many of His disciples said,
The term "disciples" here includes not only the Twelve Apostles but also a broader group of followers who had been attracted to Jesus' ministry. This indicates that the teaching was not just difficult for outsiders or casual listeners but even for those who had been following Him closely. It highlights the distinction between true discipleship and superficial following.

“This is a difficult teaching.
The word "difficult" suggests that the teaching was hard to understand or accept, not necessarily because of its complexity, but because it challenged existing beliefs and expectations. In the Jewish context, the idea of consuming blood was particularly offensive due to dietary laws (Leviticus 17:10-14). This teaching required a shift from a literal to a spiritual understanding, which was a significant hurdle for many.

Who can accept it?”
This rhetorical question underscores the struggle to embrace Jesus' message. It reflects a broader theme in the Gospels where Jesus' teachings often separate true believers from those who are not fully committed. The question implies a sense of disbelief and resistance, which is a common human reaction to divine revelation that challenges personal or cultural norms. This moment foreshadows the eventual departure of some disciples, emphasizing the cost of true discipleship.

The crowd had just listened to Jesus declare, “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you” (John 6:53).

• These words followed the miraculous feeding of the five thousand (John 6:1-14) and His claim, “I am the bread of life” (John 6:35).

• The phrase highlights immediate response—no time for cooling off or further explanation.

• Similar swift reactions appear when Jesus calms the storm and the disciples “were terrified” (Mark 4:41), showing that divine revelation often jolts human expectations.

• Not just casual listeners, but those already identifying as followers—people who had walked with Him, witnessed miracles, and benefited from His teaching (John 6:2).

• Their number contrasts with the Twelve (John 6:67) and reminds us of the mixed multitude that left Egypt with Israel (Exodus 12:38) who later grumbled (Numbers 11:4-6).

• Scripture distinguishes between outward affiliation and genuine faith; see the parable of the soils where only one soil produces lasting fruit (Matthew 13:18-23).

• Verbalized doubt signals brewing unbelief; speech reveals the heart (Matthew 12:34).

• Their speaking out parallels Israel’s murmuring in the wilderness (Exodus 16:2-3) and the Pharisees’ grumbling over Jesus eating with sinners (Luke 15:2).

• Jesus allows the complaint to surface, then addresses it directly (John 6:61), underscoring His patience and desire to expose hidden unbelief.

• “Difficult” points to hardness, not obscurity; they understood what He claimed but found it objectionable.

• The call to “eat” His flesh offended Jewish sensibilities regarding blood (Leviticus 17:10-14).

• The difficulty lay in surrendering self-reliance and embracing a Messiah who would give His body for sin (Isaiah 53:5-6).

• Compare the rich young ruler who found Jesus’ call too hard and “went away sorrowful” (Matthew 19:22).

• The rhetorical question implies they themselves would not. Acceptance requires faith given by the Father (John 6:44).

• It echoes Nicodemus’ earlier bewilderment—“How can this be?” (John 3:9)—yet unlike Nicodemus, many retreat instead of pressing in.

• Scripture shows true disciples saying, “To whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68), while counterfeit disciples back away (1 John 2:19).

John 6:60 captures the moment when outward followers stumble over Jesus’ call to total reliance on His sacrificial body and blood. Their immediate, vocal rejection exposes a heart unwilling to submit, illustrating the divide between curiosity and committed belief. The passage warns that even after witnessing miracles, only those drawn by the Father will embrace Christ’s hard—but life-giving—truth.

This is an hard saying; who can hear it?--i.e., not hard to be understood, but hard to hear, a stumbling-block in the way of their faith. For the word itself, comp. Matthew 25:24. His meaning was, indeed, not read by them, but the literal meaning was painfully clear, and one to which they will not listen. (Comp. John 10:20.) They do not raise any formal objection to Him, but friends and companions who had talked together of the Teacher and His teaching before, talk again now, and many of them who have followed Him up to this point can follow Him no more.

(4) The twofold effect of these instructions. Verses 60-66.-

(a) The unbelief of some, which led him to predict the ascension of his humanity to where HE was before. Verse 60. - Many therefore of his disciples. This word is used in a wider sense than of the twelve. The synoptists tell us of much labour already done in this neighbourhood, and a considerable harvest of souls reaped, so far as a general acknowledgement of his claims and an expectation that he was the Messiah was involved: When they heard it (i.e. the entire instruction given in open synagogue), said, This is a hard saying (λόγος cannot or need not be confined to any one of these ῤήματα, but may easily embrace them all). The discourse was σχληρός, harsh, the opposite of μαλακός, a word used by the unprofitable servant of his master (Matthew 25:24). It does not mean "hard to be understood," but difficult to accept or be content with. Luthardt here reiterates his conviction that there is no reference in it to the death of Christ, and that the disciples were simply unwilling to accept the idea of his supreme claims and his constant return to the. eating and drinking of his flesh and blood and identification of this eternal life with participation in his corporality. But surely Meyer and Wcstcott, etc., are far nearer to the truth in referring the expression to their unwillingness to accept the bloody death of their Messiah, or to entrust themselves to a Divine Personality whose most distinctive act would be his sacrifice. This was the gross and terrible offence which made the cross a stumbling block to the Jew (see John 12:34; 1 Corinthians 1:23; Galatians 5:11; Matthew 16:2l, etc.). Who is able to listen to him? This seems not only to be the possible, but most probable, translation of the genitive with ἀκούω. It was the language, not of "the Jews," but of "the disciples."

Parallel Commentaries ...