41 The Jews then murmured at him, because he said, “I AM the bread which came down from heaven.” 42 They said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?”
Who Comes to Jesus
43 Jesus answered them, “Do not murmur among yourselves. 44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.
45 It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Every one who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. 46 Not that any one has seen the Father except him who is from God; he has seen the Father.
Eternal Life
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 from heaven, that a man may eat of it and not die.
Life–giving Bead
51 I AM the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh.”
B EXPLANATION
41 The Jews then murmured at him, because he said, “I AM the bread which came down from heaven.” 42 They said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?”
“The Jews” –To this point it was the “crowd”, or their remnant, that was on stage. In John’s Gospel when he refers to the “Jews” he considers only those of their leaders who were hostile to Jesus. They would be synonymous with unbelievers. Reference to them here is an indication that Jesus will encounter hostility to his teaching contained in this chapter. Even some disciples will leave him.
“murmured at him” — When the Israelites were in the wilderness they murmured against Moses (Ex. 16: 2, 7, 8; 17: 2–3; Nm. 11: 1). Now their descendants “murmur” against Jesus.
“he said, ‘I AM the bread which came down from heaven.’” — Jesus repeats his claim that he is divine (I AM) and has come from heaven (see verses 33–38).
They said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? — “Is not this Jesus?” should be understood as a disparaging remark. They despised him.
The “Jews” were convinced that “we know”. How wrong they were. See a somewhat similar parallel in Jn 7: 27–29.
“How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” — In v. 44 he will reiterate that he has been sent by the Father. In v. 46 he will say that he is “from God”.
43 Jesus answered them, “Do not murmur among yourselves. 44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.
“Jesus answered them, ‘Do not murmur among yourselves” — Jesus does not respond to the two points made by the “Jews” concerning his origins, namely that he claims he is from heaven and they ‘know’ his earthly parents. He tells the “Jews” to stop complaining and arguing among themselves about his origins. The matter cannot be settled by arguments. The fact of his origins is a matter of divine revelation. He does not deny that he has an earthly origin: he was born of Mary. This is an historical fact. That he was conceived by the Holy Spirit requires an act of faith in God’s word.
“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day” — He repeats the content of verses 36–40: the Father draws people to accept Jesus by the words and works he performs through Jesus. To “draw” in this context means to bring them near to Jesus; they have to do their part to accept and join Jesus as is explained in the following verse.
The Father “draws” people near to Jesus by words and works. This is a gift from God; it is not a person’s own initiative. The Second Vatican Council proclaimed: “Before this faith can be exercised, man must have the grace of God to move and assist him; he must have the interior help of the Holy Spirit, who moves the heart and converts it to God, who opens the eyes of the mind and makes it easy for all to accept and believe the truth” (“Dei Verbum”, 5).
45 It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Every one who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. 46 Not that any one has seen the Father except him who is from God; he has seen the Father.
“It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’” — The quotation is from Isaiah 54: 13–14, “All your sons shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the prosperity of your sons. In righteousness you shall be established”.
“Every one who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me” — It is not sufficient to hear the word of God. One must “learn” from it. In other words, everyone who “hears” has a personal and positive role to play; the person must also make the effort to “learn”. This is how one “comes” to Jesus, that is believes by accepting that he is from his “Father” and commits oneself to him.
“Not that any one has seen the Father except him who is from God; he has seen the Father” — See Jn. 1: 18, “No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known”. “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth” (Jn. 1: 14). It is through Jesus, the incarnate Son, that people are “taught by God”. It is essential to believe in Jesus (Jn. 3: 32–34; 5: 37; 14:6–11).
47 Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life.
“Truly, truly, I say to you” — Another solemn saying is about to be pronounced.
“he who believes has eternal life” — Note the present tense. Eternal life is a present reality; it is not something reserved for the future life: “But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God” (Jn. 1: 12).
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 from heaven, that a man may eat of it and not die.
“I AM the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that a man may eat of it and not die. — This is a repeat of verses 31–33 because of the doubts and hostility of the “Jews”.
