John 6

The day many abandoned Jesus

Fish dinner for 5,000

1Jesus left the area after this. He crossed to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which some people call the Sea of Tiberias. 2By this time, a large crowd followed him wherever he went. They saw him healing the sick. His miracles attracted them.

3Jesus walked up on the slopes of a hill and sat down with his disciples. 4It was almost time for the big Jewish festival of Passover. [1] 5Jesus looked up and saw a large crowd headed toward him. He turned to Philip and said, “Where can we buy some bread? These people need to eat.” 6Jesus didn’t need an answer. He knew what he was going to do. He wanted to hear what Philip would say.

7Philip said, “What? A man would have to work the better part of a year to buy enough bread to give each person just a little taste.” [2]

8Another disciple spoke up. He was Peter’s brother, Andrew. 9“There’s a little boy out there who brought some food with him. He has five loaves of barley and a couple of fish. That won’t go far with this crowd.”

10Jesus said, “Tell the people to sit.” The crowd, which included about 5,000 men, sat on the grassy slope.

11Jesus took the bread, offered a prayer of thanks, and passed it out to the people seated there. He did the same with the fish. He gave the people as much food as they wanted. 12When they were full, Jesus told his disciples, “Get the leftovers. We don’t want anything going to waste.” 13They picked up the pieces of barley bread. The leftovers filled 12 baskets.

14The people didn’t miss the miraculous sign they had just seen. They said, “There’s no doubt about it now. This is the prophet we’ve been waiting for.” [3]

Jesus walks on water

15When Jesus saw that the crowd was about to declare him king of Israel, he headed for the hills. He left by himself.

16As nighttime approached, Jesus’s disciples went down to the lakeshore. 17They got into a boat and headed back across the lake to Capernaum. It was dark by then, and Jesus hadn’t come back down from the hills.

18Wind started blowing hard enough to churn up some rough waves. 19The disciples had rowed out about three or four miles [4] when they saw Jesus—walking on the lake and headed their way. They were bug-eyed scared.

20Jesus tried to calm them by saying, “Hey there, don’t be afraid. It’s just me.” 21Relieved, they were delighted to give him permission to come aboard. Suddenly, the boat came ashore at Capernaum.

Jesus, the bread that gives life

22The next day, a crowd formed along the shoreline near the disciples’ boat. The folks could see there was only one boat. Yet they knew that Jesus wasn’t on that boat when the disciples left the night before. [5]

23Some people from Tiberias [6] arrived in their boats at another spot. They came ashore where the Lord once said a prayer of thanks and then served them bread. 24When they realized he and his disciples weren’t there, they got back in their boats and sailed off to Capernaum, hoping to find him. 25They found him there across the lake. They said, “Teacher, when did you get here?”

26Jesus said, “Here’s the truth. You haven’t hunted me down to see miraculous proof of who I am. You came for a meal. You’re here because earlier I fed you all the bread you could eat. 27Listen, don’t put this kind of energy into getting food that eventually goes bad. Put your energy into getting food that lasts forever. It’s available from the Son of Humans, who has God’s seal of approval.”

28So the people said, “Well then, what does God want us to do?”

29Jesus said, “I’ll tell you what God wants you to do. He wants you to believe me. He sent me. And he wants you to believe in the one he sent.”

30The people answered Jesus with a question. “Okay then, what miracle are you going to do to convince us to believe in you? What can we see you do? 31Our fathers ate manna bread in the badlands. The Bible says so: ‘He sent them bread from heaven.’” [7]

32Jesus told them, “Here’s the truest truth. [8] Moses didn’t give you bread from heaven. My Father is the one who gives you genuine bread from heaven. 33This bread—God’s bread from heaven—is what gives life to this world.” 34The people said, “Sir, that’s the kind of bread we want from now on. Give us some.”

35Jesus said, “I am the life-giving bread. [9] Those who stand with me will never go hungry. Those who trust me will never get thirsty. 36I’ve told you this before and I’ll tell you again. I’m right here, people. You see me, but you still don’t believe me. 37I’ll get everyone and everything that the Father plans to give to me. Whoever he gives me, I’m going to keep. I won’t run them off.

