The Feeding of the Five Thousand

1After this Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (also called the Sea of Tiberias). 2A large crowd was following him because they were observing the miraculous signs he was performing on the sick. 3So Jesus went on up the mountainside and sat down there with his disciples. 4(Now the Jewish feast of the Passover was near.) 5Then Jesus, when he looked up and saw that a large crowd was coming to him, said to Philip, “Where can we buy bread so that these people may eat?” 6(Now Jesus said this to test him, for he knew what he was going to do.) 7Philip replied, “Two hundred silver coins worth of bread would not be enough for them, for each one to get a little.” 8One of Jesus’ disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, 9“Here is a boy who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what good are these for so many people?”

10Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” (Now there was a lot of grass in that place.) So the men sat down, about five thousand in number. 11Then Jesus took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed the bread to those who were seated. He then did the same with the fish, as much as they wanted. 12When they were all satisfied, Jesus said to his disciples, “Gather up the broken pieces that are left over, so that nothing is wasted.” 13So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with broken pieces from the five barley loaves left over by the people who had eaten.

14Now when the people saw the miraculous sign that Jesus performed, they began to say to one another, “This is certainly the Prophet who is to come into the world.” 15Then Jesus, because he knew they were going to come and seize him by force to make him king, withdrew again up the mountainside alone.

Walking on Water

16Now when evening came, his disciples went down to the lake, 17got into a boat, and started to cross the lake to Capernaum. (It had already become dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them.) 18By now a strong wind was blowing and the sea was getting rough. 19Then, when they had rowed about three or four miles, they caught sight of Jesus walking on the lake, approaching the boat, and they were frightened. 20But he said to them, “It is I. Do not be afraid.” 21Then they wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat came to the land where they had been heading.

22The next day the crowd that remained on the other side of the lake realized that only one small boat had been there, and that Jesus had not boarded it with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. 23But some boats from Tiberias came to shore near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. 24So when the crowd realized that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into the boats and came to Capernaum looking for Jesus.

Jesus’ Discourse About the Bread of Life

25When they found him on the other side of the lake, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you get here?” 26Jesus replied, “I tell you the solemn truth, you are looking for me not because you saw miraculous signs, but because you ate all the loaves of bread you wanted. 27Do not work for the food that disappears, but for the food that remains to eternal life – the food which the Son of Man will give to you. For God the Father has put his seal of approval on him.”

28So then they said to him, “What must we do to accomplish the deeds God requires?” 29Jesus replied, “This is the deed God requires – to believe in the one whom he sent.” 30So they said to him, “Then what miraculous sign will you perform, so that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? 31Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, just as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”

32Then Jesus told them, “I tell you the solemn truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but my Father is giving 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.” 34So they said to him, “Sir, give us this bread all the time!”

35Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. The one who comes to me will never go hungry, and the one who believes in me will never be thirsty. 36But I told you that you have seen me and still do not believe. 37Everyone whom the Father gives me will come to me, and the one who comes to me I will never send away. 38For I have come down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of the one who sent me. 39Now this is the will of the one who sent me – that I should not lose one person of every one he has given me, but raise them all up at the last day. 40For this is the will of my Father – for everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him to have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.”

41Then the Jews who were hostile to Jesus began complaining about him because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven,” 42and they said, “Isn’t this Jesus the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How can he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” 43Jesus replied, “Do not complain about me to one another. 44No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day. 45It is written in the prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ Everyone who hears and learns from the Father comes to me. 46(Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God – he has seen the Father.) 47I tell you the solemn truth, the one who believes has eternal life. 48I am the bread of life. 49Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50This is the bread that has come down from heaven, so that a person may eat from it and not die. 51I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats from this bread he will live forever. The bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

52Then the Jews who were hostile to Jesus began to argue with one another, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” 53Jesus said to them, “I tell you the solemn truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in yourselves. 54The one who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. 55For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. 56The one who eats my flesh and drinks my blood resides in me, and I in him. 57Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so the one who consumes me will live because of me. 58This is the bread that came down from heaven; it is not like the bread your ancestors ate, but then later died. The one who eats this bread will live forever.”

Many Followers Depart

59Jesus said these things while he was teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. 60Then many of his disciples, when they heard these things, said, “This is a difficult saying! Who can understand it?” 61When Jesus was aware that his disciples were complaining about this, he said to them, “Does this cause you to be offended? 62Then what if you see the Son of Man ascending where he was before? 63The Spirit is the one who gives life; human nature is of no help! The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life. 64But there are some of you who do not believe.” (For Jesus had already known from the beginning who those were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray him.) 65So Jesus added, “Because of this I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has allowed him to come.”

Peter’s Confession

66After this many of his disciples quit following him and did not accompany him any longer. 67So Jesus said to the twelve, “You don’t want to go away too, 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 to know that you are the Holy One of God!” 70Jesus replied, “Didn’t I choose you, the twelve, and yet one of you is the devil?” 71(Now he said this about Judas son of Simon Iscariot, for Judas, one of the twelve, was going to betray him.)