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Bible verses for communion
Foundational passages for communion services, meditation, and preparation — verses on the Last Supper, remembrance, and the new covenant in Christ’s blood.
What are the best Bible verses for communion or the Lord’s Supper?
Communion — also called the Lord’s Supper, the Eucharist, or the breaking of bread — is grounded in a specific set of scriptures. Jesus instituted it at the Last Supper, Paul transmitted it to the early churches, and the Bible gives instructions for how it should be received.
These verses are the ones read during communion services across Christian traditions. They are brief, solemn, and centered on remembrance: the body broken, the blood shed, and the command to do this in memory of the one who gave himself.
Key passages
"And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me."
This is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. The apostle describes the sacred ordinance, of which he had the knowledge by revelation from Christ. As to the visible signs, these are the bread and wine.
"After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me."
This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye in remembrance of me. The apostle describes the sacred ordinance, of which he had the knowledge by revelation from Christ. As to the visible signs, these are the bread and wine.
"And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body."
Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it — the institution narrative. This ordinance of the Lord's supper is to us the passover supper, by which we commemorate a much greater deliverance than that of Israel out of Egypt.
"And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst."
I am the bread of life — Jesus’ eucharistic teaching. Constant exercise of faith in Christ, is the most important and difficult part of the obedience required from us, as sinners seeking salvation.
"But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup."
Let a man examine himself, and so let him eat — Paul’s preparation command. The apostle describes the sacred ordinance, of which he had the knowledge by revelation from Christ. As to the visible signs, these are the bread and wine.
"And they continued stedfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers."
They continued in the breaking of bread — the practice of the early church. In these verses we have the history of the truly primitive church, of the first days of it; its state of infancy indeed, but, like that, the state of its greatest innocence.
Main takeaways
- Communion is rooted in Jesus’ own words and actions at the Last Supper.
- The bread and wine represent Christ’s body and blood given for the forgiveness of sins.
- Paul warns that communion should be taken with self-examination, not casually.
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The city at the heart of biblical kingship, temple worship, the passion narratives, and Christian memory.
Reading paths
Start with the person of Jesus before trying to master the whole canon. This route keeps the reading human-scale and direct.