For this Sunday: John 6:1-21 Proper 12 B / Lectionary 17 B: John 6:1-21 Exegetical notes

[Peter Bergstresser]

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Lectionary 17 B
Proper 12 B


John 6:1-21
Proper 12 B / Lectionary 17 B: John 6:1-21 Exegetical notes

This week begins a series of five lessons from John 6.
Proper 12 / Lectionary 17 B—John 6:1-21
Proper 13 / Lectionary 18 B—John 6:24-35
Proper 14 / Lectionary 19 B—John 6:35, 41-51
Proper 15 / Lectionary 20 B—John 6:51-58
Proper 16 / Lectionary 21 B—John 6:56-69

This chapter begins the second major ministry section in John
(6:1-10:42). There are similarities to the beginning of the first
major ministry section (2:1-5:47). Both sections start with miracles
in Galilee that show God’s abundant grace and Jesus’ divine glory:

In 2:1-11, Jesus turns a whole lot of water into an abundance of wine,
which is “the first of his signs,” in which “revealed his
glory” (2:11)

In 6:1-15, Jesus turns five loaves and two fish into an abundance of
food for thousands. This is followed by 6:16-21, Jesus walking on the
water, which is primarily a theophany—an occasion where Jesus’ divine
glory is revealed.

O’Day (John, The New Interpreter’s Bible) suggests: “It is probably no
accident that the two inaugural miracles involve wine and bread, the
sacramental symbols of God’s grace in Jesus” [p. 591].

She also gives this brief outline of John 6 [p. 592]:
* Miracle (with crowd) – 6:1-15
* Miracle (with disciples alone) – 6:16-21
* Transition – 6:22-24
* Dialogue (crowd) – 6:25-34
* Discourse (crowd and disciples) – 6:35-59
* Conclusion (disciples alone) – 6:60-71

The feeding of the 5000 is the only miracle story found in all four
gospels. Matthew and Mark also include the feeding of the 4000; so
there are six feeding miracles that can be compared and contrasted.
Brown (John, Anchor Bible) does a detailed study of the six accounts.
He concludes about John’s account: “There is one logical explanation
for all of these features, omissions, additions, and parallels,
namely, that the evangelist did not copy from the Synoptics but had an
independent tradition of the multiplication which was like, but not
the same as, the Synoptic traditions” [p. 239].

FEEDING THE 5000 -- PART 1: INTRODUCTION (vv. 1-4)

These verses serve as an introduction to the whole chapter. They put
Jesus at the Sea of Galilee. They surround Jesus with a crowd of
people. They remind the reader about Jesus’ signs. They put Jesus on a
mountain. They place the following events and discourse the Passover
Festival.

I can make sense of some of these introductory details, but not all of
them.

The large crowd, (vv. 2 & 5, see also vv. 22 & 24) contains
“disciples” who do not believe! (6:64) and who will not longer follow
Jesus (6:66). It also includes “the twelve” (6:67, 70, 71 -- the first
time the term is used in reference to disciples), who will not go
away.

Following because of signs (σημεῖον - sēmeion) will prove to be
insufficient. This crowd has seen signs of his healing (v. 2). They
will participate in the sign of the feeding, which leads them to
proclaim that Jesus is “truly a prophet” (v. 14), but the crowd looks
for Jesus, not because the “sign” has led them to faith, but because
they ate their fill (v. 26). Apparently the signs that they have seen
are not enough to lead them to believe (v. 30). As I pointed out in
the preceding paragraph, many of the large crowd who followed because
of signs will leave when they can’t accept Jesus’ teaching.

Can we ask—or should we ask—those in our churches, “Why do you follow
Jesus?” “Why are you here?” Are there answers, such as, “because of
the good feeling I get,” that suggests that they are like the crowd
who follow because “they ate their fill”? How do we grow from just
consuming disciples to contributing apostles. (I’m using these terms
purposely: “disciples” literally means “learners”—those taking in;
“apostles” literally means “those sent out.”) Especially with a high
sacramental understanding of worship and of the means of grace, we
have to be “consumers”—Jesus weekly enters our lives through our
mouths and through our ears. However, at some point we also need to
see ourselves as active parts of the body, doing ministry in Christ’s
name, seeing the church not only as a place to get something, but also
as a vehicle where one’s gifts and abilities can be used for others.
In the sacrament, we receive the body of Christ, so that we can be the
body of Christ sent out to minister in the world.

