Matthew 26:26

‘And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed, and broke it, and he gave to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.” '

Before launching into what lies behind this symbolic gesture we should perhaps just pause for a moment in awe at these words. For centuries the Jews had broken the bread at Passover looking back to the unleavened bread eaten on the day of deliverance from the angel of death. It had occurred unchanged for year after year, and century after century. And that is what the disciples were again expecting here. But to their utter astonishment Jesus picked up the bread, broke it and instead of referring to the past said, ‘This is My body.' It was an awe-inspiring moment. It was a clear indication that the past was behind and that a new future was beginning, and that it was a future that was associated with His death. It was an emphasis on the fact that this was a crisis moment in sacred history when everything was changing. (It was even further emphasised when He said of the cup, ‘This is My blood --').

‘As they were eating.' This indicates that it was somewhere in the middle of the meal, which would have proceeded something like this (mainly based on later Jewish tradition). The meal would have begun with a blessing over a cup of red wine mingled with water, which would be shared with those gathered. This was the first ‘cup of blessing' (Luke 22:17). It would be followed by a washing of hands. The tables would then be arranged and bitter herbs, dipped in salt water, would be shared out and eaten, after which the dishes would be removed from the tables in order to draw attention to their significance. Then would follow the filling of the second cup of wine, and possibly at this stage (although we do not actually know for certain at which point these questions were asked) someone representing the son of the household would question the meaning of this ‘strange' ceremony. Why these bitter herbs? Why only unleavened bread? Why these strange procedures? Why the lamb? The general explanation would be given by the ‘father of the feast', probably utilising Deuteronomy 26:5, after which all the Passover dishes would be brought back to the table and each item of the feast explained, the bitter herbs, the unleavened bread and the lamb. Part of the Hallel would be sung (possibly Psalms 118, 119) and then the second cup would be drunk, to be followed by a further washing of hands.

This would in turn be followed by a breaking of bread (it was normal at a Jewish meal for the bread to be broken and distributed, and that by the ‘father of the feast') which was itself followed by a blessing. If this was the point at which Jesus broke the bread after blessing it, (and if the order in Jesus' day was that which was followed later), He deliberately broke the order of the ceremony. He may well have done so. The original order (bread broken first followed by a blessing) kept in mind that the poor only had broken pieces of bread and it thus ensured that they were included in the blessing. Jesus may well, on the other hand, have been indicating that among His people there were no ‘poor'. All were richly blessed and had sufficiency of the ‘bread', because it was found in Him. His was full provision. In this way He followed the same pattern as He had used when He had fed the crowds (Matthew 14:19; Matthew 15:36). On the other hand it could be that Jesus followed the old procedure at this stage and later introduced a totally new element which ran alongside the old and would finally replace it (the Jewish Christians would continue celebrating the Passover for years to come, and would no doubt include within it the Lord's Supper. But they would also at other times celebrate the breaking of bread, together with the drinking of the wine, as a ceremony on its own - e.g. Acts 2:42).

After this ceremony pieces of the broken bread, together with some bitter herbs, would be dipped in sauce and handed out to the company, at which point all would participate in the broken bread and bitter herbs. This being done the time had come for the eating of the lamb, and following this hands were again washed and the third cup was filled, accompanied by the giving of a blessing to God (this was the second ‘cup of blessing'). After this blessing the cup was drunk. This cup was considered by the Jews to be of great importance, as is apparent from later Rabbinic tradition. Following after the eating of the lamb it was among other things a rejoicing over the Passover and a signal that the meal was over. This was probably the cup to which Jesus gave a new meaning. It would be followed by a fourth cup and the final singing of the Hallel (Psalms 115-118) and prayer, after which the whole ceremony was over.

We note from this ceremony that at least three things were queried and explained during the ceremony, the bitter herbs, the unleavened bread and the Passover lamb. Thus we find that Matthew replaces the explanation concerning the bitter herbs with the bitterness of Judas' treachery, referred to while the bitter herbs are being dipped and eaten (Matthew 26:23); replaces the explanation of the unleavened bread, which is the ‘bread of affliction' (Deuteronomy 16:3), with the explanation of the broken bread which represents Jesus' body (Matthew 26:24); and replaces explanation of the sacrificial lamb with the explanation of the cup which represents the blood of the covenant (Matthew 26:25). All three are seen as preparatory to the coming of the Kingly Rule of His Father (Matthew 26:26). By all this Matthew indicates that the old has been replaced by the new.

It is also significant that all three of these aspects of the meal also connect with death. Death is to be the end of Judas' treachery (Matthew 26:4). The eating of bread, when it is symbolic of the ‘eating' of people (‘this is My body'), is in Psalms 14:4; Psalms 53:4 indicative of death (‘they eat up My people like they eat bread'). Compare also for a similar idea Micah 3:3 and Isaiah 49:26 in terms of ‘eating flesh'.

