John 6

1  AFTER THIS, Jesus went to the farther side of the Sea of Galilee--that is, the Sea of Tiberias.2  And a great crowd was following Him because they had seen the signs (miracles) which He [continually] performed upon those who were sick.3  And Jesus walked up the mountainside and sat down there with His disciples.4  Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was approaching.5  Jesus looked up then, and seeing that a vast multitude was coming toward Him, He said to Philip, Where are we to buy bread, so that all these people may eat?6  But He said this to prove (test) him, for He well knew what He was about to do.7  Philip answered Him, Two hundred pennies’ (forty dollars) worth of bread is not enough that everyone may receive even a little.8  Another of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him,9  There is a little boy here, who has [with him] five barley loaves, and two small fish; but what are they among so many people?10  Jesus said, Make all the people recline (sit down). Now the ground (a pasture) was covered with thick grass at the spot, so the men threw themselves down, about 5,000 in number.11  Jesus took the loaves, and when He had given thanks, He distributed to the disciples and the disciples to the reclining people; so also [He did] with the fish, as much as they wanted.12  When they had all had enough, He said to His disciples, Gather up now the fragments (the broken pieces that are left over), so that nothing may be lost and wasted.13  So accordingly they gathered them up, and they filled twelve [small hand] baskets with fragments left over by those who had eaten from the five barley loaves.14  When the people saw the sign (miracle) that Jesus had performed, they began saying, Surely and beyond a doubt this is the Prophet Who is to come into the world! 15  Then Jesus, knowing that they meant to come and seize Him that they might make Him king, withdrew again to the hillside by Himself alone.16  When evening came, His disciples went down to the sea,17  And they took a boat and were going across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and still Jesus had not [yet] come back to them.18  Meanwhile, the sea was getting rough and rising high because of a great and violent wind that was blowing.19  [However] when they had rowed three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and approaching the boat. And they were afraid (terrified).20  But Jesus said to them, It is I; be not afraid! [I AM; stop being frightened!] 21  Then they were quite willing and glad for Him to come into the boat. And now the boat went at once to the land they had steered toward. [And immediately they reached the shore toward which they had been slowly making their way.]22  The next day the crowd [that still remained] standing on the other side of the sea realized that there had been only one small boat there, and that Jesus had not gone into it with His disciples, but that His disciples had gone away by themselves.23  But now some other boats from Tiberias had come in near the place where they ate the bread after the Lord had given thanks.24  So the people, finding that neither Jesus nor His disciples were there, themselves got into the small boats and came to Capernaum looking for Jesus.25  And when they found Him on the other side of the lake, they said to Him, Rabbi! When did You come here?26  Jesus answered them, I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, you have been searching for Me, not because you saw the miracles and signs but because you were fed with the loaves and were filled and satisfied.27  Stop toiling and doing and producing for the food that perishes and decomposes [in the using], but strive and work and produce rather for the [lasting] food which endures [continually] unto life eternal; the Son of Man will give (furnish) you that, for God the Father has authorized and certified Him and put His seal of endorsement upon Him.28  They then said, What are we to do, that we may [habitually] be working the works of God? [What are we to do to carry out what God requires?]29  Jesus replied, This is the work (service) that God asks of you: that you believe in the One Whom He has sent [that you cleave to, trust, rely on, and have faith in His Messenger].30  Therefore they said to Him, What sign (miracle, wonderwork) will You perform then, so that we may see it and believe and rely on and adhere to You? What [supernatural] work have You [to show what You can do]?31  Our forefathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as the Scripture says, He gave them bread out of heaven to eat. 32  Jesus then said to them, I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, Moses did not give you the Bread from heaven [what Moses gave you was not the Bread from heaven], but it is My Father Who gives you the true heavenly Bread.33  For the Bread of God is He Who comes down out of heaven and gives life to the world.34  Then they said to Him, Lord, give us this bread always (all the time)!35  Jesus replied, I am the Bread of Life. He who comes to Me will never be hungry, and he who believes in and cleaves to and trusts in and relies on Me will never thirst any more (at any time).36  But [as] I told you, although you have seen Me, still you do not believe and trust and have