And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.
Parallel translations
- WEB Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will not be hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.
- BSB Jesus answered, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to Me will never hunger, and whoever believes in Me will never thirst.
- NKJV And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.
- NASB Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; the one who comes to Me will not be hungry, and the one who believes in Me will never be thirsty.
- NLT Jesus replied, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
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 declares, 'I am the bread of life,' promising that whoever comes and believes will never hunger or thirst. This is the first of His great 'I am' sayings and the heart of the discourse.
Overview
Jesus identifies Himself as the bread that truly satisfies, fulfilling the manna and answering humanity's deepest need. Coming to Him and believing in Him are parallel, defining saving faith. The promise of never hungering or thirsting points to the complete and lasting satisfaction Christ alone gives the soul.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- John 6:48–58I am that bread of life.
- Rev 22:17And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.
- Isa 55:1–3Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
- John 6:41The Jews then murmured at him, because he said, I am the bread which came down from heaven.
- Isa 49:10They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun smite them: for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them.
- John 7:37–38In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.
- Rev 7:16They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat.
- Matt 11:28Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
- 1 Cor 11:23–29For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread:
- John 4:13–14Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again:
- John 6:37All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.
- Luke 6:25Woe unto you that are full! for ye shall hunger. Woe unto you that laugh now! for ye shall mourn and weep.
- 1 Cor 10:16–18The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?
- John 6:65And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.
- John 5:40And ye will not come to me, that ye might have life.
- John 6:44–45No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.
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 6:35 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.