An article in Word & World (Summer 2006) called “’Stewards of God’s
Mysteries’” Stewarding as a Model for Congregational Ministry,” by
Rolf A. Jacobson, addresses these issues. Some quotes:

In today’s culture, the membership model leads people to construe
the congregation as similar to a club that people join of their own
free will for the purpose of having their needs met. (p. 250)

Thus the consumerist stance of shopping for an organization in which
your needs will be met might be replaced with a deeper, more biblical
model in which church membership is more than voluntary association;
it is a call from God. When I served as a parish pastor, one of my
responsibilities was to coordination outreach and new-member programs.
I recall being embarrassed sometimes when I had to ask a visitor, “Do
you want to join?” It felt wrong, almost as if I were serving as the
membership director of some sort of spirituality club, rather than as
a pastor of Christ’s church. Sometimes I felt as if I were supposed to
be selling the virtues of the congregation, communicating to
prospective members all of the wonderful programs that we had that
would meet their needs (“... and over here, at no additional charge,
next to our free child care, you’ll find our adult education ...”). I
now believe that a more faithful way to approach prospective members
would have been to invite them to discern whether God was calling them
to become a fellow steward in our congregation’s shared ministry, to
pray with them about their response to God’s call to become a fellow
steward of God’s mission. (pp. 255-6)

I offer these quotes because I think that we often consider ourselves
to be the crowd sitting on the grass, receiving food from Jesus.
However, as I noted above, they were not believers. They come to the
wrong conclusion about Jesus. When Jesus wasn’t meeting their needs,
they stop following. I think that we need to see ourselves as the
disciples—those who were called by Jesus to work. They had to make the
people sit down. Although it doesn’t say it in John, it is clear in
the synoptics that it is the disciples who distribute the food. (My
hunch is that the way Jesus distributed the food [6:11] in John was
through the disciples.) Could you imagine the time and effort it would
take to feed 5000+ people? At the end, Jesus tells the disciples,
“Gather up the fragments left over so that nothing may be lost.”

The role of the disciples—the believers—in this story is not to be
just consumers (I presume that they ate, too,) but stewards/
distributers of the bounty Jesus provided.

John’s account of Jesus’ discourse following the miracle connects
these events with Passover and remembering the Exodus. God provided
the people with manna in the wilderness (Ex 16:1-36; Num 11:7-9; John
6:31, 49), yet the people complained (γογγύζω - goggyzō in LXX) about
it (Num 11:1-6), so that God will not allow any of the complainers
into the promised land (Num 14:26-30). Similarly, there is a whole lot
of complaining (γογγύζω - goggyzō) after Jesus has fed this crowd
(John 6:41, 43, 61), and some will not (cannot?) listen to his words
of eternal life.

Malina & Rohrbaugh (Social-Science Commentary on the Gospel of John)
make this statement about the mountain:

Specifically, the location was “the” mountain. The mountain in
Mediterranean culture was a high outside inhabited and cultivated
space, that is, outside the city, the village, or the town. A
mountaintop was a well-attested place for communing with God (like
Sinai in the Exodus). Since the areas outside towns and villages were
considered chaotic and uncontrolled by humans, however, they were
believed to be inhabited by various spirits or demons. Meals did not
normally take place there. People did not picnic (or do recreational
swimming or go mountain climbing) in the first-century Mediterranean
world. [p. 126]

FEEDING THE 5000 -- PART 2: MIRACLE STORY (vv. 5-15)

FROM WHERE?

Jesus asks Philip, usually an obscure disciple, “From where (πόθεν -
pothen) shall we buy bread so that these might eat?” (v. 5) Malina &
Rohrbaugh suggest that because they were seeking to purchase food
indicates that they were away from kin from whom they would have
normally sought food [p. 126].

Pothen (πόθεν) is a significant word in the Gospel of John. It comes
from ποῦ (pou) = “where?” + θεν (then) = “(motion) from (a place).” It
is translated with “from where?” or “whence?” or “where?”. As O’Day
states: “The whence of Jesus’ gifts is an important christological
question in the fourth Gospel (e.g., 2:9; 4:11); if one knows the
source of Jesus’ gifts, one comes close to recognizing Jesus’ identity
(cf. 4:10)” [p. 594].

