227 ON JESUS’ LAST WEEK(S) the Kingdom of God (v. 54). So the context is Passover and the themes presented are: eating some produce of the Promised Land (barley), with a failure to understand (v. 26); the manna, and Jesus as food. Now at the time of the first Passover in Egypt, the Israelites were ordered to perform the same rites as soon as they entered Canaan (Exod 12,25). According to Jos 5,10-12, the precept was indeed fulfilled: after the capture of Jericho, the Israelites arrived at Gilgal, where they were circumcised — as a renewal of the Cov- enant — and celebrated Passover on the 14th of the month. The de- tails given are significant: on the next day, the manna ceased and they ate the produce of the land. If we compare the entry into Canaan with the entry into the Kingdom, and the contrast drawn by Jesus between the ancient manna and himself as the produce of the Kingdom to be consumed, the reference to an “arrival Passover” becomes obvious, supported by his refusal of an earthly kingship 36. As in John 6, we find all the themes in Jos 5 put together into a kind of icon, since we can hardly imagine that the produce of the land was ripe and available at that time, especially since Lev 19,23-25 prescribes a delay of several years before consuming the produce of new plantations. One theme is missing in Jos 5: the first-fruits of the produce of the land. However, it is presented in John 6, in the form of the bar- ley loaves. But Jesus refuses an earthly kingdom in the land of Israel, and he puts himself forward as the replacement for the bar- ley in another kingdom (see John 18,36). In this respect, his replacement of the earthly first-fruits is an indirect announcement of his death. In 1 Cor 15,20, Paul says that the risen Christ is “the first-fruits of those who have fallen asleep.” In Rom 8,29, the Ris- en One is “the first-born among many brethren”. All this brings us back to the Synoptic Last Supper: the two main components are Passover and a small quantity of bread and wine — as a sign of the first-fruits 37, — becoming identified with Jesus himself. This is clearly understood by Irenaeus, born in the A fuller statement is given by É. NODET, “De Josué à Jésus, via Qumrân 36 et le ‘pain quotidien’”, RB 114 (2007) 208-236. Hippolytus, Apost. Trad. 23 :5 and 24:1, states that the gesture of 37 breaking the bread must be done by the bishop, who is helped by deacons only for practical reasons, see DIX, The Shape of the Liturgy, 131-133.