“How can this man give us his flesh to eat?”
The full verse · John 6:52 · KJV
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The Scene
Why It Was Asked
The purpose behind the questionThey heard Jesus' words about His flesh in a bodily sense and could not see how it was possible. Gill says they were "strangers to a figurative or spiritual eating," and that to them "it was not lawful to eat the flesh of any creature alive, and much less the flesh of man." The KJV says they "strove among themselves," so they were not of one mind. Gill pictures "some understanding Christ, and others not; some being for him, and vindicated what he said; and others being against him."
The Response
What Scripture recordsJesus did not soften His words. He said, "Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you" (John 6:53), and "He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him" (John 6:56). He tied it to life from the Father: "so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me" (John 6:57). Later He gave the key to His words: "It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing" (John 6:63).
Historical Context
The world behind the wordsThe KJV "strove" translates emachonto, from machomai. Thayer defines it as "to fight," and, of a war of words, "to quarrel, wrangle, dispute," citing this verse. This was a sharp argument, not a calm discussion.
Barnes reads Jesus' words as pointing to His death, "his body and his blood offered in sacrifice for sin," by which "he would procure pardon and life for man." Barnes adds that "there is no evidence that he had any reference in this passage to the Lord's Supper. That was not yet instituted."
The Bigger Picture
Where this fits in God's storyJesus answers "how" by pointing to who He is and what He will give. The bread is His flesh, given "for the life of the world" (John 6:51). Matthew Henry explains, "Eating this flesh and drinking this blood mean believing in Christ," and "We partake of Christ and his benefits by faith." That fits Jesus' own words earlier in the chapter: "he that believeth on me shall never thirst" (John 6:35) and "He that believeth on me hath everlasting life" (John 6:47).
The question "How can this man?" is the same kind of question Nicodemus asked (John 3:4, 9). In both places Jesus speaks of a life that comes from God, and in both places the hearers stumble by taking it only in a physical sense.
Look Closer
What had Jesus just said that led to this question?
Carry the question into prayer and conversation.
Lord Jesus, You gave Your flesh for the life of the world; what does it look like for me to live by You each day?
A prayer to carry into the day.
- When a teaching of Jesus seems strange or hard, do you tend to argue with it, set it aside, or keep listening? Why?
- Share a time when something in Scripture confused you at first and became clearer later.
For you, a small group, a friend, or the dinner table.
Jesus offers more than teaching. He offers Himself. Coming to Him and believing on Him is how you receive the life He gives (John 6:35, 47, 57). Matthew Henry calls this partaking of Christ "by faith."
When a word of Jesus is hard to grasp, do not settle for the most literal or the easiest reading and then argue about it. Keep listening. Jesus Himself gave the key: "the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life" (John 6:63).
This does not make His words vague. Barnes ties them to His real death as a sacrifice for sin. The life you receive comes from what He truly gave.
Built from the biblical text and checked against trusted commentaries and lexicons. References & Sources
Keep questioning
“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?”
“This is an hard saying; who can hear it?”
“Doth this offend you?”