Jesus Calms the Storm #4

Jesus calming the storm is the account of a sudden, violent windstorm on the Sea of Galilee, in which Jesus, asleep in the boat, is woken by his terrified disciples and commands the wind and waves to be still. It appears in Matthew 8:23-27, Mark 4:35-41, and Luke 8:22-25. John does not record it.

The Account

Jesus told his disciples they would cross to the other side of the lake. As they sailed he fell asleep, and Mark specifically says he was in the stern, asleep on a cushion (Mark 4:38). A great windstorm came down and the waves broke over the boat until it was filling with water. The disciples woke him, and in Mark they ask whether he does not care that they are perishing. In Matthew they say, “Lord, save us: we perish.” (Matthew 8:25), and in Luke they call out, “Master, master, we perish” (Luke 8:24).

Jesus got up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” (Mark 4:39). The wind died down and there was a great calm. He then asked the disciples why they were afraid. Matthew has him call them people of little faith, Mark asks whether they still have no faith, and Luke asks where their faith is. They were filled with awe and asked each other who this was that even the winds and sea obey him.

Setting and Context

The Sea of Galilee sits below sea level and is surrounded by hills, and sudden squalls are a well-known danger to boats. Several of Jesus’s first disciples were experienced fishermen, which makes their fear more striking. Mark places the event at the end of a day of parables and notes that other boats went with him, and Luke also places it after his parable teaching. Matthew places it after the Sermon on the Mount and a series of healings. In all three accounts, the voyage leads to the country of the Gerasenes and the story of the demoniac.

What It Reveals

Old Testament readers would recognize the imagery. Psalm 107:23-30 describes sailors caught in a storm who cry to the Lord, and he “made the storm be still.” The Psalms also praise God as ruler of the raging sea (Psalm 89:9). Jonah, by contrast, fled God and slept through a storm at sea (Jonah 1:4-16), and it was sailors who woke him. Many interpreters see Jesus taking on the role the Old Testament assigns to God, which leads to the disciples’ question about his identity.

The story is also read as one about fear and trust. Christians across traditions have taken it as an assurance that Christ is present with his followers in life’s storms, even when he seems silent. Early Christian art often used a ship as a symbol of the church.