51 I AM the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh.’
“I AM the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever” — Once again Jesus repeats what he has already proclaimed.
“I AM the living bread which came down from heaven” — See verse 35 for explanation of “I AM”. This is the third time that Jesus uses this expression in today’s passage: “I AM the bread which came down from heaven” (v. 41); “I AM the bread of life” (v. 48) and “I AM the living bread which came down from heaven”. The “bread of life” and “the living bread” both mean the bread that gives life.
“Living bread” means bread which is so full of life it has to be shared.
“the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh.” —A paraphrase of these words would be as follows: ‘I am bread from heaven. As bread, I nourish with heavenly, eternal life. How do I do that for the everlasting life of the world? Once you believe that I am the incarnate Son of God, the Word made flesh, you are being nourished. That is past tense; it has already taken place.
That is not all; there is a future tense (verse 51c): “the bread which I shall give”. This future act is that I shall give “my flesh for the life of the world”. Jesus will give his “flesh for the life of the world” on Calvary’. He is referring to his crucifixion. “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness so must the Son of man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life” (Jn. 3: 14-15). “When you have lifted up the Son of man, then you will know that I AM he, and that I do nothing on my own authority but speak thus as the Father taught me” (Jn. 8: 28). Elsewhere he tells us that when he is “lifted up” on the cross he will “draw” people to him. The love of Jesus manifested on the cross for each of us is what draws us to him and to his Father. It is the greatest demonstration of his love.
John has not yet mentioned the Eucharist. His reason is to emphasise the importance of faith, the theme of verses 22-51.
C APPLICATION
1. Our first thought must be ‘what does this passage tell us about Jesus?’ Then we will look to see what the implications are following from this, according to the passage.
Three times Jesus uses the special term “I AM” to claim that he is divine; he is God. That is what God called himself when Moses asked him to reveal his name. Jesus emphasises this by saying twice that he is “from heaven”. He also adds that he is “from God” and it was “the Father who sent me”.
2. Why did he come from heaven? Because God loved the world so much he sent him, his Son, to redeem the sinful world and let people become God’s family, his children, sharing his life, for eternity (Jn. 3: 16). God’s wisdom chose to reveal that his Son incarnate would do this by describing his nourishing life–giving action as “bread”, “the bread of life”, “the living bread”. Bread nourishes and this special bread from heaven nourishes with life, God’s life. Because it is God’s life, it is everlasting.
3. What does this passage tell us about the role of God the Father? He shares three gifts of love with people. On his own initiative, therefore it is his gift, God sent his Son into the world to save it from sin and evil. He gives a second gift, he “draws” people to Jesus and it is revealed in Jesus that they may receive the third gift which is “eternal life”. This passage tells us that this divine life is not something people have to wait for in the future but it is theirs here and now: “He who believes has [present tense] eternal life” (v. 47).
4. How does the Father “draw” people to Jesus? He does this through sharing his authority and power with him. As John said earlier in this chapter, the Father “set his seal” on Jesus (Jn. 6: 27). This means that Jesus has the authority and power to share his own life with people. Next, by his words, he reveals what he has seen and knows about his Father. Thirdly, his works, that is his ministry and miracles, are signs of the power of God and of his presence in the midst of the world that needs to be saved. It is only Jesus, or those on whom he has “set his seal” as his official representatives, who can reveal his Father.
5. How do people respond when the Father “draws” them? Like all students and disciples they must listen and learn. They listen to the Father when they listen to the Word of God made flesh. They listen to Jesus when they reflect on his life in the Gospels. Then they must learn by making Jesus’ words and deeds their own by understanding them. The prejudices of the “Jews” blinded them to the truth. They allowed their human knowledge to block what Jesus was revealing. They gave their knowledge precedence over his declaration. They had been taught by God’s Son in the flesh but they had not listened to or learned from him. Their minds were closed. All those who come close to Jesus must empty their minds of preconceived notions.