The instances of this word in John are found below.

1:48 Nathanael asked him, “Where did you get to know me?” Jesus
answered, “I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.”

2:9 When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did
not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the
water knew),

3:8 The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but
you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with
everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

4:11 The woman said to him, “Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is
deep. Where do you get that living water?

6:5 When he looked up and saw a large crowd coming toward him, Jesus
said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?”

7:27 Yet we know where this man is from, but when the Messiah comes,
no one will know where he is from.”

7:28-29 Then Jesus cried out as he was teaching in the temple, “You
know me, and you know where I am from. I have not come on my own. But
the one who sent me is true, and you do not know him. I know him,
because I am from him, and he sent me.”

8:14 Jesus answered, “Even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony
is valid because I know where I have come from and where I am going,
but you do not know where I come from or where I am going.

9:28-29 Then they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciples, but we
are disciples of Moses We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as
for this man, we do not know where he comes from.”

9:30-33 The man answered, “Here is an astonishing thing! You do not
know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. [We know that God
does not listen to sinners, but he does listen to one who worships him
and obeys his will. Never since the world began has it been heard that
anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind. If this man were not
from God, he could do nothing.”

19:9 He entered his headquarters again and asked Jesus, “Where are you
from?” But Jesus gave him no answer.

NOTE: The first five instances concern the origin of things:
knowledge, wine, wind, water, food. The next six instances concern the
origin of Jesus/Messiah.

The “origin” of Jesus and his deeds is a theme throughout the gospel.
From chapter 1, we, the readers know that Jesus—the Word—was with God
and was God. Jesus comes from God. He acts with the power of God—to
know the unknowable, the transform water to wine, to transform five
loaves and two fish into an abundant feast.

THE TEST

Why does John tell us that Jesus was testing Philip? The only other
time this word (πειράζω - peirazō) is used in John it is the scribes
and Pharisees who ask a “testing” question about the woman caught in
adultery so that they might accuse Jesus (8:6).

I don’t think that Jesus is asking the question to “tempt” Philip
(another way of translating the word), but to reveal his inadequate
faith in the power of God. The “testing motif” is one that is
frequently found in the Old Testament, especially in regards to the
Exodus, e.g., Exodus 20:20; Deuteronomy 8:2-3.

In what ways does Jesus/God test us today? Are such testing necessary
in order to strengthen our faith and trust in the power of God?

Yet, we need to live in the paradox of believing God’s power to do the
impossible and the reality of the world around us. Congregations can
get into financial trouble when they create “faith budgets”—expecting
God to miraculously produce sufficient funds. (I’ve known pastors who
have received only partial checks because “faith” didn’t bring in
enough money to pay a full salary during that pay period. When does
“budgeting by faith” become an excuse for deficient stewardship
teaching and poor financial planning?) On the other hand, churches
also get into spiritual trouble when they totally rely on business
practices devoid of any sense of God’s presence or power in their
midst.

THE CHILD

The word παιδάριον (paidarion) in v. 9 translated “boy” in NRSV is a
diminutive form of παῖς (pais), implying a young boy. This is its only
occurrence in the NT. However, another diminutive form of παῖς,
παιδίον (paidion,) is used in the synoptics of one with exemplary
faith (Mt 18:2-5; 19:13-14 and par.).

Could a similar model be presented here? A little boy, who doesn’t
know any better, offers what he has, and it is more than enough.

A few years ago, some friends were in a large city. They drove by a
park that had numerous homeless people. Their young daughter, around 4
years old, at the time, asked about the people. Answered the mother:
“They are homeless. They have no place to sleep. They have nothing to
eat.” “Well, why don’t we feed them?” asked the daughter in all her
innocence. “Why don’t we feed them?”

Philip rationalizes that feeding the crowd is an impossible task. “We
don’t have enough money.”

William Easum (Sacred Cows Make Gourmet Burgers) begins chapter 1 with
this statement: “Established churches worship at the feet of the
sacred cow of CONTROL” [p. 9]. A powerful controlling statement that I
have often heard at council meetings is, “We can’t afford it.” (Isn’t
that what Philip said?)

