and his truth. Moreover, Jesus was the vine who was the source of their life. If they didn't return and receive the life giving sap of this vine again and again they would eventually dry up.
People saw them leaving and many came to know about it.
They hastened there on foot from all the towns
and arrived at the place before them.
The crowds prevented the disciples from having the full rest that Jesus intended to provide, at least for the moment. Nevertheless, Jesus saw such genuine need in the these people who had come to him that he could not turn away. These sheep had been so long without a shepherd who put their needs first that now that they had tasted such care and concern they couldn't get enough. This experience of Jesus as shepherd was the one that had always been intended for them by God. They were experiencing the promise made by God through Jeremiah that the sheep that had been scattered and neglected would be regathered by God himself and brought back to their meadow.
When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd,
his heart was moved with pity for them,
for they were like sheep without a shepherd;
and he began to teach them many things.
If, for the moment, the disciples were prevented a little longer from eating, they were still able to feed on the bread of divine wisdom contained in the teachings of Jesus. Being close to him as he showed compassion to his sheep, as his own love flowed forth, must have in some way also renewed the strength of the disciples who witnessed it. It was not to say that physical needs were of such lesser importance that they would never need to attention. It was rather that the crowds chose the one thing necessary and it would not be taken from them. We see in the verses after this Gospel that physical needs were a part of Jesus' plan. He fed the crowds himself through the miraculous multiplication of the loaves, and he did this precisely because of his concern that people would collapse along the way if they were forced to fend for themselves. But for now, Jesus and his word was enough.
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