John 6:53–54

Context

On the day after the feeding of the five thousand, Jesus speaks in the synagogue at Capernaum to the crowd that has come looking for him, saying, "I am the bread of life" (v. 35). He rebukes the crowd for seeking the food that perishes and declares that, unlike the manna in the wilderness, he himself is the true bread that came down from heaven. When he says in verse 51 that this bread is "my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world," the Jews dispute among themselves, and in verses 53–54 Jesus repeats the same teaching even more forcefully. Because of these words many of his disciples turn away (v. 66), and Jesus adds, "It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing" (v. 63).

Interpretations

• A eucharistic reading: The Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church hold that these words refer to the Eucharist. The Catholic Church cites this passage in support of transubstantiation, the doctrine that the consecrated bread and wine are changed in substance into the body and blood of Christ. Lutherans reject transubstantiation but teach that the body and blood of Christ are truly present "in, with, and under" the bread and wine.
• Receiving Christ by faith: John Calvin, of the Reformed tradition, taught a spiritual presence in which believers, through the Holy Spirit, partake of the body and blood of Christ by faith. On this view, the passage speaks not so much directly of the Lord's Supper as of the union with Christ to which the Supper points. Proponents note that in verses 35 and 40 "eating" is used in parallel with "believing."
• A figurative reading: Adherents of the memorial view in the tradition of Huldrych Zwingli, along with Baptists and others, read eating and drinking as a figure for believing in and receiving Christ, citing verse 63 as their key support.

Debates

Because this discourse takes place before the Last Supper, some ask whether it can refer to the Lord's Supper before the Supper was instituted. In response, one view holds that the Gospel of John, which does not record the institution of the Lord's Supper, instead conveys the meaning of the Supper through this discourse. The meeting of Martin Luther and Zwingli at Marburg in 1529, where they failed to resolve their differences over the Lord's Supper, is often cited as a classic example of how this question divided the churches of the Reformation. For further details, see Eucharistic controversy.

In the Korean Church

The passage is used as a text for Communion sermons and on World Communion Sunday. Most Korean Protestants observe the Lord's Supper according to an understanding close to that of Calvin or Zwingli.

Related Passages

• John 6:35
• John 6:63
• 1 Corinthians 10:16–17
• 1 Corinthians 11:23–26