A workshop I attended a number of years ago, at the presenter’s
congregation new ideas for ministry are strongly encouraged, following
these three steps:

(1) The idea
(2) Who will do it
(3) How it will be financed

The financial aspect comes third. If the idea is good; if people are
willing to make it happen; then they seek ways of funding the idea—
general budget? special offerings? user fees? etc. He said that a
third of their programs are financed outside of the budget. They won’t
let “We can’t afford it” control their thinking and planning and
ministry. Money is not step one, but ministry. Can we believe that if
God is behind the ministry proposal, the money will follow?

An interesting approach to this text would be to think how a
congregation might try and solve the problem of feeding a crowd of
people today. (1) We can’t afford it, so we’ll do nothing. (2) We’ll
form a committee to look at different options. (3) We’ll call the
publishing house or synod office to see if they have any study
materials dealing with feeding the hungry. Etc.

A question that Easum asks in various ways throughout the book is:
“What gifts do you bring to the Body of Christ that, if we equip you
to use them, the body of Christ will be more whole and so will you?”

Five loaves made of barley and two fish isn’t much, but it was more
than enough. Perhaps solving problems in congregation needs to begin
with prayer about what (little) we can offer from our gifts and
resources. (This relates to the consuming/contributing or stewardship
difference I noted earlier.)

THE BREAD AND FISH

Only John has the word “barley” (κριθίνος - krithinos). Brown (John)
writes: “Wheat bread was more common; barley loaves were cheaper and
served for the poor. Luke 11:5 seems to indicate that three loaves
were looked on as a meal for one person” [p. 233]. The offering of
bread was a meager offering of poor bread.

Only John has this particular word for “fish” (ὀψάριον - opsarion) in
the NT. To again quote Brown: Opsarion is a double diminutive of opson
(cooked food eaten with bread); the meaning became more specifically
‘fish,’ especially ‘dried or preserved fish’” [p. 233]. Perhaps
related to the poor bread, this was not fresh fish that was presented.

The same word for fish is used in 21: 9, 10, 13; probably an intended
connection by the addendum writer. However, some other LXX connections
are interesting.

The only other possible occurrence of ὀψάριον(opsarion) is Tobit 2:2
(some LXX versions have ὄψον - opson). Tobit has an abundance of food
and he wants to share it with a poor person; but there has been a
murder, so the planned festival feast with the poor turned into a meal
of mourning. So shall Jesus feast on the hillside turn into mourning
when (1) the crowd is unable to hear his words and (2) when there will
be a death.

Numbers 11, which talks about the people’s grumbling and the gift of
manna uses a form of the word (ὄψος -opsos) in v. 22 (v. 23 also
quoted): “Are there enough flocks and herds to slaughter for them? Are
there enough fish in the sea to catch for them?” The LORD said to
Moses, “Is the Lord’s power limited? Now you shall see whether my word
will come true for you or not.”

Moses sounds a lot like Philip.

THE BLESSING AND DISTRIBUTION

There are similarities between Jesus’ thanksgiving (εὐχαρίζω -
eucharizō) and holy communion, but not as strong in John as in the
synoptics.

As I noted above, in John, Jesus distributes the food. In the
synoptics Jesus gives the loaves to the disciples who distribute it.
The synoptics make better historical sense. It would take a long, long
time for one person to distribute food to 5000+ people. However, I
believe that John seeks to present more of a picture of the Christ of
faith than what the historical Jesus actually did on earth. Just as
the manna in the wilderness came directly from God, so this miracle
meal is presented as coming directly from the very hand of Jesus—even
if it is historically unlikely.

AS MUCH AS THEY WANTED!

I am intrigued by this last line in v. 11 and the fact that they all
were satisfied (or even beyond satisfied—full = ἐμπίμπλημι -
empimplēmi v. 12). How often have we stressed the difference between
“wants” and “needs”? Here Jesus gives the people what they wanted! The
amount of food goes beyond what they needed. In addition, we are never
told that the people were hungry or in need of food. It was Jesus who
decided that they should eat (v. 5). What if we took that approach to
more frequently Holy Communion? It’s not about what the people want or
need. It’s about what Jesus wants to personally give.

