Then he made the disciples get into the boat and precede him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. 23 After doing so, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When it was evening he was there alone. 24 Meanwhile the boat, already a few miles offshore, was being tossed about by the waves, for the wind was against it. 25 During the fourth watch of the night, he came toward them, walking on the sea. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the sea they were terrified. “It is a ghost,” they said, and they cried out in fear. 27 At once [Jesus] spoke to them, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.” 28 Peter said to him in reply, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” 29 He said, “Come.” Peter got out of the boat and began to walk on the water toward Jesus. 30 But when he saw how [strong] the wind was he became frightened; and, beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” 31 Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32 After they got into the boat, the wind died down. 33 Those who were in the boat did him homage, saying, “Truly, you are the Son of God.” 34 After making the crossing, they came to land at Gennesaret. 35 When the men of that place recognized him, they sent word to all the surrounding country. People brought to him all those who were sick 36 and begged him that they might touch only the tassel on his cloak, and as many as touched it were healed.
When Jesus had healed many and fed the five thousand, he sent his disciples by boat to the other side of Lake Gennesaret while he dismissed the crowd. Jesus then slipped away from the crowd and went into the hills around the plain to pray. The apostles left in a boat without him but did not make much progress because of strong headwinds. They were driven off course and were a few miles offshore. Storms occur frequently on the Lake of Gennesaret and cause large waves. The wind against the boat could be a metaphor for the hostile forces against Jesus and his disciples.
Between three and six in the morning (the fourth watch) Jesus used his divine power to walk on the water (Job 9:8) and the frightened disciples thought it was a ghost since it was impossible for a human to walk on water (v. 25). Jesus reassured them, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid (v. 27).” Peter, the impulsive disciple, got out of the boat at Jesus’ command and began to walk on the water. It was Peter’s obedience and faith that allowed him to participate in Jesus’ divine power and walk on water. He began to sink because he took his gaze off Jesus and began to focus on the turmoil around him, but in his time of need, Peter cried out, “Lord, save me (v. 30; Mt. 8:25; Ps. 69:2)! When Jesus got into the boat the disciples paid reverence to him as “The Son of God (v. 33).” No matter what turmoil we are experiencing God wants us to have unwavering faith that he will see us through. When the boat reached shore at Gennesaret, Jesus continued to heal the sick. Some were healed by just touching the fringe of his cloak.
Almighty God, grant us the grace of unwavering faith so that we may dispel the worries and fears that are born out of our weakness. This we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen!
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References
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
Orchard, Bernard, et al. A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture. Feb. 1953.
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