John 6:11–23

6:11 Then Jesus took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed the bread to those who were seated. He then did the same with the fish,16 as much as they wanted. 6:12 When they were all satisfied, Jesus17 said to his disciples, “Gather up the broken pieces that are left over, so that nothing is wasted.” 6:13 So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with broken pieces from the five barley loaves18 left over by the people who had eaten.

6:14 Now when the people saw the miraculous sign that Jesus19 performed, they began to say to one another, “This is certainly the Prophet20 who is to come into the world.”21 6:15 Then Jesus, because he knew they were going to come and seize him by force to make him king, withdrew again up the mountainside alone.22

Walking on Water

6:16 Now when evening came, his disciples went down to the lake,23 6:17 got into a boat, and started to cross the lake24 to Capernaum.25 (It had already become dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them.)26 6:18 By now a strong wind was blowing and the sea was getting rough. 6:19 Then, when they had rowed about three or four miles,27 they caught sight of Jesus walking on the lake,28 approaching the boat, and they were frightened. 6:20 But he said to them, “It is I. Do not be afraid.” 6:21 Then they wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat came to the land where they had been heading.

6:22 The next day the crowd that remained on the other side of the lake29 realized that only one small boat30 had been there, and that Jesus had not boarded31 it with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. 6:23 But some boats from Tiberias32 came to shore33 near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks.34

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16	tn Grk “likewise also (he distributed) from the fish.”
17	tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
18	sn Note that the fish mentioned previously (in John 6:9) are not emphasized here, only the five barley loaves. This is easy to understand, however, because the bread is of primary importance for the author in view of Jesus’ upcoming discourse on the Bread of Life.
19	tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
20	sn The Prophet is a reference to the “prophet like Moses” of Deut 18:15, by this time an eschatological figure in popular belief.
21	sn An allusion to Deut 18:15.
22	sn Jesus, knowing that his “hour” had not yet come (and would not, in this fashion) withdrew again up the mountainside alone. The ministry of miracles in Galilee, ending with this, the multiplication of the bread (the last public miracle in Galilee recorded by John) aroused such a popular response that there was danger of an uprising. This would have given the authorities a legal excuse to arrest Jesus. The nature of Jesus’ kingship will become an issue again in the passion narrative of the Fourth Gospel (John 18:33ff.). Furthermore, the volatile reaction of the Galileans to the signs prepares for and foreshadows the misunderstanding of the miracle itself, and even the misunderstanding of Jesus’ explanation of it (John 6:22–71).
23	tn Or “sea.” The Greek word indicates a rather large body of water, but the English word “sea” normally indicates very large bodies of water, so the word “lake” in English is a closer approximation.
24	tn Or “sea.” See the note on “lake” in the previous verse.
25	map For location see Map1-D2; Map2-C3; Map3-B2.
26	sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.
27	tn Grk “about twenty-five or thirty stades” (a stade as a unit of linear measure is about 607 feet or 187 meters). sn About three or four miles. The Sea of Galilee was at its widest point 7 mi (11.6 km) by 12 mi (20 km). So at this point the disciples were in about the middle of the lake.
28	tn Or “sea.” See the note on “lake” in v. 16. John uses the phrase ἐπί (epi, “on”) followed by the genitive (as in Mark, instead of Matthew’s ἐπί followed by the accusative) to describe Jesus walking “on the lake.”
29	tn Or “sea.” See the note on “lake” in v. 16.
30	tc Most witnesses have after “one” the phrase “which his disciples had entered” (ἐκεῖνο εἰς ὂ ἐνέβησαν οἱ μαθηταὶ αὐτοῦ, ekeino eis ho enebēsan hoi mathētai autou) although there are several permutations of this clause ([א* D] Θ [f13 33] 𝔐 [sa]). The witnesses that lack this expression are, however, significant and diffused (𝔓75 א2 A B L N W Ψ 1 565 579 1241 al lat). The clarifying nature of the longer reading, the multiple variants from it, and the weighty testimony for the shorter reading all argue against the authenticity of the longer text in any of its variations. tn Grk “one”; the referent (a small boat) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
31	tn Grk “entered.”
32	map For location see Map1-E2; Map2-C2; Map3-C3; Map4-D1; Map5-G4.
33	tn Or “boats from Tiberias landed”; Grk “came.”
34	tc D 091 a e sys,c lack the phrase “after the Lord had given thanks” (εὐχαριστήσαντος τοῦ κυρίου, eucharistēsantos tou kuriou), while almost all the rest of the witnesses ({𝔓75 א A B L W Θ Ψ 0141 [f1] f13 33 𝔐 as well as several versions and fathers}) have the words (though {l672 l950 syp pbo} read Ἰησοῦ [Iēsou, “Jesus“] instead of κυρίου). Although the shorter reading has minimal support, it is significant that this Gospel speaks of Jesus as Lord in the evangelist’s narrative descriptions only in 11:2; 20:18, 20; 21:12; and possibly 4:1 (but see tc note on “Jesus” there). There is thus but one undisputed preresurrection text in which the narrator calls Jesus “Lord.” This fact can be utilized on behalf of either reading: The participial phrase could be seen as a scribal addition harking back to 6:11 but which does not fit Johannine style, or it could be viewed as truly authentic and in line with what John indisputably does elsewhere even if rarely. On balance, in light of the overwhelming support for these words it is probably best to retain them in the text.

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