Thematic Bible: The disciples


Thematic Bible



Then Jesus asked them, “What are you discussing with one another as you walk along?” And they stood still, looking brokenhearted.


Now a dispute also arose among them as to which of them was regarded to be the greatest.








And in the fourth watch of the night (3:00-6:00 a.m.) Jesus came to them, walking on the sea.

Then, when they had rowed three or four miles [and were near the center of the sea], they saw Jesus walking on the sea and approaching the boat; and they were [terribly] frightened.

for they all saw Him and were shaken and terrified. But He immediately spoke with them and said, “Take courage! It is I (I Am)! Stop being afraid.”


He said to them, “Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was [at once] a great and wonderful calm [a perfect peacefulness].

And He said to them, “Where is your faith [your confidence in Me]?” They were afraid and astonished, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the sea, and they obey Him?”

But Jesus was in the stern, asleep [with His head] on the [sailor’s leather] cushion. And they woke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are about to die?”






I have fought the good (worthy, honorable, and noble) fight, I have finished the race, I have kept (firmly held) the faith. [As to what remains] henceforth there is laid up for me the [victor's] crown of righteousness [for being right with God and doing right], which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me and recompense me on that [great] day -- "and not to me only, but also to all those who have loved and yearned for and welcomed His appearing (His return).

This is in keeping with my own eager desire and persistent expectation and hope, that I shall not disgrace myself nor be put to shame in anything; but that with the utmost freedom of speech and unfailing courage, now as always heretofore, Christ (the Messiah) will be magnified and get glory and praise in this body of mine and be boldly exalted in my person, whether through (by) life or through (by) death. For me to live is Christ [His life in me], and to die is gain [the gain of the glory of eternity].




For even though I am absent [from you] in body, nevertheless I am with you in spirit, delighted to see your good discipline [as you stand shoulder to shoulder and form a solid front] and to see the stability of your faith in Christ [your steadfast reliance on Him and your unwavering confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness].

Simon Peter answered, Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words (the message) of eternal life. And we have learned to believe and trust, and [more] we have come to know [surely] that You are the Holy One of God, the Christ (the Anointed One), the Son of the living God.

Peter said, “Look, we have left all [things—homes, families, businesses] and followed You.”

And now I am standing trial for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers.


Then Jesus asked them, “What are you discussing with one another as you walk along?” And they stood still, looking brokenhearted.


Now it occurred the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, that a great multitude met Him. And behold, a man from the crowd shouted out, Master, I implore You to look at my son, for he is my only child; And behold, a spirit seizes him and suddenly he cries out; it convulses him so that he foams at the mouth; and he is sorely shattered, and it will scarcely leave him. read more.
And I implored Your disciples to drive it out, but they could not. Jesus answered, O [faithless ones] unbelieving and without trust in God, a perverse ( wayward, crooked and warped) generation! Until when and how long am I to be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here [to Me]. And even while he was coming, the demon threw him down and [completely] convulsed him. But Jesus censured and severely rebuked the unclean spirit and healed the child and restored him to his father.

And when they approached the multitude, a man came up to Him, kneeling before Him and saying, Lord, do pity and have mercy on my son, for he has epilepsy (is moonstruck) and he suffers terribly; for frequently he falls into the fire and many times into the water. And I brought him to Your disciples, and they were not able to cure him. read more.
And Jesus answered, O you unbelieving ( warped, wayward, rebellious) and thoroughly perverse generation! How long am I to remain with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him here to Me. And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him, and the boy was cured instantly. Then the disciples came to Jesus and asked privately, Why could we not drive it out? He said to them, Because of the littleness of your faith [that is, your lack of firmly relying trust]. For truly I say to you, if you have faith [ that is living] like a grain of mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, Move from here to yonder place, and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you. But this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.

