Mark 4:39

‘And he awoke and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still.” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.'

The picture is one of total control. Here was One Who could control Himself and could control the elements. He had no fear of the wind or the sea, batter as they would, for He knew that they would obey His will. This is not just a miracle, this is a portrayal of the One Who is Lord of all. Of One Who rules the power of the sea (Psalms 89:9). And we may surmise that Mark deliberately used ‘sea' rather than ‘lake' to make this connection.

‘He rebuked the wind and said to the sea.' Compare Psalms 106:9, ‘He rebuked the Red Sea also and it was dried up'; Isaiah 50:2, ‘Behold, at my rebuke I dry up the sea'; Nahum 1:4, ‘The Lord has His way in the whirlwind and the storm, and the clouds are the dust of His feet. He rebukes the sea and makes it dry ---.' Here in each case is the voice of the Creator speaking to His creation as in Genesis 1, rebuking it and bringing about His will. In none of these cases is there the suggestion of a demonic element. Even inanimate nature responded to His voice (compare Genesis 1:6). Now here in this boat is the Son of God, and the same thing occurs. The sea obeys His word.

On the whole, however, while we cannot justifiably introduce a demonic element, the story may certainly be seen as reflecting the defeat of another attempt by Satan to destroy his enemy.

‘Peace, be still (‘calm down and be quiet').' The verb rendered ‘be still' meant literally ‘be muzzled' and had been extended to mean ‘be silent'. He is telling the elements to come under control. To stop what they are doing. To cease their clamour and disturbance and be at peace. They have made their effort and now it is time to finish. To those who try to suggest that He saw Himself as talking to animate spirits we can only ask, what other verbs could Jesus have used to a raging sea when He wanted His disciples to know what He was doing?

‘Peace.' He brought peace amid tumult. And He knew that this was what the world was also seeking both individually and as a whole. And if it would but listen to His voice it would be theirs.

‘And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.' As Jesus spoke the wind ceased and the sea settled instantly. The creation obeyed His will. And the calm was so noticeable that it was seen as worthy of comment. One can almost hear Peter saying to his listeners afterwards with awe ‘and there was a great calm'. These were men who knew the Sea of Galilee and its ways, its essential placidity and the sudden storms that could develop, and their equally sudden cessation. But they had seen nothing like this. There can be no question that the disciples, some of them experienced sailors who, as we say, knew the Sea of Galilee well, saw this as a remarkable miracle (Mark 4:41).