John 6:47-66 Why many disciples left Jesus

⁴⁷ Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.
⁴⁸ I am that bread of life.
⁴⁹ Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead.
⁵⁰ This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die.
⁵¹ I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.
⁵² The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat?
⁵³ Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.
⁵⁵ For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.
⁵⁶ He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.
⁵⁷ As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.
⁵⁸ This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.
⁵⁹ These things said he in the synagogue, as he taught in Capernaum.
⁶⁰ Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it?
⁶¹ When Jesus knew in himself that his disciples murmured at it, he said unto them, Doth this offend you?
⁶² What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before?
⁶³ It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
⁶⁴ But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him.
⁶⁵ And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.
⁶⁶ From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.
-John 6 King James Version (KJV)

Here Jesus is obviously speaking symbolically and yet many of His disciples must have thought He was speaking literally. There are many aspects to the Bible which need to be understood symbolically or they will be misunderstood.

White Horse, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1758], tr. by John Whitehead [1892], at sacred-texts.com

12.

The Word is written by correspondences, and thus by representatives. The Word as to the sense of the letter is written by mere correspondences, that is, by such things as represent and signify the spiritual things of heaven and the church (n. 1404, 1408, 1409, 1540, 1619, 1659, 1709, 1783, 2179, 2763, 2899). This was done for the sake of the internal sense, which is there in every part (n. 2899). Consequently for the sake of heaven, since those who are in heaven do not understand the Word according to the sense of its letter, which is natural, but according to the internal sense, which is spiritual (n. 2899). The Lord spoke by correspondences, representatives, and significatives, because He spoke from the Divine (n. 9049, 9063, 9086, 10126, 10728). The Lord thus spoke before the world, and at the same time before heaven (n. 2533, 4807, 9049, 9063, 9086). The things spoken by the Lord went through the whole heaven (n. 4637). The historicals of the Word are representatives, and the words significative (n. 1540, 1659, 1709, 1783, 2687). The Word could not be written in any other style, so that through it there might be communication and conjunction with the heavens (n. 2899, 6943, 9481). They greatly err, who despise the Word on account of the apparent simplicity and rudeness of its style, and who think that they would receive the Word if it had been written in a different style (n. 8783). The method and style of writing which prevailed amongst the most ancient people, was by correspondences and representatives (n. 605, 1756, 9942). The ancient wise men were delighted with the Word, because of the representatives and significatives therein, from experience (n. 2592, 2593). If a man of the Most Ancient Church had read the Word, he would have seen clearly the things contained in the internal sense, and obscurely the things contained in the external sense (n. 449). The sons of Jacob were brought into the land of Canaan, because all the places in that land, from the most ancient times, were made representative (n. 1585, 3686, 4441, 5136, 6516). And thus the Word might be there written, wherein those places should be mentioned for the sake of the internal sense (n. 3686, 4447, 5136, 6416). But nevertheless the Word, as to the external sense was changed for the sake of that nation, but not as to the internal sense (n. 10453, 10461, 10603, 10604) Many passages adduced from the Word concerning that nation, which must be understood according to the internal sense, and not according to the letter (n. 7051). Inasmuch as that nation represented the church, and the Word was written with them and concerning them, therefore Divine celestial things were signified by their names, as by Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Ephraim, Joseph, and the rest: and by "Judah" in the internal sense is signified the Lord as to celestial love, and His celestial kingdom (n. 3654, 3881, 3882, 5583, 5782, 6362-6381). That it may be known what correspondences are and their nature, and what is the nature of representatives in the Word, something shall be here said concerning them. All things which correspond likewise represent, and thereby signify, so that correspondences and representations are one (n. 2890, 2897, 2971, 2987, 2989, 2990, 3002, 3225). The nature of correspondences and representations shown from experience and examples (n. 2703, 2987, 3002, 3213-3226, 3337-3352, 3472-3485, 4218-4228, 9280). The science of correspondences and representations was the chief science with the ancients (n. 3021, 3419, 4280, 4749, 4844, 4964, 4965, 6004, 7729, 10252). Especially with the Orientals (n. 5702, 6692, 7097, 7779, 9391, 10252, 10407). And in Egypt more than in other countries (n. 5702, 6692, 7097, 7779, 9391, 10407). Also with the Gentiles, as in Greece, and in other places (n. 2762, 7729). But that at this day the science of correspondences and representations is lost, particularly in Europe (n. 2894, 2895, 2994, 3630, 3632, 3747-3749, 4581, 4966, 10252). Nevertheless this science is more excellent than all other sciences, inasmuch as without it the Word cannot be understood, nor the signification of the rites of the Jewish Church which are recorded in the Word, nor can it be known what the nature of heaven is, nor what the spiritual is, nor in what manner a spiritual influx takes place into what is natural, nor how the case is with respect to the influx of the soul into the body, with many other matters (n. 4180), and in the places above cited. All things which appear before spirits and angels, are representative according to correspondences (n. 1971, 3213-3226, 3457, 3475, 3485, 9481, 9574, 9576, 9577). The heavens are full of representatives (n. 1521, 1532, 1619). Representatives are more beautiful, and more perfect, in proportion as they are more interior in the heavens (n. 3475). Representatives there are real appearances, because they are from the light of heaven which is Divine truth, and which is the very essential of the existence of all things (n. 3485). The reason why each and all things in the spiritual world are represented in the natural world, is, because what is internal assumes to itself a suitable clothing in what is external, whereby it makes itself visible and apparent (n. 6275, 6284, 6299). Thus the end assumes a suitable clothing that it may exist as the cause in a lower sphere, and afterwards that it may exist as the effect in a sphere still lower; and when the end, by means of the cause, becomes the effect, it then becomes visible, or appears before the eyes (n. 5711). This may be illustrated by the influx of the soul into the body, whereby the soul assumes a clothing of such things in the body as enable it to express all its thoughts and affections in a visible form; wherefore thought, when it flows down into the body, is there represented by such gestures and actions as correspond to it (n. 2988). The affections of the mind are manifestly represented in the face, by the variations of the countenance, so as to be there seen (n. 4791-4805, 5695). Hence it is evident, that in each and all things in nature there lies hidden a cause and an end from the spiritual world (n. 3562, 5711). Since those things which are in nature are the ultimate [outer] effects, within which are the prior things (n. 4240, 4939, 5051, 6275, 6284, 6299, 9216). That internal things are the objects represented, and external things the objects representing (n. 4292). What is further meant by correspondences and representations may be seen in the work on Heaven and Hell, where it treats of the correspondence between all things of Heaven, and all things of Man (n. 87-102). Of the Correspondence of Heaven with all things on Earth (n. 103-115). And of Representatives and Appearances in Heaven (n. 170-176). Since all things in nature are representative of spiritual and celestial things, therefore in the churches which existed in ancient times, all the externals, which were rituals, were representative, and therefore those churches were called representative churches (n. 519, 521, 2896). The church instituted with the sons of Israel was a representative church (n. 1003, 2179, 10149). All the rituals therein were externals, which represented internals, which are of heaven and the church (n. 4288, 4874). The representatives of the church and of worship ceased when the Lord came into the world and manifested Himself, because the Lord opened the internals of the church, and because all things of that church in the highest sense regarded Him (n. 4832).