John 6:28 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Then they said to him, "What must we do, to be doing the works of God?"

NIV: Then they asked him, "What must we do to do the works God requires?"

NASB: Therefore they said to Him, 'What are we to do, so that we may accomplish the works of God?'

CSB: "What can we do to perform the works of God?" they asked.

NLT: They replied, 'We want to perform God’s works, too. What should we do?'

KJV: Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?

NKJV: Then they said to Him, “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?”

The crowd which followed Jesus into Capernaum was seeking a repeat of the prior day's miracle. There, Jesus fed more than five thousand people with a tiny amount of food. Yet Jesus knows their interest is inherently shallow and selfish (John 6:26). The people are hung up on material things: entertainment and handouts. Christ's discourse in this passage clarifies that His mission is not about bread or recreation. All material things pass away eventually, so there is no lasting value in pursuing them. Rather, our focus ought to be on heavenly things, which last forever (John 6:27; Matthew 6:19–20).

In the prior verse, Jesus uses language which is extremely specific and would have been familiar to a Jewish audience. The term "Son of Man" comes from a prophecy given by Daniel (Daniel 7:13–14) and points to the long-promised Messiah. Jesus' use of this term, in reference to Himself, is both deliberate and controversial.

After being told to work for this kind of imperishable food, the people ask a question which echoes their preoccupation with ritual, works, and tradition (Romans 10:2–4). Jesus' response (John 6:29) will contradict this sense of works-based salvation. This leads to an indignant reply from the crowd.

John 6:22–40 describes the initial aftermath of Jesus' feeding of thousands the previous day. The crowd's actual desire is for another supernatural spectacle and more free food. In this passage, Christ begins to explain the true meaning behind His miracle and His ministry. This includes the first of seven ''I am'' statements in the gospel of John—moments where Jesus declares His own divinity. Jesus clarifies that physical things such as bread are symbols of a spiritual truth. In the following segment, the crowd will stop seeking and start complaining.

In chapter 6, Jesus feeds thousands of people who had been following Him. He does this by miraculously dividing the contents of a small meal, leaving more left over than He had to begin with. At first, the crowd is amazed and they enthusiastically praise Jesus. After sending the disciples across the Sea of Galilee and rescuing them from a storm by walking on the water, Jesus once again addresses the crowd. This time, He emphasizes the spiritual lesson behind His prior miracle. In response, most of those who had been praising Jesus turn away in disappointment.

John chapter 6 occurs some months after the events of chapter 5, bringing the narrative to about one year prior to Jesus' crucifixion. As with the rest of the gospel of John, the purpose is not to repeat information from the other three Gospels, but to focus on Jesus' status as God incarnate. This chapter continues to expand the list of Jesus' miraculous signs and the witnesses to His divine nature. Here, Jesus also gives the first of seven ''I am'' statements found in this gospel. Chapter 7 will once again skip ahead to a major public step in Jesus' path to the cross.

The disciple John wrote the gospel of John decades after the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke were written. The author assumes that a reader is already familiar with the content of these other works. So, John presents a different perspective, with a greater emphasis on meaning. John uses seven miracles—which he calls "signs"— to prove that Jesus is, in fact, God incarnate. Some of the most well-known verses in the Bible are found here. None is more famous than the one-sentence summary of the gospel found in John 3:16.