The passage
      v35. Jesus plainly says that he is the true "bread from heaven", the life-giving bread. Anyone who "comes to" him, anyone who "believes in" him (the phrases have the same meaning) will, unlike those who ate the manna, never hunger (nor thirst).
      v36. In v32 Jesus changed the personal pronoun in the quote from "them" to "you". He now explains why he has done this. Unlike their forefathers who saw the manna and believed, this crowd does not believe.
      v37-40. The Father has given Jesus the responsibility to gather and care for the new Israel. This fact the crowd needs to know, and know also that those who come to Jesus, those who believe in Jesus, who want to join God's new wilderness community through Jesus, will be preserved by him eternally. They will be preserved because Jesus does God's will and not his own. The survival of this community is assured. The bottom line is, everyone who "looks to" Jesus the Word of God, the divine revelation ("looks to" means the same as "comes to", "believes in"), will join in the resurrection of the righteous and so share in God's new eternal community.
      v41-42. The crowd is not at all happy that Jesus has claimed he is the bread from heaven referred to in v31. They know all about him and his family so why should they give ear and come to Jesus; hear him that their soul may live, Isa.55:3?
      v43-45. Jesus tries a new tack. He reminds the crowd of a profound Biblical truth, only those who are seeking after God's revealed truth will find it; only seekers will be drawn to Jesus, the source of all truth, and it is only they who will share in the resurrection of the righteous.
      v46. Jesus clarifies the point he has made in v44, 45, so as not to leave the impression that people are drawn to Jesus by some personal revelation from God. Jesus himself attracts the seeker because he is "from God."
      v47-48. The idea that the person who seeks divine truth comes to Jesus, is rephrased in the terminology of John 3:16. The person who believes possesses eternal life. This is what Jesus means when he says he is the "bread of life"; he is the embodiment of life giving truth.
      v49-50. The argument so far is restated. Manna is certainly a miraculous bread, but once eaten, hunger returns, and inevitably death. The heavenly bread that God gives in Jesus, and once eaten, results in eternal life.

Feeding on the word
      In our passage for study Jesus raises an issue which is central to the craft of preaching. Actually, Paul the apostle sums it up when he says "we preach Christ crucified". The particular focus on the crucifixion of Christ is developed in the next section of the discourse, v 51-58. In our section for study we are introduced to the truth that Jesus is God's divine life-giving revelation. It is this revelation which should be the focus of all preaching.
      In expounding the text "he gave them bread from heaven to eat", Jesus makes the point that he is the "bread from heaven", in the sense of being God's divine Word or revelation. He then goes on to make the point that the true seeker is drawn to the Word (comes to, believes in, looks at) and is sustained by it, raised by it in the day of resurrection and kept by it eternally. Christ is the Word of God, he is the final revelation of God to mankind. Those who feed on this bread, those who believe in Christ, have everlasting life.
      The preacher constantly faces the temptation to craft entertaining sermons that titillate the emotions. Today's entertaining sermon is most often topical, dealing with issues in the Christian life; it rests on proof texts rather than exposition and is often burdensome, stressing law rather than grace. Of course, the supply of such sermon's is driven by demand. In the face of declining church attendance, preachers are forced to take the popular path to retain attenders and attract new ones.
      In the drive for "interesting and relevant sermons", the systematic exposition of scripture comes off second best. Unless a congregation is trained in the art of appreciating expository sermon's, they are easily beguiled by the drama and artistry of a topical or theological performance. Yet, the systematic exposition of scripture itself covers every topic imaginable, and does so with divine proportions within the context of revelation. Each passage of scripture has its "Word from the Lord" and this sometimes with interrelated sub points. By expounding scripture we interact with God's Word to us, rather than the preacher's word to us.
      So, rather than engage in crafting powerful sermons on topics of interest or elements of systematic theology, the preacher is better advised to expound scripture. The crafting of expository sermons, based squarely on a passage of scripture, drawing on the truth of that passage and relating it to life, not only draws the seeker to Christ, but enlivens them for eternity. Such preaching does not play to the crowd, but it does gather the Father's children.