And when they came to the [nine] disciples, they saw a great crowd around them and scribes questioning and disputing with them. And immediately all the crowd, when they saw Jesus [ returning from the holy mount, His face and person yet glistening], they were greatly amazed and ran up to Him [and] greeted Him. And He asked them, About what are you questioning and discussing with them? read more.
And one of the throng replied to Him, Teacher, I brought my son to You, for he has a dumb spirit. And wherever it lays hold of him [so as to make him its own], it dashes him down and convulses him, and he foams [at the mouth] and grinds his teeth, and he [ falls into a motionless stupor and] is wasting away. And I asked Your disciples to drive it out, and they were not able [to do it]. And He answered them, O unbelieving generation [without any faith]! How long shall I [have to do] with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to Me. So they brought [the boy] to Him, and when the spirit saw Him, at once it completely convulsed the boy, and he fell to the ground and kept rolling about, foaming [at the mouth]. And [Jesus] asked his father, How long has he had this? And he answered, From the time he was a little boy. And it has often thrown him both into fire and into water, intending to kill him. But if You can do anything, do have pity on us and help us. And Jesus said, [You say to Me], If You can do anything? [Why,] all things can be (are possible) to him who believes! At once the father of the boy gave [an eager, piercing, inarticulate] cry with tears, and he said, Lord, I believe! [Constantly] help my weakness of faith! But when Jesus noticed that a crowd [of people] came running together, He rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, You dumb and deaf spirit, I charge you to come out of him and never go into him again. And after giving a [hoarse, clamoring, fear-stricken] shriek of anguish and convulsing him terribly, it came out; and the boy lay [pale and motionless] like a corpse, so that many of them said, He is dead. But Jesus took [ a strong grip of] his hand and began lifting him up, and he stood. And when He had gone indoors, His disciples asked Him privately, Why could not we drive it out? And He replied to them, This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer and fasting.


And after He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him. And suddenly, behold, there arose a violent storm on the sea, so that the boat was being covered up by the waves; but He was sleeping. And they went and awakened Him, saying, Lord, rescue and preserve us! We are perishing! read more.
And He said to them, Why are you timid and afraid, O you of little faith? Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great and wonderful calm ( a perfect peaceableness). And the men were stunned with bewildered wonder and marveled, saying, What kind of Man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him!

And leaving the throng, they took Him with them, [just] as He was, in the boat [in which He was sitting]. And other boats were with Him. And a furious storm of wind [ of hurricane proportions] arose, and the waves kept beating into the boat, so that it was already becoming filled. But He [Himself] was in the stern [of the boat], asleep on the [leather] cushion; and they awoke Him and said to Him, Master, do You not care that we are perishing? read more.
And He arose and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, Hush now! Be still (muzzled)! And the wind ceased ( sank to rest as if exhausted by its beating) and there was [immediately] a great calm ( a perfect peacefulness). He said to them, Why are you so timid and fearful? How is it that you have no faith (no firmly relying trust)? And they were filled with great awe and feared exceedingly and said one to another, Who then is this, that even wind and sea obey Him?

One of those days He and His disciples got into a boat, and He said to them, Let us go across to the other side of the lake. So they put out to sea. But as they were sailing, He fell off to sleep. And a whirlwind revolving from below upwards swept down on the lake, and the boat was filling with water, and they were in great danger. And the disciples came and woke Him, saying, Master, Master, we are perishing! And He, being thoroughly awakened, censured and blamed and rebuked the wind and the raging waves; and they ceased, and there came a calm. read more.
And He said to them, [Why are you so fearful?] Where is your faith (your trust, your confidence in Me -- "in My veracity and My integrity)? And they were seized with alarm and profound and reverent dread, and they marveled, saying to one another, Who then is this, that He commands even wind and sea, and they obey Him? Then they came to the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee.


He said to them, But who do you [yourselves] say that I am? Simon Peter replied, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. Then Jesus answered him, Blessed (happy, fortunate, and to be envied) are you, Simon Bar-Jonah. For flesh and blood [men] have not revealed this to you, but My Father Who is in heaven. read more.
And I tell you, you are Peter [Greek, Petros -- "a large piece of rock], and on this rock [Greek, petra -- "a huge rock like Gibraltar] I will build My church, and the gates of Hades (the powers of the infernal region) shall not overpower it [or be strong to its detriment or hold out against it]. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind (declare to be improper and unlawful) on earth must be what is already bound in heaven; and whatever you loose (declare lawful) on earth must be what is already loosed in heaven. Then He sternly and strictly charged and warned the disciples to tell no one that He was Jesus the Christ.

