Church Fathers Commentary Luke 22:19-20

"And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he brake it, and gave to them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. And the cup in like manner after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood, [even] that which is poured out for you." — Luke 22:19-20 (ASV)

The Venerable Bede: Having finished the rites of the old Passover, He moves on to the new, which He desires the Church to celebrate in memory of His redemption. He substitutes the Sacrament of His own Flesh and Blood, in the figure of bread and wine, for the flesh and blood of the lamb, being made a Priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.

Therefore, it is said, And he took bread, and gave thanks, just as He had also given thanks after finishing the old feast, leaving us an example to glorify God at the beginning and end of every good work. It follows, And broke it. He Himself breaks the bread which He holds out to show that the breaking of His Body—that is, His Passion—will not be without His will. And He gave it to them, saying, This is my body which is given for you.

Gregory of Nyssa: For the bread before the consecration is common bread, but when the mystery has consecrated it, it is, and it is called, the Body of Christ.

St. Cyril of Alexandria: Do not doubt that this is true, for He plainly says, This is my body; but rather, receive the words of your Savior in faith. For since He is the Truth, He does not lie.

Those, then, who say that the mystical blessing loses its power to sanctify if any remains are left until the following day are raving foolishly. For the most holy Body of Christ will not be changed, but the power of blessing and the life-giving grace are ever-abiding in it.

For the life-giving power of God the Father is the only-begotten Word, who was made flesh without ceasing to be the Word, but making that flesh life-giving. What then? Since we have in us the life of God—the Word of God dwelling in us—will our body also be life-giving? But it is one thing for us, by the habit of participation, to have the Son of God in ourselves; it is another for Him to have been made flesh—that is, to have made His own the body which He took from the pure Virgin.

He must, then, necessarily be united in a certain manner to our bodies by His holy Body and precious Blood, which we have received as a life-giving blessing in the bread and wine. For so that we would not be shocked at seeing Flesh and Blood placed on the holy altars, God, in compassion for our weaknesses, pours the power of life into the offerings, changing them into the reality of His own flesh, so that the body of life may be found in us as a kind of life-giving seed. He adds, Do this in commemoration of me.

St. John Chrysostom: Christ did this to bring us into a closer bond of friendship and to show His love toward us, giving Himself to those who desire Him—not only to behold Him, but also to handle Him, to eat Him, and to embrace Him with the fullness of their whole heart. Therefore, we depart from that table like lions breathing fire, made terrifying to the devil.

St. Basil the Great: Learn, then, how you ought to eat the Body of Christ: namely, in remembrance of Christ’s obedience, even to death, so that those who live may no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Now Luke mentions two cups. Of the one we spoke of above, Take this, and divide it among yourselves, we may say is a type of the Old Testament. But the other cup, after the breaking and giving of the bread, He Himself imparts to His disciples. Therefore, it is added, Likewise also the cup after supper.

The Venerable Bede: “He gave it to them” is understood here to complete the sentence.

St. Augustine of Hippo: Or, it is because Luke mentions the cup twice: first before Christ gave the bread, and then after He had given it. On the first occasion, Luke has anticipated the event, as he frequently does. On the second occasion, which he places in its natural order, he was describing what he had not mentioned in detail before. But both accounts, when joined together, make the same sense that we find in the others, that is, Matthew and Mark.

Theophylact of Ohrid: Our Lord calls the cup the New Testament, as it follows: This cup is the New Testament in my blood, which shall be shed for you. This signifies that the New Testament has its beginning in His blood. For in the Old Testament, the blood of animals was present when the law was given, but now the blood of the Word of God signifies the New Testament to us.

When He says, for you, He does not mean that His Body was given and His Blood poured out only for the Apostles, but for all humankind. The old Passover was ordained to remove the slavery of Egypt, and the blood of the lamb to protect the first-born. The new Passover, however, was ordained for the remission of sins, and the Blood of Christ to preserve those who are dedicated to God.

St. John Chrysostom: For this Blood molds a royal image in us; it does not allow the nobility of our soul to waste away. Moreover, it refreshes the soul and inspires it with great virtue. This Blood puts devils to flight, summons angels, and the Lord of angels. This Blood, poured forth, washed the world and opened heaven.

Those who partake of it are built up with heavenly virtues and arrayed in the royal robes of Christ—or rather, are clothed by the King Himself. And since if you approach in purity, you do so for your health, so if you approach polluted by an evil conscience, you do so for your own destruction, pain, and torment. For if those who defile the imperial purple are struck with the same punishment as those who tear it apart, it is not unreasonable that those who receive Christ with an unclean heart should be beaten with the same stripes as those who pierced Him with nails.

The Venerable Bede: Because bread strengthens and wine produces blood in the flesh, the former is ascribed to the Body of Christ and the latter to His Blood. But because we ought to abide in Christ and Christ in us, the wine of the Lord’s cup is mixed with water, for John bears witness, The peoples are many waters.

Theophylact of Ohrid: But first the bread is given, and next the cup. For in spiritual things, labor and action come first—that is, the bread—not only because it is toiled for by the sweat of the brow, but also because even while being eaten, it is not easy to swallow. Then, after labor, follows the rejoicing of divine grace, which is the cup.

The Venerable Bede: For this reason, then, the Apostles received communion after supper, because it was necessary that the typological Passover should first be completed, and then they should move on to the Sacrament of the true Passover. But now, in honor of so great a Sacrament, the leaders of the Church think it right that we should first be refreshed with the spiritual banquet and afterward with the earthly one.

Greek Expositors: The one who receives communion receives the whole Body and Blood of our Lord, even though he receives only a part of the Mysteries. For as one seal imparts its whole design to different substances and yet remains complete after being distributed, and as one word penetrates the hearing of many, so there is no doubt that the Body and Blood of our Lord is received whole by all. The breaking of the sacred bread, however, signifies the Passion.