Book of Common Prayer

¹⁷ In the next thing I have to talk about, I cannot say that you are doing well. Your meeting together is more bad than good.

¹⁸ First, I hear that in the church meeting you divide yourselves into groups. I think this may be true.

¹⁹ You also have groups of people who do not think the same way. Because of them you will soon learn which people please God the most.

²⁰ When you meet together, it is not the Lord's supper that you eat.

²¹ People take their own food and eat it without waiting. One gets nothing to eat. Another person drinks too much.

²² Do you not have your own homes where you can eat and drink? Do you have no respect for the church of God? Do you want to make poor people ashamed? What shall I say to you? Shall I say you are doing well? No, you are not doing well in this matter!

²³ The Lord gave me what I taught you. This is what it was. On the night when the Lord Jesus was sold to his enemies, he took bread.

²⁴ He thanked God for it. Then he broke it and said, `Take this bread and eat it. This is my body which is broken for you. Do this so that you will remember me.'

²⁵ In the same way, after they had eaten, he took the cup. He said, `This cup is the new agreement made by my blood. Every time you drink from this cup, do it to remember me.'

²⁶ Every time you eat this bread and drink from this cup you tell about the Lord's death, until he comes again.

²⁷ So then, when anyone eats the bread and drinks from the cup in a way that is not right, he has done wrong to the body and blood of the Lord.

²⁸ Each one must look into his own heart carefully. When he has done that, he may eat the bread and drink from the cup.

²⁹ The person who eats and drinks in a wrong way will be punished. He does not take it as the Lord's body.

³⁰ That is why many of you are weak and sick. Many have died.

³¹ But if we took time to look into our hearts first, then we would not be punished.

³² When we are punished, the Lord is teaching us to do right, so that we will not be punished with the rest of the people of the world.

³³ So, my Christian brothers, when you come together to eat the Lord's supper, wait on your turn.

³⁴ If a man is hungry, he should eat at home. Then when you meet, you will not be found in the wrong. There are other matters. I will talk about them when I come to see you.

8 Again at that time many, many people came together. They had nothing to eat. Jesus called his disciples. He said,

² `I share the suffering of the people. They have been with me for three days and they have nothing to eat.

³ If I send them home hungry, they will get weak and fall on the way. Some of them have come a long way.'

⁴ His disciples answered, `Where can anyone get enough food in this lonely place to feed so many people?'

⁵ Jesus asked them, `How many loaves of bread have you?' They said, `Seven.'

⁶ He told the people to sit down on the ground. Then he took the seven loaves of bread and thanked God for them. Then he broke the bread and gave it to the disciples. They gave it to the people.

⁷ They had a few small fish. Jesus told the disciples to divide the fish among the people also.

⁸ The people ate and had enough. They gathered seven baskets full of pieces that were left.

⁹ The number of men who ate was about four thousand.

¹⁰ Jesus sent them away. Then right away he got in the boat with his disciples and went to the country around Dalmanutha.