Early Church Fathers Scripture Index : Texts
Matthew 14:28
There are 15 footnotes for this reference.
Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 3, page 675, footnote 8 (Image)
Tertullian (I, II, III)
Ethical. (HTML)
On Baptism. (HTML)
Of the Necessity of Baptism to Salvation. (HTML)
CCEL Footnote 8665 (In-Text, Margin)
Others make the suggestion (forced enough, clearly “that the apostles then served the turn of baptism when in their little ship, were sprinkled and covered with the waves: that Peter himself also was immersed enough when he walked on the sea.”[Matthew 14:28-29] It is, however, as I think, one thing to be sprinkled or intercepted by the violence of the sea; another thing to be baptized in obedience to the discipline of religion. But that little ship did present a figure of the Church, in that she is disquieted “in the sea,” that is, in the world, “by the waves,” that is, by persecutions and temptations; the Lord, through patience, ...
Ante-Nicene Fathers, Volume 9, page 73, footnote 3 (Image)
Gospel of Peter, Diatessaron, Apocalypses, Visio Pauli, Testament of Abraham, Acts of X/P, Zosimus, Aristides, Clement, Origen
The Diatessaron of Tatian. (HTML)
The Diatessaron. (HTML)
Section XIX. (HTML)
CCEL Footnote 1337 (In-Text, Margin)
[1] And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus came unto them, walking upon the [2] water, after they had rowed with difficulty about twenty-five or thirty furlongs. [3] And when he drew near unto their boat, his disciples saw him walking on the water; and they were troubled, and supposed that it was a false appearance; and they cried [4] out from their fear. But Jesus straightway spoke unto them, and said, Take courage, [5] for it is I; fear not.[Matthew 14:28] Then Cephas answered and said unto him, My Lord, if it be thou, [6] bid me to come unto thee on the water. And Jesus said unto him, Come. And [7] Cephas went down out of the boat, and walked on the water to come unto Jesus. But [Arabic, p. 74] when he saw the wind strong, ...
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series 1, Volume 6, page 150, footnote 1 (Image)
Augustine: Sermon on the Mount, Harmony of the Gospels, Homilies on the Gospels
The Harmony of the Gospels. (HTML)
Book II (HTML)
Of His Walking Upon the Water, and of the Questions Regarding the Harmony of the Evangelists Who Have Narrated that Scene, and Regarding the Manner in Which They Pass Off from the Section Recording the Occasion on Which He Fed the Multitudes with the Five Loaves. (HTML)
CCEL Footnote 1064 (In-Text, Margin)
... when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, He was there alone. But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary. And in the fourth watch of the night He came unto them, walking on the sea. And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit;” and so on, down to the words, “They came and worshipped Him, saying, Of a truth Thou art the Son of God.”[Matthew 14:23-33] In like manner, Mark, after narrating the miracle of the five loaves, gives his account of this same incident in the following terms: “And when it was late, the ship was in the midst of the sea, and He alone on the land. And He saw them toiling in ...
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series 1, Volume 6, page 339, footnote 6 (Image)
Augustine: Sermon on the Mount, Harmony of the Gospels, Homilies on the Gospels
Sermons on Selected Lessons of the New Testament. (HTML)
On the words of the Gospel, Matt. xiv. 24, ‘But the boat was now in the midst of the sea, distressed by the waves.’ (HTML)
CCEL Footnote 2563 (In-Text, Margin)
10. What then does Peter’s daring to come to Him on the waters also signify? For Peter generally stands for a figure of the Church. What else then do we think is meant by, “Lord, if it be Thou, bid me come unto Thee on the water;”[Matthew 14:28] but, Lord, if Thou art true, and in nothing speakest falsely, let Thy Church also be glorified in this world, because prophecy hath proclaimed this concerning Thee. Let her walk then on the waters, and so let her come to Thee, to whom it is said, “The rich among the people shall entreat Thy favour.” But since to the Lord the praise of men is no temptation, but men are ofttimes in ...
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series 1, Volume 6, page 341, footnote 2 (Image)
Augustine: Sermon on the Mount, Harmony of the Gospels, Homilies on the Gospels
Sermons on Selected Lessons of the New Testament. (HTML)
Again on Matt. xiv. 25: Of the Lord walking on the waves of the sea, and of Peter tottering. (HTML)
CCEL Footnote 2578 (In-Text, Margin)
5. And hence also is that which was just now read, “Lord, if it be Thou, bid me come unto Thee on the water.”[Matthew 14:28] For I cannot do this in myself, but in Thee. He acknowledged what he had of himself, and what of Him, by whose will he believed that he could do that, which no human weakness could do. Therefore, “if it be Thou, bid me;” because when thou biddest, it will be done. What I cannot do by taking it upon myself, Thou canst do by bidding me. And the Lord said “Come.” And without any doubting, at the word of Him who bade him, at the presence of Him ...
