<p>6:34 <em>And when Jesus came ashore, he saw a great crowd- </em>Or, 'came forth', as Mt. We could picture Him hiding away in some cave or bush, noticing the crowds combing the area, having spotted the abandoned boat. And then battling with a desire to retreat further into the bush away from them, or to send them away- but instead having compassion on them and going out to meet them with teaching and healing. But that is unlikely the right reading, because :33 notes that some of the people who ran around the lake got to the destination before they did. The &lsquo;coming forth&rsquo; would therefore have been coming forth from the boat to land. That moment is perhaps noted because the obvious inclination would have been to sail further and find a better resting place, far from this irritating crowd.</p><p><em>And he had compassion on them, because they were as sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things</em>- His pity was therefore for their spiritual state rather than their material need. This being &lsquo;moved with compassion&rsquo; is a major characteristic of the Lord which the Gospel writers noticed (s.w. Mt. 9:36; 15:32; 18:27; 20:34 in Matthew alone- see too Lk. 7:13; 10:33; 15:20). The Greek speaks of a literal movement within the ribcage, as if the Lord&rsquo;s actual body was moved by the compassion He felt. The Lord Jesus is the same yesterday, today and at the day of judgment- and forever. This same basic pity is part of Him, as it is of His Father- and it must be with us too. Several times when we read of the Lord showing such pity, it is in the context of others&nbsp;<em>not</em>&nbsp;doing so. In this instance, the disciples don&rsquo;t want to feed the hungry people; and likewise in Mt. 15:32. In Mt. 18:27 the compassion of the Lord to His indebted servant was not reciprocated by that servant; the Samaritan of the parable had compassion when the priest and Levite did not (Lk. 10:33); the Father had compassion on the prodigal son when the older brother did not (Lk. 15:20). Such compassion is therefore an act of the will, rather than a streak some are born with. We can shut up our &ldquo;bowels of compassion&rdquo; against human need (1 Jn. 3:17), we have to &ldquo;put on&hellip; bowels of mercies&rdquo; (Col. 3:12).</p>