John 6
6
Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand
1Some time after this, Jesus crossed over to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. It is also called the Sea of Tiberias. 2A large crowd of people followed him. They had seen the signs he had done by healing sick people. 3Then Jesus went up on a mountainside. There he sat down with his disciples. 4The Jewish Passover Feast was near.
5Jesus looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward him. So he said to Philip, “Where can we buy bread for these people to eat?” 6He asked this only to test Philip. He already knew what he was going to do.
7Philip answered him, “Suppose we were able to buy enough bread for each person to have just a bite. That would take more than half a year’s pay!”
8Another of his disciples spoke up. It was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He said, 9“Here is a boy with five small loaves of barley bread. He also has two small fish. But how far will that go in such a large crowd?”
10Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” There was plenty of grass in that place, and they sat down. About 5,000 men were there. 11Then Jesus took the loaves and gave thanks. He handed out the bread to those who were seated. He gave them as much as they wanted. And he did the same with the fish.
12When all of them had enough to eat, Jesus spoke to his disciples. “Gather the leftover pieces,” he said. “Don’t waste anything.” 13So they gathered what was left over from the five barley loaves. They filled 12 baskets with the pieces left by those who had eaten.
14The people saw the sign that Jesus did. Then they began to say, “This must be the Prophet who is supposed to come into the world.” 15But Jesus knew that they planned to come and force him to be their king. So he went away again to a mountain by himself.
Jesus Walks on the Water
16When evening came, Jesus’ disciples went down to the Sea of Galilee. 17There they got into a boat and headed across the lake toward Capernaum. By now it was dark. Jesus had not yet joined them. 18A strong wind was blowing, and the water became rough. 19They rowed about three or four miles. Then they saw Jesus coming toward the boat. He was walking on the water. They were frightened. 20But he said to them, “It is I. Don’t be afraid.” 21Then they agreed to take him into the boat. Right away the boat reached the shore where they were heading.
22The next day the crowd that had stayed on the other side of the lake realized something. They saw that only one boat had been there. They knew that Jesus had not gotten into it with his disciples. And they knew that the disciples had gone away alone. 23Then some boats arrived from Tiberias. It was near the place where the people had eaten the bread after the Lord gave thanks. 24The crowd realized that Jesus and his disciples were not there. So they got into boats and went to Capernaum to look for Jesus.
Jesus Is the Bread of Life
25They found him on the other side of the lake. They asked him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?”
26Jesus answered, “What I’m about to tell you is true. You are not looking for me because you saw the signs I did. You are looking for me because you ate the loaves until you were full. 27Do not work for food that spoils. Work for food that lasts forever. That is the food the Son of Man will give you. For God the Father has put his seal of approval on him.”
28Then they asked him, “What does God want from us? What works does he want us to do?”
29Jesus answered, “God’s work is to believe in the one he has sent.”
30So they asked him, “What sign will you give us? What will you do so we can see it and believe you? 31Long ago our people ate the manna in the desert. It is written in Scripture, ‘The Lord gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ” (Exodus 16:4; Nehemiah 9:15; Psalm 78:24,25)
32Jesus said to them, “What I’m about to tell you is true. It is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven. It is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33The bread of God is the bread that comes down from heaven. He gives life to the world.”
34“Sir,” they said, “always give us this bread.”
35Then Jesus said, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry. And whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. 36But it is just as I told you. You have seen me, and you still do not believe. 37Everyone the Father gives me will come to me. I will never send away anyone who comes to me. 38I have not come down from heaven to do what I want to do. I have come to do what the one who sent me wants me to do. 39The one who sent me doesn’t want me to lose anyone he has given me. He wants me to raise them up on the last day. 40My Father wants all who look to the Son and believe in him to have eternal life. I will raise them up on the last day.”
41Then the Jews there began to complain about Jesus. That was because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” 42They said, “Isn’t this Jesus, the son of Joseph? Don’t we know his father and mother? How can he now say, ‘I came down from heaven’?”
43“Stop complaining among yourselves,” Jesus answered. 44“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me brings them. Then I will raise them up on the last day. 45It is written in the Prophets, ‘God will teach all of them.’ (Isaiah 54:13) Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from him comes to me. 46No one has seen the Father except the one who has come from God. Only he has seen the Father. 47What I’m about to tell you is true. Everyone who believes has life forever. 48I am the bread of life. 49Long ago your people ate the manna in the desert, and they still died. 50But here is the bread that comes down from heaven. A person can eat it and not die. 51I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Everyone who eats some of this bread will live forever. This bread is my body. I will give it for the life of the world.”
52Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves. They said, “How can this man give us his body to eat?”
53Jesus said to them, “What I’m about to tell you is true. You must eat the Son of Man’s body and drink his blood. If you don’t, you have no life in you. 54Anyone who eats my body and drinks my blood has eternal life. I will raise them up on the last day. 55My body is real food. My blood is real drink. 56Anyone who eats my body and drinks my blood remains in me. And I remain in them. 57The living Father sent me, and I live because of him. In the same way, those who feed on me will live because of me. 58This is the bread that came down from heaven. Long ago your people ate manna and died. But whoever eats this bread will live forever.” 59He said this while he was teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.
Many Disciples Leave Jesus
60Jesus’ disciples heard this. Many of them said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?”
61Jesus was aware that his disciples were complaining about his teaching. So he said to them, “Does this upset you? 62Then what if you see the Son of Man go up to where he was before? 63The Holy Spirit gives life. The body means nothing at all. The words I have spoken to you are full of the Spirit. They give life. 64But there are some of you who do not believe.” Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe. And he had known who was going to hand him over to his enemies. 65So he continued speaking. He said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father helps them.”
