Chapter BY Chapter

Matthew 14 – Do Not Be Afraid

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“At that time Herod the tetrarch heard about the fame of Jesus, and he said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist. He has been raised from the dead; that is why these miraculous powers are at work in him.”  For Herod had seized John and bound him and put him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, because John had been saying to him, “It is not lawful for you to have her.”  And though he wanted to put him to death, he feared the people, because they held him to be a prophet.  But when Herod's birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before the company and pleased Herod, so that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she might ask.  Prompted by her mother, she said, “Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter.”  And the king was sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he commanded it to be given.  He sent and had John beheaded in the prison, and his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother.  And his disciples came and took the body and buried it, and they went and told Jesus.

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Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns.  When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.  Now when it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the day is now over; send the crowds away to go into the villages and buy food for themselves.”  But Jesus said, “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.”  They said to him, “We have only five loaves here and two fish.”  And he said, “Bring them here to me.”  Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass, and taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds.  And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over.  And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds.  And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, but the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them.  And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea.  But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear.  But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”

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And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.”  He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.  But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.”  Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”  And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.  And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

And when they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret.  And when the men of that place recognized him, they sent around to all that region and brought to him all who were sick and implored him that they might only touch the fringe of his garment. And as many as touched it were made well.”

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In the previous chapter, Jesus began teaching in parables.  Why did Jesus teach in parables?

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1. Because now the Pharisees were constantly watching him and trying to destroy him.Matthew 12:14, “But the Pharisees went out and conspired against him, how to destroy him.”

2. To hide the message from those that refuse to accept it and to reveal the message to those with faith.

3. To fulfill scripture.

 

What secrets of the kingdom are revealed in the parables in chapter 13?

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1. The message that falls on the good soil produced fruit.

   • What is the good soil?

   • The one that understands the message.

   • Who is the one that sows the good seed?

   • The Son of Man, Jesus.

2. The weeds and the grain were harvested at the same time.

   • What are the weeds?

   • The sons of the Devil.

   • What are the grain?

   • The sons of the kingdom.

   • What is the harvest?

   • The end of the age.

   • Who does the harvesting?

   • The Son of Man and the angels.

3. What is the secret of the hidden treasure and the secret of the pearl of great value?

   • The kingdom of heaven is worth more than all you have.

4. What is the secret of the parable of the net catching good fish and bad fish?

   • The angels will separate the evil from the righteous at the end of the age and throw them into a fiery furnace.

5. What is the secret of the scribe that brings out of his treasures what is new and what is old?

   • The disciples are the scribes that will bring treasures out of the Old Covenant and the New covenant.

6. Why didn’t Jesus do many miracles in Nazareth?

   • Because of their unbelief.They stumbled over the thought that this was the Jesus that grew up there.

 

So, Jesus is preaching at Nazareth, and at that time Herod the tetrarch, that is one of 4 kings over Israel, hears about the fame of Jesus.  Let’s see how that goes. 

 

Verses 1-12,

 

“At that time Herod the tetrarch heard about the fame of Jesus, and he said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist. He has been raised from the dead; that is why these miraculous powers are at work in him.”  For Herod had seized John and bound him and put him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, because John had been saying to him, “It is not lawful for you to have her.”  And though he wanted to put him to death, he feared the people, because they held him to be a prophet.  But when Herod's birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before the company and pleased Herod, so that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she might ask.  Prompted by her mother, she said, “Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter.”  And the king was sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he commanded it to be given.  He sent and had John beheaded in the prison, and his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother.  And his disciples came and took the body and buried it, and they went and told Jesus.”

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Why did Herod think that Jesus was John the Baptist raised from the dead?

         Guilt?

         Because Jesus also was preaching about the kingdom of heaven?

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Because now that John the Baptist was dead, the mantle of prophecy was on Jesus.

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Did Herod doubt that Jesus did these miracles?

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         No, he assumed that the reports were true.

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Why did Herod kill John the Baptist?

         Because John said that it is not lawful for him to marry his brother’s wife.

         Because he had to fulfill his oath to his stepdaughter.

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Other gospels say that Herod denied that Jesus was John the Baptist.  Is this a contradiction?

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No, actually, because other gospels explain that people were saying that Jesus was John the Baptist and later, Herod said that this could not be John the Baptist because he had John the Baptist beheaded.  So, Herod could have initially agreed with these people and later changed his mind. 

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How did Jesus react to the news about John the Baptist being executed?

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Verses 13-21,

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“Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns.  When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.  Now when it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the day is now over; send the crowds away to go into the villages and buy food for themselves.”  But Jesus said, “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.”  They said to him, “We have only five loaves here and two fish.”  And he said, “Bring them here to me.”  Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass, and taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds.  And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over.  And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.”

So apparently, Jesus is saddened by this news.  He goes off by himself for a while. As soon as he comes back, he is surrounded by a great crowd, and what does he do?

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He has compassion on them and he healed their sick. 

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Now, this appears to be the same feeding of the five thousand as in John chapter 6.  In John 6, It says that Jesus asks Philip where are we going to buy bread, for he knew what he was about to do.  This coincides with this passage where Jesus said, “You give them something to eat.”  Imagine the conundrum the disciples must have been in!  It says here that there were five thousand men, besides women and children.  There must have been a total of twenty-five to thirty thousand people there to feed. 

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I suppose that the disciples could have called it quits.  They could have just said, “We can’t do it.”  But what did they do?

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They said, “We have only five loaves and two fish.”

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The disciples offered what they did have. 

