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¹ After this, Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (or Tiberias).[xr] ² A large crowd kept following him because they had seen the signs that he was performing on the sick. ³ But Jesus went up on a hillside and sat down there with his disciples. ⁴ Now the Passover, the festival of the Jews, was near.[xr] ⁵ When Jesus looked up and saw that a large crowd was coming toward him, he said to Philip, "Where can we buy bread for these people to eat?"[xr] ⁶ Jesus[fn] said this to test him, for he himself knew what he was going to do. ⁷ Philip answered him, "Two hundred denarii[fn] worth of bread is not enough for each of them to get a little."[xr] ⁸ One of his disciples, Andrew, who was Simon Peter's brother, said to him, ⁹ "There's a little boy here who has five barley loaves and two small fish. But what are they among so many people?"[xr] ¹⁰ Jesus said, "Have the people sit down." Now there was plenty of grass in that place. So the men sat down, numbering about 5,000. ¹¹ Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed them to those who were seated. He also distributed[fn] the fish, as much as they wanted. ¹² When they were completely satisfied, he told his disciples, "Collect the pieces that are left over so that nothing is lost." ¹³ So they collected them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten. ¹⁴ When the people saw the sign[fn] that he had done, they kept saying, "Truly this is the Prophet who was to come into the world!"[xr]

¹⁵ Then Jesus, realizing that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, withdrew[fn] again to the hillside by himself. ¹⁶ When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea,[xr] ¹⁷ got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. Darkness had already fallen, and Jesus had not yet come to them. ¹⁸ A strong wind was blowing, and the sea was getting rough. ¹⁹ They had rowed about three or four miles[fn] when they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat. They became terrified. ²⁰ But he said to them, "It is I. Stop being afraid!" ²¹ So they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the land toward which they were going.

²² The next day, the crowd that had remained on the other side of the sea noticed that only one boat had been there, and no other, and that Jesus had not gotten into that boat with his disciples. Instead, his disciples had gone away by themselves. ²³ Other small boats from Tiberias arrived near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks.[fn] ²⁴ When the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they got into these boats and went to Capernaum to look for Jesus. ²⁵ When they had found him on the other side of the sea, they asked him, "Rabbi[fn] , when did you get here?" ²⁶ Jesus replied to them, "Truly, truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate the loaves and were completely satisfied. ²⁷ Do not work for the food that perishes but for the food that lasts for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal."[xr]

²⁸ Then they said to him, "What must we do to perform the works of God?" ²⁹ Jesus answered them, "This is the work of God: to believe in the one whom he has sent."[xr] ³⁰ So they said to him, "What sign are you going to do so that we may see it and believe in you? What work are you performing?[xr] ³¹ Our ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, just as it is written, 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.'"[fn][xr] ³² Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. ³³ For the bread of God is the one who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." ³⁴ Then they said to him, "Sir, give us this bread all the time."[xr] ³⁵ Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. The one who comes to me will never become hungry, and the one who believes in me will never become thirsty.[xr] ³⁶ I told you that you have seen me,[fn] yet you do not believe.[xr] ³⁷ Everything the Father gives me will come to me, and the one who comes to me I will never turn away.[xr] ³⁸ For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of the one who sent me.[xr] ³⁹ And this is the will of the one who sent me, that I should not lose anything that he has given me, but should raise it to life on the last day.[xr] ⁴⁰ For this is my Father's will, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him to life on the last day."[xr] ⁴¹ Then the Jews[fn] began grumbling about him because he said, "I am the bread that came down from heaven." ⁴² They kept saying, "This is Jesus, the son of Joseph, isn't it, whose father and mother we know? So how can he say, 'I have come down from heaven'?"[xr] ⁴³ Jesus answered them, "Stop grumbling among yourselves. ⁴⁴ No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him, and I will raise him to life on the last day.[xr] ⁴⁵ It is written in the Prophets, 'And all of them will be taught by God.'[fn] Everyone who has listened to the Father and has learned anything comes to me.[xr] ⁴⁶ Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who comes from God. This one has seen the Father.[xr] ⁴⁷ Truly, truly I tell you, the one who believes in me[fn] has eternal life.[xr] ⁴⁸ I am the bread of life.[xr] ⁴⁹ Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness and died.[xr] ⁵⁰ This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that a person may eat it and not die.[xr] ⁵¹ I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats this bread, he will live forever. And the bread I will give for the life of the world is my flesh."[xr] ⁵² Then the Jews debated angrily with each other, saying, "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?"[xr] ⁵³ So Jesus told them, "Truly, truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life in yourselves.[xr] ⁵⁴ The one who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him to life on the last day.[xr] ⁵⁵ For my flesh is real[fn] food, and my blood is real[fn] drink. ⁵⁶ The person who eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me, and I in him.[xr] ⁵⁷ Just as the living Father sent me and I live because of the Father, so the one who feeds on me will also live because of me. ⁵⁸ This is the bread that came down from heaven, not the kind that your ancestors ate. They died, but the one who eats this bread will live forever."[xr] ⁵⁹ He said this while teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum.

⁶⁰ When many of his disciples heard this, they said, "This is a difficult statement. Who can accept[fn] it?"[xr] ⁶¹ But Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, said to them, "Does this offend you? ⁶² What if you saw the Son of Man going up to the place where he was before?[xr] ⁶³ It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is useless. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.[xr] ⁶⁴ But there are some among you who do not believe." For from the beginning Jesus knew those who wouldn't believe, as well as the one who would betray him.[xr] ⁶⁵ So he said, "That's why I told you that no one can come to me unless it be granted him by the Father."[xr] ⁶⁶ As a result,[fn] many of his disciples turned back and no longer associated[fn] with him.[xr] ⁶⁷ So Jesus said to the twelve, "You don't want to leave, too, do you?" ⁶⁸ Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words of eternal life.[xr] ⁶⁹ Besides, we have believed and remain convinced that you are the Holy One of God."[fn][xr] ⁷⁰ Jesus answered them, "I chose you twelve, didn't I? Yet one of you is a devil."[xr] ⁷¹ Now he was speaking about Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot.[fn] For this man, even though he was one of the twelve, was going to betray him.