fishers of man

Ver. 19. Follow me.—Meyer has again repeated the old objection, so frequently refuted, that this passage is incompatible with John 1:37, and with Luke 5:4. But John only refers to the first summoning of disciples, while here we have an account of their express call to follow the Lord, in the sense of becoming His servants and messengers. In Luke 5:4 we have the details of a scene connected with this calling. Wieseler rightly distinguishes, 1. between their preliminary call, implying discipleship in general and adoption of His cause, but without any special obligation, John 1:35 sqq.; 2. their selection as continuous and regular followers of the Lord, Matt. 4:18 sqq. (also Luke 5:4); and 3. the choice of twelve to be Apostles, Matt. 10:2–4. These stages may also be arranged as follows: 1. Reception as disciples in the most general sense (catechumens) 2. selection for service, by continuous following of the Lord (Evangelists); 3. selection to be the representatives of the Lord, with bestowal of the power to work miracles (Apostles). The latter distinction was, however, bestowed upon the Apostles with certain conditions and limitations, until after the outpouring of the Holy Ghost on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:4).

I will make you fishers of men.—The meaning evidently is, that by devotion, prudence, and perseverance, they were to gain souls for the kingdom of Christ from the sea of the world. Thus the imagery employed by the Saviour connects their former with their new vocation,—their secular employment serving as emblem of their spiritual calling. On the other hand, the words indicate the infinite superiority of the work to which they were now called.

Ver. 21. James the son of Zebedee.—From this passage it has rightly been inferred, that James was the elder brother of John. The sons of Zebedee, too, immediately relinquished their former occupation at the moment when they were about to resume it with fresh ardor. Another feature in their spiritual history is, that along with their nets, they are called to leave their father also. The narrative seems to imply that Zebedee gave his consent.

Doctrinal and Ethical

1. “The sea is the emblem of the world. The number four is the symbolic number of the world.” The first step in the conquest of the world was taken when Jesus summoned these four Apostles to become fishers of men to all the world.

Christ’s spiritual renunciation of the world forms the commencement of its spiritual conquest. This conquest is accomplished by the power of the kingdom of heaven, and for the kingdom of heaven of which Jesus has become the king by His renunciation of the world. Among these four disciples, Peter may be regarded as representing the foundation of the new church; James the elder (as James the younger at a later date) the government and preservation of the same. Upon Andrew it devolved to prepare the way of the Gospel, and its extension throughout the world; while John sounded the inmost depths of spiritual realities. In striking contrast with the practice sanctioned by corrupt traditionalism, the Lord chose as His instruments pious though unlearned fishermen, and not Rabbins. These humble men had, indeed, also their prejudices, which required to be overcome, but in vastly different measure from the learned of that age. It is therefore an entire mistake on the part of some older divines, to speak of the want of proper qualification and preparation in the disciples.

2. Luther:—“If the Gospel required the potentates of this world for its planting and preservation, God would not have committed it to fishermen.”¹

The Calling of Disciples

¹⁸ And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. ¹⁹ Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
²⁰ They immediately left their nets and followed Him.

²¹ Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them,
²² and immediately they left the boat and their father, and
followed Him.

—Matthew 4:18–22

Jesus’ strategy was to develop a disciple community, to call a group of associates who would be with Him and learn from Him. A disciple is one who both identifies with and learns from his master. Jesus began by calling Peter and Andrew, a report which is here given very briefly. In the Gospel of John we learn that Andrew, who had been a disciple of John the Baptist, upon meeting Jesus, first went and found his brother, Simon, and brought him to Jesus (John 1:41–42). Jesus called them both to follow Him as disciples. “Simon” is the Greek form of the Hebrew “Simeon,” just as “Andrew” is a Greek name, suggesting the less provincial nature of the region of Galilee.

Matthew states that Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” He was moving these men from their occupation as fishermen to recognize the vocation to be disciples, heralds of the Good News. Like the rabbis, Jesus trained disciples, but, unlike the rabbis, He called them not to be scholars but to be heralds of the kingdom. It is impressive that “they immediately left their nets and followed Him.” There was something magnetic and authoritative about the claims of Jesus Christ upon these men.

Jesus next called the two brothers, James and John, sons of Zebedee, from their occupation of fishing, asking them likewise to follow Him. In view of the reference to several of these men as having been disciples of John the Baptist, it would appear that they knew something about the Christ prior to this occasion when Jesus called them to come follow Him. If so, no doubt they had discussed the implication of relating to this new teacher. At least the reference in Matthew tells us that upon Jesus’ call, they immediately followed Him.

