Peter
answered him and said, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the waters.”
Matthew 14:28
Matthew 14 [22.] Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat, and to go ahead of him to the other side, while he sent the multitudes away. After he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into the mountain by himself to pray. When evening had come, he was there alone. But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, distressed by the waves, for the wind was contrary. In the fourth watch of the night, Jesus came to them, walking on the sea. When the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It’s a ghost!” and they cried out for fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying “Cheer up! It is I! Don’t be afraid.”
Matthew 14 [28.] Peter answered him and said, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the waters.”
Matthew 14 [29.] He said, “Come!”
Peter stepped down from the boat, and walked on the waters to come to Jesus. But when he saw that the wind was strong, he was afraid, and beginning to sink, he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!”
Meaning:
In the last watch of the night the disciples saw Jesus walking toward them on the sea and cried out, “It’s a ghost!” (Matthew 14:22-26). Jesus immediately reassured them: “Cheer up! It is I! Don’t be afraid” (Matthew 14:27). Only Matthew records what followed. Peter, still in the boat on a stormy sea, made one of the boldest requests in the Gospels.
- “Peter answered him”
Peter often spoke first among the twelve. He would be the one to confess, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16), and also the one who rebuked Jesus and heard, “Get behind me, Satan!” (Matthew 16:23). He promised, “I will lay down my life for you” (John 13:37), and then denied Jesus three times (Matthew 26:69-75). He was eager and wholehearted. In this verse we see the best of that eagerness: he wanted to be where Jesus was.
- “Lord, if it is you”
The word “if” does not have to mean doubt. Jesus had just said, “It is I!” Peter takes him at his word and asks for a way to act on it. Now Peter addresses him as “Lord.” The voice of Jesus changed everything. Jesus would later say, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27).
- “Command me to come to you”
Peter did not simply jump out of the boat. He asked Jesus to command him. He understood that walking on water was not something he could do by his own strength or courage; it would only be possible if Jesus told him to come. Faith does not invent its own adventures; it responds to the word of Christ. “So faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17). Jesus later taught his disciples, “apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).
- “On the waters”
The waters were not calm. The wind was still strong and the waves were still high. Peter asked to step onto the very thing that had been threatening the boat all night. The one who treads on the waves of the sea (see Job 9:8) was inviting him to share, for a moment, in his authority over the chaos. Jesus answered with one word, “Come!”, and Peter stepped out of the boat (Matthew 14:29-31).
The Significance of Matthew 14:28
- Faith that asks for a word
Peter teaches us to ground our steps of faith in what Jesus says. We obey his word even when obedience looks impossible. Faith is “assurance of things hoped for, proof of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1).
- Wanting to be near Jesus
Peter’s heart was drawn to Jesus. True discipleship longs to be where he is, even if the way there crosses rough water.
- Courage mixed with weakness
Within moments Peter would see the wind and begin to sink. His faith was real but small. Yet Jesus did not refuse his request, and he did not let him drown. Our faith may be weak, but the one we trust is strong.
Cross-References:
Matthew 14:27: "Cheer up! It is I! Don’t be afraid." The words Peter answered.
John 10:27: "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me." Following the voice of the Shepherd.
Romans 10:17: "So faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." Faith rests on his word.
Conclusion: When Jesus said, “It is I!”, Peter answered, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the waters.” He did not act on impulse alone, but asked for a word from Jesus, because he knew that only Jesus could make the impossible possible. The verse shows the eagerness of Peter’s faith and teaches us to take our steps of faith on the word of Christ, wanting above all to be near him.
PIB Scriptures are derived from the World English Bible