Jesus feeds 5,000 men, goes away in order that they should not make him king, and reproves the fleshly hearers of his word. The carnal are offended at him.

6 After these things, Jesus went his way over the sea of Galilee, near to a city called Tiberias. ² And a great number of people followed him, because they had seen the miracles he did on people who were diseased. ³ And Jesus went up into a mountain, and there he sat with his disciples. ⁴ And Passover, a feast of the Jews, was near. ⁵ Then Jesus lifted up his eyes and saw a great crowd coming to him, and said to Philip, Where will we buy bread so that these people can eat? ⁶ This he said to prove him, for he himself knew what he would do.

⁷ Philip answered him, Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, so that everyone has a little. ⁸ Then one of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, ⁹ There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fishes, but what is that among so many? ¹⁰ And Jesus said, Make the people sit down.

There was much grass in the place. And the men sat down, in number about 5,000. ¹¹ And Jesus took the bread and gave thanks, and gave to the disciples, and his disciples to them that were seated. And likewise of the fishes, as much as they desired.

¹² When they had eaten enough, he said to his disciples, Gather up the leftover food that remains, so that nothing is lost. ¹³ And they gathered it together, and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over from those who had eaten. ¹⁴ Then the people, when they had seen the miracle that Jesus did, said, This is of a truth the prophet that was to come into the world.

¹⁵ When Jesus perceived that they wanted to come and take him up to make him king, he departed again into a mountain himself alone.

¹⁶ And when evening was come, his disciples went to the sea ¹⁷ and entered into a boat, and went over the sea to Capernaum. And soon it was dark, and Jesus had not come to them. ¹⁸ And the sea arose with a great wind that blew. ¹⁹ And when they had rowed about 25 or 30 furlongs, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near to the boat, and were afraid. ²⁰ And he said to them, It is I; be not afraid.

²¹ Then they willingly received him into the boat, and the boat was immediately at the land where they were going.

²² The day following, the people who stood on the other side of the sea saw that there had been no other boat there except the one his disciples had entered into, and that Jesus had not got in the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. ²³ However, other boats from Tiberias came near to the place where they had eaten bread, when the Lord had blessed. ²⁴ Then, when the people saw that Jesus was not there nor his disciples, they also set off in boats and went to Capernaum seeking for Jesus.

²⁵ And when they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, Rabbi, when did you come here? ²⁶ Jesus answered them and said, Truly truly I say to you, you seek me not because you saw the miracles, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled.  ²⁷ Labour not for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures unto everlasting life, which food the Son of man will give to you. For him has God the Father sealed.

²⁸ Then they said to him, What should we do so that we can work the works of God? ²⁹ Jesus answered and said to them, This is the work of God: to believe on him whom he has sent.

³⁰ They said to him, What sign will you show then, so that we can see and believe you? What work do you do? ³¹ Our fathers ate manna in the desert, as it is written: He gave them bread from heaven to eat.

³² Jesus said to them, Truly truly I say to you, Moses did not give you bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. ³³ For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.

³⁴ Then they said to him, Lord, give us this bread forevermore.

³⁵ And Jesus said to them, I am that bread of life. He who comes to me shall not hunger, and he who believes on me shall never thirst. ³⁶ But I said to you that you have seen me, and yet do not believe. ³⁷ All whom the Father gives me shall come to me, and him who comes to me, I cast not away. ³⁸ For I came down from heaven not to do my own will, but the will of him who has sent me. ³⁹ And this is the will of the Father who has sent me: that of everything that he has given me, I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. ⁴⁰ And this is the will of him who sent me: that every person who sees the Son and believes on him should have everlasting life. And I will raise him up at the last day.

⁴¹ The Jews then murmured at him, because he said, I am that bread that has come down from heaven. ⁴² And they said, Is this not Jesus the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that he says, I came down from heaven?

⁴³ Jesus answered and said to them, Do not murmur between yourselves. ⁴⁴ No one can come to me unless the Father who has sent me draws him. And I will raise him up at the last day. ⁴⁵ It is written in the prophets that they will all be taught by God. Everyone therefore who has heard and has learned from the Father, comes to me. ⁴⁶ Not that anyone has seen the Father except he who is of God; the same has seen the Father.

⁴⁷ Truly truly I say to you, he who believes on me has everlasting life. ⁴⁸ I am that bread of life. ⁴⁹ Your fathers ate manna in the wilderness but are dead. ⁵⁰ This is the bread that comes from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. ⁵¹ I am that living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.

⁵² And the Jews strove among themselves, saying, How can this fellow give his flesh to eat?

⁵³ Then 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 shall not have life in you. ⁵⁴ Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. ⁵⁵ For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. ⁵⁶ He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood dwells in me, and I in him. ⁵⁷ As the living Father has sent me, even so do I live by my Father, and he that eats me shall live by me. ⁵⁸ This is the bread which came from heaven – not as your fathers ate manna and are dead. He who eats of this bread shall live forever.

⁵⁹ These things he said in the synagogue as he taught in Capernaum. ⁶⁰ Many therefore of his disciples, when they heard this, said, This is a hard saying. Who can abide the hearing of it?

⁶¹ Jesus knew in himself that his disciples murmured at it, and said to them, Does this offend you? ⁶² What if you see the Son of man ascend up to where he was before? ⁶³ It is the Spirit that quickens. The flesh profits nothing: the words that I speak to you, are spirit and life. ⁶⁴ But there are some of you who do not believe. (For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that did not believe, and who would betray him.) ⁶⁵ And he said, Therefore I said to you that no one can come to me, unless it be given to him by my Father.

⁶⁶ From that time, many of his disciples went back and walked no more with him. ⁶⁷ Then Jesus said to the twelve, Will you also go away? ⁶⁸ Then Simon Peter answered, Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, ⁶⁹ and we believe and know that you are Christ, the Son of the living God.

⁷⁰ Jesus answered them, Have I not chosen you twelve? And yet one of you is a devil. ⁷¹ He spoke this of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon. For it was he who would betray him, and was one of the twelve.