King James Bible
"As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me."
Jesus establishes his divine mission and authority, emphasizing that God the Father—the source of all life—has commissioned him. This sending reflects the intimate relationship within the Trinity and validates Jesus' earthly ministry. Christ declares his complete dependence on and unity with the Father for his existence and power. This phrase reveals the mystical union between Father and Son, where Jesus draws his very life from the Father's being. Using the shocking metaphor of consumption, Jesus refers to spiritual appropriation through faith, likely connecting to his earlier bread of life discourse. In the context of John 6, this eating represents believing in Christ and receiving him fully into one's life. The believer's relationship with Christ mirrors Christ's relationship with the Father—a chain of divine life flowing from Father to Son to believer. This promise guarantees that those who spiritually feed on Christ will derive their spiritual vitality from him.