We see the wonderful way in which the Lord speaks. He repeats himself between verses 50 and verse 51. If we repeat ourselves as a mere human beings, it would usually involve us in saying the same thing again, perhaps using synonyms, but essentially the same thing again. But when the Lord repeats himself (because it is necessary to do so to drive it into their heads) each statement is an advance on what he has said before. This is the speech of one who has the mind of divine genius, who can so handle words that when you hear them you advance, making it deeply interesting, and you listen all the more. In verse 50 he says, ‘This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof and not die’, but now it is, ‘I am the living bread.’ He has personalised that bread from heaven. Then, ‘which cometh down from heaven’ becomes ‘which has come down from heaven.’ What was due to happen according to prophecy has now come to pass in front of their eyes. Then also, ‘That a man may eat thereof’ has developed into, ‘If any man eat this bread, he shall live for ever.’ The first describes the opportunity, the possibility; the second tells us it is now a solid promise. ‘And not die’ has advanced to ‘shall live for ever’. Is that not magnificent? Every clause, every element has advanced massively in the repetition. You never hear people even when they put their speeches together beforehand and write them out and read the manuscript; you have never seen people developing their ideas so wonderfully in everything that they say.