This would support the theory that John is presenting God’s abundant
grace in these verses, which is more than we need or even want. Is it
possible to get too much of God’s grace? Why would anyone not want to
receive God’s grace in Holy Communion more frequently? Although some
congregation can appear to be stingy with God’s grace – not willing to
share it with others. They mistakenly assume that if we give it away,
we’ll run out of it. I like the image of candlelight services: by
sharing our light with others, our light doesn’t get any dimmer, but
the whole building is brighter. I think that works with sharing the
gospel, too.

The “gathering” commanded by Jesus and carried out by the disciples
wasn’t so much the left over scraps, but of the surplus food that they
crowd couldn’t eat.

Brown (John) notes that the word for “fragments” (κλάσμα - klasma) is
used in the Didache (9:3, 4) for the eucharistic bread [p. 234]. The
literally meaning of the word (from κλάω - klaō) is “that which is
broken”. “Breaking bread” was an early term for the eucharist and an
action of Jesus in the synoptics at both the feeding story and in the
upper room.

THE PEOPLE’S RESPONSE

What “sign” did the people see? That Jesus was acting as almighty God
by providing food in the wilderness? That their bellies were full of
food from this generous “man”?

Their comment: “This is indeed the prophet who is coming into the
world” is ambiguous. It may be a proper response to Jesus or it may be
an inadequate understanding of the Messiah.

There was an expectation of a prophet like Moses, based on Deut.
18:15-18. Given the connection with Passover and food in the
wilderness, this connection is likely. However, v. 15 removes the
ambiguity of v. 14; the people’s response cannot be trusted. They want
to “snatch” Jesus—“take him by force” to make him king. Malina &
Rohrbaugh (Social-Science Commentary on the Gospel of John) remind us:
“Kings are not simply a political equivalent of a ‘president’ with
rights of hereditary succession. Rather, kings have total control of
and responsibility for their subjects; they are expected to provide
them fertility, peace, and abundance.” [p. 126]

I think that an exploration of ways that we want to force Jesus into
our image of a savior could be a fruitful approach to this section of
the text. What type of “savior” do we try to make Jesus? Is it Jesus’
“job” to completely take care of us—like a king for his subjects? Is
it Jesus’ “job” to leave us alone so that we can do whatever we want?
Is it Jesus’ “job” to save us and send us out on a mission? We are
beggars who have been fed and we are to tell other beggars where to
receive food.

Although I raised the issue of wants and needs above; I also realize
that meeting the people’s wants was totally at Jesus’ initiative. He
wasn’t at the beck and call of the people to do what they wanted. When
they want to make him king, he leaves. He will not let them do to him
what they want.

This thought just struck me: I’ve often heard (and used) the phrase:
“If God seems far away, who moved?” The implication being that it
wasn’t God who moved away, but us. However, in v. 15, it is Jesus who
withdraws from the crowd. We could argue that his movement was caused
by the people’s attempt to make him fit into their messianic mold;
rather than the people fitting into Jesus’ call of discipleship. The
people were doing what they thought would be good for everyone, not
something evil. Could there be times in our lives that we do or think
things we think are good that could cause God to withdraw from us?

WALKING ON WATER (vv. 16-21)

Some quotes from O’Day (John, The New Interpreter’s Bible)

In Matt 14:22 and Mark 6:45, Jesus orders the disciples to cross
the lake, but in John the disciples go on their own initiative. In
Matthew and Mark, Jesus watches the disciples’ boat cross the rough
sea (Matt 14:24; Mark 6:48), whereas in John the journey is narrated
from the disciples’ perspective. In John, therefore, the focus of the
story is on the disciples’ experience, and the story offers the reader
a chance to share in that experience. ... [pp. 595-596]

Jesus’ words in v. 20 are the key to understanding the miracle of
6:16-21. The words “I am; do not be afraid” are found in all three
accounts (Matt 14:27; Mark 6:50) and hence belong to the common fund
of oral tradition, but they have a particular meaning in the
christological context of the Fourth Gospel. A good case can be made
that ego eimi should not be translated as simple identification
formula (“It is I,” NIV and NRSV), but should be translated as an
absolute: “I am”. As Jesus walks across the water, he identifies
himself to his disciples with the divine name, “ I AM.” The background
for this use of the divine name can be found in the LXX of Second
Isaiah (Isa 43:25; 51:12; 52:6). The Fourth Evangelist portrays Jesus
as speaking as Yahweh speaks in Second Isaiah. This reading of ego
eimi is supported by Jesus’ second words to his disciples, “Do not be
afraid.” These words, too, are spoken by Yahweh in Second Isaiah. They
are the words of the salvation oracle, words of comfort spoken to end
the distress of God’s people (e.g., Isa 43:1; 44:2, 8). “Do not be
afraid” is also a standard element of theophanies (e.g., Gen 15:1;
Matt 28:5; Luke 2:10). Jesus’ words in v. 20 confirm that his walking
on water is a theophany and that this “manifestation of the divine” is
the source of the disciples’ fear. [pp. 596]

