John 6

After these things Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (which is the Sea of Tiberias).

And a large crowd was following him because they saw the signs that he was doing on those who were sick.

And Jesus went up onto the mountain, and he sat there with his disciples.

Now [the Passover,] the feast of the Jews, was near.

Jesus therefore, lifting up his eyes and seeing that a great multitude was coming to him, said to Philip, “Where are we going to buy bread so these can eat?”

And he said this to test him, for he himself knew what he was about to do.

Philip answered him, “200 denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that everyone could take a little.”

One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him,

“There is a young boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?”

Jesus said, “Have the people sit down to eat.” Now there was much grass in the place, so the men sat down to eat, about 5,000 in number.

Then Jesus took the loaves, and having given thanks, he distributed the loaves to those who had sat down to eat, likewise also with the fish, as much as they wanted.

And when they were filled, he said to his disciples, “Gather up the broken pieces that are left over, so that nothing is lost.”

So they gathered them up. And from the five barley loaves they filled twelve baskets with broken pieces that were left over by those who had eaten.

Now when the people saw the sign that he did, they began to say to one another, “This is truly the prophet who is to come into the world.”

Therefore, when Jesus knew that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, he withdrew again to the mountain by himself alone.

And when evening came, his disciples went down to the lake,

and having gotten into a boat, they were going across the lake to Capernaum. And it was now dark and yet Jesus had not yet come to them.

And the lake began to be stirred up because of a strong wind that was blowing.

Now when they had rowed about three or three and a half miles, they saw Jesus walking on the lake and drawing near to the boat, and they were afraid.

But he said to them, “It is I. Do not be afraid.”

Therefore, they were willing to receive him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land where they were going.

On the next day the crowd that stood on the other side of the lake saw that there were no other boats there, except one, and that Jesus had not entered with his disciples into the boat, but that his disciples had gone away alone

(but other small boats came from Tiberius to near the place where they ate the bread after the Lord had given thanks).

So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the small boats and went to Capernaum seeking Jesus.

And when they found him on the other side of the lake, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?”

Jesus answered them and said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled.

Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to life in the age to come, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on him the Father, God, has set his seal.”

Therefore they said to him, “What must we do so that we are working the works of God?”

Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God: that you believe in him whom he has sent.”

So they said to him, “Then what sign will you show us in order that we can see it and believe you? What work?

Our fathers ate the manna in the desert, as it is written, He gave them bread out of heaven to eat.”

Then Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread out of heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread out of heaven.

For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven and gives life to the world.”

Therefore, they said to him, “Lord, give us this bread from now on.”

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never ever hunger, and whoever believes in me will never ever thirst.

But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe.

All those whom the Father gives me will come to me, and the one who comes to me I will absolutely not cast out.

For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me.

And this is the will of him who sent me: that all that he has given me, I lose none of them, but raise them up on the last day.

For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him will have life in the age to come, and I will raise him up at the last day.”

Therefore the Jews grumbled about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down out of heaven.”

And they said, “Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down out of heaven’?”

Jesus answered and said to them, “Do not grumble among yourselves.

No one is able to come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.

It is written in the prophets, And they will all be taught by God. Everyone who has heard from the Father and has learned, comes to me,

not that anyone has seen the Father except he who is from God, he has seen the Father.

Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has life in the age to come.

I am the bread of life.

Your fathers ate the manna in the desert, and they died.

This is the bread that comes down out of heaven so that a person may eat of it and not die:

I am the living bread that came down out of heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. Indeed, the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

Therefore the Jews argued intensely with each other, saying, “How is this man able to give us his flesh to eat?”

Therefore Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life in you.

The one who continues to eat my flesh and drink my blood has life in the age to come, and I will raise him up at the last day.

For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.

The one who continues to eat my flesh and drink my blood remains in union with me, and I in union with him.

Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who continues to feed on me—yes that one—will live because of me.

This is the bread that came down out of heaven, not as the Fathers ate, and died. The one who continues to eat this bread will live forever.”

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

Therefore many of his disciples, when they heard this, said, “This is a hard saying; who is able to hear it?”

But Jesus knowing in himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, said to them, “Does this cause you to fall away?

Then what if you were to see the Son of Man coming up to where he was before?

It is the spirit that gives life, the flesh profits nothing. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.

But there are some of you who do not believe.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray him).

And he said, “This is why I have said to you that no one is able to come to me, unless it is given to him by the Father.”

From that time many of his disciples turned back, and did not walk any more with him.

Therefore Jesus said to the Twelve, “Will you also go away?”

Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom will we go? You have the words of life in the age to come.

And we have believed and have come to know that you are the Holy One of God.”

Jesus answered them, “Didn’t I choose you, the Twelve? And yet one of you is a devil.”

Now he was speaking of Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for it was he, one of the Twelve, who was going to betray him.