John 6:1-71

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Home > The New Testament > John > Chapters 1b-12 > Chapter 6
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Summary[edit]

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Discussion[edit]

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  • John 6:53-54. When we read these verses we are reminded of the Last Supper and the sacrament. These verses tell us that the sacrament is an essential ordinance. But, how did the people who Jesus spoke to interpret this? What about it made this a hard saying which caused some of Jesus' followers to leave him (verse 66)?
To our ears it might seem that what was hard about this saying was its graphic nature--eating Jesus' flesh and drinking blood. But the listeners would not likely have interpreted this as Jesus saying they literally had to eat his flesh or drink his blood. These people were used to being taught by Rabbis in metaphors. See how similar metaphors are used in the Old Testament and elsewhere in the New Testament in Ps 14:4, Micah 3:3, 2 Sam 23:17 and Matt 23:30. But, if not literally, how did they interpret Jesus' saying?
In verse Jesus tells the people that to eat of him one must live by him--in order to have eternal life one must share in the type of life he lived. (See also verse 40.) But maybe what was hardest for those disciples wasn't so much what Jesus meant by eating of his flesh but rather what he was clear he didn't mean. Jesus was saying his manna was not the manna like they received in the days of Moses. Jesus would not continue to multiply loaves to feed them John 6:5-14. They may have understood this as tantamount to denying that he would be made into the earthly king they wanted to make him John 6:15. This was why they chose not to walk with him more.

Unanswered questions[edit]

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  • John 6:23. What is the point of verse 23? Is it just to explain that there were other boats which the people could take (in verse 24)?
  • John 6:60. What saying are these disciples referring to as "an hard saying"? Why did they find it hard?

Prompts for life application[edit]

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Prompts for further study[edit]

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Resources[edit]

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Notes[edit]

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