Fourfold Interpretation

One passage that holds a significant literal meaning and a number of less obvious meanings is the story of Jesus walking on water. Matthew 14: 24-31 reads, “ And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, waling on the sea. But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, saying, ‘it is a ghost!’ And they cried out for fear. But immediately he spoke to them, saying, ‘Take heart, it is I; have no fear.’ And Peter answered him, ‘Lord, if it is you, bid me come to you on the water.’ He said, ‘Come.’ So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus; but when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, ‘Lord, save me.’ Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, ‘O man of little faith, why did you doubt me?’ Jesus had returned from praying alone on the mountain and frightened his disciples, but then proved himself as always. This story is a prime example of how important faith and focus is. The literal meaning is Jesus can help us through what seem to be even the most impossible problems, but we must be focused and have faith. Even becoming distracted for a second can cause us to falter, however all it takes is for us to cry out to Jesus, and he catches us by the hand and raises us above

the seemingly impossible surroundings. An allegorical meaning to this story could be seen as Jesus’ second coming. We might be deceived with his return just as the disciples are, but if we strong in faith and do not doubt as Peter did even for a second we will be rewarded. In a moral sense, the passage could represent that unquestionable faith is the key to redemption, forgiveness, and overall salvation.

Objection One: The stor...

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... matter the circumstances.

Objection One: Again there is a distinct connection between the moral interpretation and the literal. The unconditional love shown through this passage is only possible in the literal sense through the moral. If one was to separate these two the meaning would not be clear, therefore there cannot be more than one interpretation without separation.

Objection Two: This selection of text deals directly with God’s perspective, so according to Thomas this would be perfect for interpretation; however, if this is to be interpreted beyond the literal sense so can any text in the bible. Even though this specific piece seems to be actually God himself speaking, the rest of the bible could only be possible through God’s revelation. Therefore, this selection is no different and cannot be interpreted through multiple senses without bias.