These four make up the inner circle of Jesus’ larger group of disciples. They were average men, individualists, not the bravest nor the easiest to work with. Peter was impulsive and headstrong, Andrew was homespun and supportive, James and John were ambitious and called “sons of thunder”; yet they were willing to change, to identify with Christ and become heralds of the kingdom of God.

For teachers to have disciples was not unusual in Jesus’ day. Earlier, Socrates had had his disciples, inviting them to follow him and learn of goodness and virtue. The rabbis of Jesus’ day had disciples who studied and learned at their feet. But there is a difference between Jesus’ calling of disciples and the approach of the rabbis. Jesus called them, rather than waiting for them to come and apply to study with Him. Jesus was a younger teacher in the discipling role than were the rabbis traditionally. Jesus was discipling people by being with them, modeling His truth rather than simply teaching them the Law. Jesus did not graduate His disciples as did the rabbis, for a disciple of Jesus Christ remains a disciple. Jesus called disciples who would in turn disciple others. He called them to be “fishers of men.” Their mission was not so much teaching and admonishing people in the Law as it was to invite others to become fellow-disciples in the kingdom of Christ.²

In the Gospels the Lord makes at least three calls to these men, or perhaps it would be more accurate to say that three meetings took place between Christ and these men. The first meeting took place in Jerusalem, as recorded in John 1:35–42. Their second meeting took place by the Sea of Galilee, and apparently this is the record of it. They had seen Him before this, but at that time He had not called them to be with Him. Now here at the Sea of Galilee when He meets them again, He calls them to follow Him. And then we will find that they went back to fishing—Mark and Luke give us that detail. And finally He called them again, and that was to apostleship.

The wonder of it all is that Jesus called men like this. I have always felt that since He called imperfect men like the disciples were, He may be able to use me, and He may be able to use you. It is encouraging to know that we don’t have to be super–duper saints to be used by Him. He may not make you a fisher of men, if you are not in the fishing business. But whatever business you are engaged in, He can use you. Whatever your talent may be, if you will turn it over to Him, He can use it. Years ago a lady in my church was absolutely tongue–tied when it came to witnessing for Christ, but she could bake the most marvelous cakes! She used to deplore the fact of her inability to witness, and I said to her one day, “Did it ever occur to you that the Lord may want you in the church family to bake cakes?” That may seem ridiculous, but it is not. The important thing for us is to give ourselves to Him. Under His direction He won’t have us all doing the same thing because He gives us separate gifts. The body of Christ has many members in it, and they all have different functions to perform.³

What can you do well and can you do it for the body of Jesus Church

18–20. Simon called Peter, and Andrew became the first two disciples called publicly by Jesus. Andrew had earlier (cf. Jn 1:40) introduced his brother to Jesus on another occasion. The invitation, Follow me, called these earlier believers into a permanent ministry to be shared with Christ. I will make you fishers of men clearly indicates the nature of this ministry. They would receive special training in bringing men into the kingdom. These former fishermen would literally become fishers of men! There can be no doubt that aggressive personal evangelism was and still is a major priority in the believer’s life. Our obedience to the lordship of Christ is evidenced by our carrying forth the mission to which He has committed us. Having left their nets these disciples entered into a new relationship and would never again be able to fully return to the occupation they once held so dear. There can be no greater calling than to serve Christ full time with every effort of our lives.

21–22. James and John were also brothers and fishing partners with Simon and Andrew. Matthew and Mark agree that they were mending their nets, but Luke seems to differ. The two accounts can be simply harmonized. As two men were mending nets, the other two were fishing. Jesus then came upon them and called them all to follow Him. The statement in verse 22 that they immediately responded to His call gives us a perfect picture of true obedience to the lordship of Christ. To obey is to respond immediately in an attitude of faith.⁴

1 Lange, J. P., & Schaff, P. (2008). A commentary on the Holy Scriptures: Matthew (p. 93). Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.

2 Augsburger, M. S., & Ogilvie, L. J. (1982). Matthew (Vol. 24, p. 18). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Inc.

3 McGee, J. V. (1991). Thru the Bible commentary: The Gospels (Matthew 1-13) (electronic ed., Vol. 34, pp. 64–65). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.

4 Hindson, E. E., & Kroll, W. M. (Eds.). (1994). KJV Bible Commentary (p. 1881). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.