Unsurprisingly, Peter is the one to respond to the question of Jesus. He was often the spokesman for the group — not, as Matthew Henry observes, because he had more of the ear of his Master than the other disciples, but because he had more of his own tongue than they. He is impetuous and prone to incredibly stupid remarks but also to unbelievably great ones. Here he utters one of his highest. The disciples have already made their decision and Peter mouths it for them. Jesus utters words of eternal life; can anyone do better than that?

“the words” = is a mistranslation. There is no article “the” so this should read “You have words of eternal life.” If the translation were correct it would imply a formula, which it does not. When we come to know the life-giving words of Jesus, we will never forsake Him, and neither would the Twelve.