But as darkness fell and Jesus still hadn’t come back, they got into the boat and headed across the lake toward Capernaum.
Parallel translations
- WEB and they entered into the boat, and were going over the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not come to them.
- KJV And entered into a ship, and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was now dark, and Jesus was not come to them.
- BSB got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was already dark, and Jesus had not yet gone out to them.
- NKJV got into the boat, and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was already dark, and Jesus had not come to them.
- NASB and after getting into a boat, they started to cross the sea to Capernaum. It had already become dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The disciples set out by boat for Capernaum in the dark, without Jesus. Their situation underscores their vulnerability and His apparent absence before He comes to them.
Overview
John highlights two facts: it was dark, and Jesus had not yet come. The disciples press on into difficulty alone. The scene dramatizes a recurring spiritual reality, that the Lord often seems absent in the night before revealing Himself in power.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- Mark 6:45Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat, and to go ahead to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he himself sent the multitude away.
- John 6:24–25When the multitude therefore saw that Jesus wasn’t there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats, and came to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.
- John 2:12After this, he went down to Capernaum, he, and his mother, his brothers, and his disciples; and they stayed there a few days.
- John 4:46Jesus came therefore again to Cana of Galilee, where he made the water into wine. There was a certain nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
John declares him plainly: the eternal Word made flesh, the Lamb of God, the great 'I AM' — bread, light, door, shepherd, way, truth, life, resurrection — that you may believe and have life in his name.
How John 6:17 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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