When therefore they had rowed about twenty-five or thirty stadia,{25 to 30 stadia is about 5 to 6 kilometers or about 3 to 4 miles} they saw Jesus walking on the sea, and drawing near to the boat; and they were afraid.

 Some saw quite clearly where Jesus was heading. It was not possible to challenge the authorities as he was doing and get away with it. He was heading for disaster and they were getting out in time. They were fair-weather followers. It has been said that the test of an army is how it fights when it is tired. Those who drifted away would have stuck by Jesus so long as his career was on the upward way, but at the first shadow of the Cross they left him. 