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series 1, Volume 6, page 352, footnote 1 (Image)
Augustine: Sermon on the Mount, Harmony of the Gospels, Homilies on the Gospels
Sermons on Selected Lessons of the New Testament. (HTML)
On the words of the Gospel, Matt. xvii. 19, ‘Why could not we cast it out’? etc., and on prayer. (HTML)
CCEL Footnote 2690 (In-Text, Margin)
... but from what was the Lord’s. How? “Lord, if it be Thou, bid me come unto Thee on the water.” For on the water was the Lord walking. “If it be Thou, bid me come unto Thee on the water.” For I know that if it be Thou, Thou biddest, and it is done. “And He saith, Come.” He went down at His bidding, but in his own weakness he was afraid. Never theless when he was afraid, he cried out, “Lord, save me.” Then the Lord took him by the hand, and said, “O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?”[Matthew 14:28] He first invited him, He delivered him, as he tottered, and stumbled; that it might be fulfilled which was said in the Psalm, “If I said my foot hath slipped, Thy mercy, O Lord, aided me.”
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series 1, Volume 7, page 361, footnote 5 (Image)
Augustine: Homilies on the Gospel of John, Homilies on the First Epistle of John, Soliloquies
Lectures or Tractates on the Gospel According to St. John. (HTML)
Chapter XV. 24, 25. (HTML)
CCEL Footnote 1485 (In-Text, Margin)
... so; and Elisha also, both when alive in the flesh, and when he lay buried in his sepulchre. For when certain men, who were carrying a dead person, had fled thither for refuge from an onset of their enemies, and had laid him down therein, he instantly came again to life. And yet there were some works that Christ did which none other man did: as, when He fed the five thousand men with five loaves, and the four thousand with seven; when He walked on the waters, and gave Peter power to do the same;[Matthew 14:25-29] when He changed the water into wine; when He opened the eyes of a man that was born blind, and many besides, which it would take long to mention. But we are answered, that others also have done works which even He did not, and which no other man has ...
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series 1, Volume 8, page 123, footnote 3 (Image)
Augustine: Expositions on the Psalms
Expositions on the Book of Psalms. (HTML)
Psalm XL (HTML)
CCEL Footnote 1118 (In-Text, Margin)
... this. Thou wouldest see sights; be thyself a “spectacle.” That thy spirit may not sink, look on Him who goes before thee, and says, “We have been made a spectacle unto this world, and unto angels, and unto men.” Tread thou on the waters; suffer not thyself to be drowned in the sea. Thou wilt not go there, thou wilt not “tread it under foot,” unless it be His bidding, who was Himself the first to walk upon the sea. For it was thus that Peter spoke. “If Thou art, bid me come unto Thee on the waters.”[Matthew 14:28] And because “He was,” He heard him when praying; He granted his wish to him when expressing his desire; He raised him up when sinking. These are the “wonderful works” that the “Lord hath made.” Look on them; let faith be the eye of him who would ...
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series 1, Volume 8, page 465, footnote 2 (Image)
Augustine: Expositions on the Psalms
Expositions on the Book of Psalms. (HTML)
Psalm XCIV (HTML)
CCEL Footnote 4376 (In-Text, Margin)
... mercy, O Lord, hath held me up.” Just as Peter presumed, but not in strength of his own. The Lord was seen to walk upon the sea, trampling on the heads of all the proud in this life. In walking upon the foaming waves, He figured His own course when He trampleth on the heads of the proud. The Church too doth trample upon them: for Peter is the Church Herself. Nevertheless, Peter dared not by himself walk upon the waters; but what said he? “Lord, if it be Thou, bid me come unto Thee on the water.”[Matthew 14:28] He in His own power, Peter by His order; “bid me,” he saith, “come unto Thee.” He answered, “Come.” For the Church also trampleth on the heads of the proud; but since it is the Church, and hath human weakness, that these words might be fulfilled, ...
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series 2, Volume 4, page 212, footnote 3 (Image)
Athanasius: Select Writings and Letters
Life of Antony. (Vita Antoni.) (HTML)
Life of Antony. (Vita Antoni.) (HTML)
Of the death of Amun, and Antony's vision thereof. (HTML)
CCEL Footnote 1106 (In-Text, Margin)
... Amun was unwilling to tell him, he held him by the feet and declared that he would not let him go before he had learned it from him. So Amun seeing the determination of Theodorus especially from what he had said, and having asked him to tell no man before his death, told him that he had been carried and placed on the further side. And that he had not even set foot on the water, nor was that possible for man, but for the Lord alone and those whom He permits, as He did for the great apostle Peter[Matthew 14:28]. Theodorus therefore told this after the death of Amun. And the monks to whom Antony spoke concerning Amun’s death marked the day; and when the brethren came up from Nitria thirty days after, they enquired of them and learned that Amun had fallen ...
