Later in the evening he was still there by himself, and the boat was somewhere in the middle of the lake. He could see that the disciples were struggling hard, because they were rowing against the wind. Not long before morning, Jesus came toward them. He was walking on the water and was about to pass the boat.
When the disciples saw Jesus walking on the water, they thought he was a ghost, and they started screaming. All of them saw him and were terrified. But at this same time he said, “Don't worry! I am Jesus. Don't be afraid.” He then got into the boat with them, and the wind died down. The disciples were completely confused. Their minds were closed, and they could not understand the true meaning of the loaves of bread. (Mark 6:45-52, CEV)
In the New Testament (NT), the ("phantasm", apparition) "ghost" word is used only here (and in the equivalent in Matthew 14). Luke does not report the moment.
What were they to make of a water-walking figure on that dark(?), challenging, and dangerous night? What were they seeing? It could not be an actual flesh and blood person, could it? Well, it was the man, but they had no previous experience to help them understand; to perceive the truth. (The pericope follows that in previous post, "Jesus: and the disillusioned".)
I suppose this one (very limited) incident shows that people of the time might explain an inexplicable and unexpected appearance by thinking "it's a ghost"!
I guess there was a comparable moment after the tomb was impossibly empty and people were saying incomprehensible things. As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!” But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” (Luke 24:36-39, ESV)
Luke might have used the "apparition" word there, but he did not. The feeling is much the same, is it not? (Some translations use "ghost" instead of the, strictly accurate, "spirit".) They were not "seeing things" (that were not there), it only felt like it! Spirits are not seen - but they were reaching for words to describe the impossible.
It is clear, time and time again, that flesh and blood does not explain everything. Then a demon-possessed man who was blind and unable to speak was brought to him. He healed him, so that the man[a] could both speak and see. All the crowds were astounded and said, “Could this be the Son of David?”
When the Pharisees heard this, they said, “This man drives out demons only by Beelzebul, the ruler of the demons.”
Knowing their thoughts, he told them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is headed for destruction, and no city or house divided against itself will stand. If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then will his kingdom stand? And if I drive out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons drive them out? For this reason they will be your judges (Matthew 12:26-27, CSB).
Their practices of the time were inconsistent with the criticism of, or allegation against, Jesus. It is clear Jesus repeatedly overturned the malevolent work of evil spirits. He would not allow them to remain (see previous post, "Jesus: Disappointed"). No demon or spirit could stand against him. Many cures, not all, involved Jesus vanquishing demons/spirits.
Then Paul, knowing that some of them were Sadducees and the others Pharisees, called out in the Sanhedrin, “My brothers, I am a Pharisee, descended from Pharisees. I stand on trial because of the hope of the resurrection of the dead.” When he said this, a dispute broke out between the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and the assembly was divided. (The Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, and that there are neither angels nor spirits, but the Pharisees believe all these things.)
There was a great uproar, and some of the teachers of the law who were Pharisees stood up and argued vigorously. “We find nothing wrong with this man,” they said. “What if a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?” (Acts 23:6-9, NIV)
Scripture quotations marked (CEV) are from the Contemporary English Version Copyright © 1991, 1992, 1995 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.
Scripture quotations marked (CSB) are from the Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked (ESV) are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from the Holy Bible, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission.
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Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked (NRSVUE) are from the New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Note: I retain in the publishers' text where they occur the references [ ] to footnotes, but usually not the notes. You can check them out by viewing the text on-line. Often they are replicated in different translations.
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