Peter is sinking in the water; the tempest runs high. He looks upon the waves, and is ready to fancy that he is gong to be swallowed up immediately. His fear is reasonable, if he has only the tempest and himself to draw his conclusions from. His helplessness and the scowling storm together strike out a little spark of faith, which the wind cannot blow out, nor the floods quench. Like our psalmist here, when Peter is afraid, he trusts, “Save, Lord, or I perish!” Immediately the outstretched hand of his Lord grasps his, and brings him safely, while the gentle rebuke, “O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?” infuses courage into his beating heart. The storm runs as high as ever, and the waves beat about his limbs, and the spray blinds his eyes. If he leaves his hold for one moment, down he will go. But as long as he clasps Christ’s hand, he is as safe on that heaving floor as if his feet were on a rock; and as long as he looks in Christ’s face, and leans upon His upholding arm, he does not “see the waves boisterous,” nor tremble at all as they break around him. His fear and his danger are both gone, because he holds Christ, and is upheld by him. In this sense, too, as in many others, “this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.” --Alexander Maclaren 1884