φάγω (phágō) is a verb for eating. In John, it can describe ordinary eating, misunderstanding about Jesus' food, the crowd's satisfaction after the sign, Israel's memory of manna, and Jesus' bread-of-life teaching.
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Full entry for φάγω (G5315) · Open the biblical lexicon
φάγω (phágō) is a verb for eating. In John, it can describe ordinary eating, misunderstanding about Jesus' food, the crowd's satisfaction after the sign, Israel's memory of manna, and Jesus' bread-of-life teaching.
The BSB source-word alignment has 93 aligned rows for this entry. Common renderings include to eat (26), eat (8), ate (6), [something] to eat (4), you eat (3).
The source-word alignment first shows this entry at Matthew 6:25. Its strongest book concentrations include Luke (21), Mark (16), John (15), Matthew (13).
G5315 is a verb for eating. In John, it can describe ordinary eating, misunderstanding about Jesus' food, the crowd's satisfaction after the sign, Israel's memory of manna, and Jesus' bread-of-life teaching. The word is not a technical sacramental term every time it appears. Its force comes from the scene. In John 4, Jesus turns the disciples' concern about food toward doing the Father's will.
In John 6, eating moves from loaves and manna to receiving the living bread Jesus gives for the life of the world. In John 18, Passover eating exposes religious concern in the shadow of Jesus' trial. The word helps teachers distinguish bodily need, sign-seeking appetite, and faithful reception of Christ.
G5315 moves through ordinary eating, misunderstood food, manna memory, bread-of-life promise, and Passover concern. John uses eating language to test whether people receive the sign or stop at the meal.
Meanwhile the disciples urged Him, “Rabbi, eat something.”
The disciples urge Jesus to eat something. The ordinary request prepares the contrast with Jesus' food in doing the Father's will.
Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, it is not because you saw these signs that you are looking for Me, but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.
Jesus says the crowd seeks Him because they ate the loaves and were filled. Eating exposes appetite that can miss the sign.
Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, as it is written: ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’”
The crowd recalls the fathers eating manna in the wilderness. The word carries Israel's bread memory into the bread-of-life discourse.
This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that anyone may eat of it and not die.
Jesus identifies the bread from heaven as bread one may eat and not die. Eating language turns toward life that ordinary bread cannot give.
I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And this bread, which I will give for the life of the world, is My flesh.”
Jesus says whoever eats this bread will live forever, and the bread He gives is His flesh for the life of the world.
Then they led Jesus away from Caiaphas into the Praetorium. By now it was early morning, and the Jews did not enter the Praetorium, to avoid being defiled and unable to eat the Passover.
Those bringing Jesus to Pilate avoid defilement so they can eat the Passover. The concern for ritual readiness stands beside the trial of the true Passover Lamb.
BSB source-word alignment connects this entry to exact verse rows, English rendering, source form, transliteration, and parsing.
How English Renders ItA compact distribution from source-word alignment before the full evidence tables.
Greek word. to eat (literally or figuratively)
:--eat, meat.
Textus Receptus witness, full corpusGreek token appearances from Scrivener 1894 Textus Receptus in the full New Testament corpus.
16 of 97 Greek text appearances shown. Linked morphology labels have verse guides.
I eat
Read verseI eat
Read verseI eat
Read verseI eat
Read verseI eat
Read verseI eat
Read verseI eat
Read verseI eat
Read verseI eat
Read verseI eat
Read verseI eat
Read verseI eat
Read verseI eat
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Read verseI eat
Read verseFull New Testament corpus: 260 chapters, 7,957 verses, 140,628 tokens. Data source: honza/textus-receptus (data only), with authority check against byztxt/greektext-textus-receptus.
How this verb appears across 85 occurrences in the NT discourse index (MACULA Greek SBLGNT).
Aspect reflects grammatical form — not authorial emphasis. Participles and infinitives are verbal adjectives and nouns respectively.
Clause data: MACULA Greek (Clear Bible, CC BY 4.0) · SBLGNT (Logos/SBL, CC BY 4.0)
φάγω is built from this root:
Compound and idiomatic phrases that include this word. Follow a link to study the phrase and how its parts work together.
G5315 matters because John refuses to let eating remain only at the level of appetite. Jesus cares for bodies, feeds the crowd, and speaks in settings where food is real. Yet the Gospel repeatedly presses beyond the meal. In John 4, the disciples think about food while Jesus speaks of doing the Father's work. In John 6, the crowd can eat loaves and still fail to see the sign.
Jesus then speaks of eating the living bread in a way that demands faith in His self-giving life. In John 18, Passover eating appears while Jesus is being handed over. The word teaches readers to receive the gift, not merely consume the provision.
John.6.51
G5315 is a common verb for eating. In John, its meaning remains ordinary at the lexical level, while the discourse supplies theological depth through bread, life, and Jesus' flesh.
Scripture remembers bread in the wilderness as God's provision. John receives that memory and centers it on Jesus, the living bread given by the Father for life.