John 6:8,9

“ One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, says to him: 9. There is a lad here, who has five barley loaves and two fishes: but what are these for so many? ”

John mentions, first, in an indefinite way, one disciple; then he makes a precise statement: “It was Andrew.” We can believe that we hear him telling the story. And how can we fail to remember here, that Andrew was precisely the one, who, according to the tradition in the Muratorian Fragment, was present at the time of the composition of the Gospel? His character as brother of Simon Peter had already been pointed out in John 1:41. Was not this sufficient? Certainly; but the person of Andrew cannot present itself to the mind of John, without his recalling to mind how nearly connected he was with Simon Peter, the principal one among the apostles. And yet it is claimed that one of the tendencies of the Johannean narrative is to disparage Peter! Andrew, thus, falls into the trap laid for his fellow-disciple, and it is, no doubt, with a sort of malicious humor that the evangelist is pleased to report in extenso their words, which form so strong a contrast to the magnificent display of power which is in preparation. The word ἕν, one only, which was restored by Tischendorf in 1859, is suppressed by him in his 8th ed., according to the Alexandrian authorities and Origen; but certainly wrongly. We can more easily understand how it may have been omitted than added. It brings out the scantiness of the resources which are at hand: “ One only who has anything, and he how little!” It was some petty trader whom Andrew had just noticed in the crowd. Barley-bread was that used by the poorer classes.