v36
      all "but" - but. Adversative. "Yet", Phillips.
      oJti - Usually taken to introduce a recitative clause, so here indicating what Jesus had said to the crowd, namely "you have seen me and still you do not believe." The trouble is there is no record of him saying anything like this to them. Borgen in Observations on the Midrashic Character of John 6 suggests that hoti here introduces a causative clause. Jesus is still exegeting v31 and is explaining why he uses "you" in v32 when the quote says "them". "I have said 'you', because, though you have seen, you still do not believe."
      me pro. "me" - The "me" is not found in many manuscripts, although most translations personalize what the crowd had seen, namely, Jesus. NEB and REB leave it out. If the miracle of the loaves is what they had seen, then it could be said that Israel drew spiritual significance from the miracle of the manna, but this crowd is more interested in another freed.

v37
      Barrett suggests the following sense for v37-40, "I have come down to do, not my will, but the will of God who sent me. It is God's will that none whom he has given me should perish, but that they all should receive life and be raised up at the last day. Therefore, I will receive and raise up everyone who `comes to me', since he is the Father's gift to me and it is the Father's will that I should do so."
      pan oJ "all that" - whatever. The neuter singular is used instead of the more obvious masculine plural (everyone who, whoever...) to emphasize the collective force of the elect given to Jesus by the Father. "All", NIV, solves the problem, but a reader can only be confused by "everything", Phillips.
      didwsin (didwmi) pres. "gives" - The continuous sense of the giving serves to transcend time. The strongly predestinarian notion of the Father giving Jesus his followers is repeated in this gospel, cf. 10:29, 18:9. Naturally, a word like "gives" prompts the age-old Calvanist/Arminian debate which then prompts numerous theories, eg. those whom the Father gives to Jesus are given in the sense that "faith is God's work", Schlatter. Interestingly, John has emphasized a collective giving, the giving of an elect people of God to Jesus, which collective, by its very nature, attaches itself to Jesus. The question is, how does one become a member of this elect, predestined, chosen, "given", people of God? For the stranger outside the gates in Old Testament times, the answer was to get inside the gates of a righteous Jew, or better still, as Zechariah put it, to hold onto one of his tassels as he entered Jerusalem. For us, the righteous Jew is Jesus, and as John puts it, we need only believe in him, hold onto his tassel. We link ourselves to the "given" people when we believe in Jesus.
      hJxei (hJkw) fut. "[all that the Father gives me] will come" - to move toward and to arrive at a point, to come to, to reach, to arrive, to be in a place, as the result of having arrived, to be here, to be there*. Note that the sense of this word and its use in John's gospel, is different to the word "come [to Jesus]" which is used in parallel with "believe". So, "come" and "comes" in this verse have different meanings. The collective covenant community given to Jesus by the Father will be eternally joined to Jesus, attached to Jesus, while those who come to / believe in Jesus, he will preserve in that community eternally. "The elect community of believers that the Father gives to me will be attached to me eternally"
      ou mh ekbalw exw "I will never drive away" - by no means I will cast outside. Although we may question the idea that God selects individuals for inclusion in Christ's community, divine sovereignty clearly extends to maintaining the person, who comes to (believes in) Jesus, within his eternal community. Carson suggests that the speech-form here is a litotes where an idea is promoted by negating the contrary. The intended meaning therefore is "I will certainly keep/preserve."

v38
      oJti "for" - because. The reason why Jesus will preserve those who come to / believe in him is because he doesn't set out to do his own thing, but rather the will of the Father, and the Father's will is that his covenant community be preserved to eternity.
      katabebhka (katabainw) perf. "I have come down" - I having come down. The perfect tense expresses a present state resulting from a past action. Obviously drawing on the imagery of the manna coming down.
      iJna + subj. "that" - Possibly introducing an epexegetic clause explaining what God's will is, as NIV, although purpose is more likely. "for I have come down from heaven (in order that) not to carry out my will but the will of him who sent me", Moffatt.

v39
      iJna + subj. "that" - This time the conjunction does introduce an epexegetic clause explaining the content of God's will.
      oJ dedwken "[lose none of all that] he has given [me]" - [all] which he has given [me I should not lose]. Note the use of singular neuter "all" again to emphasize the collective sense of the community. "that I should not lose one of the whole community", Barrett.
      th/ escath/ hJmera "the last day" - Referring to the resurrection of the righteous at the return of Christ. Note, John also has a resurrection of the unrighteous in that day, 5:28-29.

