Mk 4:39 “Hush, be still.”
Summary Notes
What did Jesus say?
When Jesus said,”hush, be still” He was commanding the storm to put on a muzzle and to be silent.
Why would He say this?
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Jesus decided to cross the Sea of Galilee in a boat. His 12 disciples and an unknown number of other disciples went along in other boats. Some of them were still undecided about Jesus in general. They did not realize that Jesus was the agent of creation. The words of God made the world – Genesis 1. Jesus is the physical embodiment of the Word of God – John 1:1-14. Therefore, Jesus had full authority to command nature at will. He was and is THAT powerful. If these disciples were to become future leaders they needed to know about Him without a doubt.
I am like everyone else, created in the likeness of God. Therefore, my words also carry power. I must be careful how I use them!
Click here for my personal application and your comments link …or scroll down for my full notes…
Command 188: “Hush, be still.”
REFERENCE:
Mk 4:39
RECIPIENT:
Mk 4:39a And He got up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea…
Mt 8:26b Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the se…
Lk 8:24b And He got up and rebuked the wind and the surging waves…
CONTEXT:
See also Mt 8:23-27 and Lk 8:22-25 include this event and the fact that a rebuke of the elements was spoken but do not record the command.
Mk 4:35-39 On that day, when evening came, He *said to them, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36 Leaving the crowd, they took Him along with them in the boat, just as He was; and other boats were with Him. 37And there arose a fierce gale of wind, and the waves were breaking over the boat so much that the boat was already filling up. 38Jesus Himself was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” 39And He got up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea…
Mt 8:23-26a When He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him. 24And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being covered with the waves; but Jesus Himself was asleep. 25And they came to Him and woke Him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing!” 26He said to them, “Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?”
Lk 8:22-24a Now on one of those days Jesus and His disciples got into a boat, and He said to them, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.” So they launched out. 23But as they were sailing along He fell asleep; and a fierce gale of wind descended on the lake, and they began to be swamped and to be in danger. 24They came to Jesus and woke Him up, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!”
COMMAND FULL TEXT AND IMMEDIATE RESULT:
Mk 4:39 “Hush, be still.” And the wind died down and it became perfectly calm.
RESULT:
Mk 4:40-41 And He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” 41They became very much afraid and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”
Mt 8:26b-27 Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and it became perfectly calm. 27The men were amazed, and said, “What kind of a man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”
Lk 8:24b-25 And He got up and rebuked the wind and the surging waves, and they stopped, and it became calm. 25And He said to them, “Where is your faith?” They were fearful and amazed, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him?”
MY COMMENTS AND NOTES:
Who Then is This?
Jesus is the agent of creation. Genesis 1 records that the world and all creation was made through the words of God, “Then God said…”. Jesus is identified in John 1:1-14 as physical embodiment of the words of God. Therefore, Jesus had full authority to command nature at will. He was and is THAT powerful.
At least some of the disciples were still unconvinced of Jesus’ deity when this incident happened. The story recounts that Jesus’ closest 12 disciples and other disciples in other boats were present in the storm.
The Sea of Galilee
The Sea of Galilee is unique . It is the lowest freshwater lake in the world at 700 feet (213 m) below sea level. It is small by comparison to other large freshwater lakes. Being only 13 miles long and 8 miles wide with a surface area of only 64 square miles (166 km2), it is less than 1% of the area of Lake Ontario which is the smallest of the American Great Lakes.
The lake is infamous for its sudden fierce storms. It is in a basin surrounded by mountains. Wind currents and temperature differences at times cause torrents of wind to build up quickly over the surface. Dangerous waves of up to 10 feet can to occur on the lake. Before modern weather forecasting mariners were at risk if they were caught in the middle of the lake during such a gale.
My Words
Jesus had the power and authority to command the physical elements with His words. Genesis 1:27 states God created men and women in His own image. Is it then unbelievable that my words also have the effect of shaping the physical reality of the world around me? I think of it this way. All human activity begins with a desire and thoughts. Thoughts and desires are completely intangible until they are embodied with language – words. It is through words that my intentions, either good or bad, give rise to plans and then to actions. The result of action over time is what brings about the changes in physical reality. When my words are spoken they can bring about progress or disaster, healing or hurt to those around me.
My words indeed have power. Consider the quote from Henry Ford; If you think you can’t (do a thing) you are right!” If I think things like, “If it were not for bad luck I’d have no luck at all”, or “I’m too stupid to learn (fill in the blank) then I am defeated before I begin. Henry Ford also said, “If you think you can then you can.” Of course he left out the planning, time and effort part, but the statement is true. I think this is why it is so very important to train my mind to think and to speak good, productive things. The Apostle Paul said in Philippians 4:8 to dwell on whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute and on anything excellent and worthy of praise.
When I think and speak good things it changes my attitude and promotes the desire for good things to happen and with time and effort good things do happen!
DEFINITIONS: Key Greek Words – Removes ambiguity of the Bible text
hush: G4623 σιωπάω see-o-pah’-ō – silence, involuntary stillness
still: G5392 φιμόω fee-mo’-ō – to muzzle
MY PERSONAL APPLICATION: I encourage you to make your own application and please share it in the comments
My thoughts and words have power to shape reality. Whether I think and speak of productive and good things or of defeat and poverty, it changes my attitude and desires to affect the results of my efforts. Over time, a positive or negative reality is the result of my words. Therefore, I will make the effort to read, watch and listen to good things so than my thoughts and words will have better results.
© 2020 Christopher Carlson
Scripture quotations taken from the NASB
Please share a comment, question or perhaps another application for this command of Jesus.
Christopher, I was just studying this passage recently! I like how you drew out the application that not only our spoken words but also our thought words have power. Good for me to remember! Thanks for this post. And I love Dawn’s photograph – beautiful!
Pearl, I’m always blessed when someone else is blessed through the blog site. You must have have similar experiences through lookupsometimes.com/. This one spoke to me too. For some reason the path of least emotional resistance is toward the negative. It takes emotional effort to go the other way. Lately I’ve been reminded through this study of Mark and other materials just how important my words are to myself and to others, a skill too easily forgotten. Oh, and I’ll tell Dawn you like the photo!