“Then said they unto him, What shall we do, that we might work the works of God?”
Then they asked him, 'What must we do to do the works God requires?' — the crowd's question echoes the synagogue's usual framing: what works (erga) must we perform? They still think in terms of human works rather than faith.
Church Fathers on John 6:28
They understood that the meat, which remains to eternal life, was the work of God: and therefore they ask Him what to do to work the work of God, i.e. obtain the meat: Then said they to Him, What shall we do that we might work the works of God?
i.e. By keeping what commandments shall we be able to fulfill the law of God?
But they said this, not that they might learn, and do them, but to obtain from Him another exhibition of His bounty.
Read all 18 entries in the readerCatena Aurea · St. Thomas Aquinas, tr. J. H. Newman · public domain
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