faith.37  All whom My Father gives (entrusts) to Me will come to Me; and the one who comes to Me I will most certainly not cast out [I will never, no never, reject one of them who comes to Me].38  For I have come down from heaven not to do My own will and purpose but to do the will and purpose of Him Who sent Me.39  And this is the will of Him Who sent Me, that I should not lose any of all that He has given Me, but that I should give new life and raise [them all] up at the last day.40  For this is My Father’s will and His purpose, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in and cleaves to and trusts in and relies on Him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up [from the dead] at the last day.41  Now the Jews murmured and found fault with and grumbled about Jesus because He said, I am [Myself] the Bread that came down from heaven.42  They kept asking, Is not this Jesus, the Son of Joseph, Whose father and mother we know? How then can He say, I have come down from heaven?43  So Jesus answered them, Stop grumbling and saying things against Me to one another.44  No one is able to come to Me unless the Father Who sent Me attracts and draws him and gives him the desire to come to Me, and [then] I will raise him up [from the dead] at the last day.45  It is written in [the book of] the Prophets, And they shall all be taught of God [have Him in person for their Teacher]. Everyone who has listened to and learned from the Father comes to Me--46  Which does not imply that anyone has seen the Father [not that anyone has ever seen Him] except He [Who was with the Father] Who comes from God; He [alone] has seen the Father.47  I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, he who believes in Me [who adheres to, trusts in, relies on, and has faith in Me] has (now possesses) eternal life.48  I am the Bread of Life [that gives life--the Living Bread].49  Your forefathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and [yet] they died.50  [But] this is the Bread that comes down from heaven, so that [any]one may eat of it and never die.51  I [Myself] am this Living Bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this Bread, he will live forever; and also the Bread that I shall give for the life of the world is My flesh (body).52  Then the Jews angrily contended with one another, saying, How is He able to give us His flesh to eat?53  And Jesus said to them, I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, you cannot have any life in you unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood [unless you appropriate His life and the saving merit of His blood].54  He who feeds on My flesh and drinks My blood has (possesses now) eternal life, and I will raise him up [from the dead] on the last day.55  For My flesh is true and genuine food, and My blood is true and genuine drink.56  He who feeds on My flesh and drinks My blood dwells continually in Me, and I [in like manner dwell continually] in him.57  Just as the living Father sent Me and I live by (through, because of) the Father, even so whoever continues to feed on Me [whoever takes Me for his food and is nourished by Me] shall [in his turn] live through and because of Me.58  This is the Bread that came down from heaven. It is not like the manna which our forefathers ate, and yet died; he who takes this Bread for his food shall live forever.59  He said these things in a synagogue while He was teaching at Capernaum.60  When His disciples heard this, many of them said, This is a hard and difficult and strange saying (an offensive and unbearable message). Who can stand to hear it? [Who can be expected to listen to such teaching?]61  But Jesus, knowing within Himself that His disciples were complaining and protesting and grumbling about it, said to them: Is this a stumbling block and an offense to you? [Does this upset and displease and shock and scandalize you?]62  What then [will be your reaction] if you should see the Son of Man ascending to [the place] where He was before?63  It is the Spirit Who gives life [He is the Life-giver]; the flesh conveys no benefit whatever [there is no profit in it]. The words (truths) that I have been speaking to you are spirit and life.64  But [still] some of you fail to believe and trust and have faith. For Jesus knew from the first who did not believe and had no faith and who would betray Him and be false to Him.65  And He said, This is why I told you that no one can come to Me unless it is granted him [unless he is enabled to do so] by the Father.66  After this, many of His disciples drew back (returned to their old associations) and no longer accompanied Him.67  Jesus said to the Twelve, Will you also go away? [And do you too desire to leave Me?]68  Simon Peter answered, Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words (the message) of eternal life.69  And we have learned to believe and trust, and [more] we have come to know [surely] that You are the Holy One of God , the Christ (the Anointed One), the Son of the living God.70  Jesus answered them, Did I not choose you, the Twelve? And [yet] one of you is a devil (of the evil one and a false accuser).71  He was speaking of Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, for he was about to betray Him, [although] he was one of the Twelve.