And He said to them, But who do you [yourselves] say that I am? And Peter replied, The Christ of God! But He strictly charged and sharply commanded them [ under penalty] to tell this to no one [no one, whoever he might be],


Now we know that You know all things, and have no need for anyone to question You; because of this we believe [without any doubt] that you came from God.”


So Ananias left and entered the house, and he laid his hands on Saul and said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came [to Damascus], has sent me so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit [in order to proclaim Christ to both Jews and Gentiles].”

All the circumcised believers who came with Peter were amazed, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles.





Now he said this, not because he cared about the poor [for he had never cared about them], but because he was a thief; and since he had the money box [serving as treasurer for the twelve disciples], he used to pilfer what was put into it.

Some thought that, since Judas [as the treasurer of the group] had the money box, Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the feast,” or that he was to give something to the poor.


After He said this, He showed them His hands and His side. When the disciples saw the Lord, they were filled with great joy.

She went and reported it to those who had been with Him, while they were mourning and weeping.

And He said to them, What is this discussion that you are exchanging ( throwing back and forth) between yourselves as you walk along? And they stood still, looking sad and downcast. Then one of them, named Cleopas, answered Him, Do you alone dwell as a stranger in Jerusalem and not know the things that have occurred there in these days? And He said to them, What [kind of] things? And they said to Him, About Jesus of Nazareth, Who was a Prophet mighty in work and word before God and all the people -- " read more.
And how our chief priests and rulers gave Him up to be sentenced to death, and crucified Him. But we were hoping that it was He Who would redeem and set Israel free. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things occurred. And moreover, some women of our company astounded us and drove us out of our senses. They were at the tomb early [in the morning] But did not find His body; and they returned saying that they had [even] seen a vision of angels, who said that He was alive! So some of those [who were] with us went to the tomb and they found it just as the women had said, but Him they did not see. And [Jesus] said to them, O foolish ones [sluggish in mind, dull of perception] and slow of heart to believe (adhere to and trust in and rely on) everything that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary and essentially fitting that the Christ (the Messiah) should suffer all these things before entering into His glory (His majesty and splendor)? Then beginning with Moses and [throughout] all the Prophets, He went on explaining and interpreting to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning and referring to Himself. Then they drew near the village to which they were going, and He acted as if He would go further. But they urged and insisted, saying to Him, Remain with us, for it is toward evening, and the day is now far spent. So He went in to stay with them. And it occurred that as He reclined at table with them, He took [a loaf of] bread and praised [God] and gave thanks and asked a blessing, and then broke it and was giving it to them When their eyes were [instantly] opened and they [clearly] recognized Him, and He vanished ( departed invisibly). And they said to one another, Were not our hearts greatly moved and burning within us while He was talking with us on the road and as He opened and explained to us [the sense of] the Scriptures? And rising up that very hour, they went back to Jerusalem, where they found the Eleven [apostles] gathered together and those who were with them, Who said, The Lord really has risen and has appeared to Simon (Peter)! Then they [themselves] related [in full] what had happened on the road, and how He was known and recognized by them in the breaking of bread. Now while they were talking about this, Jesus Himself took His stand among them and said to them, Peace ( freedom from all the distresses that are experienced as the result of sin) be to you! But they were so startled and terrified that they thought they saw a spirit. And He said to them, Why are you disturbed and troubled, and why do such doubts and questionings arise in your hearts? See My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself! Feel and handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones, as you see that I have. And when He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. And while [since] they still could not believe it for sheer joy and marveled, He said to them, Have you anything here to eat?


“I have manifested Your name [and revealed Your very self, Your real self] to the people whom You have given Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept and obeyed Your word.


And when they had entered [the city], they mounted [the stairs] to the upper room where they were [ indefinitely] staying -- "Peter and John and James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas [son] of James. All of these with their minds in full agreement devoted themselves steadfastly to prayer, [waiting together] with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.


Nor was there a destitute or needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses proceeded to sell them, and one by one they brought (gave back) the amount received from the sales And laid it at the feet of the apostles (special messengers). Then distribution was made according as anyone had need.


Now a dispute also arose among them as to which of them was regarded to be the greatest.