After Jesus had passed the bread, he took a cup and “offered thanks and gave it to them, and they all drank out of it. And he said to them: ‘This means my “blood of the covenant,” which is to be poured out in behalf of many.’” (Mr 14:23, 24) He used fermented wine, not unfermented grape juice. Biblical references to wine are to literal wine, not to the unfermented juice of the grape. (See WINE AND STRONG DRINK.) Fermented wine, not grape juice, would burst “old wineskins,” as Jesus said. Jesus’ enemies accused him of being “given to drinking wine,” a charge that would mean nothing if the “wine” were mere grape juice. (Mt 9:17; 11:19) Real wine was on hand for the Passover celebration that had been concluded, and it could appropriately be used by Christ in instituting the Memorial of his death. Doubtless the wine was red, for only red wine would be a fitting symbol of blood.​—1Pe 1:19.

No Transubstantiation or Consubstantiation. Jesus still had his fleshly body when offering the bread. This body, whole and entire, was to be offered as a perfect, unblemished sacrifice for sins the next afternoon (of the same day of the Hebrew calendar, Nisan 14). He also retained all his blood for that perfect sacrifice. “He poured out his soul [which is in the blood] to the very death.” (Isa 53:12; Le 17:11) Consequently, during the evening meal he did not perform a miracle of transubstantiation, changing the bread into his literal flesh and the wine into his literal blood. For the same reasons, it cannot be truly said that he miraculously caused his flesh and his blood to be present or combined with the bread and wine, as is claimed by those who adhere to the doctrine of consubstantiation.

This is not contradicted by Jesus’ words at John 6:51-57. Jesus was not there discussing the Lord’s Evening Meal; such an arrangement was not instituted until a year later. The ‘eating’ and ‘drinking’ mentioned in this account are done in a figurative sense by exercising faith in Jesus Christ, as is indicated by verses 35 and 40.

Furthermore, eating actual human flesh and blood would be cannibalism. Therefore, Jews who were not exercising faith and who did not properly understand Jesus’ statement about eating his flesh and drinking his blood were shocked. This indicated the Jewish view on eating human flesh and blood, as inculcated by the Law.​—Joh 6:60.

Additionally, drinking blood was a violation of God’s law to Noah, prior to the Law covenant. (Ge 9:4; Le 17:10) The Lord Jesus Christ would never instruct others to violate God’s law. (Compare Mt 5:19.) Furthermore, Jesus commanded: “Keep doing this in remembrance of me,” not in sacrifice of me.​—1Co 11:23-25.

The bread and the wine are, therefore, emblems, representing Christ’s flesh and blood in a symbolic way, just as were his words about eating his flesh and drinking his blood. Jesus had said to those offended by his words: “For a fact, the bread that I shall give is my flesh in behalf of the life of the world.” (Joh 6:51) This was given at his death as a sacrifice on the torture stake. His body was buried and was disposed of by his Father before it could see corruption. (Ac 2:31) No one ever ate any of his flesh or blood, literally.