The Feeding of the Five Thousand

61 After these things Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (or Tiberias ). 2 A large crowd followed Him, because they saw the signs which He was performing on those who were sick . 3 Then Jesus went up on the mountain , and there He sat down with His disciples . 4 Now the Passover , the feast of the Jews , was near . 5 Therefore Jesus , lifting up His eyes and seeing that a large crowd was coming to Him, said to Philip , "Where are we to buy bread , so that these may eat ?" 6 This He was saying to test him, for He Himself knew what He was intending to do . 7 Philip answered Him, " Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, for everyone to receive a little ." 8 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 fish , but what are these for so many people ?" 10 Jesus said , "Have the people sit down ." Now there was much grass in the place . So the men sat down , in number about five thousand . 11 Jesus then took the loaves , and having given thanks , He distributed to those who were seated ; likewise also of the fish as much as they wanted . 12 When they were filled , He said to His disciples , "Gather up the leftover fragments so that nothing e will be lost ." 13 So they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten . 14 Therefore when the people saw the sign which He had performed , they said , "This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world ."

15 So Jesus , perceiving that they were intending to come and take Him by force to make Him king , withdrew again to the mountain by Himself alone .

Jesus Walks on the Sea

16 Now when evening came , His disciples went down to the sea , 17 and after getting into a boat , they started to cross the sea to Capernaum . It had already become dark , and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18 The sea began to be stirred up because a strong wind was blowing . 19 Then , when they had rowed about three e or four miles , they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near to the boat ; and they were frightened . 20 But He said to them, "It is I; do not be afraid ." 21 So they were willing to receive Him into the boat , and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going .

The People Seek Jesus

22 The next day the crowd that stood on the other side of the sea saw that there was no other small boat there , except one , and that Jesus had not entered with His disciples into the boat , but that His disciples had gone away alone . 23 There came other small boats from Tiberias near to the place where they ate the bread after the Lord had given thanks . 24 So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there , nor His disciples , they themselves got into the small boats , and came to Capernaum seeking Jesus .

Jesus the Bread of Life

25 When they found Him on the other side of the sea , they said to Him, " Rabbi , when did You get here ?" 26 Jesus answered them and said , "Truly , truly , I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs , but because you ate of the loaves and were filled . 27 "Do not work for the food which perishes , but for the food which endures to eternal life , which the Son of Man will give to you, for on Him the Father , God , has set His seal ."

28 Therefore they said to Him, "What shall we do , so that we may work the works of God ?" 29 Jesus answered and said to them, "This is the work of God , that you believe in Him whom He has sent ." 30 So they said to Him, " What then do You do for a sign , so that we may see , and believe You? What work do You perform ? 31 " Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness ; as it is written , ' HE GAVE THEM BREAD OUT OF HEAVEN TO EAT .' " 32 Jesus then said to them, "Truly , truly , I say to you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread out of heaven , but it is My Father who gives you the true bread out of heaven . 33 "For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven , and gives life to the world ." 34 Then they said to Him, "Lord , always give us this bread ." 35 Jesus said to them, " I am the bread of life ; he who comes to Me will not hunger , and he who believes in Me will never e thirst . 36 "But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe . 37 " All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly e not cast out. 38 "For I have come down from heaven , not to do My own will , but the will of Him who sent Me. 39 "This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing , but raise it up on the last day . 40 "For this is the will of My Father , that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life , and I Myself will raise him up on the last day ." 41 Therefore the Jews were grumbling about Him, because He said , "I am the bread that came down out of heaven ." 42 They were saying , " Is not this Jesus , the son of Joseph , whose father and mother we know ? How does He now say , ' I have come down out of heaven '?" 43 Jesus answered and said to them, "Do not grumble among yourselves . 44 "No one can come to Me unless e the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day . 45 "It is written in the prophets , ' AND THEY SHALL ALL BE TAUGHT OF GOD .' Everyone who has heard and learned 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 . 47 "Truly , truly , I say to you, he who believes has eternal life . 48 " I am the bread of life . 49 " Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness , and they died . 50 "This is the bread which comes down out of heaven , so that one may eat of it and not die . 51 " I am the living bread that came down out of heaven ; if anyone eats of this bread , he will live forever ; and the bread also which I will give for the life of the world is My flesh ." 52 Then the Jews began to argue with one another , saying , "How can this man give us His flesh to eat ?" 53 So Jesus said to them, "Truly , truly , I say to you, unless e you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood , you have no life in yourselves . 54 "He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life , and I will raise him up on the last day . 55 "For My flesh is true food , and My blood is true drink . 56 "He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. 57 "As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father , so he who eats Me, he also will live because of Me. 58 "This is the bread which came down out of heaven ; not as the fathers ate and died ; he who eats this bread will live forever ." 59 These things He said in the synagogue as He taught in Capernaum .

The Words of Eternal Life

60 Therefore many of His disciples , when they heard this said , " This is a difficult statement ; who can listen to it?" 61 But Jesus , conscious e e that His disciples grumbled at this , said to them, "Does this cause you to stumble ? 62 "What then if you see the Son of Man ascending to where He was before ? 63 " It is the Spirit who gives life ; the flesh profits nothing ; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life . 64 "But there are some of you who do not believe ." For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe , and who it was that would betray Him. 65 And He was saying , "For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless e it has been granted him from the Father ." 66 As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew e and were not walking with Him anymore . 67 So Jesus said to the twelve , "You do not want to go away also , do you?" 68 Simon Peter answered Him, "Lord , to whom shall we go ? You have words of eternal life . 69 "We have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God ." 70 Jesus answered them, " Did I Myself not choose you, the twelve , and yet one of you is a devil ?" 71 Now He meant Judas the son of Simon Iscariot , for he, one of the twelve , was going to betray Him.