v40
      iJna "that" - that. Again introducing an epexegetic clause explaining what is God's will. "For what my Father wants is that ....", TEV.
      paV oJ qewrwn "everyone who looks [to the Son]" - everyone / all looking at, observing, beholding .... looking with spiritual insight and perception*. What we have here is another synonym for "believing in" and "coming to". "Everyone who sets their eyes on Jesus will have eternal life."
      zwhn aiwnion "eternal life" - Note how eternal life is placed here with being raised in the last day. The two are not synonyms, nor is eternal life an eternal heavenly existence. Eternal life is a quality of spiritual existence which a person possesses now and through into eternity. Possessing it enables a person to be raised in the last day. Eternal life is the divine spark that enlivens the soul moving it from mortality to immortality.

v41
      egogguzon (gogguzw) imperf. "grumble" - were grumbling, complaining, murmuring. Another allusion to the wilderness wanderings
      oiJ Ioudaioi "the Jews" - In John the term carries negative connotations. Usually referring to those hostile to Jesus, most of whom reside in Jerusalem.
      oJti "because" - Causative.
      eipen (eipon) aor. "he said" - In the sense "he claimed". "Because he had exegeted the text, `bread from heaven he gave them to eat', in such a way as to claim that he was the manna that came from heaven."

v42
      elegon (legw) imperf. "they said" - The imperfect is durative; "they kept saying", NAB.
      ouJtoV pro. "this" - this man, this fellow. The term is a touch insulting. The crowd knows his family and they know him and as is always the case, "familiarity breeds contempt."
      pwV adv. "how" - how, in what way. Expressing an objection.
      nun "now" - There is a textual variant which means "therefore." This makes more sense, but it is probably the reason why it was changed from "now". Possibly best left out; "how can he say", Phillips, NAB..

v43
      mh gogguzete (gugguzw) pres. imp. "stop grumbling" - The durative force of the present tense indicates that the command is to cease an action in progress, as NIV. "Stop murmuring", NEB.

v44
      elkush/ (elkuw) aor. subj. "draws" - should draw, drag, attract. Serving to fulfill Isaiah 54:13 quoted by Jesus in the next verse. The revelation of God, the Law, his Word .... draws/attracts those who are willing to hear. Beasley-Murray writes: "this leads Bultmann to interpret the `drawing' by God as taking place when man abandons his own judgment and `hears' and `learns' from the Father, and so allows God to speak to him: the drawing by the Father occurs not, as it were, behind man's decision of faith, but in it'". R.H. Lightfoot in his commentary also sees the drawing as a Word induced attraction rather than a determining act of the divine will.

v45
      en toiV profhtaiV "in the prophets" - The citation is a free version of Isaiah 54:13. Why "prophets" instead of "the prophet Isaiah"? Some suggest it is from a collection of prophetic testimonies, others that John had forgotten the exact source (which I guess is better than Jesus having forgotten the source!!!)
      akousaV .... maqwn aor. part. "listens [and] learns" - having heard .... having learned. The aorist participles are probably gnomic, expressing no time sense, although REB opts for "has listened .... learned." Those who have heard what the Father says, and learnt from it, come to Jesus. The notion of God drawing people to Jesus (v44) is supported by the quote from Isaiah and then explained in the terms of God's Word acting on a willing and open approach to that Word by the seeker such that they are inevitably pointed to Jesus. "Those who seek find."

v46
      eJwraken (oJraw) perf. "seen [the Father]" - The perfect tense expressing a present state resulting from a past action, here intensive. Jesus qualifies v45 by pointing out that he is not suggesting that it is necessary to have some immediate divine revelation from the Father before a person can come to Jesus. The only person with such a privilege is Jesus himself. In reality, Jesus is the perfect incarnation of divine truth; he is the Word of God. Yet, divine truth is also read in the scriptures and is spoken, and if wrestled with, naturally points to the font of truth in this age, namely, Jesus. "Immediate knowledge of God", Barrett.

v47
      oJ pisteuwn (pisteuw) pres. part. "he who believes" - the one believing. Substantive participle. The sense is clearer if an object is supplied, "in me / Jesus." Correctly "the believer", Moffatt, but: "to believe (in Jesus) is to have eternal life", Barclay.

v48
      egw "I" - Emphatic.
      thV zwhV (h) "of life" - The genitive is descriptive; this sort of bread is life-giving. "The bread which gives life", TH.

v49
      oJi patereV uJmwn "your forefathers" - your fathers. The "your" is interesting. Aren't they Jesus' forefathers as well? Brown suggests that this reflects the gap between the church and synagogue at the time of writing the gospel, but this is an unnecessary conclusion.
      efagon (esqiw) aor. "ate" - ate. The aorist is constative where the action is viewed as a whole, ie. they ate for 40 years.