NIV Biblical Theology Study Bible NIV Biblical Theology Study Bible | Page 136
Matthew 15:7 | 1729
14:23 w Lk 3:21
14:26 x Lk 24:37
14:27 y Mt 9:2;
Ac 23:11 z Da 10:12;
Mt 17:7; 28:10;
Lk 1:13, 30; 2:10;
Ac 18:9; 23:11; Rev 1:17
14:31 a Mt 6:30
14:33 b Ps 2:7; Mt 4:3
14:36 c Mt 9:20
15:2 d Lk 11:38
15:4 e Ex 20:12;
Dt 5:16; Eph 6:2
f Ex 21:17; Lev 20:9
Jesus Walks on the Water
14:22-33pp — Mk 6:45-51; Jn 6:16-21
14:34-36pp — Mk 6:53-56
22 Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on a
head of him to the
other side, while he dismissed the c rowd. 23 After he had dismissed them, he went up on
a mountainside by himself to pray. w Later that night, he was t here alone, 24 and the boat
was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind
was against it.
25 Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26 When the disciples
saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” x they said, and cried out in fear.
27 But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! y It is I. Don’t be afraid.” z
28 “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
29 “Come,” he s aid.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. 30 But
when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”
31 Immediately Jesus r eached out his hand and c aught him. “You of little faith,” a he said,
“why did you doubt?”
32 And when they c limbed into the boat, the wind died down. 33 Then those who were in
the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” b
34 When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret. 35 And when the men of that
place recognized Jesus, they sent word to all the surrounding country. People brought all
their sick to him 36 and b
egged him to let the sick just t ouch the edge of his c loak, c and all
who touched it were healed.
That Which Defiles
15:1-20pp — Mk 7:1-23
15
Then some Pharisees and teachers of the law came to Jesus from Jerusalem and
asked, 2 “Why do your disciples b
reak the tradition of the elders? They d
on’t wash
their hands before they eat!” d
3 Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradi
tion? 4 For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ a e and ‘Anyone who curses their father
or mother is to be put to death.’ b f 5 But you say that if anyone declares that what might have
been used to help their father or mother is ‘devoted to God,’ 6 they are not to ‘honor t heir
father or mother’ with it. Thus you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition.
7 You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you:
a 4 Exodus 20:12;
Deut. 5:16 b 4 Exodus 21:17; Lev. 20:9
14:22 – 33 The miracle of Jesus walking on
the water highlights Jesus’ identity. Only God
“treads on the waves of the sea” (Job 9:8; cf.
Ps 77:19).
14:23 to pray. Even if his earlier withdrawal
from the crowds (v. 13) had not been to pray,
Jesus needs to do so now. He sends even the
disciples on ahead of him back across the lake.
14:25 Shortly before dawn. Lit. “in the fourth
watch of the night,” i.e., sometime between
3:00 and 6:00 a.m.
14:26 ghost. Many Jews believed that after a
person died, the person’s ghost inhabited ar-
eas nearby. This was apparently the only way
the disciples could explain Jesus appearing
on top of the water.
14:27 It is I. Could also be translated “I am,”
the divine name of Exod 3:14 revealed by
God to Moses in the burning bush. This is a
theophany, a revelation of God’s divinity in
Christ.
14:28 – 29 Unique to Matthew’s account of
this miracle is Peter’s attempt to walk on the
water as well. His willingness to step out of
the boat is amazing; the faith represented
should not be minimized.
14:30 – 31 The fury of the storm quickly under-
mines Peter’s faith, so he begins to sink. Had
he fully realized that Jesus was helping him
do the far harder task of walking on the lake,
he would not have been afraid of the wind.
Thus, after rescuing him, Jesus chastises him
for his “little faith” (v. 31).
14:33 worshiped him. The miracle was so
spectacular that otherwise monotheistic
Jews actually worshiped Jesus. Son of God.
Whereas in a Jewish context this could some-
times be a synonym for Messiah and not carry
hints of divinity, this context doubtless im-
plies a more awe-inspired declaration. Still,
Peter reaches a new stage of understanding
in 16:16 – 17 (see note there), and even then
he is not prepared for the Messiah to suffer
(16:22 – 23). So we must not overestimate
how much the disciples grasp the meaning
of the miracle here in vv. 22 – 33. In this light,
the strikingly different aftermath of Mark 6:52
that “their hearts were hardened” becomes
complementary rather than contradictory.
14:34 – 36 Blown well off course, the disciples
land at Gennesaret, on the west-central
shores of Galilee. Jesus responds to the
townspeople’s faith with more healings.
14:36 edge. Could mean “fringe,” and is prob-
ably a reference to the prayer tassels at the
bottom of a rabbi’s robe. Cf. 9:20 – 21.
minister in Gentile provinces. Israel has in-
creasingly rejected him, and Gentiles begin
to accept him (15:21 – 39). When he returns
to Galilee (16:1 – 4), tensions resume, so he
leaves again (16:5 – 12).
15:1 – 20 Questions about the oral law that of-
fered rulings about how to apply the law of
Moses to numerous modern settings (“the
tradition of the elders,” v. 2) lead Jesus to
berate the Pharisees and scribes for break-
ing the written law of Moses through their
interpretive traditions (vv. 3 – 9) and then
prompt Jesus to make more sweeping claims
about external rituals versus inward purity
(vv. 10 – 20).
15:2 wash their hands. Ritual hand washing
was not a requirement for Jews before every
meal, but the Pharisees were trying to extend
the level of purity demanded of priests (cf.
Exod 30:17 – 21) to the entire people of Israel.
15:4 Honor your father and mother. The fifth
of the Ten Commandments (Exod 20:12). Se-
vere infringements of it could lead even to
the death penalty in OT times (Exod 21:17).
15:5 – 6 These were laws of “Corban” (“de-
voted to God”; cf. Mark 7:11), somewhat like
15:1 — 16:12 While still in Galilee, Jesus makes an irrevocable trust, in which moneta ry gifts
his sharpest break from conventional Ju- donated to the temple treasury could still be
daism thus far (15:1 – 20). Not surprisingly, used by their owners before they died but in
Matthew next narrates Jesus leaving Jewish very limited ways and not to help others.
territory for an extended period of time to 15:7 – 9 Matthew again sees Scripture fulfilled