6. No one can believe unless s/he wills to believe. When Jesus walked on the sea and came close to the boat containing the apostles, they were frightened of one who, like God the Creator, could master the sea. He revealed himself to them: he said, “I AM”. They took him into the boat; they accepted him and they arrived at their destination safely.
We, by our own efforts, cannot accept Christ. We need God’s help. That means that we must pray for that help. Jesus taught us how to pray. In the Lord’s Prayer there are seven petitions. “The first three… draw us toward the glory of the Father; the last four, as ways toward him, commend our wretchedness to his grace” (CCC. 2803).
The first of our four needs is “Give us this day our daily bread”. This is a request for both material and spiritual nourishment. In our human condition we need both. This is how the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) expresses this: “This petition, with the responsibility it involves, also applies to [a spiritual] hunger from which men are perishing: ‘Man does not live by bread alone, but . . . by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God,’ that is, by the Word he speaks and the Spirit he breathes forth. Christians must make every effort ‘to proclaim the good news to the poor.’ There is a famine on earth, ‘not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD.’ For this reason the specifically Christian sense of this fourth petition concerns the Bread of Life: The Word of God accepted in faith, the Body of Christ received in the Eucharist” (CCC, 2835).
To this point in the sixth chapter of John’s Gospel all comments have been about faith. The Catechism in this quotation endorses this teaching. Faith gives us God’s life, here and now and in the hereafter. God is really present to us by faith.
Pope Benedict XVI is very strong in stating that there is “a profound crisis of faith that has affected many people”. He has announced a Year of Faith. It will begin on 11 October 2012, the fiftieth anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council, and it will end on the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, Universal King, on 24 November 2013. The crisis can be overcome, he says, “through the witness offered by the lives of believers: by their very existence in the world, Christians are called to radiate the word of truth that the Lord Jesus has left us”.
Commentary on the 19th Sunday of the year (B) 9th August 2015
JOHN 6: 41–51 BREAD OF LIFE, Part II
Ordinary Time, Sunday 19B
A TEXT
Jews’ Objection
41 The Jews then murmured at him, because he said, “I AM the bread which came down from heaven.” 42 They said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?”
Who Comes to Jesus
43 Jesus answered them, “Do not murmur among yourselves. 44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.
45 It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Every one who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. 46 Not that any one has seen the Father except him who is from God; he has seen the Father.
Eternal Life
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 from heaven, that a man may eat of it and not die.
Life–giving Bead
51 I AM the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh.”
B EXPLANATION
41 The Jews then murmured at him, because he said, “I AM the bread which came down from heaven.” 42 They said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?”
“The Jews” –To this point it was the “crowd”, or their remnant, that was on stage. In John’s Gospel when he refers to the “Jews” he considers only those of their leaders who were hostile to Jesus. They would be synonymous with unbelievers. Reference to them here is an indication that Jesus will encounter hostility to his teaching contained in this chapter. Even some disciples will leave him.
“murmured at him” — When the Israelites were in the wilderness they murmured against Moses (Ex. 16: 2, 7, 8; 17: 2–3; Nm. 11: 1). Now their descendants “murmur” against Jesus.
“he said, ‘I AM the bread which came down from heaven.’” — Jesus repeats his claim that he is divine (I AM) and has come from heaven (see verses 33–38).
They said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? — “Is not this Jesus?” should be understood as a disparaging remark. They despised him.
The “Jews” were convinced that “we know”. How wrong they were. See a somewhat similar parallel in Jn 7: 27–29.
“How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” — In v. 44 he will reiterate that he has been sent by the Father. In v. 46 he will say that he is “from God”.
43 Jesus answered them, “Do not murmur among yourselves. 44 No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.
“Jesus answered them, ‘Do not murmur among yourselves” — Jesus does not respond to the two points made by the “Jews” concerning his origins, namely that he claims he is from heaven and they ‘know’ his earthly parents. He tells the “Jews” to stop complaining and arguing among themselves about his origins. The matter cannot be settled by arguments. The fact of his origins is a matter of divine revelation. He does not deny that he has an earthly origin: he was born of Mary. This is an historical fact. That he was conceived by the Holy Spirit requires an act of faith in God’s word.