John 6

Chapter 6

Jesus Feeds Five Thousand

1 After this, Jesus crossed over to the far side of the Sea of Galilee, also known as the Sea of Tiberias.2 A huge crowd kept following him wherever he went, because they saw his miraculous signs as he healed the sick.3 Then Jesus climbed a hill and sat down with his disciples around him.4 (It was nearly time for the Jewish Passover celebration.)5 Jesus soon saw a huge crowd of people coming to look for him. Turning to Philip, he asked, “Where can we buy bread to feed all these people?”

6 He was testing Philip, for he already knew what he was going to do.

7 Philip replied, “Even if we worked for months, we wouldn’t have enough moneyt to feed them!”
8 Then Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up.

9 “There’s a young boy here with five barley loaves and two fish. But what good is that with this huge crowd?”
10 “Tell everyone to sit down,” Jesus said. So they all sat down on the grassy slopes. (The men alone numbered about 5,000.)11 Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks to God, and distributed them to the people. Afterward he did the same with the fish. And they all ate as much as they wanted.12 After everyone was full, Jesus told his disciples, “Now gather the leftovers, so that nothing is wasted.”

13 So they picked up the pieces and filled twelve baskets with scraps left by the people who had eaten from the five barley loaves.
14 When the people saw himt do this miraculous sign, they exclaimed, “Surely, he is the Prophet we have been expecting!”t

15 When Jesus saw that they were ready to force him to be their king, he slipped away into the hills by himself.

Jesus Walks on Water

16 That evening Jesus’ disciples went down to the shore to wait for him.17 But as darkness fell and Jesus still hadn’t come back, they got into the boat and headed across the lake toward Capernaum.18 Soon a gale swept down upon them, and the sea grew very rough.19 They had rowed three or four milest when suddenly they saw Jesus walking on the water toward the boat. They were terrified,20 but he called out to them, “Don’t be afraid. I am here!t”

21 Then they were eager to let him in the boat, and immediately they arrived at their destination!

Jesus, the Bread of Life

22 The next day the crowd that had stayed on the far shore saw that the disciples had taken the only boat, and they realized Jesus had not gone with them.23 Several boats from Tiberias landed near the place where the Lord had blessed the bread and the people had eaten.24 So when the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and went across to Capernaum to look for him.

25 They found him on the other side of the lake and asked, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”
26 Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, you want to be with me because I fed you, not because you understood the miraculous signs.

27 But don’t be so concerned about perishable things like food. Spend your energy seeking the eternal life that the Son of Mant can give you. For God the Father has given me the seal of his approval.”

28 They replied, “We want to perform God’s works, too. What should we do?”

29 Jesus told them, “This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent.”
30 They answered, “Show us a miraculous sign if you want us to believe in you. What can you do?

31 After all, our ancestors ate manna while they journeyed through the wilderness! The Scriptures say, ‘Moses gave them bread from heaven to eat.’t”
32 Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, Moses didn’t give you bread from heaven. My Father did. And now he offers you the true bread from heaven.

33 The true bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

34 “Sir,” they said, “give us that bread every day.”
35 Jesus replied, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.36 But you haven’t believed in me even though you have seen me.37 However, those the Father has given me will come to me, and I will never reject them.38 For I have come down from heaven to do the will of God who sent me, not to do my own will.39 And this is the will of God, that I should not lose even one of all those he has given me, but that I should raise them up at the last day.

40 For it is my Father’s will that all who see his Son and believe in him should have eternal life. I will raise them up at the last day.”
41 Then the peoplet began to murmur in disagreement because he had said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.”

42 They said, “Isn’t this Jesus, the son of Joseph? We know his father and mother. How can he say, ‘I came down from heaven’?”
43 But Jesus replied, “Stop complaining about what I said.44 For no one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them to me, and at the last day I will raise them up.45 As it is written in the Scriptures,t ‘They will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from him comes to me.

46 (Not that anyone has ever seen the Father; only I, who was sent from God, have seen him.)
47 “I tell you the truth, anyone who believes has eternal life.48 Yes, I am the bread of life!49 Your ancestors ate manna in the wilderness, but they all died.50 Anyone who eats the bread from heaven, however, will never die.

51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; and this bread, which I will offer so the world may live, is my flesh.”

52 Then the people began arguing with each other about what he meant. “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” they asked.
53 So Jesus said again, “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you cannot have eternal life within you.54 But anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise that person at the last day.55 For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.56 Anyone who eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him.57 I live because of the living Father who sent me; in the same way, anyone who feeds on me will live because of me.

58 I am the true bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will not die as your ancestors did (even though they ate the manna) but will live forever.”

59 He said these things while he was teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.

Many Disciples Desert Jesus

60 Many of his disciples said, “This is very hard to understand. How can anyone accept it?”
61 Jesus was aware that his disciples were complaining, so he said to them, “Does this offend you?62 Then what will you think if you see the Son of Man ascend to heaven again?63 The Spirit alone gives eternal life. Human effort accomplishes nothing. And the very words I have spoken to you are spirit and life.64 But some of you do not believe me.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning which ones didn’t believe, and he knew who would betray him.)

65 Then he said, “That is why I said that people can’t come to me unless the Father gives them to me.”
66 At this point many of his disciples turned away and deserted him.

67 Then Jesus turned to the Twelve and asked, “Are you also going to leave?”
68 Simon Peter replied, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words that give eternal life.

69 We believe, and we know you are the Holy One of God.t”
70 Then Jesus said, “I chose the twelve of you, but one is a devil.”

71 He was speaking of Judas, son of Simon Iscariot, one of the Twelve, who would later betray him.