But he said unto them, I have meat to eat that ye know not of.
Parallel translations
- WEB But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you don’t know about.”
- BSB But He told them, “I have food to eat that you know nothing about.”
- NKJV But He said to them, “I have food to eat of which you do not know.”
- NASB But He said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.”
- NLT But Jesus replied, “I have a kind of food you know nothing about.”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Jesus says He has food the disciples don't know about, pointing beyond literal bread. It signals that obedience to God sustains Him.
Overview
Jesus speaks of hidden 'food,' deliberately raising a question in the disciples' minds, much as He did with the Samaritan woman over 'living water.' This Johannine pattern of misunderstanding leads to deeper truth. His true nourishment, soon explained, is accomplishing the Father's saving work.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Job 23:12Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food.
- Ps 119:103How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!
- John 4:34Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work.
- Prov 18:20A man’s belly shall be satisfied with the fruit of his mouth; and with the increase of his lips shall he be filled.
- Jer 15:16Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts.
- Ps 63:5My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips:
- Ps 25:14The secret of the LORD is with them that fear him; and he will shew them his covenant.
- Prov 14:10The heart knoweth his own bitterness; and a stranger doth not intermeddle with his joy.
- Rev 2:17He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.
- Isa 53:11He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.
- Acts 20:35I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
John declares him plainly: the eternal Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the great 'I AM' — bread, light, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, resurrection — that you may believe and have life in his name.
How John 4:32 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.