Furthermore the drinking of the wine described in terms of His blood is indicative of the ‘drinking of blood', which is descriptive of death in Isaiah 49:26 (‘they shall be drunk with their own blood as with wine', i.e. they will kill one another) and Zechariah 9:15 LXX (‘they will drink their blood like wine'). Compare also 2 Samuel 23:17 (‘shall I drink the blood of men who went in jeopardy of their lives?'). Thus to eat of His body and to drink of His blood is to contribute towards, and benefit by, His death, something that we find previously indicated in John 6:51. Compare also how Jesus can speak of the fathers of old as being ‘partakers in the blood of the prophets', because they slew them or approved of their slaying. It is clear then that ‘eating bread' where it represents a human being, and ‘partaking in/drinking blood', signifies participating in someone's death.

Thus when at some point before the drinking of the third cup Jesus took the bread and broke it, and declared, ‘Take and eat. This is My body' (Matthew leaves ‘which is broken for you' to be assumed from Jesus' actions. He is seeking to give the words their full impact), Jesus no doubt intended them at this point to remember His words in Matthew 26:2 in the light of the Old Testament background, and also to remember John 6:51 which followed the feeding of the five thousand. Just as they ate this bread at this Passover, bread which represented His body, so were they to participate in Him and in His coming death by constantly ‘eating and drinking' of Him, that is, by constantly coming to Him and believing on Him (John 6:35). Furthermore, as we have seen, all knew that the bread at the Passover was ‘the bread of affliction' (Deuteronomy 16:3). Thus later, even if not at this moment, they would recognise its deeper significance as signifying what He would endure for them on the cross, and that as something of which they must partake by continually ‘eating His flesh' (John 6:53), that is, by continually ‘coming to Him' (John 6:35).

We must stress again that this idea of ‘eating' as being connected with death is firmly based in the Old Testament. God could say of His people's enemies that ‘they eat up My people as they eat bread' (Psalms 14:4; Psalms 53:4), while in Micah 3:3 a similar idea is in mind expressed in vivid hyperbole where the ‘eating of the flesh of His people' is describing the disgraceful treatment of them by oppressors. This was why Jesus could say, ‘the bread which I will give for the life of the world is my flesh' (John 6:41), which He then followed up in vivid hyperbole when He spoke of the need for those who would enjoy eternal life to ‘eat His flesh' (kill Him/partake of the benefits of His death - John 6:53). He thus already had in mind that it was through His death that eternal life could be offered to the world. So while in John 6 He initially connected Himself with the ‘bread from Heaven' of which His people may partake and be satisfied, which they would do by coming to Him (John 6:41), in the end it results in His body being offered to men through a death wrought by them, as a result of which He can feed and sustain men and give them life.

It is especially significant that in Isaiah 49:26 the two ideas of eating flesh and drinking wine in this way come together, ‘I will feed those who oppress you with their own flesh, and they will be drunk with their own blood as with sweet wine', where the idea is that their enemies will destroy each other. Thus there eating flesh/body and drinking wine/blood are both symbolic of death in the same context (as indeed in John 6).

With these ideas in mind, and in view of the sacrificial content of the next verse, it should have been quite clear to the disciples precisely what Jesus was indicating by their ‘eating His body'. By eating the bread they were indicating their need to partake of the benefits of His death, and through it to enjoy eternal life.

But a further point must be borne in mind here. To partake of His body meant that His body was mingled with their bodies. They became united with His body. And that this significance was seen comes out later. ‘The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? We who are many are one bread, one body, for we all partake of the one bread' (1 Corinthians 10:16). And from this came the recognition that ‘we are members of His body'. ‘For as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, being many, are one body, so also is Christ, for in (by) one Spirit were we all submerged into one body --- and were all made to drink of one Spirit' (1 Corinthians 12:12). By partaking of the bread with genuine faith we enter into the work of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 3:11) and are by Him made one with Christ. Thus we become one body with His body, a position continually symbolised by partaking of the bread. But He in His body has received all authority in Heaven and earth (Matthew 28:18), and the remarkable thing is that we participate with Him even in that (Ephesians 1:19 to Ephesians 2:6). That being so, as a result of His resurrection, all who are His have entered within the Kingly Rule of His Father, in which they are one with Christ, along with Him. In a very real sense the Kingly Rule of Heaven has come and is present in His body, which consists of Him and all His members. Thus wherever His body is, there is His Father's Kingly Rule, and all men are called on to become members of that body and thus enter under His Kingly Rule (Colossians 1:13).

So Jesus is telling us that by receiving the bread we both acknowledge and claim our participation in His death and its benefits, and at the same time express our oneness with Him and each other, and our claim to a part in the Kingly Rule of God.