Valletta
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- Oct 10, 2020
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It's a mistake to assume that Jesus always spoke to the masses in parables or figurative language. In John 6:50-53 Jesus uses a form of "phago," the Koine Greek word used for "eat." When the Jews questioned Jesus, Jesus is more assertive. In John 6:54 Jesus switches his words and begins to use forms of the word "trogein" for our English "eat." You can miss this if you don't examine the Greek. "Trogein" means to chew, or gnaw, or masticate/ So when challenged Jesus, instead of telling them he is speaking figuratively or symbolically, does the opposite and makes it clear that He is speaking literally about eating His flesh.As usual, Jesus spoke in parables or figurative language to the masses but when His disciples questioned him privately, He used plain language. In verses 41 and 52, we find the "Jews" disputing or grumbling among themselves. These are the masses gathered to hear Him. The masses did not understand. They wanted another miracle of loaves and fishes. They were thinking with their stomachs. Jesus countered with hard words. He foreshadowed His death and the cost of following Him. His kingdom would begin with His death and first be a spiritual kingdom. The common Jew wanted a physical kingdom providing temporal reward. When Jesus switched the metaphor to His body and blood, they did not understand. Bread they could relate to eating. They took His words literally and did not understand how they could eat His flesh.
Starting in verse 60, His disciples were also confused and asked Him what He meant. He explains that the flesh profits nothing. It is the spirit that gives life. He could have offered this explanation to the masses but did not. This is not the only time we see Jesus speaking in metaphor or parables to the common Jews but privately telling His disciples the plain truth.
When Jesus said He was the bread of life, that was a metaphor. Jesus was not made of bread. Bread gives sustenance. We need to eat to live physically. His flesh and blood were a metaphor for the spiritual food He would provide through His death and resurrection. Because of the miracles of the loaves and fishes, the Jews could easily take the bread metaphor literally. When Jesus turned the metaphor into something bloody and harsh, it broke their spirits and confused them. They went from visions of full bellies to a confusing image of eating flesh and drinking blood not understanding that he was speaking in metaphors. He cleared that up for His disciples by saying the flesh profits nothing. If He had meant His literal flesh and blood, He would have made that clear but instead says He's not talking about literal flesh and blood. Those things profit not. Those among His disciples who were weak in faith, still could not stomach it. Like the wheat sown among the weeds that soon choke it of life, their faith failed them when they saw the cost of following the Lord and the kind of kingdom He was there to establish.
This is all in keeping with how Jesus spoke to the masses as opposed to His disciples. His words often confused the masses. He did not always speak plainly to them. One must keep this in mind when understanding the response of the masses.
John 6:50-57 50 This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that a man may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread[a] 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.”
52 The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”[b] 53 So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you; 54 he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. 55 For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. 56 He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me.
RSVCE
When Jesus speaks to his disciples he does not state he spoke figuratively, to the contrary, He asks "Do you take offense at this?"
John 6: 60 Many of his disciples, when they heard it, said, “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?” 61 But Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples murmured at it, said to them, “Do you take offense at this? RSVCE
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