John 6 - NKJV Woman's Study Bible

6:15 The Jews awaited the Prophet (the Messiah) that Moses had promised to them (Dt 18:15). After the feeding of the 5,000, the crowd believed that Jesus was that Prophet, the Promised One. Jesus, like Moses, had miraculously fed the large crowds. They thought, however, that their Messiah would become a conqueror. Therefore, the crowd reacted strongly, even violently and sought to capture or kidnap Jesus to take him to Jerusalem and make him their king. They wanted Jesus to assume political leadership, to set up a kingdom and to release them from the yoke of Roman authority. Jesus understood the situation and slipped away into the mountains to escape them.

6:31–33 God supplied manna to feed the Israelites as they fled Egyptian slavery and as they traveled, with Moses as their leader, for 40 years throughout the wilderness. Manna, a small, round substance, appeared each morning with the dew. This “bread from heaven” was then gathered, made into cakes and either baked or boiled (see Ex 16:13–36). The people believed that when the Messiah came, he would bring them “manna.” The OT “manna” pointed to the true Bread of Heaven, Jesus.

6:52–57 Flesh and blood represented life, in particular Christ’s self-sacrificed life fueled by his self-sacrificing love. “My flesh” referred to Jesus’ body, which he gave up in death (v. 54). “My blood” referred to the shedding of his blood on the cross at Calvary (v. 54). This imagery would sound familiar to those from pagan backgrounds in ancient times. They routinely offered sacrifices to their gods and actually ate part of the cooked flesh of the sacrifice. They would have considered eating the sacrificed flesh as becoming one with a god, in the sense of sharing an identity with that deity. The Jew of Jesus’ day would have understood blood to stand for life. Thus, to drink Jesus’ blood would suggest bringing his life into their lives. This paradox then explains both the essence of the gospel (Christ’s sacrifice of his life) and the essence of personal holiness (our unique partaking of his life into our own). Christ came from the Father to offer the gift of himself to all who would receive him (vv. 51,54,56).

6:66–69 The crowd that followed Jesus was very large, but they began to discover that his teachings were difficult to put into practice. In fact, following him pointed to the possibility of sharing in his suffering and violent death. Slowly his disciples began to fall away. Perhaps those who left Jesus could foresee or anticipate the “tragedy” that would befall Jesus at the hands of the Roman government. Others, perhaps, lost interest or hope in Jesus. Their action prompted Jesus to ask the 12 disciples if they, too, would “leave.” Jesus was not surprised by the many who turned away from him. He knew of their discontentment, for he could read their hearts.