A Study of John's Gospel

Jesus Walks On a Stormy Sea

A study of John 6:16-21

"When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. But he said to them, "It is I; do not be afraid." Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going."

John 6:16–21 (ESV)

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

-Evening: "ὀψία", "opsia"; adjective, nominative, singular, feminine | subject of the dependent clause - late afternoon, evening, nightfall.

-Disciples: "μαθηταὶ", "mathētai"; noun, nominative, plural, masculine | subject - learner, pupil.

-Went Down: "κατέβησαν", "katebēsan"; verb, aorist, active, indicative, third person, plural | finite verb - descend, come down, to go down.

-Capernaum: "Καφαρναούμ", "Kapharnaoum"; noun, accusative, singular, feminine | proper name - Capernaum = "village of comfort"; a flourishing city of Galilee situated on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee or Lake of Gennesaret, near the place where the Jordan flows into the lake.

-Dark: "σκοτία", "skotia"; noun, nominative, singular, feminine | subject - darkness, darkness due to lack of light.

-Became Rough: "διεγείρετο", "diegeireto"; verb, present, passive, indicative, third person, singular | finite verb - of the sea: to be agitated, to rise.

-Strong: "μεγάλου", "megalou"; adjective, genitive, singular, masculine | attributive adjective - great, loud, violent, mighty.

-Wind: "ἀνέμου", "anemou"; noun, genitive, singular, masculine | subject of the dependent clause - wind; a violent agitation and stream of air.

-When They Had Rowed: "ἐληλακότες", "elēlakotes"; verb, perfect, active, participle, plural, nominative, masculine | contemporaneous participle - push, carry, drive, row; of sailors propelling a vessel by oars.

-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.

-Walking: "περιπατοῦντα", "peripatounta"; verb, present, active, participle, singular, accusative, masculine | participle - to walk, to make one's way, progress.

-They Were Frightened: "ἐφοβήθησαν", "ephobēthēsan"; verb, aorist, passive, indicative, third person, plural | finite verb - be afraid, fear, be frightened.

-They Were Glad: "ἤθελον", "ēthelon"; verb, imperfect, active, indicative, third person, plural | finite verb - wish, want, to be resolved or determined (In John 6:21: happy to take Jesus into the boat).

-Immediately: "εὐθέως", "eutheōs"; adverb | temporal adverb - at once, immediately.

-Land: "γῆς", "gēs"; noun, genitive, singular, feminine | prepositional object - earth, land; main land as opposed to seea or water.

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

In the evening, Jesus' disciples went down to the Sea of Galilee, got into a boat, and began to cross to Capernaum. It was dark, and Jesus had not joined them yet. As they sailed, a strong wind started blowing and the sea became dangerously rough. After they had rowed for hours and only traveled a few miles, they saw Jesus walking on the rough waters towards their boat and they were frightened. But Jesus told them it was Him and not to be afraid. After this they happily received Him into the boat and all of a sudden they were at the shoreline they had been traveling to.