Discovery BoxMatthew 15:34-38 
Context15:34 Jesus said to them, “How many loaves do you have?” They replied, “Seven – and a few small fish.” 15:35 After instructing the crowd to sit down on the ground, 15:36 he took the seven loaves and the fish, and after giving thanks, he broke them and began giving them to the disciples, who then gave them to the crowds. 1 15:37 They 2 all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. 15:38 Not counting children and women, 3 there were four thousand men who ate. 4
1 tn Grk “was giving them to the disciples, and the disciples to the crowd.”
2 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.
3 tc ‡ Although most witnesses (B C L W Ë13 33 Ï f sys,p,h mae) read “women and children” instead of “children and women,” it is likely that the majority’s reading is a harmonization to Matt 14:21. “Children and women” is found in early and geographically widespread witnesses (e.g., א D [Θ Ë1] 579 lat syc sa bo), and has more compelling internal arguments on its side, suggesting that this is the original reading. NA27, however, agrees with the majority of witnesses.
4 tn Grk “And those eating were four thousand men, apart from children and women.”
