6 1Later, Jesus went across Lake Galilee (also known as Lake Tiberias). 2A great crowd of people followed him because they saw the miraculous signsa he did in healing the sick. 3Jesus went up on the side of the hill and sat there with his followers. 4It was almost the time for the Jewish Passoverb festival.5Jesus looked up and saw a crowd of people coming toward him. He said to Philip, "Where can we buy enough bread for all these people to eat?" 6He asked Philip this question to test him. Jesus already knew what he planned to do. 7Philip answered, "We would all have to work a month to buy enough bread for each person here to have only a little piece!" 8Another follower there was Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter. Andrew said, 9"Here is a boy with five loaves of barley bread and two little fish. But that is not enough for so many people." 10Jesus said, "Tell everyone to sit down." This was a place with a lot of grass, and about 5000 men sat down there. 11Jesus took the loaves of bread and gave thanks for them. Then he gave them to the people who were waiting to eat. He did the same with the fish. He gave them as much as they wanted. 12They all had plenty to eat. When they finished, Jesus said to his followers, "Gather the pieces of fish and bread that were not eaten. Don't waste anything." 13So they gathered up the pieces that were left. The people had started eating with only five loaves of barley bread. But the followers filled twelve large baskets with the pieces of food that were left. 14The people saw this miraculous sign that Jesus did and said, "He must be the Prophetc who is coming into the world." 15Jesus knew that the people planned to come get him and make him their king. So he left and went into the hills alone. 26He answered, "Why are you looking for me? Is it because you saw miraculous signsa? The truth is, you are looking for me because you ate the bread and were satisfied. 27But earthly food spoils and ruins. So don't work to get that kind of food. But work to get the food that stays good and gives you eternal life. The Son of Manf will give you that food. He is the only one qualified by God the Father to give it to you." 28The people asked Jesus, "What does God want us to do?" 29Jesus answered, "The work God wants you to do is this: to believe in the one he sent." 30So the people asked, "What miraculous sign will you do for us? If we can see you do a miracle, then we will believe you. What will you do? 31Our ancestorsg were given mannah to eat in the desert. As the Scripturesi say, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'"j 32Jesus said, "I can assure you that Mosesk was not the one who gave your people bread from heaven. But my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33God's bread is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." 34The people said, "Sir, from now on give us bread like that." 35Then Jesus said, "I am the bread that gives life. No one who comes to me will ever be hungry. No one who believes in me will ever be thirsty. 36I told you before that you have seen me, and still you don't believe. 37The Father gives me my people. Every one of them will come to me. I will always accept them. 38I came down from heaven to do what God wants, not what I want. 39I must not lose anyone God has given me. But I must raise them up on the last day. This is what the one who sent me wants me to do. 40Everyone who sees the Son and believes in him has eternal life. I will raise them up on the last day. This is what my Father wants." 41Some Jews began to complain about Jesus because he said, "I am the bread that comes down from heaven." 42They said, "This is Jesus. We know his father and mother. He is only Joseph's son. How can he say, 'I came down from heaven'?" 43But Jesus said, "Stop complaining to each other. 44The Father is the one who sent me, and he is the one who brings people to me. I will raise them up on the last day. Anyone the Father does not bring to me cannot come to me. 45It is written in the prophetsc: 'God will teach them all.'l People listen to the Father and learn from him. They are the ones who come to me. 46I don't mean that there is anyone who has seen the Father. The only one who has ever seen the Father is the one who came from God. He has seen the Father. 47"I can assure you that anyone who believes has eternal life. 48I am the bread that gives life. 49Your ancestors ate the manna God gave them in the desert, but it didn't keep them from dying. 50Here is the bread that comes down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will never die. 51I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my body. I will give my body so that the people in the world can have life." 52Then the Jews began to argue among themselves. They said, "How can this man give us his body to eat?" 53Jesus said, "Believe me when I say that you must eat the body of the Son of Man, and you must drink his blood. If you don't do this, you have no real life. 54Those who eat my body and drink my blood have eternal life. I will raise them up on the last day. 55My body is true food, and my blood is true drink. 56Those who eat my body and drink my blood live in me, and I live in them. 57"The Father sent me. He lives, and I live because of him. So everyone who eats me will live because of me. 58I am not like the bread that your ancestors ate. They ate that bread, but they still died. I am the bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever." 59Jesus said all this while he was teaching in the synagoguem in the city of Capernaumd. 61Jesus already knew that his followers were complaining about this. So he said, "Is this teaching a problem for you? 62Then what will you think when you see the Son of Manf going up to where he came from? 63It is the Spiritn that gives life. The body is of no value for that. But the things I have told you are from the Spirit, so they give life. 64But some of you don't believe." (Jesus knew the people who did not believe. He knew this from the beginning. And he knew the one who would hand him over to his enemies.) 65Jesus said, "That is why I said, 'Anyone the Father does not help to come to me cannot come.'" 66After Jesus said these things, many of his followers left and stopped following him. 67Jesus asked the twelve apostleso, "Do you want to leave too?" 68Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, where would we go? You have the words that give eternal life. 69We believe in you. We know that you are the Holy One from God." 70Then Jesus answered, "I chose all twelve of you. But one of you is a devil." 71He was talking about Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. Judas was one of the twelve apostles, but later he would hand Jesus over to his enemies. amiraculous sign An amazing act that demonstrates the power of God. bPassover A very important holy day for the people of Israel and their descendants. They ate a special meal on this day every year to remember that God made them free from slavery in Egypt in the time of Moses. The name may come from the word in Ex. 12:13, 23, 27 that means ¡°to pass over¡± or ¡°to protect.¡± c6:14 Prophet They probably meant the prophet that God told Moses he would send. See Deut. 18:15-19. dCapernaum A town on the northern shore of Lake Galilee where Jesus often spent time and taught. e6:19 three or four miles Literally, ¡°25 or 30 stadia,¡± about 5 or 6 km. fSon of Man The name that Jesus most often used for himself. The phrase in Hebrew or Aramaic means ¡°human being¡± or ¡°mankind,¡± but in Dan. 7:13-14 it is used of a future savior and king, and this was later understood to be the Messiah, the one God would send to save his people. gancestors Literally, ¡°fathers,¡± meaning a person¡¯s parents, grandparents, and all the other people that person is descended from. In the New Testament it usually refers to people who lived during Old Testament times. hmanna The special food provided by God that the Israelites gathered daily from the ground during the 40 years they wandered through the desert. See Ex. 16:4-36. iScripture Part of the Scriptures or ¡°Holy Writings¡± - the Old Testament. j6:31 Quote from Ps. 78:24. kMoses One of the most important leaders of the Israelites during the time of the Old Testament. God used him to give the people his law, which is often called ¡°the Law of Moses.¡± l6:45 Quote from Isa. 54:13. msynagogue A place in many cities where Jews gathered for prayer, study of the Scriptures, and other public meetings. nSpirit See ¡°Holy Spirit.¡± oapostle A follower of Jesus chosen to represent him in a special way. During his earthly ministry, Jesus named twelve men as apostles. They had the specific responsibility and authority to represent him and proclaim his message throughout the world. Later, he appeared to Paul and gave him a similar commission, especially to non-Jewish people. Barnabas, Paul¡¯s missionary companion, and James, the brother of Jesus, are also called apostles, as well as several others in the New Testament. Some of these occurrences of the word, however, have the more general sense of ¡°messenger¡± or ¡°representative.¡± |