“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day” — He repeats the content of verses 36–40: the Father draws people to accept Jesus by the words and works he performs through Jesus. To “draw” in this context means to bring them near to Jesus; they have to do their part to accept and join Jesus as is explained in the following verse.
The Father “draws” people near to Jesus by words and works. This is a gift from God; it is not a person’s own initiative. The Second Vatican Council proclaimed: “Before this faith can be exercised, man must have the grace of God to move and assist him; he must have the interior help of the Holy Spirit, who moves the heart and converts it to God, who opens the eyes of the mind and makes it easy for all to accept and believe the truth” (“Dei Verbum”, 5).
45 It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Every one who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me. 46 Not that any one has seen the Father except him who is from God; he has seen the Father.
“It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’” — The quotation is from Isaiah 54: 13–14, “All your sons shall be taught by the Lord, and great shall be the prosperity of your sons. In righteousness you shall be established”.
“Every one who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me” — It is not sufficient to hear the word of God. One must “learn” from it. In other words, everyone who “hears” has a personal and positive role to play; the person must also make the effort to “learn”. This is how one “comes” to Jesus, that is believes by accepting that he is from his “Father” and commits oneself to him.
“Not that any one has seen the Father except him who is from God; he has seen the Father” — See Jn. 1: 18, “No one has ever seen God; the only Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he has made him known”. “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth” (Jn. 1: 14). It is through Jesus, the incarnate Son, that people are “taught by God”. It is essential to believe in Jesus (Jn. 3: 32–34; 5: 37; 14:6–11).
47 Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life.
“Truly, truly, I say to you” — Another solemn saying is about to be pronounced.
“he who believes has eternal life” — Note the present tense. Eternal life is a present reality; it is not something reserved for the future life: “But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God” (Jn. 1: 12).
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 from heaven, that a man may eat of it and not die.
“I AM the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that a man may eat of it and not die. — This is a repeat of verses 31–33 because of the doubts and hostility of the “Jews”.
51 I AM the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh.’
“I AM the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever” — Once again Jesus repeats what he has already proclaimed.
“I AM the living bread which came down from heaven” — See verse 35 for explanation of “I AM”. This is the third time that Jesus uses this expression in today’s passage: “I AM the bread which came down from heaven” (v. 41); “I AM the bread of life” (v. 48) and “I AM the living bread which came down from heaven”. The “bread of life” and “the living bread” both mean the bread that gives life.
“Living bread” means bread which is so full of life it has to be shared.
“the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh.” —A paraphrase of these words would be as follows: ‘I am bread from heaven. As bread, I nourish with heavenly, eternal life. How do I do that for the everlasting life of the world? Once you believe that I am the incarnate Son of God, the Word made flesh, you are being nourished. That is past tense; it has already taken place.
That is not all; there is a future tense (verse 51c): “the bread which I shall give”. This future act is that I shall give “my flesh for the life of the world”. Jesus will give his “flesh for the life of the world” on Calvary’. He is referring to his crucifixion. “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness so must the Son of man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life” (Jn. 3: 14-15). “When you have lifted up the Son of man, then you will know that I AM he, and that I do nothing on my own authority but speak thus as the Father taught me” (Jn. 8: 28). Elsewhere he tells us that when he is “lifted up” on the cross he will “draw” people to him. The love of Jesus manifested on the cross for each of us is what draws us to him and to his Father. It is the greatest demonstration of his love.
John has not yet mentioned the Eucharist. His reason is to emphasise the importance of faith, the theme of verses 22-51.
C APPLICATION
1. Our first thought must be ‘what does this passage tell us about Jesus?’ Then we will look to see what the implications are following from this, according to the passage.
