Five-minute study · Day 342 · Matthew 14
Matthew 14:27
A word worth stopping on: be of good cheer θαρσέω tharseo
'But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.' The Greek phrase translated 'be of good cheer' is tharseo. It means take courage, be bold, stand firm. Jesus says it from the surface of the water, in the dark, during a storm. The disciples are in a boat in the middle of the Sea of Galilee. The wind is against them. The waves are breaking over the sides. They have been rowing for hours. Then they see a figure walking toward them on the water and they scream, thinking it is a ghost. Into that terror Jesus speaks two things: tharseo (take courage) and ego eimi (I am). The second phrase is the divine name. God identified himself to Moses at the burning bush with those words. Jesus uses them on a lake at three in the morning while his friends are drowning in fear. The command to take courage is anchored to an identity claim. He does not say 'the storm will stop.' He says 'I am here.'
Word study: be of good cheer
- Greek
- θαρσέω
- Pronounced
- tharseo
- Strong's
- G2293
- Definition
- To be courageous, to take heart, to have confidence. An imperative urging boldness in the face of fear. Used in the New Testament exclusively by Jesus or by those relaying his words.
Tharseo appears 7 times in the New Testament. BDAG defines it as 'to have courage, be of good courage.' Every occurrence in the Gospels comes from the mouth of Jesus. He says it to the paralytic lowered through the roof (Matthew 9:2), to the woman with the issue of blood (Matthew 9:22), to the disciples on the sea (Matthew 14:27, Mark 6:50), and to Paul in a vision in Jerusalem (Acts 23:11). The word carries a pattern: Jesus says tharseo to people who are either physically helpless or physically terrified.
France's commentary on Matthew notes that the phrase ego eimi ('it is I' / 'I am') in verse 27 operates on two levels. At the surface level it is identification: 'it's me, Jesus, not a phantom.' At the deeper level it echoes the divine self-revelation of Exodus 3:14, where God says 'I AM THAT I AM.' France observes that Matthew's audience, steeped in the Hebrew scriptures, would have heard both layers. The one walking on the water identifies himself with the name God used at the burning bush.
France also highlights the timing. Matthew 14:25 specifies the fourth watch of the night, between 3 and 6 a.m. The disciples have been rowing against the wind since evening. They are exhausted, soaked, frightened. The appearance of a figure on the water triggers a primal fear response: they cry out in terror (v. 26). Jesus' first word to them is tharseo. He does not explain what he is doing on the water. He does not rebuke them for being afraid. He addresses the fear directly and then tells them who he is. The sequence matters. Courage first. Identity second. Fear last.
Historical context · 1st century CE
Night Storms on the Sea of Galilee
The Sea of Galilee sits 686 feet below sea level in a basin surrounded by hills and ravines. Cool air from the Golan Heights to the east and Mount Hermon to the north funnels through the valleys and collides with the warm air rising off the lake surface. The result is sudden, violent windstorms that can develop in minutes, even on otherwise calm days. Modern meteorological studies of the lake confirm wind events exceeding 40 knots with wave heights of 6-8 feet, sufficient to swamp small craft.
First-century fishing boats on the Galilee were open-hulled vessels roughly 26 feet long and 7 feet wide, built of cedar planking on oak frames. In 1986, drought conditions lowered the lake level and exposed a first-century boat buried in the mud near Kibbutz Ginosar. The 'Jesus Boat,' as it came to be called, matches descriptions of vessels used by Galilean fishermen in the Second Temple period. It could carry approximately 15 people, had a shallow draft, and was propelled by oars and a single sail. In a strong headwind, the sail would be useless. The crew would have to row.
France places the storm narrative in Matthew 14 against this geography. The disciples are crossing from the western shore (near Bethsaida) after the feeding of the five thousand. A katabatic wind, the downslope wind pattern specific to the Galilee basin, hits them during the crossing. They are 'in the midst of the sea' (v. 24), roughly two miles from shore in either direction. With the wind against them, they cannot make landfall. They are stuck on open water, in the dark, in a boat that sits low in the waves. The fourth watch places the scene between 3 and 6 a.m. They have been fighting the storm for eight to nine hours. Physical exhaustion compounds the fear. Into that specific situation, on that specific body of water, Jesus walks.
For reflection
Jesus did not calm the storm before he spoke to them. He spoke into it. The wind was still blowing when he said 'take courage.' What situation in your life right now feels like rowing against the wind in the dark? What would it mean to hear his voice before the circumstances change?
Tharseo is always spoken to people who are helpless. Jesus never tells comfortable people to take courage. He says it to the terrified, the bleeding, and the paralyzed.
Sources: BDAG; France, "Matthew"