Matthew 14:31 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

NIV: Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. 'You of little faith,' he said, 'why did you doubt?'

NASB: Immediately Jesus reached out with His hand and took hold of him, and *said to him, 'You of little faith, why did you doubt?'

CSB: Immediately Jesus reached out his hand, caught hold of him, and said to him, "You of little faith, why did you doubt? "

NLT: Jesus immediately reached out and grabbed him. 'You have so little faith,' Jesus said. 'Why did you doubt me?'

KJV: And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?

NKJV: And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

Several things are happening in this short verse.

First, Jesus saves Peter, making the miracle of walking on the water even more impressive (Matthew 14:24–25). Peter was sinking (Matthew 14:28–30), and Jesus was able to take hold of him without sinking into the water himself. To do this, Jesus must have been firmly planted on top of the water. It must have been an amazing thing to witness.

Second, Jesus once again counters our normal human expectations. He does not respond to Peter the way we might assume. Peter had just walked on water. We're not told how far he walked, but he did it. He put his full confidence in Jesus' power to work through him and make it possible for him to walk on water, too. No other person who was not the Son of God had ever done such a thing. It was remarkable.

We might expect Jesus to say, "Well done." Or even, "Well done, but…" Instead, Jesus offers no praise. After saving Peter from drowning, He says famously, "O you of little faith." He rebukes Peter's lack of faith instead of praising the faith with which he began. Jesus adds, "Why did you doubt?"

As readers, we may be impressed by Peter's initial faith, but Jesus is more concerned about what stopped Peter from continuing to trust Him. Peter walked on water in the power of God! What could have possibly made him think that he could not walk on water in the power of God once he had already begun to do it? The previous verse provides the answer: Peter's fear took over his faith. Fear was the point of weakness that kept him from continuing to trust Jesus to give him the power to do the impossible.

Jesus' response may seem harsh, but it pointed a bright light on what Peter needed to recognize: Faith in Jesus makes anything possible, but fear kills faith.

Matthew 14:22–33 contains the miracle of Jesus walking on the water. Immediately after feeding thousands of people from a single small portion, Jesus goes up to a mountain to pray. The disciples spend a long night rowing against a strong wind. Jesus walks across the lake to meet them. Peter walks on the water with Jesus briefly before becoming afraid of the wind and waves and beginning to sink. Jesus saves Peter and asks why he doubted. The wind stops when Jesus gets in the boat, and the disciples worship Him as the Son of God.

Matthew 14 begins with a backstory about the arrest and execution of John the Baptist by Herod the tetrarch, the Jewish ruler of the region. Jesus and the disciples take a boat to a desolate place only to find crowds waiting. Jesus heals many and then feeds as many as twenty thousand people with five loaves and two fish. Later, the disciples row against a strong wind until Jesus walks on the water to meet them and calm the wind. Peter walks on water briefly and then doubts and begins to sink. The disciples worship Jesus. On the other side of the lake, Jesus continues to heal the sick.

Matthew 13 included more of Jesus' parables and an unfortunate incident where His own hometown rejected His ministry. Chapter 14 begins with news that Herod the tetrarch—the man who killed John the Baptist—is aware of Jesus' fame and power. Jesus and the disciples intend to withdraw to somewhere desolate, but a crowd is waiting for them. Jesus heals people, miraculously feeds thousands, and walks on water. When they reach the other side, Jesus heals more people. Chapter 15 sees Jesus once again debating with His critics and performing more healings.

The Gospel of Matthew clearly shows the influence of its writer's background, and his effort to reach a specific audience. Matthew was one of Jesus' twelve disciples, a Jewish man, and a former tax collector. This profession would have required literacy, and Matthew may have transcribed some of Jesus' words as they were spoken. This book is filled with references to the Old Testament, demonstrating to Israel that Jesus is the Promised One. Matthew also includes many references to coins, likely due to his former profession. Matthew records extensive accounts of Jesus' teaching, more than the other three Gospels.