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series 2, Volume 6, page 45, footnote 4 (Image)
Jerome: Letters and Select Works
The Letters of St. Jerome. (HTML)
To Paula. (HTML)
CCEL Footnote 727 (In-Text, Margin)
... CXLV.). After explaining the mystical meaning of the alphabet, Jerome goes on thus: “What honey is sweeter than to know the wisdom of God? others, if they will, may possess riches, drink from a jewelled cup, shine in silks, and try in vain to exhaust their wealth in the most varied pleasures. Our riches are to meditate in the law of the Lord day and night, to knock at the closed door, to receive the ‘three loaves’ of the Trinity, and, when the Lord goes before us, to walk upon the water of the world.”[Matthew 14:25-33] Written at Rome 384.
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series 2, Volume 6, page 374, footnote 4 (Image)
Jerome: Letters and Select Works
Treatises. (HTML)
Against Jovinianus. (HTML)
Book I (HTML)
CCEL Footnote 4514 (In-Text, Margin)
... The substance of our resurrection bodies will certainly be the same as now, though of higher glory. For the Saviour after His descent into hell had so far the selfsame body in which He was crucified, that He showed the disciples the marks of the nails in His hands and the wound in His side. Moreover, if we deny the identity of His body because He entered though the doors were shut, and this is not a property of human bodies, we must deny also that Peter and the Lord had real bodies because they[Matthew 14:28] walked upon the water, which is contrary to nature. “In the resurrection of the dead they will neither marry nor be given in marriage, but will be like the angels.” What others will hereafter be in heaven, that virgins begin to be on earth. If ...
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series 2, Volume 6, page 443, footnote 7 (Image)
Jerome: Letters and Select Works
Treatises. (HTML)
To Pammachius against John of Jerusalem. (HTML)
CCEL Footnote 5105 (In-Text, Margin)
... wall. Could not the Lord enter when the doors were shut, unless He were a phantom? Eagles and vultures perceive dead bodies across the sea. Shall not the Saviour see His Apostles without opening the door? Tell me, sharpest of disputants, which is greater, to hang the vast weight of the earth on nothing, and to balance it on the changing surface of the waves; or that God should pass through a closed door, and the creature yield to the Creator? You allow the greater; you object to the less. Peter[Matthew 14:28] walked upon the waters with his heavy and solid body. The soft water does not yield: his faith doubts a little, and immediately his body understands its own nature; that we may know that it was not his body that walked on the water, but his faith.
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series 2, Volume 10, page 229, footnote 10 (Image)
Ambrose: Select Works and Letters
Dogmatic Treatises, Ethical Works, and Sermons. (HTML)
Exposition of the Christian Faith. (HTML)
Book II. (HTML)
Chapter VI. The passages of Scripture above cited are taken as an occasion for a digression, wherein our Lord's freedom of action is proved from the ascription to the Spirit of such freedom, and from places where it is attributed to the Son. (HTML)
49. The holy Apostle later knew that Jesus had it in His power to do as He would, and therefore, seeing Him walk upon the sea, said: “Lord, if it be Thou, bid me come to Thee over the waters.”[Matthew 14:28] Peter believed that if Christ commanded, the natural conditions could be changed, so that water might support human footsteps, and things discrepant be reduced to harmony and agreement. Peter asks of Christ to command, not to request: Christ requested not, but commanded, and it was done—and Arius denies it!
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series 2, Volume 10, page 288, footnote 6 (Image)
Ambrose: Select Works and Letters
Dogmatic Treatises, Ethical Works, and Sermons. (HTML)
Exposition of the Christian Faith. (HTML)
Book V. (HTML)
Chapter II. Since it has been proved that the Son is true God, and in that is not inferior to the Father, it is shown that by the word solus (alone) when used of the Father in the Scriptures, the Son is not excluded; nay, that this expression befits Him above all, and Him alone. The Trinity is alone, not amongst all, but above all. The Son alone does what the Father does, and alone has immortality. But we must not for this reason separate Him from the Father in our controversies. We may, however, understand that passage of the Incarnation. Lastly the Father is shut out from a share in the redemption of men by those who would have the Son to be separated from Him. (HTML)
30. To show indeed how plainly we must understand the expression “alone” of the Son (although we may never believe that He did anything without the knowledge of the Father), we have here also another passage, where it is written: “Which alone spreadeth out the heavens, and walketh as it were on a pavement over the sea.” For the Gospel of the Lord has taught us that it was not the Father but the Son that walked upon the sea, when Peter asked Him, saying, “Lord, bid me come unto Thee.”[Matthew 14:28] But even prophecy itself gives proof of this. For holy Job prophesied of the coming of the Lord; of Whom he said in truth that He would vanquish the great Leviathan, and it was done. For that dread Leviathan that is, the devil, He smote, and struck down, ...