38“Folks, I came from heaven. I didn’t come to do as I please. I came to do what I was sent to do, by the one who sent me. 39And here’s what the one who sent me wants me to do: keep everyone he has given me. I’m not to lose a single one of them. Then, on the last day, I’ll bring them back to life.

40“This is what the Father wants: He wants everyone who hears about the Son and ends up believing in him to live forever. So, here’s what I’m going to do. On the last day, I’m personally going to raise them to life again.”

Eat the bread if you want to live

41The Jews didn’t like it when he said he’s the bread that fell from heaven. They complained about it. 42They said, “Isn’t this guy Jesus, Joseph’s son? We know his mom and dad, right? What makes him think he can get away with saying he came from heaven?”

43Jesus answered them. He said, “You can stop dissing me now. 44You’re not going to start following me unless the Father who sent me here puts that desire in you. Those who follow me, I’ll raise them on the last day. 45The prophets wrote about this. They said, ‘God himself will teach all of them.’ [10] If you have heard the Father and are doing what he told you to do, you’re following my lead. Every one of you. 46I’m not saying any of you have seen the Father. You haven’t. The only one here who has seen him is the one he sent. 47I’m telling you the truest truth. If you believe, you live. Forever.

48“I am the bread that gives life. 49Your ancestors ate that mysterious food called manna in the desert badlands. Eventually, they all died. 50Well, I’m telling you that there’s another kind of bread that comes from heaven. Whoever eats that bread will never die.

51“I am the bread from heaven. I’m right here in front of you—alive. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever. This is the bread that I’m giving you: my life, in the flesh. I’m giving my life so the world can live.”

52The Jews started arguing with each other over the question, “How can this guy feed us with his body?”

53Jesus answered them, “I’m telling you the truest truth. If you don’t eat the Son of Human’s body and drink his blood, there’s nothing eternal about your life. [11] 54If you eat from my body and drink my blood, you’ll live forever. When the last day finally comes, I’ll raise you up. 55My body is real food to eat. My blood is a real drink. 56Whoever eats my body and drinks my blood becomes part of me. And I become part of them. 57It’s like this. The living Father sent me here. I’m alive here because of the Father. So, whoever feeds on me will live forever because of me.

58“Look at me. This is the bread from heaven. It’s not like the bread your ancestors ate. They died. If you eat this bread, you’ll never stop living.” 59Jesus said all of this while he was teaching the people in the Capernaum synagogue.

60Some of his disciples went to him afterward and said, “Okay, this is a hard teaching. Who can possibly understand what you’re trying to say?”

61Jesus knew that his disciples were complaining about what he had said. He asked, “Does what I said offend you? 62If that bothers you, what would you say if you saw the Son of Humans ascending back to where he came from? 63Eternal life comes from the Spirit. Our bodies have nothing to do with it. These words are spirit. They are life. 64Yet, some of you don’t believe it.” From the very beginning, Jesus knew who didn’t believe. He knew who would betray him. 65Then Jesus added, “That’s why I’ve told you, ‘No one is going to come to me unless the Father allows it.’”

Followers turn their back on Jesus

66That was the turning point for many of his followers. They stopped associating with him.

67Jesus turned to his 12 disciples and said, “Do you want to leave me too?”

68Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, who else are we going to turn to? You’re the one with the words about eternal life. 69In the time we’ve spent with you, we’ve become convinced that God sent you and that you’re the Holy One we’ve been expecting.”

70Jesus said to the men, “I chose each one of you, didn’t I? All 12. Yet one of you is full of the devil.” 71He was talking about Judas, son of Simon Iscariot. Judas was one of the 12, but he would betray Jesus.

Footnotes

Intro Notes for Gospel of John

16:4

See the footnote for John 2:13.

26:7

Philip said it would cost more than 200 denarii. One denarius was considered a fair wage for a day’s labor. It would take more than eight months of six-day weeks to earn 200 denarii.