6. (a) After the Passover meal, what did Jesus say about the bread? (b) What sort of bread is used at the Memorial?

⁶ The apostle Matthew was present and later wrote: “Jesus took a loaf and, after saying a blessing, he broke it and, giving it to the disciples, he said: ‘Take, eat.’” (Matt. 26:26) The “loaf” was unfermented bread, as was used for the Passover. (Ex. 12:8; Deut. 16:3) The bread was made from wheat flour and water, without any leaven or seasoning, such as salt, being added. Because it was unleavened, it would not have risen. It would be plain, dry, and crackerlike, easy to break into pieces.

 9. Some hold what wrong view of the bread that Jesus used?

⁹ Some churchgoers point out that Jesus literally said: ‘This is my body,’ so they believe that the bread miraculously became his actual flesh. However, that is contrary to fact.a Jesus’ body was there in front of the faithful apostles, and so was the unleavened bread they would partake of. Clearly, Jesus was speaking symbolically, as he did many other times.​—John 2:19-21; 4:13, 14; 10:7; 15:1.

10. What is represented by the bread used during the Lord’s Evening Meal?

¹⁰ The bread that the apostles could see and would soon partake of meant Jesus’ body. Which body? At one time, God’s servants felt that because Jesus broke the bread but none of his own bones were broken, the bread meant “the body of the Christ,” the congregation of anointed ones. (Eph. 4:12; Rom. 12:4, 5; 1 Cor. 10:16, 17; 12:27) In time, however, it was appreciated that both reason and Scripture indicate that the bread represents Jesus’ human body, which had been prepared for him. Jesus “suffered in the flesh,” even being impaled. Thus, at the Lord’s Evening Meal, the bread represents that physical body in which Jesus “bore our sins.”​—1 Pet. 2:21-24; 4:1; John 19:33-36; Heb. 10:5-7.

For example, in Matthew’s account we read: “Jesus took a loaf and, after saying a blessing, he broke it and, giving it to the disciples, he said: ‘Take, eat. This means my body.’” (Matt. 26:26) Jesus broke the unleavened bread so that he could pass some to the apostles on each side of him. You will see at the meeting on April 14 some unleavened bread already broken into a few pieces and placed on serving plates.