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Sometimes Jesus multiplies what little you have when you give it to him.

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Hattie May Wiatt, a six-year-old girl, lived near Grace Baptist Church in Philadelphia, USA. The Sunday school was very crowded. Russell H. Conwell, the minister, told her that one day they would have buildings big enough to allow everyone to attend. She said, ‘I hope you will. It is so crowded I am afraid to go there alone.’ He replied, ‘When we get the money we will construct one large enough to get all the children in.’

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Two years later, in 1886, Hattie May died. After the funeral Hattie’s mother gave the minister a little bag they had found under their daughter’s pillow containing 57 cents in change that she had saved up. Alongside it was a note in her handwriting: ‘To help build bigger so that more children can go to Sunday school.’

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The minister changed all the money into pennies and offered each one for sale. He received $250 – and 54 of the cents were given back. The $250 was itself changed into pennies and sold by the newly formed ‘Wiatt Mite Society’. In this way, her 57 cents kept on multiplying.

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Twenty-six years later, in a talk entitled, ‘The history of the 57 cents’, the minister explained the results of her 57-cent donation: a church with a membership of over 5,600 people, a hospital where tens of thousands of people had been treated, 80,000 young people going through university, 2,000 people going out to preach the gospel – all this happened ‘because Hattie May Wiatt invested her 57 cents’.

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In my own life, there was a time when Jesus told me to take care of a woman and her 5 children that were evicted for non-payment of rent.  I didn’t have much.  I only had a security guard job.  But, with God’s help, I was able to help them for 1o years.  All of her children became Christians because I had a box of 4 Spiritual Laws pamphlets that the youngest one got into, read, prayed the prayer, and shared it with all his other brothers and sisters.  I’ll never forget the joy I had when I saw him showing that pamphlet to his big sister and then saying, “Now pray this prayer at the end.  It really works!”  Now they have 14 children and 3 grandchildren & they all go to church. 

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Do you have a story about how Jesus took what little you had and multiplied it?

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Now, what is going to happen after Jesus feeds the 5 thousand?

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Verses 22-33,

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“Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds.  And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, but the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them.  And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea.  But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear.  But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”

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And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.”  He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.  But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.”  Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”  And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.  And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

Immediately after feeding the crowd, Jesus tells his disciples to get in the boat and go to the other side while he dismisses the crowd and goes up the mountain by himself to pray.  By this time, it certainly must be past nightfall.  But the boat the disciples are in is a long ways away.  It is battered by the waves and the wind.  It says here that it was the 4th watch of the night, so it was about from 3 AM to 6 AM.  So, they have been out there for at least 6 hours and they are still out in the middle of the sea.  Now according to the gospel of John, they were about half way across when Jesus came to them.  Normally, the whole trip would take 3-4 hours, but here they had been rowing for 6 hours and were only half way across.  So, it is a pretty heavy storm.  The weather is keeping them from getting to their destination.  So here comes Jesus, walking on the sea.  But the disciples think it is a ghost and they cry out in fear.  They must have given out a shriek, or two, each. 

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What does Jesus do then?

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He immediately says, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” 

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The Greek word for “take heart,” is one word, “tharseite.”  It is more often translated as “be courageous.”  The root word here is “tharros,” which means courage.  So, “thar” for courage, and “seite,” for “you be.”  2nd person plural present imperative active.  “So, you be courageous now!  That’s a command!” 

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Why should they be courageous immediately?

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Jesus says, “It is I.  Do not be afraid.”

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How did the disciples respond, starting with Peter?

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Peter says, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come out to you on the water.”  Jesus says, “Come.”  So Peter gets out of the boat and walks on the water to Jesus. 

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In the last chapter, we see that Jesus tells the disciples parables about faith, like the mustard seed that is small when it starts, but it grows into a tree.  We see here that Peter’s faith is growing.  Is Peter’s faith perfect?

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No. Peter sees the wind and is afraid.  Then he begins to sink.  Peter cries out, “Lord save me.”  Jesus reaches out and grabs him and said, “Oh you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

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Why did Peter lose faith? 

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Because he took his eyes off of Jesus.  He saw the wind instead of Jesus.  That’s when we lose faith – when we take our eyes off of Jesus.

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Now, when Peter cried out, “Lord save me,” did Jesus say, “Sorry buster!”

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No, Jesus reached out and grabbed him.  So, just like Jesus saved Peter, when he asked Jesus to save him, so too will he save us when we cry out to him. 

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So, they get into the boat, the wind stops, then how did the other disciples respond to Jesus?

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They worship Jesus and said, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

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Are the disciples just finding this out for the first time?

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No, they heard about this from Jesus’ baptism in Matthew 3:17, “a voice from heaven said, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

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Now, they are affirming it and worshipping Jesus. 

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Did Jesus say, “Stop worshipping me, I’m not God?”

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No.  Jesus accepted the worship. 

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How does this event fit in with Matthew’s thesis?

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It perfectly proves that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah.

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Now John 6 says that they were headed to Capernaum, but Matthew mentions Gennesaret.  Let’s see how that it mentions this in Matthew 14 verses 34-36,

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“And when they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret.  And when the men of that place recognized him, they sent around to all that region and brought to him all who were sick and implored him that they might only touch the fringe of his garment. And as many as touched it were made well.”

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The word for “when they had crossed over” is “diaperasantes.”  It is more literally meaning “having crossed over.”  So once they have crossed over, they came to the land of Gennesaret.  This still could be the same incident as in John 6. 

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Gennesaret was a bit West of Capernaum on the Sea of Galilee.  See the map below: