A Study of John's Gospel

Jesus Heals the Sick and Ascends a Mountain

A study of John 6:1-4

After this Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick. Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand.

John 6:1–4 (ESV)

Definitions of the original language in the context of this passage:

-Jesus: "Ἰησοῦς", "Iēsous"; noun, nominative, singular, masculine | proper name - Jesus, Jehoshua; Jesus = "Yahweh is salvation"; Jesus, the Son of God, the Saviour of mankind, God incarnate.

-Of [The] Sea: "θαλάσσης", "thalassēs"; noun, genitive, singular, feminine | prepositional object - sea, lake; used of the sea in general. The Sea of Galilee = a large freshwater lake in northern Palestine, 13 miles long by 8 miles wide and up to 150 feet deep.

-Of Galilee: "Γαλιλαίας", "Galilaias"; noun, genitive, singular, feminine | proper name - Galilee = "cirlce" or "circuit"; the name of a region of northern Palestine, bounded on the north by Syria, on the west by Sidon, Tyre, Ptolemais and their territories and the promontory of Carmel, on the south by Samaria and on the east by the Jordan. It was divided into Upper Galilee and Lower Galilee.

-Of Tiberias: "Τιβεριάδος", "Tiberiados"; noun, genitive, singular, feminine | appositive - Tiberias = "from the Tiber (as river-god)"; a city of Galilee near the Lake of Gennesaret (Sea of Galilee), which Herod Antipas, tetrarch of Galilee, greatly enlarged and beautified, and named Tiberias in honor of Tiberias Caesar.

-Signs: "σημεῖα", "sēmeia"; noun, accusative, plural, neuter | direct object of the dependent clause - miracle, of miracles and wonders by which God authenticates the men sent by him, or by which men prove that the cause they are pleading is God's.

-Went Up: "ἀνῆλθεν", "anēlthen"; verb, aorist, active, indicative, third person, singular | finite verb - ascend, go up to a higher place.

-Mountain: "ὄρος", "oros"; noun, accusative, singular, neuter | prepositional object - a mountain, rise, hill, high ground.

-He Sat Down: "ἐκάθητο", "ekathēto"; verb, imperfect, either middle or passive, indicative, third person, singular | finite verb - sit, sit down, seat one's self, remain.

-Disciples: "μαθητῶν", "mathētōn"; noun, genitive, plural, masculine | prepositional object - disciple, learner, pupil.

-Passover: "πάσχα", "pascha"; noun, nominative, singular, neuter | subject - Passover; the paschal feast, the feast of the Passover, extending from the 14th to the 20th day of the month Nisan.

-Feast: "ἑορτὴ", "heortē"; noun, nominative, singular, feminine | appositive - a feast day, festival, holy-day.

-At Hand: "ἐγγὺς", "engys"; adverb | temporal adverb - near; of time: of times imminent and soon to pass.

-Jews: "Ἰουδαίων", "Ioudaiōn"; Jew, Judean, Jewish as respects to birth, origin and religion; belonging to the Jewish nation.

Observation/Summary (short explanation of what the passage says in your own words):

An indeterminate amount of time after His discourse with the Jewish religious leaders in Jerusalem about His identity and authority as the Son of God, Jesus traveled to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (also known as the Sea of Tiberias, the Sea of Chinnereth (Num. 34:11) & the Lake of Gennesaret (Luke 5:1)). As He traveled across the sea by boat (See Mark 6:32), a large crowd followed Him around the Sea on foot because they had seen Jesus heal many sick people. When Jesus got to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, he ascended "the mountain" with his disciples, and He sat down with them there. This all happened very close to the celebration of Passover; the time when the Jewish people remember and celebrate Yahweh's deliverance of their ancestors from slavery in Egypt.