Mark 6:38
How many loaves do you have?
Many people followed Jesus into the desert and are hungry. Jesus tells his followers to feed them.
Mark 6:38 How many loaves have ye? go and see.
Mark 6:38 “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.”
How much bread do you have? . Go away. See.
Greek
Greek Word Order
We never know how much we have.
Lost in Translation
The word translated as "loaves" here is the same word translated as "bread" throughout the Gospels. Jesus uses the "go" verb to mean "go away" rather than simply "go." There is no "and" between the "go" and "see." It is added to make a verbal statement more like a written sentence. The versions in Matthew 15:34 or Mark 8:5 do not have the commands to "go" and "see." The :"see" is the word that means "know" once it has been done.
In Greek, this looks like Jesus is answering a series of questions here. He asks "How much do you have?" Then it is like he was asked, "How much what?" He says, "Bread." Then he gets, "I don't know," So, finally, he tells them to go and look.
Vocabulary (Greek word by word)
Πόσους [19 verses] (adj pl masc acc) "How many" is from posos, which means "of what quantity," [in distance] "how far." [of number] how many," [of time] "how long," [of value] "how much", "how great", "how many," and "how much."
ἔχετε [181 verses](verb 2nd pl pres ind act) "Have" is from echo, which means "to have", "to hold", "to possess", "to keep", "to have charge of", "to maintain", "to hold fast", "to bear", "to keep close", "to keep safe," and "to have means to do."
ἄρτους [32 verses](noun pl masc acc) "Bread" is from artos, which means specifically a "cake of whole wheat bread," and generally "loaf," and "bread."ἔχετε; (verb 2nd pl pres ind act) "Have" is from echo, which means "to have", "to hold", "to possess", "to keep", "to have charge of", "to maintain", "to hold fast", "to bear", "to keep close", "to keep safe," and "to have means to do."
ὑπάγετε [47 verses](verb 2nd pl pres ind act) "Go" is from hypago. which means "to lead under", "to bring under", "to bring a person before judgment", "to lead on by degrees", "to take away from beneath", "to withdraw", "to go away", "to retire", "to draw off," and "off with you."
ἴδετε. [166 verses](verb 2nd pl pres ind act) "See" is from eido, which is another word that means "to see", "to examine," and "to know." It has more the sense of understanding.
KJV — word by word
How many - The Greek adjective translated as "how many" means "[of number] of what quantity," [in distance] "how far," [of time] "how long," [of value] "how much", "how great", "how many," and "how much."
loaves - (CW) The word translated as "loaves" means "small loaf or cake of bread". It is more like a slice of bread today. In every part of the chapter, the word translated both as "bread" and "loaves" is the same in Greek. It describes a thin 1/2 inch thick round or loaf of wheat bread, meant to be torn into pieces and not cut. It was closer to a flour tortilla than a modern loaf of bread.
have - The word translated as "have" means "to possess" or "to keep" but it isn't used in the same way as a "helper" verb that the English "have" is. It means to have in you possession or at hand.
ye? - This comes from the second-person, plural form of the previous verb.
Go -- (CW) "Go" is a Greek verb that means literally "go under" or "bring under," and Jesus uses it to mean "go away" and "depart."
and -- (OS) There is nothing in the Greek that can be translated as "and" in the source we use today but it does exist in the source that the KJV translators used.
see - . The word translated as "see" means primarily "to see" and is used to mean "know' as we use the word "see" to mean "know" in English.
NIV — word by word
How many - The Greek adjective translated as "how many" means "[of number] of what quantity," [in distance] "how far," [of time] "how long," [of value] "how much", "how great", "how many," and "how much."
loaves - (CW) The word translated as "loaves" means "small loaf or cake of bread". It is more like a slice of bread today. In every part of the chapter, the word translated both as "bread" and "loaves" is the same in Greek. It describes a thin 1/2 inch thick round or loaf of wheat bread, meant to be torn into pieces and not cut. It was closer to a flour tortilla than a modern loaf of bread.
have - The word translated as "have" means "to possess" or "to keep" but it isn't used in the same way as a "helper" verb that the English "have" is. It means to have in you possession or at hand.
ye? - This comes from the second-person, plural form of the previous verb.
Go -- (CW) "Go" is a Greek verb that means literally "go under" or "bring under," and Jesus uses it to mean "go away" and "depart."
and -- (IW) There is nothing that can be translated as "and" in the Greek source. IW - Inserted Word -- The word "and" doesn't exist in the source.
see - . The word translated as "see" means primarily "to see" and is used to mean "know' as we use the word "see" to mean "know" in English.