New International Version
John 6:53
53Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.
John 6:53 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.
- English Standard Version (ESV)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.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you.
- New Living Translation (NLT)So Jesus said again, “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you cannot have eternal life within you.
Context of John 6:53
51I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” 52Then the Jews began to argue sharply among themselves, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” Jesus said to them, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 54Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day. 55For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink.
Read all of John 6John 6:53 word by word
Εἶπεν οὖν αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς· ἀμὴν ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν· ἐὰν μὴ φάγητε τὴν σάρκα τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ ἀνθρώπου καὶ πίητε αὐτοῦ τὸ αἷμα, οὐκ ἔχετε ζωὴν ἐν ἑαυτοῖς.Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Thenοὖνoun · therefore/thenG3767
- Jesusὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- JesusἸησοῦςIēsous · JesusG2424
- saidλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
- unto themαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
- Verilyἀμήνamēn · amenG281
- I sayλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
- unto youσύsu · youG4771
- Exceptἐάνean · ifG1437
- ·μήmē · notG3361
- ye eatφαγεῖνphagō · to eatG5315
- the fleshσάρξsarx · fleshG4561
- of the Sonυἱόςuihos · sonG5207
- of manἄνθρωποςanthrōpos · a humanG444
- andκαίkai · andG2532
- drinkπίνωpinō piō poō · to drinkG4095
- bloodαἷμαaima · bloodG129
- ye haveἔχωechō · to have/beG2192
- noοὐou · noG3756
- lifeζωήzōē · lifeG2222
- inἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
- youἑαυτοῦheautou · themselfG1438
Cross-references for John 6:53
- John 6:26Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.
- John 3:3Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”
- Matthew 5:18For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.
- John 13:8“No,” said Peter, “you shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered, “Unless I wash you, you have no part with me.”
- John 15:4Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.
- Matthew 18:3And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
- Luke 13:3I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.
- John 6:55For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink.
- John 3:36Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.
- Matthew 26:26While they were eating, Jesus took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, “Take and eat; this is my body.”
- 1 John 5:12Whoever has the Son has life; whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life.
- Revelation 2:7Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.
Commentaries on John 6:53
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 53Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man - Unless ye be made partakers of the blessings about to be purchased by my blood, passion, and violent death, ye cannot be saved. As a man must eat bread and flesh, in order to be nourished by them, so a man must receive the grace and Spirit of Christ, in order to his salvation. As food in a rich man's store does not nourish the poor man that needs it, unless it be given him, and he receive it into his stomach, so…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 53-55Verses 53-55 In these verses Jesus repeats what he had in substance said before. Except ye eat the flesh - He did not mean that this should be understood literally, for it was never done, and it is absurd to suppose that it was intended to be so understood. Nothing can possibly be more absurd than to suppose that when he instituted the Supper, and gave the bread and wine to his disciples, they literally ate his flesh and drank his blood. Who can believe…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 52-59Verses 52-59 The flesh and blood of the Son of man, denote the Redeemer in the nature of man; Christ and him crucified, and the redemption wrought out by him, with all the precious benefits of redemption; pardon of sin, acceptance with God, the way to the throne of grace, the promises of the covenant, and eternal life. These are called the flesh and blood of Christ, because they are purchased by the breaking his body, and the shedding of his blood. Also…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 53-58eats My flesh and drinks My blood: Jesus answered the question the people asked (6:52). His words pointed ahead to the Lord’s Supper, which would come later (see Luke 22:19). In Jewish speech, the phrase “flesh and blood” referred to the whole person. In this context, Jesus was calling people to receive him fully by completely believing in him. Ever since the Protestant Reformation, there have been three main interpretations of the words of Jesus about…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 53-5853-58. Except ye eat the flesh ... and drink the blood ... no life, &c.--The harshest word He had yet uttered in their ears. They asked how it was possible to eat His flesh. He answers, with great solemnity, "It is indispensable." Yet even here a thoughtful hearer might find something to temper the harshness. He says they must not only "eat His flesh" but "drink His blood," which could not but suggest the idea of His death--implied in the separation of…Read the comment
Topics related to John 6:53
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on John 6
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Catena Aurea
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Family Bible Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- John Lightfoot Commentary
- Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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