John 6:15, commentary and pictures

After the feeding of thousands from five barley loaves and two small fishes, the people concluded He was the promised Messiah and Deliverer and quietly planned to seize Him by force and proclaim Him King of Israel, which Jesus perceived and met by withdrawing alone into a mountain Himself. With calm authority and few firm words He halted their advance and commanded the crowd to disperse, sending His disciples away by boat to Capernaum and dismissing the multitude Himself to thwart the plan. He then went alone into the mountain to pray, feeling in His humanity the need of strength from God and praying that His disciples might be braced for duty and fortified for trial. He refused temporal kingship and royal dignity because He did not come to establish a temporal kingdom in Israel, for His kingdom is spiritual and not of this world. Such an exaltation would have produced violence and insurrection and cut short His work before it was complete, hindering His spiritual kingdom and putting an end to His teaching, mercy, and benevolence.

Setting After Feeding Miracle

After the feeding of thousands from five barley loaves and two small fishes, the people concluded that Jesus was indeed the Messiah, the Prince of Life, and the promised Deliverer of the Jews. That conviction had been built by His teachings and healings and benevolence and provision of food, and it was crowned by this miracle which no human power could do. The recognition of Him as the promised Prophet came as crowds were gathering for the Passover and seeking the famous Prophet, and the multitude recognized Him through the feeding miracle.

They saw that He made no effort to win applause and honor from men, wholly unlike the chief priests and rulers who were ambitious for titles. They feared He would never claim His right as King of Israel on David's throne in Jerusalem. So they decided to claim it for Him without waiting for further proof.

Attempt to Crown by Force

The crowd expected the long-awaited Deliverer to free Judea from Roman power and establish Israel's dominion and restore it. They looked for Him to provide for the people and for armies, to heal wounded soldiers, and to conquer other nations. Believing Him to be their Deliverer and the rightful heir to David's throne, they quietly consulted together to seize Him by force. Their plan was to take Him to Jerusalem, bear Him on their shoulders, and proclaim Him King of Israel, ready to crown Him even if He would not consent.

The disciples united with the plan, holding that David's throne was their Master's rightful inheritance. They held that the arrogant priests and rulers should be humbled to yield honor to Him who came clothed with God's authority. All present except the Pharisees would have joined the movement. Judas was first to take advantage of the enthusiasm excited by the miracle of the loaves and set the project on foot. He continually advanced his own idea that Christ would reign as an earthly king, contrary to Christ's own teaching.

On that occasion Judas helped distribute the food to the hungry multitude and helped bring the sick and suffering to Christ. He saw the benefit he could impart, the satisfaction of service to God, and the relief, joy, and gladness that come through healing, by which he might have comprehended Christ's methods. But he was blinded by selfish desires for advancement, his hopes were high, and his disappointment when the plan failed was bitter. When Jesus stopped the movement and commanded the disciples to leave, they obeyed but with dissatisfied hearts. They murmured because their wish to exalt Him had not been gratified, blamed themselves for being so easily turned from their purpose, and reasoned that persistence might have gained the point, while His followers still hoped popular enthusiasm would make Him king.

Even after He refused to be made king by force, the disciples continued to hope He would become a temporal king. They found it hard to accept His humble life and coming humiliation. They even considered taking Him to safety when He foretold His suffering and death.

Withdrawal Alone to Mountain

Jesus perceived and knew the purpose in the hearts of the crowd to come and seize Him by force to make Him king. He therefore withdrew again alone into the mountain Himself rather than accept a kingship imposed by popular enthusiasm.

He commanded the crowd to disperse, and His kingly bearing, calm authority, and quiet words halted their advance in the very act of seizing Him. They recognized His authority as greater than any earthly power and submitted to it. Abandoning their attempt, they obeyed His decisive dismissal and left Him.

To stop the movement and thwart the plan, He sent His disciples away by boat to Capernaum. Then He stood before the multitude Himself with grand dignity and dismissed them with few firm, decisive words of authority. Those words quelled the tumult and frustrated their design.

He then went alone into the mountain to pray. Feeling in His humanity the need of strength from God, He prayed that His disciples might be braced for duty and fortified for trial. This withdrawal belongs to the account that continues with the disciples crossing the lake and Jesus appearing to them on the water in the storm.

