16:9a

Do you still not understand?: This is another rhetorical question. It is a rebuke. Jesus scolded his disciples for thinking that the reason he warned them in 16:6 was because they did not bring bread. In 16:9–10 he reminded them that he had multiplied small amounts of bread to feed large crowds of people. When he spoke about the leaven/yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees, he was warning against their dangerous influence or attitude. Clearly, Jesus expected his disciples to think about the danger of the Pharisees and Sadducees, not about bread.

Here are some other ways to translate this rebuke:

• As a rhetorical question. For example:

Why do you still not understand?
-or-
Do you not yet perceive? (English Standard Version)

• As a statement. For example:

You still do not understand!

Translate this rebuke in a way that is natural in your language.

understand: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates understand can also be translated as “perceive” (as in the English Standard Version).

16:9b–c

Do you not remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered?: This is yet another rhetorical question. It is also a rebuke. Jesus scolded his disciples for seeming to forget his recent miracle and what it meant.

Here are some other ways to translate this rebuke:

• As one or two rhetorical questions. For example:

Do you not remember ⌊that I fed⌋ five thousand ⌊men⌋ with five loaves of bread and how many baskets full ⌊of leftovers⌋ you gathered?
-or-
Did you forget ⌊that I fed⌋ five thousand ⌊men⌋ ⌊with⌋ the five loaves? ⌊Did you forget⌋ the number of baskets you gathered?

• As a statement. For example:

You seem to forget how five loaves ⌊fed⌋ five thousand men and how you picked up ⌊twelve⌋ baskets full ⌊of leftovers⌋.

Translate this rebuke in a way that is natural in your language.

16:9b

Do you not remember: Here is another way to translate this clause:

Have you forgotten (Contemporary English Version)

the five loaves for the five thousand: This phrase refers to the miracle when Jesus fed five thousand men plus women and children. Matthew wrote about this story in 14:13–21.

If people in your area will not understand that this clause refers to Jesus feeding the five thousand, you may want to include some implied information. Here are some examples:

the five loaves ⌊which fed⌋ the five thousand ⌊men⌋
-or-

⌊the feeding of⌋ five thousand ⌊men⌋ with five loaves ⌊of bread⌋

loaves: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as loaves probably refers to flat breads. One person could eat three to five of these loaves at one meal. It was the common food for a meal.

Here are some other ways to translate this word:

loaves ⌊of bread⌋
-or-

⌊small⌋ breads

16:9c

and: Verses 16:9b and 16:9c contain two things that the disciples should have been thinking about. These two things are joined by the conjunction and.

In some languages, it will be more natural to make 16:9c a separate question. For example:

⌊Do you not remember⌋ how many baskets you gathered?

how many basketfuls you gathered: This clause refers to the twelve baskets of leftover food that the disciples gathered after the five thousand men ate. Jesus did not mention the number of basketfuls. He just wanted the disciples to remember that he was able to provide much more bread than everyone needed.

In this whole story, Jesus seemed to make a point of not directly saying what he meant. Instead he tried to get the disciples to think again about events that they knew about. And he wanted them to see what they meant without him telling them.

Here is another way to translate this phrase:

the number of baskets you gathered

basketfuls: Here the word basketfuls represents the pieces of leftover food that the disciples gathered and put into the baskets. It does not refer to the baskets themselves. In other words, the disciples did not just gather empty baskets.

Here is another way to translate this to make it clearer:

the number of baskets ⌊of leftover food⌋ you gathered

The size of the baskets is not known. They were probably medium in size. Some languages have different words for different kinds or sizes of baskets. If your language is like that, use a word for one that is medium in size. Translate this word in the same way as you did in 14:20b.

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