And they that had eaten were about four thousand: and he sent them away.
All Commentaries on Mark 8:9 Go To Mark 8
Jerome
AD 420
From the lesser number of men [four thousand], less remains; from the greater number [five thousand], more is left over. Four thousand men—fewer certainly in number, but greater in faith. The one who is greater in faith eats more, and because he does, there is less left over! I wish that we, too, might eat more of the hardy bread of holy writ, so that there would be less left over for us to learn. Tractate on the Gospel of Mark, Homily
