Devine Scripture

John 6:9

What does John 6:9 mean?

A plain-English look at John 6:9 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.

What John 6:9 means

Andrew identifies a lad with five barley loaves and two fishes, then voices the obvious question: what are these among so many? Barley was common fare of the poor, highlighting the humble nature of the offering. The detail underscores the mismatch between means and need. Yet the scene encourages more than despair—it invites surrender. What is little in human hands becomes much in Jesus’s. The boy’s meal, insignificant on its face, will become a vehicle of divine generosity. By noting both the resource and the doubt, John prepares us to see that the adequacy lies not in the gift’s size but in the Giver’s power.

Parallel translations

WEB

World English Bible · 2000

There is a lad here, who hath five barley loaves, and two fishes: but what are these among so many?

KJV

King James Version · 1611

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

ASV

American Standard Version · 1901

There is a lad here, who hath five barley loaves, and two fishes: but what are these among so many?

BBE

Bible in Basic English · 1949

There is a boy here with five barley cakes and two fishes: but what is that among such a number?

YLT

Young's Literal Translation · 1862

`There is one little lad here who hath five barley loaves, and two fishes, but these--what are they to so many?'

DRA

Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752

There is a boy here that hath five barley loaves and two fishes. But what are these among so many?

DBY

Darby Bible · 1890

There is a little boy here who has five barley loaves and two small fishes; but this, what is it for so many?

Context

This detail follows Andrew’s interjection and completes the picture of scarcity. It sets the table—literally and figuratively—for Jesus to act. The crowd is vast; the provision is meager. The next move is Jesus’s: He will command order and readiness, turning a few loaves into a feast. The contrast between ‘so many’ and ‘so little’ will magnify the sign and later frame the crowd’s misinterpretation of Jesus’s mission.

v.8One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, saith unto him,

v.9This passage

v.10Jesus said, Make the people sit down. Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand.

Cross references

Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.

  • Deuteronomy 8:8

    a land of wheat and barley, and vines and fig-trees and pomegranates; a land of olive-trees and honey;

  • Psalms 81:16

    He would feed them also with the finest of the wheat; And with honey out of the rock would I satisfy thee.

  • 1 Kings 4:28

    Barley also and straw for the horses and swift steeds brought they unto the place where the officers were, every man according to his charge.

  • Revelation 6:6

    And I heard as it were a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, A measure of wheat for a shilling, and three measures of barley for a shilling; and the oil and the wine hurt thou not.

  • Psalms 78:19

    Yea, they spake against God; They said, Can God prepare a table in the wilderness?

  • John 11:21

    Martha therefore said unto Jesus, Lord, if thou hadst been here, my brother had not died.

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