The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1888-01-05

great haste, he hits on the plan of dismissing
the crowd into one direction while he went in
another. The Disciples take TO the sea. The
people depart, going here aud there to their re-
spective homes. Christ goes to quiet mount
ain retreat for rest and prayer. st. Matt, Il:
Is, shows how the Disciples chanced 70 have n
boat with which to return to the western side
of the sea. 1t was Christ's purpose to join the
company of the Disciples after a time. Hence
before him." V. % The Disciples were
the first to separate from the rest. Then Christ
requested the multitude to retire. There was
majesty in his style and an authority in his
commands which none could resist. The null
titude was fed some time between and ?. m.
Then the Disciples embarked between and 8
o'clock Of the evening. The lesson is dated
March 25 and rs, Thursday and Friday, of the
year % A. ID.
The word constrained" fV % indicates
reluctance They were unwilling to leave
Christ. It is better to understand it thus than
to interpret in the sense the Disciples joined
with the multitude in wanting Immediately TO
make Christ King. Some have thought the sea
was raging when they embarked. aud seeing
them on this account reluctant, Christ con-
strained them 20 90. IL was because of HeTOd's
cruelty to st. john Baptist that Christ took his
Disciples and left the west side Of the Sea Of
Galilee. (See IA: 1-13.) Possibly the Disciples
were disinclined to go back to the more imme-
diate headquarters Of Herod.
Christ " sent the multitude away" ". 22.)
He probably bade them farewell kind Of
dismissal sort Of blessing or benediction. he
calned the storm brewing in their minds as to
revolt against the civil authority by an attempt
to make him King.
By ship" tY. 22l we understand a aroWboat.
(St. John, 6:19.l
The account of st. John (Y. 19) states that
"When they had rowed about % or so fur
longs" A furlong or stadium was 01O536 Of
a mile. Hence they were out about three
miles. That would not be far from " the
midst of the Sea " Of Galilee. tSee st. Matt,
ii: PA We are not to suppose they had rowed
only 25 or 80 furlongs during the several hours
they had been at sea. With all their rowing
they had succeeded in making headway of only
about said distance. strong west wind was
encountered. The fourth watch was between
3 and o'clock in the morning. Hence, BAen
Christ appeared they had been struggling with
winds and waves for about seven hours.
1 quote from Narrative of a Mission Of
Inquiry Sent out by the Church Of Scotland ":
On our asking Jewish doctor, regarding the
lake, if there were ever storms upon it, he
said: Yes; and in the Winter the storms are
worse than those of the Great Sea- (Mediter-
ranean.) This quite corresponds with the
testimony of Mr.. Hebard, one of the American
missionaries at Beyr0ut, who visited the lake
in April, and who tells US that he and his party
| had eneamped at evening close by the lake,
when, at midnight, all of a sudden, squail
came down upon the lake, so terrible that they
had to hold by their tent-poles for safety,
| Some of us awoke at midnight, and, for a short
| time, sat by the edge Of the lake. The dark
| ness had completely enyelOped the waters; and
now the Savior's midnight prayers on these
/ neighboring nights and shores seemed q present
reality; and the remembrance of the time
4 when in the fourth watch of the night Jesus
went unto the Disciples walking on the Sea,
/ spread an indeseFibable interest over the sleep
| ing waters. No place excepting Jerusalem i
| so deeply and s0lemnly impressive as the Sea
of Gslilee."
Rev. John A. Broadus, D. D., says: I'VE went
| one morning at the same season of the year, just
| before Easter, to the probable place of feeding
| the 5000. Before We landed a west wind
/ had sprung up, and was sharply rippling tbs
surface of the lake. An hour more and the little
| lake was tossed in Wild indescribabls fury. W.
waited all day, and long after the west winds fell
| the waves were still periious and powerful, and
we could not cross against them, but had to WORK
our way up to the mouth Of the Jordan, and
then down the western side of the slowly sub
| siding lake, passing Tell Hum (Capernaum
! toward midnight"
| We certainly must admire the perseverance
of the Disciples. Unable to advance, they did
not put back to the eastern side.
But Christ was not so engaged as to forget
! the ship-so much in prayer as not 10 act in thl
/ interest of his Disciples. He could but know
| of the storm even as man. By omniscienc
he also knew of their peril. He descended th'
mountain and went forth afOot on the sea- HI
must have walked fully one-half way ovel
| when he encountered the ship. The Disciples
| were afraid when they saw him. Seamen have 81
ways been inclined tosuperstition. They though
the object a specter or ghost. The Jews be
lieyed in apparitions. Wisdom, II: 10; 10: II.
--K- $50 Ia.1
appear. Some believe they imagined the spec
ter was the agent who stirred up the storm
Some, indeed, have suggested that Satan, tn
prince of the power of the air, raised the havo
of the waters on purpose to drown tn
Disciples of Christ Jesus at once tried t
allay their fear, saying: Be of good cheer: i
is | be not afraid" To prove the spectra
appearance, st. Peter demanded the i'm
partatiOn Of power to tread the sea. ii
ought to have known the Shepherds voice
A good sheep recognizes the voice of il
owner. (St John, 1874, 20.) Peter trie
, to walk. We do not know how far b
went; it was not probably TO any great dis
tance, for he failed even to reach Christ an
that though they we're within speaking di;
lance. He could swim. AT later time h
thus reached Christ. (St. John, 21:7.) VIII
afraid now? There was an unusually terribl
storm. Swimming would not be walking, an
inability to do as he had attempted would EN-
barrass him, taking away presence of minC
He began to sink, but WAS quickly grasped b
Christ and saved. Christ declared be (PeteI
| was deficient in faith. (V. 3D. Both Jesu
and Peter then got into the boat.
We see the miraculous. Jesus walked the Sc
in the darkness of night, with waves raging b
boisterous wind. This is not in eonformit
with the usual course Of nature. Flesh
HEAVIER than water, and always sinks when on
attempts to walk waves. Christ is the authC
of the law of gravity, and can intensity, lesse
or suspend said law. He can enable iron
swim or a body to stand on water-yea, o
nothing Then, Jesus can impart power
another to walk on water. The account is yer
natural. Peters rashness is Characteristic. II
eagerness to get to Christ, in this lesson, IS Il
same as in st. John, 21:7. Then, with Il
idea of the day, nothing is more presumab
than that a number of sailors would take q
unusual appearance like the one they saw thi
night to be a ghost. 1t was the third watch
the night, when a human form might not
readily identified.
Richter, British painter, beautifully ar
graphically represented the scene of that nigh
II. <. White wrote these lines, evident
suggested by the lesson:
Once on the raging seas rode;
The storm was loud the night was dark;
The ocean yaWned and rudely blowed
) The wind that tossed my fouadering bark.
! Deep horror then my vitals froze;
Death-strucH. ceased the tide to stem;