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The Spirit of Prophecy Volume 2
whose blood would preserve them from the wrath of a sin-hating God,
and they refuse his offers of mercy.
The miracle Jesus had performed in feeding the multitude, fur-
nished him a forcible figure by which to illustrate his work upon earth.
He declared that, as temporal bread imparts health and strength to the
body, so will faith in Christ, and obedience to his teachings, give spiri-
tual vigor to the soul, and life everlasting. But the Jews, determined
to misinterpret his words, now engaged in angry contention, asking,
“How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” They affected to under-
stand his words in the same literal sense as did Nicodemus, when he
asked, “How can a man be born when he is old?” They comprehended
the meaning of Jesus, but were not willing to acknowledge it. They
thought it a favorable opportunity to prejudice the people against him,
by presenting his words to them in the most unfavorable light. “Then
Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the
flesh of the Son of Man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.
Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I
will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my
blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood,
dwelleth in me, and I in him. As the living Father hath sent me, and I
live by the Father, so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me. This
is that bread which came down from Heaven; not as your fathers did
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eat manna, and are dead; he that eateth of this bread shall live forever.”
The Jews appeared to be horrified at these sayings of Christ. Their
law strictly forbade them to taste blood, and they construed his lan-
guage into a sacrilegious speech, and contended and dised over his
words among themselves. Jesus gave his disciples, and the people,
lessons which they could not at the time fully comprehend, because of
their moral darkness. Many things which his followers did not fully
understand when he uttered them, were made plain by subsequent
events. His words were a stay to their hearts when he walked no more
with them.
Even the disciples murmured at these last words of Jesus. They
said, “This is a hard saying; who can hear it?” The Saviour heard their
complaints and answered them: “Doth this offend you? What and if
ye shall see the Son of Man ascend up where he was before? It is
the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing; the words that I
speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” Thus he instructed