Matthew 4:18-22, Mark 1:16-20, Luke 5:1-11
And it came to pass, when the crowd was also pressing on Him to hear the word of God, that He was standing beside the Lake of Gennesaret. And walking by the sea of Galilee, He saw two boats standing beside the lake. He saw two brothers – Simon, named Peter, and Andrew, his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen, but the fishermen stepped off from them, and were washing the nets. But stepping into one of the boats that was Simon’s, He asked him to back up slightly from the land. And being seated, He was teaching the crowd from the boat. And when He finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Back up to the deep, and lower your nets for a catch.” And Simon answered and said to Him, “Master, we have received nothing, laboring through the whole night. But at Your word I will lower the nets.” And doing this, they trapped a great multitude of fishes, and their net[s]C broke. And they beckoned to the partners which were in a different boat coming to help them. And they came, and filled both boats, so as to sink them. And Simon Peter, seeing this, fell to the knees of Jesus, saying, “Depart from me, because I am a sinful man, Lord.” For astonishment seized him, and all those together with him, at the catch of the fishes that they took together. And so also James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not fear. Follow Me, and from now on I will make you become fishers catching men.” And when they had brought their boats to land, they immediately left their nets (and) everything, and followed Him. And going on from there a little farther, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who were also in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending the nets. And immediately He called them, and they immediately left the boat and their father, Zebedee, in the boat with the hired servants, and went away to follow Him.
Number of Fish: 1
Total Fish: 19
It’s interesting to note that they will be made fishers of men – which strengthens my belief that the 153 fish are people throughout the Gospels.
I had originally thought that the disciple whom Jesus loved was John due to the majority thought on this. But after reading the book “The Disciple Whom Jesus Loved” (tdwjl.com), I don’t think he is John, one of the sons of Zebedee. Check out my post on Lazarus for more on this thought.
A little more on the majority thought on this. I am wary of ideas that are a consensus or majority. The main reason is that the Jews rejected Jesus and crucified Him because of majority thought. The sanhedrin voted to kill Jesus, and they were able to incite the crowd as well, who also demanded that Jesus be crucified. The disciples were in the minority. I’m not saying that the majority view is always wrong, it just needs to be tested to ensure it is the right view.
153 Fish 