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Matthew 14

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📖 Matthew introduction

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1At that time Herod the tetrarch heard the news about Jesus, ✦ 2and said to his servants, “This is John the Baptist; he himself has been raised from the dead, and that is why miraculous powers are at work in him.” ✦ 3For when Herod had John arrested, he bound him and put him in prison because of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip. ✦ 4For John had been saying to him, “It is not lawful for you to have her.” ✦ 5Although Herod wanted to put him to death, he feared the crowd, because they regarded John as a prophet. ✦ 6But when Herod’s birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced before them and pleased Herod, ✦ 7so much that he promised with an oath to give her whatever she asked. ✦ 8And after being prompted by her mother, she *said, “Give me the head of John the Baptist here on a platter.” ✦ 9And although he was grieved, the king commanded it to be given because of his oaths and his dinner guests. ✦ 10He sent word and had John beheaded in the prison. ✦ 11And his head was brought on a platter and given to the girl, and she brought it to her mother. ✦ 12John’s disciples came and took away the body and buried it; and they went and reported to Jesus. ✦ 13Now when Jesus heard about John, He withdrew from there in a boat to a secluded place by Himself; and when the people heard about this, they followed Him on foot from the cities. ✦ 14When He came ashore, He saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them and healed their sick. ✦ 15Now when it was evening, the disciples came to Him and said, “This place is secluded and the hour is already past to eat; send the crowds away, so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” ✦ 16But Jesus said to them, “They do not need to go; you give them something to eat!” ✦ 17They *said to Him, “We have nothing here except five loaves and two fish.” ✦ 18And He said, “Bring them here to Me.” 19And ordering the crowds to sit down on the grass, He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looked up toward heaven. He blessed the food and breaking the loaves, He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. ✦ 20And they all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up what was left over of the broken pieces: twelve full baskets. ✦ 21There were about five thousand men who ate, besides women and children. ✦ 22Immediately afterward He compelled the disciples to get into the boat and to go ahead of Him to the other side, while He sent the crowds away. ✦ 23After He had sent the crowds away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone. ✦ 24But the boat was already a long distance from the land, battered by the waves; for the wind was contrary. ✦ 25And in the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea. ✦ 26When the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out in fear. ✦ 27But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.” ✦ 28Peter responded and said to Him, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” ✦ 29And He said, “Come!” And Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water, and came toward Jesus. ✦ 30But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and when he began to sink, he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” ✦ 31Immediately Jesus reached out with His hand and took hold of him, and *said to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” ✦ 32When they got into the boat, the wind stopped. ✦ 33And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, “You are truly God’s Son!” ✦ 34When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret. ✦ 35And when the men of that place recognized Him, they sent word into all that surrounding region and brought to Him all who were sick; ✦ 36and they pleaded with Him that they might just touch the border of His cloak; and all who touched it were cured. ✦

Tap any verse for its study page. Underlined terms mark a concept, person, or place; ✦ marks verses with cross-references.

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

Where this chapter connects

Mark 6 ·29John 6 ·17Matt 15 ·9Luke 9 ·9Mark 8 ·8Acts 4 ·7Luke 24 ·7Mark 14 ·6

Christ at the center

Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'

How Matthew 14 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.

Resources, by level

Lay

  • ★ Start hereDocumentaryFollowing the MessiahAppian Media · Free · evangelical

    A free, beautifully shot 10-part series walking the lands of Jesus' life — Bethlehem, Galilee, Jerusalem, and more.

  • ★ Start hereVideoBibleProject — video overviews & word studiesBibleProject · 5–10 min · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overviews of every book of the Bible, plus themes and Hebrew/Greek word studies — the best visual on-ramp to any book. (Biblical-theology, broadly evangelical, not distinctly Reformed.)

  • ★ Start hereAudioThrough the WordThrough the Word · ~10 min/chapter · Free · evangelical

    A clear ~10-minute audio teaching for every one of the Bible's 1,189 chapters — the most systematic free way to study chapter by chapter.

  • DocumentaryHolyLandSiteHolyLandSite · Free · evangelical

    Free on-location videos tying biblical events to the actual sites in Israel — the Temple Mount, Galilee, Capernaum, and more.

  • ApologeticsCold-Case Christianity (J. Warner Wallace)J. Warner Wallace · Free · evangelical

    A cold-case homicide detective examines the Gospels' reliability — forensic faith for skeptics and seekers.

Pastoral

  • SermonGrace to You — John MacArthurJohn MacArthur · Free · reformed

    Decades of careful verse-by-verse expository sermons, especially through the New Testament. (MacArthur, d. 2025; archive remains free.)

  • DocumentaryThat the World May KnowRay Vander Laan · Paid · evangelical

    Ray Vander Laan's on-location series immersing you in the Bible's historical and cultural world. (Mostly paid via Focus on the Family; some free clips.)

  • SermonChuck Smith — C2000 SeriesChuck Smith · Free · evangelical

    Free verse-by-verse audio through the entire Bible from the founder of Calvary Chapel.

Commentaries & study tools

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