Matthew 14:25

14:25 As the night was ending, ¹  Jesus came to them walking on the sea. ² 

Luke 12:38

12:38 Even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night ³  and finds them alert, ⁴  blessed are those slaves! ⁵ 

[14:25]  ¹ tn Grk “In the fourth watch of the night,” that is, between 3 a.m. and 6 a.m.

[14:25]  ² tn Or “on the lake.”

[12:38]  ³ sn The second or third watch of the night would be between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m. on a Roman schedule and 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. on a Jewish schedule. Luke uses the four-watch schedule of the Romans in Acts 12:4, so that is more probable here. Regardless of the precise times of the watches, however, it is clear that the late-night watches when a person is least alert are in view here.

[12:38]  ⁴ tn Grk “finds (them) thus”; but this has been clarified in the translation by referring to the status (“alert”) mentioned in v. 37.

[12:38]  ⁵ tn Grk “blessed are they”; the referent (the watchful slaves, v. 37) has been specified in the translation for clarity.