DAILY TEXT, Wednesday, March 18, 2026. Jesus, knowing that they were about to come and take him by force and make him king, withdrew again to the mountain by himself (John 6:15).

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Wednesday, March 18, 2026

Jesus, knowing that they were about to come and take him by force and make him king, withdrew again to the mountain by himself (John 6:15).

If Jesus had allowed himself to be made king, he would have been involved in the political affairs of the Jews, who were under Roman rule. Jesus, without hesitation, “withdrew [...] to the mountain.” Despite being pressured, he did not get involved in politics. What a great lesson for us!

Of course, no one will ask us to multiply loaves or miraculously cure diseases. Nor will they try to make us kings or rulers. But we may be pressured to take part in political matters by voting for someone or supporting in some way someone they believe can improve the situation. However, Jesus set a very clear example. He refused to get involved in political issues. And later he said: “My Kingdom is no part of this world.” (John 17:14; 18:36) We Christians do well to imitate Jesus’ way of thinking and acting. We loyally support God’s Kingdom, bear witness about it, and pray for its coming. (Matt. 6:10) w24.12 3, 4 pars. 5, 6

How did people react to the miracles they saw that day, but what did Jesus do?

The people were impressed by Jesus’ teaching and miracles. They knew that Moses had promised that God would appoint a special prophet, so they may have wondered if it would be Jesus (Deut. 18:15-18). If so, they may have believed that Jesus would be a magnificent ruler, able to feed the entire nation. This explains why they were about to “seize him and make him king” (John 6:14, 15).

What other miracle did Jesus perform, and how did the apostles react? (John 6:16-20).

After feeding the multitude, Jesus told his apostles to return to Capernaum by boat and withdrew to the mountain to prevent them from making him king (read John 6:16-20). During the boat trip, a storm arose with strong winds and waves. Then Jesus came to them, walking on the water, and told the apostle Peter to do the same (Matt. 14:22-31). When Jesus got into the boat, the wind calmed down. Filled with amazement, the disciples said, “You really are the Son of God!” (Matt. 14:33). Even so, they still did not see the connection between this miracle and what had happened earlier with the multitude. Mark adds the detail that the apostles’ astonishment was immense because “they had not grasped the meaning of the miracle of the loaves, and their hearts remained closed, unable to understand” (Mark 6:50-52). Indeed, they did not fully grasp the power Jehovah had given Jesus to perform miracles. Shortly afterward, Jesus would speak again about the miracle of the loaves, thus teaching us another important lesson.

Why did the crowd go looking for Jesus? (John 6:26, 27).

The crowd that Jesus fed was most interested in satisfying their physical needs and desires. It is true that the next day, when they saw that Jesus and his apostles had left, they got into other boats that had come from Tiberias and headed toward Capernaum to look for Jesus (John 6:22-24). But did they do this primarily to hear him speak more about the Kingdom? Clearly not. Their main interest was satisfying their need for bread. How do we know this?

Let us consider what happened when the crowd met Jesus near Capernaum. Jesus clearly told them that their priority was to satisfy their physical needs. He indicated that they “ate their fill of the loaves” with “food that spoils.” And he encouraged them instead to work for “the food that endures and leads to eternal life.” (Read John 6:26, 27.) He also told them that it would be his Father who would provide that food. The idea that food could lead to eternal life must have seemed astonishing to them. But what kind of food would that be, and how could they obtain it?

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