Exodus 16:2-4,9-15
The whole congregation of the Israelites complained against Moses and Aaron in the
wilderness. The Israelites said to them, “If only we had died by the hand of the LORD in the
land of Egypt, when we sat by the fleshpots and ate our fill of bread; for you have brought
us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger.”
Then the LORD said to Moses, “I am going to rain bread from heaven for you, and each day
the people shall go out and gather enough for that day. In that way I will test them, whether
they will follow my instruction or not.”
Then Moses said to Aaron, “Say to the whole congregation of the Israelites, ‘Draw near to
the LORD, for he has heard your complaining.’“ And as Aaron spoke to the whole
congregation of the Israelites, they looked toward the wilderness, and the glory of
the LORD appeared in the cloud. The LORD spoke to Moses and said, “I have heard the
complaining of the Israelites; say to them, ‘At twilight you shall eat meat, and in the
morning you shall have your fill of bread; then you shall know that I am the LORD your
God.’“
In the evening quails came up and covered the camp; and in the morning there was a layer
of dew around the camp. When the layer of dew lifted, there on the surface of the
wilderness was a fine flaky substance, as fine as frost on the ground. When the Israelites
saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. Moses
said to them, “It is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat.”
The Psalm
Psalm 78:23-29
Attendite, popule
23 So he commanded the clouds above *
and opened the doors of heaven.
24 He rained down manna upon them to eat *
and gave them grain from heaven.
25 So mortals ate the bread of angels; *
he provided for them food enough.
26 He caused the east wind to blow in the heavens *
and led out the south wind by his might.
27 He rained down flesh upon them like dust *
and winged birds like the sand of the sea.
28 He let it fall in the midst of their camp *
and round about their dwellings.
29 So they ate and were well filled, *
for he gave them what they craved.
The Epistle
Ephesians 4:1-16
I therefore, the prisoner in the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of the calling to which
you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one
another in love, making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling,
one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through
all and in all. But each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ's gift.
Therefore it is said,
"When he ascended on high he made captivity itself a captive;
he gave gifts to his people."
(When it says, "He ascended," what does it mean but that he had also descended into the
lower parts of the earth? He who descended is the same one who ascended far above all the
heavens, so that he might fill all things.) The gifts he gave were that some would be
apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for
the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of
the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full
stature of Christ. We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every
wind of doctrine, by people's trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. But
speaking the truth in love, we must grow up in every way into him who is the head, into
Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every ligament with which
it is equipped, as each part is working properly, promotes the body's growth in building
itself up in love.
The Gospel
John 6:24-35
The next day, when the people who remained after the feeding of the five thousand saw that
neither Jesus nor his disciples were there, they themselves got into the boats and went to
Capernaum looking for Jesus.
When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you
come here?” Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, you are looking for me, not
because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. Do not work for the food
that perishes, but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man will give
you. For it is on him that God the Father has set his seal.” Then they said to him, “What
must we do to perform the works of God?” Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God,
that you believe in him whom he has sent.” So they said to him, “What sign are you going
to give us then, so that we may see it and believe you? What work are you performing? Our
ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven
to eat.’” Then Jesus said to them, “Very truly, I tell you, it was not Moses who gave you the
bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. For the
bread of God is that which comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” They said
to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.”
Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and
whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”
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