Jesus, The Bread of Life

Jesus, the Bread of Life

John 8 25-71 (New Century Version)

 ²⁵ When the people found Jesus on the other side of the lake, they asked him, “Teacher, when did you come here?”

 ²⁶ Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, you aren’t looking for me because you saw me do miracles. You are looking for me because you ate the bread and were satisfied. ²⁷ Don’t work for the food that spoils. Work for the food that stays good always and gives eternal life. The Son of Man will give you this food, because on him God the Father has put his power.”

 ²⁸ The people asked Jesus, “What are the things God wants us to do?”

 ²⁹ Jesus answered, “The work God wants you to do is this: Believe the One he sent.”

 ³⁰ So the people asked, “What miracle will you do? If we see a miracle, we will believe you. What will you do? ³¹ Our ancestors ate the manna in the desert. This is written in the Scriptures: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ “

 ³² Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, it was not Moses who gave you bread from heaven; it is my Father who is giving you the true bread from heaven. ³³ God’s bread is the One who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”

 ³⁴ The people said, “Sir, give us this bread always.”

 ³⁵ Then Jesus said, “I am the bread that gives life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. ³⁶ But as I told you before, you have seen me and still don’t believe. ³⁷ The Father gives me the people who are mine. Every one of them will come to me, and I will always accept them. ³⁸ I came down from heaven to do what God wants me to do, not what I want to do.³⁹ Here is what the One who sent me wants me to do: I must not lose even one whom God gave me, but I must raise them all on the last day. ⁴⁰ Those who see the Son and believe in him have eternal life, and I will raise them on the last day. This is what my Father wants.”

 ⁴¹ Some people began to complain about Jesus because he said, “I am the bread that comes down from heaven.” ⁴² They said, “This is Jesus, the son of Joseph. We know his father and mother. How can he say, ‘I came down from heaven’ ?”

 ⁴³ But Jesus answered, “Stop complaining to each other. ⁴⁴ The Father is the One who sent me. No one can come to me unless the Father draws him to me, and I will raise that person up on the last day.⁴⁵ It is written in the prophets, ‘They will all be taught by God.’  Everyone who listens to the Father and learns from him comes to me.⁴⁶ No one has seen the Father except the One who is from God; only he has seen the Father.⁴⁷ I tell you the truth, whoever believes has eternal life.⁴⁸ I am the bread that gives life.⁴⁹ Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but still they died.⁵⁰ Here is the bread that comes down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will never die. ⁵¹ I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give up so that the world may have life.”

 ⁵² Then the evil people began to argue among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”

 ⁵³ Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, you must eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood. Otherwise, you won’t have real life in you. ⁵⁴ Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood have eternal life, and I will raise them up on the last day.⁵⁵ My flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.⁵⁶ Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood live in me, and I live in them.⁵⁷ The living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father. So whoever eats me will live because of me. ⁵⁸ I am not like the bread your ancestors ate. They ate that bread and still died. I am the bread that came down from heaven, and whoever eats this bread will live forever.” ⁵⁹ Jesus said all these things while he was teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.

The Words of Eternal Life

 ⁶⁰ When the followers of Jesus heard this, many of them said, “This teaching is hard. Who can accept it?”

 ⁶¹ Knowing that his followers were complaining about this, Jesus said, “Does this teaching bother you? ⁶² Then will it also bother you to see the Son of Man going back to the place where he came from?⁶³ It is the Spirit that gives life. The flesh doesn’t give life. The words I told you are spirit, and they give life. ⁶⁴ But some of you don’t believe.” (Jesus knew from the beginning who did not believe and who would turn against him.) ⁶⁵ Jesus said, “That is the reason I said, ‘If the Father does not bring a person to me, that one cannot come.’ “

 ⁶⁶ After Jesus said this, many of his followers left him and stopped following him.

 ⁶⁷ Jesus asked the twelve followers, “Do you want to leave, too?”

 ⁶⁸ Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, who would we go to? You have the words that give eternal life. ⁶⁹ We believe and know that you are the Holy One from God.”

 ⁷⁰ Then Jesus answered, “I chose all twelve of you, but one of you is a devil.”

 ⁷¹ Jesus was talking about Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. Judas was one of the twelve, but later he was going to turn against Jesus.

John 8:25-71 King James Version

²⁵And when they had found him on the other side of the sea, they said unto him, Rabbi, when camest thou hither?

 ²⁶Jesus answered them and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Ye seek me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled.

 ²⁷Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed.

 ²⁸Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?

 ²⁹Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.

 ³⁰They said therefore unto him, What sign shewest thou then, that we may see, and believe thee? what dost thou work?

 ³¹Our fathers did eat manna in the desert; as it is written, He gave them bread from heaven to eat.

 ³²Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven.

 ³³For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world.

 ³⁴Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread.

 ³⁵And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.

 ³⁶But I said unto you, That ye also have seen me, and believe not.

 ³⁷All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.

 ³⁸For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.

 ³⁹And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day.

 ⁴⁰And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.

 ⁴¹The Jews then murmured at him, because he said, I am the bread which came down from heaven.

 ⁴²And they said, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? how is it then that he saith, I came down from heaven?

 ⁴³Jesus therefore answered and said unto them, Murmur not among yourselves.

 ⁴⁴No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.

 ⁴⁵It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. Every man therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me.

 ⁴⁶Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he which is of God, he hath seen the Father.

 ⁴⁷Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.

 ⁴⁸I am that bread of life.

 ⁴⁹Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead.

 ⁵⁰This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die.

 ⁵¹I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.

 ⁵²The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat?

 ⁵³Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.

 ⁵⁴Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.

 ⁵⁵For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.

 ⁵⁶He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.

 ⁵⁷As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.

 ⁵⁸This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.

 ⁵⁹These things said he in the synagogue, as he taught in Capernaum.

 ⁶⁰Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it?

 ⁶¹When Jesus knew in himself that his disciples murmured at it, he said unto them, Doth this offend you?

 ⁶²What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before?

 ⁶³It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

 ⁶⁴But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him.

 ⁶⁵And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.

 ⁶⁶From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.

 ⁶⁷Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away?

 ⁶⁸Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.

 ⁶⁹And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.

 ⁷⁰Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil?

 ⁷¹He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.