What Does Matthew 14:28 Mean in the King James?
And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
Peter is not asking Jesus to make the water safe; he is asking for a word whose authority can carry him across it.
THE MEANING
You can voice an “if” without disguising it, and still ask for a word that directs your movement toward Jesus. The water remains water; what Peter seeks is not a guarantee about the surface but a command to come. In this verse, the step is requested and still unmade.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
The belief that uncertainty disqualifies a request for movement: Peter names an “if” and still asks for a command.
THE ROOT
κέλευσον
kéleuson
GROWS FROM
κελευ- (κελεύω)
to command, order, or direct
“bid” in this verse is kéleuson. Peter asks Jesus to command him: the request itself places the hoped-for movement under Jesus’ authority. The word carries both invitation and command, so coming is framed as a response to a voice, not a feat Peter authorizes on his own.
ALSO GROWS
kéleusma: a command, summons, or shout
κέλευσμα
This noun shows the same word-family linking a spoken call with an order that sets movement in motion.
keleuō: to command or order
κελεύω
This is the verb behind “bid”; its command sense remains present even though Peter is the one asking.
ἐλθεῖν
elthein
GROWS FROM
ἐρχ-/ἐλθ- (ἔρχομαι)
to come, go, or arrive
The Greek verb has irregular forms, including ἐρχ- and ἐλθ-. Here, “come” is directed πρὸς σέ, “toward you”: the requested movement is relational, with Jesus as its destination.
ALSO GROWS
eperchomai: to come upon or arrive
ἐπέρχομαι
This compound keeps the coming-motion of the root while adding movement toward or upon something.
parerchomai: to pass by or go past
παρέρχομαι
This compound shows the same root can express motion past a point; here the phrase “unto thee” gives Peter’s coming its direction.
THE PATTERN
At a boundary that looks impassable, a word or presence opens a way through.
And the LORD said unto Moses, Wherefore criest thou unto me? speak unto the children of Israel, that they go forward:When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.THE THREAD
For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it.The centurion’s “Come” and “cometh” use the same Greek verb family as Peter’s “come.” He describes a spoken command setting someone in motion; Peter asks Jesus for that same kind of word to carry him toward Jesus over the water.
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