Font Size
Matthew 8:23-9:8
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Matthew 8:23-9:8
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
The Calming of the Storm at Sea. 23 [a](A)He got into a boat and his disciples followed him. 24 Suddenly a violent storm[b] came up on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by waves; but he was asleep. 25 (B)They came and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us![c] We are perishing!” 26 He said to them, “Why are you terrified, O you of little faith?”[d] Then he got up, rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was great calm. 27 The men were amazed and said, “What sort of man is this, whom even the winds and the sea obey?”
The Healing of the Gadarene Demoniacs. 28 (C)When he came to the other side, to the territory of the Gadarenes,[e] two demoniacs who were coming from the tombs met him. They were so savage that no one could travel by that road. 29 They cried out, “What have you to do with us,[f] Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the appointed time?” 30 Some distance away a herd of many swine was feeding.[g] 31 The demons pleaded with him, “If you drive us out, send us into the herd of swine.”(D) 32 And he said to them, “Go then!” They came out and entered the swine, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the sea where they drowned. 33 The swineherds ran away, and when they came to the town they reported everything, including what had happened to the demoniacs. 34 Thereupon the whole town came out to meet Jesus, and when they saw him they begged him to leave their district.
Chapter 9
The Healing of a Paralytic. 1 [h](E)He entered a boat, made the crossing, and came into his own town. 2 And there people brought to him a paralytic lying on a stretcher. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Courage, child, your sins are forgiven.”(F) 3 At that, some of the scribes[i] said to themselves, “This man is blaspheming.” 4 Jesus knew what they were thinking, and said, “Why do you harbor evil thoughts? 5 Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? 6 [j]But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he then said to the paralytic, “Rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home.”(G) 7 He rose and went home. 8 [k]When the crowds saw this they were struck with awe and glorified God who had given such authority to human beings.
The Call of Matthew.[l]
Footnotes
- 8:23 His disciples followed him: the first miracle in the second group (Mt 8:23–9:8) is introduced by a verse that links it with the preceding sayings by the catchword “follow.” In Mark the initiative in entering the boat is taken by the disciples (Mk 4:35–41); here, Jesus enters first and the disciples follow.
- 8:24 Storm: literally, “earthquake,” a word commonly used in apocalyptic literature for the shaking of the old world when God brings in his kingdom. All the synoptics use it in depicting the events preceding the parousia of the Son of Man (Mt 24:7; Mk 13:8; Lk 21:11). Matthew has introduced it here and in his account of the death and resurrection of Jesus (Mt 27:51–54; 28:2).
- 8:25 The reverent plea of the disciples contrasts sharply with their reproach of Jesus in Mk 4:38.
- 8:26 You of little faith: see note on Mt 6:30. Great calm: Jesus’ calming the sea may be meant to recall the Old Testament theme of God’s control over the chaotic waters (Ps 65:8; 89:10; 93:3–4; 107:29).
- 8:28 Gadarenes: this is the reading of Codex Vaticanus, supported by other important textual witnesses. The original reading of Codex Sinaiticus was Gazarenes, later changed to Gergesenes, and a few versions have Gerasenes. Each of these readings points to a different territory connected, respectively, with the cities Gadara, Gergesa, and Gerasa (modern Jerash). There is the same confusion of readings in the parallel texts, Mk 5:1 and Lk 8:26; there the best reading seems to be “Gerasenes,” whereas “Gadarenes” is probably the original reading in Matthew. The town of Gadara was about five miles southeast of the Sea of Galilee, and Josephus (Life 9:42) refers to it as possessing territory that lay on that sea. Two demoniacs: Mark (5:1–20) has one.
- 8:29 What have you to do with us?: see note on Jn 2:4. Before the appointed time: the notion that evil spirits were allowed by God to afflict human beings until the time of the final judgment is found in Enoch 16:1 and Jubilees 10:7–10.
- 8:30 The tending of pigs, animals considered unclean by Mosaic law (Lv 11:6–7), indicates that the population was Gentile.
- 9:1 His own town: Capernaum; see Mt 4:13.
- 9:3 Scribes: see note on Mk 2:6. Matthew omits the reason given in the Marcan story for the charge of blasphemy: “Who but God alone can forgive sins?” (Mk 2:7).
- 9:6 It is not clear whether But that you may know…to forgive sins is intended to be a continuation of the words of Jesus or a parenthetical comment of the evangelist to those who would hear or read this gospel. In any case, Matthew here follows the Marcan text.
- 9:8 Who had given such authority to human beings: a significant difference from Mk 2:12 (“They…glorified God, saying, ‘We have never seen anything like this’”). Matthew’s extension to human beings of the authority to forgive sins points to the belief that such authority was being claimed by Matthew’s church.
- 9:9–17 In this section the order is the same as that of Mk 2:13–22.
Matthew 8:23-9:8
New International Version
Matthew 8:23-9:8
New International Version
Jesus Calms the Storm(A)(B)
23 Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him. 24 Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25 The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!”
26 He replied, “You of little faith,(C) why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm.(D)
27 The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!”
Jesus Restores Two Demon-Possessed Men(E)
28 When he arrived at the other side in the region of the Gadarenes,[a] two demon-possessed(F) men coming from the tombs met him. They were so violent that no one could pass that way. 29 “What do you want with us,(G) Son of God?” they shouted. “Have you come here to torture us before the appointed time?”(H)
30 Some distance from them a large herd of pigs was feeding. 31 The demons begged Jesus, “If you drive us out, send us into the herd of pigs.”
32 He said to them, “Go!” So they came out and went into the pigs, and the whole herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and died in the water. 33 Those tending the pigs ran off, went into the town and reported all this, including what had happened to the demon-possessed men. 34 Then the whole town went out to meet Jesus. And when they saw him, they pleaded with him to leave their region.(I)
Jesus Forgives and Heals a Paralyzed Man(J)
9 Jesus stepped into a boat, crossed over and came to his own town.(K) 2 Some men brought to him a paralyzed man,(L) lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith,(M) he said to the man, “Take heart,(N) son; your sins are forgiven.”(O)
3 At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, “This fellow is blaspheming!”(P)
4 Knowing their thoughts,(Q) Jesus said, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts? 5 Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 6 But I want you to know that the Son of Man(R) has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “Get up, take your mat and go home.” 7 Then the man got up and went home. 8 When the crowd saw this, they were filled with awe; and they praised God,(S) who had given such authority to man.
Footnotes
- Matthew 8:28 Some manuscripts Gergesenes; other manuscripts Gerasenes
New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.