66From this time on, many of his disciples turned back. They no longer followed him.
67“You don’t want to leave also, do you?” Jesus asked the 12 disciples.
68Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, who can we go to? You have the words of eternal life. 69We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.”
70Then Jesus replied, “Didn’t I choose you, the 12 disciples? But one of you is a devil!” 71He meant Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. Judas was one of the 12 disciples. But later he was going to hand Jesus over to his enemies.
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John 6: NIrV
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John 6
6
1After these things, Jesus went away to the other side of the sea of Galilee, which is also called the Sea of Tiberias. 2A great multitude followed him, because they saw his signs which he did on those who were sick. 3Jesus went up into the mountain, and he sat there with his disciples. 4Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand. 5Jesus therefore, lifting up his eyes and seeing that a great multitude was coming to him, said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, that these may eat?” 6He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do.
7Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii#6:7 A denarius was a silver coin worth about a day’s wages for an agricultural laborer, so 200 denarii would be between 6 and 7 month’s pay. worth of bread is not sufficient for them, that every one of them may receive a little.”
8One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, 9“There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these among so many?”
10Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in that place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. 11Jesus took the loaves, and having given thanks, he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to those who were sitting down, likewise also of the fish as much as they desired. 12When they were filled, he said to his disciples, “Gather up the broken pieces which are left over, that nothing be lost.” 13So they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with broken pieces from the five barley loaves, which were left over by those who had eaten. 14When therefore the people saw the sign which Jesus did, they said, “This is truly the prophet who comes into the world.” 15Jesus therefore, perceiving that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, withdrew again to the mountain by himself.
16When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea. 17They entered into the boat, and were going over the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not come to them. 18The sea was tossed by a great wind blowing. 19When therefore they had rowed about twenty-five or thirty stadia,#6:19 25 to 30 stadia is about 5 to 6 kilometers or about 3 to 4 miles they saw Jesus walking on the sea#See Job 9:8 and drawing near to the boat; and they were afraid. 20But he said to them, “It is I.#6:20 or, I AM Don’t be afraid.” 21They were willing therefore to receive him into the boat. Immediately the boat was at the land where they were going.
22On the next day, the multitude that stood on the other side of the sea saw that there was no other boat there, except the one in which his disciples had embarked, and that Jesus hadn’t entered with his disciples into the boat, but his disciples had gone away alone. 23However, boats from Tiberias came near to the place where they ate the bread after the Lord had given thanks. 24When the multitude therefore saw that Jesus wasn’t there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and came to Capernaum, seeking Jesus. 25When they found him on the other side of the sea, they asked him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?”
26Jesus answered them, “Most certainly I tell you, you seek me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. 27Don’t work for the food which perishes, but for the food which remains to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For God the Father has sealed him.”
28They said therefore to him, “What must we do, that we may work the works of God?”
29Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”
30They said therefore to him, “What then do you do for a sign, that we may see and believe you? What work do you do? 31Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness. As it is written, ‘He gave them bread out of heaven#6:31 Greek and Hebrew use the same word for “heaven”, “the heavens”, “the sky”, and “the air”. to eat.’”#Exodus 16:4; Nehemiah 9:15; Psalms 78:24-25
32Jesus therefore said to them, “Most certainly, I tell you, it wasn’t Moses who gave you the bread out of heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread out of heaven. 33For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven and gives life to the world.”
34They said therefore to him, “Lord, always give us this bread.”
35Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will not be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. 36But I told you that you have seen me, and yet you don’t believe. 37All those whom the Father gives me will come to me. He who comes to me I will in no way throw out. 38For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me. 39This is the will of my Father who sent me, that of all he has given to me I should lose nothing, but should raise him up at the last day. 40This is the will of the one who sent me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him should have eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.”
41The Jews therefore murmured concerning him, because he said, “I am the bread which came down out of heaven.” 42They said, “Isn’t this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How then does he say, ‘I have come down out of heaven’?”
43Therefore Jesus answered them, “Don’t murmur among yourselves. 44No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him; and I will raise him up in the last day. 45It is written in the prophets, ‘They will all be taught by God.’ #Isaiah 54:13 Therefore everyone who hears from the Father and has learned, comes to me. 46Not that anyone has seen the Father, except he who is from God. He has seen the Father. 47Most certainly, I tell you, he who believes in me has eternal life. 48I am the bread of life. 49Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness and they died. 50This is the bread which comes down out of heaven, that anyone may eat of it and not die. 51I am the living bread which came down out of heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. Yes, the bread which I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”
52The Jews therefore contended with one another, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”
53Jesus therefore said to them, “Most certainly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you don’t have life in yourselves. 54He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. 55For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. 56He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood lives in me, and I in him. 57As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on me will also live because of me. 58This is the bread which came down out of heaven—not as our fathers ate the manna and died. He who eats this bread will live forever.” 59He said these things in the synagogue, as he taught in Capernaum.
60Therefore many of his disciples, when they heard this, said, “This is a hard saying! Who can listen to it?”
61But Jesus knowing in himself that his disciples murmured at this, said to them, “Does this cause you to stumble? 62Then what if you would see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? 63It is the spirit who gives life. The flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and are life. 64But there are some of you who don’t believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who didn’t believe, and who it was who would betray him. 65He said, “For this cause I have said to you that no one can come to me, unless it is given to him by my Father.”
66At this, many of his disciples went back and walked no more with him. 67Jesus said therefore to the twelve, “You don’t also want to go away, do you?”
68Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69We have come to believe and know that you are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
70Jesus answered them, “Didn’t I choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?” 71Now he spoke of Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, for it was he who would betray him, being one of the twelve.
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