Three times Jesus uses the special term “I AM” to claim that he is divine; he is God. That is what God called himself when Moses asked him to reveal his name. Jesus emphasises this by saying twice that he is “from heaven”. He also adds that he is “from God” and it was “the Father who sent me”.
2. Why did he come from heaven? Because God loved the world so much he sent him, his Son, to redeem the sinful world and let people become God’s family, his children, sharing his life, for eternity (Jn. 3: 16). God’s wisdom chose to reveal that his Son incarnate would do this by describing his nourishing life–giving action as “bread”, “the bread of life”, “the living bread”. Bread nourishes and this special bread from heaven nourishes with life, God’s life. Because it is God’s life, it is everlasting.
3. What does this passage tell us about the role of God the Father? He shares three gifts of love with people. On his own initiative, therefore it is his gift, God sent his Son into the world to save it from sin and evil. He gives a second gift, he “draws” people to Jesus and it is revealed in Jesus that they may receive the third gift which is “eternal life”. This passage tells us that this divine life is not something people have to wait for in the future but it is theirs here and now: “He who believes has [present tense] eternal life” (v. 47).
4. How does the Father “draw” people to Jesus? He does this through sharing his authority and power with him. As John said earlier in this chapter, the Father “set his seal” on Jesus (Jn. 6: 27). This means that Jesus has the authority and power to share his own life with people. Next, by his words, he reveals what he has seen and knows about his Father. Thirdly, his works, that is his ministry and miracles, are signs of the power of God and of his presence in the midst of the world that needs to be saved. It is only Jesus, or those on whom he has “set his seal” as his official representatives, who can reveal his Father.
5. How do people respond when the Father “draws” them? Like all students and disciples they must listen and learn. They listen to the Father when they listen to the Word of God made flesh. They listen to Jesus when they reflect on his life in the Gospels. Then they must learn by making Jesus’ words and deeds their own by understanding them. The prejudices of the “Jews” blinded them to the truth. They allowed their human knowledge to block what Jesus was revealing. They gave their knowledge precedence over his declaration. They had been taught by God’s Son in the flesh but they had not listened to or learned from him. Their minds were closed. All those who come close to Jesus must empty their minds of preconceived notions.
6. No one can believe unless s/he wills to believe. When Jesus walked on the sea and came close to the boat containing the apostles, they were frightened of one who, like God the Creator, could master the sea. He revealed himself to them: he said, “I AM”. They took him into the boat; they accepted him and they arrived at their destination safely.
We, by our own efforts, cannot accept Christ. We need God’s help. That means that we must pray for that help. Jesus taught us how to pray. In the Lord’s Prayer there are seven petitions. “The first three… draw us toward the glory of the Father; the last four, as ways toward him, commend our wretchedness to his grace” (CCC. 2803).
The first of our four needs is “Give us this day our daily bread”. This is a request for both material and spiritual nourishment. In our human condition we need both. This is how the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) expresses this: “This petition, with the responsibility it involves, also applies to [a spiritual] hunger from which men are perishing: ‘Man does not live by bread alone, but . . . by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God,’ that is, by the Word he speaks and the Spirit he breathes forth. Christians must make every effort ‘to proclaim the good news to the poor.’ There is a famine on earth, ‘not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD.’ For this reason the specifically Christian sense of this fourth petition concerns the Bread of Life: The Word of God accepted in faith, the Body of Christ received in the Eucharist” (CCC, 2835).
To this point in the sixth chapter of John’s Gospel all comments have been about faith. The Catechism in this quotation endorses this teaching. Faith gives us God’s life, here and now and in the hereafter. God is really present to us by faith.
Pope Benedict XVI is very strong in stating that there is “a profound crisis of faith that has affected many people”. He has announced a Year of Faith. It will begin on 11 October 2012, the fiftieth anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council, and it will end on the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, Universal King, on 24 November 2013. The crisis can be overcome, he says, “through the witness offered by the lives of believers: by their very existence in the world, Christians are called to radiate the word of truth that the Lord Jesus has left us”.