Note also that there is no mention of Jesus’ calming the storm in this
account. In fact, the “rough sea” and “strong wind” are not presented
as a deadly storm for the disciples at sea. They are afraid, not
because of the sea or of an approaching death, but because of the
approaching Jesus! What would make people afraid or Jesus? sinful
behaviors? inadequate faith? misplaced faith?

Jesus walks on the sea. The same words are used of God in Job 9:8b
LXX: “and walking as on ground on sea.” In a more figurative sense,
God makes a path through the sea (Isa 43:16; Pss 77:19).

Malina & Rohrbaugh (Social-Science Commentary on the Gospel of John)
add some colorful language: “The sea is an essentially different
entity from water. To walk on the sea is to trample on a being that
can engulf people with its waves, swallow them in its deep, and
support all sorts of living beings” [p. 128].

Perhaps, in opposition to the crowds inadequate responses: He is a
prophet, let’s make him our king—John, again reveals to us and the
disciples, that Jesus is much more than a king, he is divine.

I have heard that the popular heresies against Jesus have changed in
the last generation. Whereas our parents and grandparents tended
towards thinking of Jesus as too divine and not human enough; our
generation seems more likely to think of Jesus as too human and
lacking in his divinity.

While it is an imperfect analogy; I think that there are some
connection with church architecture and liturgy. The older-style, high-
ceiling, Gothic-like worship spaces offers a greater sense of the
transcendent God, as do the more formal, high-church liturgies in such
structures. A few years ago, I attended a magnificent service in the
chapel at Valparaiso University with outstanding music by the Lutheran
Summer Music Program staff and students. The awe-some presence
almighty God was in that experience.

The newer, more living-room-like worship spaces offers a greater sense
of the “buddy Jesus” God, as do the more informal liturgies in such
structures. I lead worship in such a place. Hopefully, the people
experience a sense of the friendly, loving Jesus through what happens
in that space.

We need to see in the human Jesus the power of almighty God; but we
need to accept God on God’s terms; not ours—God comes as the human
Jesus from Nazareth. God comes in a small bite of bread and a sip of
wine. God comes in the gathering in Jesus’ name of sinful people.

Perhaps similarly to the feeding story; the disciples did not need
Jesus to come to them; but Jesus gives them what he knows they need;
but when they want to take him into the boat; something happens to
thwart their plans with Jesus.

SUMMARY

O’Day (John, The New Interpreter’s Bible) emphasizes the grace and
glory aspects of these stories. She ends with this paragraph:

These two miracle stories raise important questions about the
balance between grace and glory. In 6:1-15, the heart of the story is
Jesus’ grace, Jesus’ extraordinary, unprecedented gift. Yet, the crowd
is intrigued by the possibilities of glory, and they want to force
Jesus to be king. John 6:16-21 narrates the most dramatic self-
revelation of Jesus to this point in the Gospel; yet it occurs in the
solitude of his disciples’ fears. Jesus will not allow his grace to be
controlled by the crowd’s desire for glory, and so he hides himself.
But he will not hold back his glory from those in need, because that
is his mission: to make God known (1:18). How believers hold the grace
and glory of Jesus in balance is critical to the life of faith. The
grace is destroyed if one tries to harness it for false power and
authority, and the glory is lost if one does not recognize its
presence in the quiet places of Jesus’ grace. Both the grace and the
glory are essential to God’s revelation in Jesus: “and we have seen
his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and
truth” (1:14). [pp. 597-598]

Brian Stoffregen
Faith Lutheran Church, 2215 S 8th Avenue, Yuma, AZ 85364
e-mail: brian.st...@gmail.com
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[Christine Iverson]

Thank you!!