Spiritual Kingdom Not Temporal

He refused a temporal kingship and would not claim royal dignity or present Himself as a political Messiah, because He had not come to establish a temporal kingdom in Israel. His kingdom was spiritual and not of this world, a truth the disciples still failed to understand. He knew the crowd meant to seize Him by force and claim for Him the throne of David, and He discerned hidden dangers the multitude did not perceive.

Such exaltation as Israel's king would have produced violence and insurrection. The priests and rulers already saw Him turning the hearts of the people from themselves to Him, dreaded His growing influence, sought His life, and would have been made jealous. It would have hindered His spiritual kingdom, defeated the very work He designed to do, cut short His work before it was complete, and put an end to His instruction and deeds of teaching, mercy, and benevolence.

If He had displayed the glory He had with His Father, people would have seized Him and made Him king, obstructing His path to the cross. His divine glory was therefore concealed beneath His human appearance. His humble, obedient life in human form was directed toward His self-offering in death, fulfilled the type, and by perfectly obeying God's law redeemed Adam's failure and fall as an example for all.

His refusal and His teaching that His kingdom was spiritual disappointed people who expected national rule. When that teaching revealed that following Him required surrender, humility, and a self-sacrificing life rather than earthly freedom, rewards, and freedom from Roman rule, their enthusiasm cooled. His popularity began to wane, and they turned away.

The crowds who had been fed wanted to proclaim Him king of Israel, but their expectation did not reflect His mission. They desired a temporal kingdom, while His mission led not to worldly honor and a throne but to suffering and the cross.

Those who would now force Him onto David's throne would soon choose Barabbas and call for Jesus to be crucified, showing how fickle public favor was. They wanted Him on their own terms after the feeding miracle. Because the disciples had already seen people turn from Jesus, they were better prepared when the crowd that had hailed Him as king later reviled Him.

In this chapter Christ's plain testimony tested those who claimed to be His disciples and offended many. He presented truths that led people to decide for or against Him and revealed their true feelings. When truth exposed their faults they preferred human praise and turned away rather than accept reproof and reform, and those not wholly with Him would oppose Him at His trial.

Bread of Life Teaching

John 6:15 belongs to the teaching of the fifth and sixth chapters of John, and to the sixth chapter in particular, which holds instruction that is indeed the mystery of godliness. Studying those chapters and making their teachings a part of life by bringing them into daily experience gives the knowledge needed in days of peril to distinguish the true from the false, for the Scriptures testify of Christ and in them is eternal life. The chapter is to be studied for understanding dependence on Christ rather than on human beings for wisdom, strength, and guidance.

Its words have special reference to the spiritual meaning of God's Word: Christ is the living bread from heaven, and feeding on Christ and His words and receiving them is eating the bread of life, the very flesh and blood of Christ, which nourishes spiritual life. The living oracles are called the Son of God's flesh and blood even before His crucifixion. His work as the substitute for sin was the hope of ancient Israel, and the New Testament does not cast aside the Old; its light reflects back on earlier ages and gives significance to the Jewish economy, shedding light on the Old Testament.

The sixth chapter gives the definition of the righteousness of Christ: accepting that righteousness puts on the wedding garment and meets God's standard of character to be counted a fit guest for the marriage of humanity with divinity. It requires taking a firm stand for Christ and surrendering to God what is already His, rather than measuring character by human ideas or continuing in sin. Together with John 13, 14, 15, 16, and 17, the teaching in John 6 plainly expresses God's will for His people, given to cure dissension and seeking the highest place and to work unity and love in practical life, including practical obedience.

Turning the mind instead to worldly performances leaves no hunger for God and weakens faith, peace, joy, and hope. The choice of whom to serve is a matter of life or death, God's appointed means provide spiritual strength and comfort, and a divided heart cannot serve God. The verse belongs to the account of the loaves and fishes, Christ walking on the water, and His teaching that He is the Bread of Life. Through the feeding of the multitude Christ showed the disciples their work as His representatives to give the people the bread of life, for which they would need to seek spiritual food from God so they could supply the needs of others.