John 6:1–71

¹After these things Jesus departed across the sea of Gal′i‧lee, or Ti‧be′ri‧as.²But a great crowd kept following him, because they were beholding the signs he was performing upon those who were ill.³So Jesus went up into a mountain, and there he was sitting with his disciples.⁴Now the passover, the festival of the Jews, was near.⁵When, therefore, Jesus raised his eyes and observed that a great crowd was coming to him, he said to Philip: “Where shall we buy loaves for these to eat?”⁶However, he was saying this to test him, for he himself knew what he was about to do.⁷Philip answered him: “Two hundred de‧nar′i‧i worth of loaves is not enough for them, so that each one may get a little.”⁸One of his disciples, Andrew the brother of Simon Peter, said to him:⁹“Here is a little boy that has five barley loaves and two small fishes. But what are these among so many?”

¹⁰Jesus said: “HAVE​ the men recline as at meal.” Now there was a lot of grass in the place. Therefore the men reclined, about five thousand in number.¹¹So Jesus took the loaves and, after giving thanks, he distributed them to those reclining, likewise also as much of the small fishes as they wanted.¹²But when they had their fill he said to his disciples: “Gather together the fragments that remain over, so that nothing is wasted.”¹³Therefore they gathered them together, and they filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves, which were left over by those who had eaten.

¹⁴Hence when the men saw the signs he performed, they began to say: “This is for a certainty the prophet that was to come into the world.”¹⁵Therefore Jesus, knowing they were about to come and seize him to make him king, withdrew again into the mountain all alone.

¹⁶When evening fell, his disciples went down to the sea,¹⁷and, boarding a boat, they set out across the sea for Ca‧per′na‧um. Well, by now it had grown dark and Jesus had not yet come to them.¹⁸Also, the sea began to be stirred up because a strong wind was blowing.¹⁹However, when they had rowed about three or four miles, they beheld Jesus walking upon the sea and getting near the boat; and they became fearful.²⁰But he said to them: “It is I; have no fear!”²¹Therefore they were willing to take him into the boat, and directly the boat was at the land to which they were trying to go.

²²The next day the crowd that was standing on the other side of the sea saw that there was no boat there except a little one, and that Jesus had not entered into the boat with his disciples but that only his disciples had left;²³but boats from Ti‧be′ri‧as arrived near the place where they ate the bread after the Lord had given thanks.²⁴Therefore when the crowd saw that neither Jesus was there nor his disciples, they boarded their little boats and came to Ca‧per′na‧um to look for Jesus.

²⁵So when they found him across the sea they said to him: “Rabbi, when did you get here?”²⁶Jesus answered them and said: “Most truly I say to ​YOU, YOU​ are looking for me, not because ​YOU​ saw signs, but because ​YOU​ ate from the loaves and were satisfied.²⁷Work, not for the food that perishes, but for the food that remains for life everlasting, which the Son of man will give ​YOU; for upon this one the Father, even God, has put his seal [of approval].”

²⁸Therefore they said to him: “What shall we do to work the works of God?”²⁹In answer Jesus said to them: “This is the work of God, that ​YOU​ exercise faith in him whom that One sent forth.”³⁰Therefore they said to him: “What, then, are you performing as a sign, in order for us to see [it] and believe you? What work are you doing?³¹Our forefathers ate the manna in the wilderness, just as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”³²Hence Jesus said to them: “Most truly I say to ​YOU, Moses did not give ​YOU​ the bread from heaven, but my Father does give ​YOU​ the true bread from heaven.³³For the bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”³⁴Therefore they said to him: “Lord, always give us this bread.”

³⁵Jesus said to them: “I am the bread of life. He that comes to me will not get hungry at all, and he that exercises faith in me will never get thirsty at all.³⁶But I have said to ​YOU, YOU​ have even seen me and yet do not believe.³⁷Everything the Father gives me will come to me, and the one that comes to me I will by no means drive away;³⁸because I have come down from heaven to do, not my will, but the will of him that sent me.³⁹This is the will of him that sent me, that I should lose nothing out of all that he has given me but that I should resurrect it at the last day.⁴⁰For this is the will of my Father, that everyone that beholds the Son and exercises faith in him should have everlasting life, and I will resurrect him at the last day.”

⁴¹Therefore the Jews began to murmur at him because he said: “I am the bread that came down from heaven”;⁴²and they began saying: “Is this not Jesus the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it that now he says, ‘I have come down from heaven’?”⁴³In answer Jesus said to them: “Stop murmuring among yourselves.⁴⁴No man can come to me unless the Father, who sent me, draws him; and I will resurrect him in the last day.⁴⁵It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by Jehovah.’ Everyone that has heard from the Father and has learned comes to me.⁴⁶Not that any man has seen the Father, except he who is from God; this one has seen the Father.⁴⁷Most truly I say to ​YOU, He that believes has everlasting life.

⁴⁸“I am the bread of life.⁴⁹YOUR​ forefathers ate the manna in the wilderness and yet died.⁵⁰This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that anyone may eat of it and not die.⁵¹I am the living bread that came down from heaven; if anyone eats of this bread he will live forever; and, for a fact, the bread that I shall give is my flesh in behalf of the life of the world.”

⁵²Therefore the Jews began contending with one another, saying: “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”⁵³Accordingly Jesus said to them: “Most truly I say to ​YOU, Unless ​YOU​ eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, ​YOU​ have no life in yourselves.⁵⁴He that feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has everlasting life, and I shall resurrect him at the last day;⁵⁵for my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.⁵⁶He that feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood remains in union with me, and I in union with him.⁵⁷Just as the living Father sent me forth and I live because of the Father, he also that feeds on me, even that one will live because of me.⁵⁸This is the bread that came down from heaven. It is not as when ​YOUR​ forefathers ate and yet died. He that feeds on this bread will live forever.”⁵⁹These things he said as he was teaching in public assembly at Ca‧per′na‧um.

⁶⁰Therefore many of his disciples, when they heard this, said: “This speech is shocking; who can listen to it?”⁶¹But Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples were murmuring about this, said to them: “Does this stumble ​YOU?⁶²What, therefore, if ​YOU​ should behold the Son of man ascending to where he was before?⁶³It is the spirit that is life‐giving; the flesh is of no use at all. The sayings that I have spoken to ​YOU​ are spirit and are life.⁶⁴But there are some of ​YOU​ that do not believe.” For from [the] beginning Jesus knew who were the ones not believing and who was the one that would betray him.⁶⁵So he went on to say: “This is why I have said to ​YOU, No one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.”

⁶⁶Owing to this many of his disciples went off to the things behind and would no longer walk with him.⁶⁷Therefore Jesus said to the twelve: “YOU​ do not want to go also, do ​YOU?”⁶⁸Simon Peter answered him: “Lord, whom shall we go away to? You have sayings of everlasting life;⁶⁹and we have believed and come to know that you are the Holy One of God.”⁷⁰Jesus answered them: “I chose ​YOU​ twelve, did I not? Yet one of ​YOU​ is a slanderer.”⁷¹He was, in fact, speaking of Judas [the son] of Simon Is‧car′i‧ot; for this one was going to betray him, although one of the twelve.