Matthew 8:23 (DBY)

Passage

And he went on board ship and his disciples followed him;

Nearby Context

Matthew 8:21 But another of his disciples said to him, Lord, suffer me first to go away and bury my father.

Matthew 8:22 But Jesus said to him, Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead.

Matthew 8:23 And he went on board ship and his disciples followed him;

Matthew 8:24 and behold, [the water] became very agitated on the sea, so that the ship was covered by the waves; but *he* slept.

Matthew 8:25 And the disciples came and awoke him, saying, Lord save: we perish.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "went", "board", "ship", "disciples", and "followed". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "went" and "board", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 22's "But Jesus said to him Follow me..." into verse 24's "and behold the water became very agitated...", so "went" and "board" belong inside that flow. In Matthew context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "went" and "board" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.