Matthew 4:19

19 and he says to them, Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.

Matthew 4:19 Meaning and Commentary

Matthew 4:19

And he saith unto them, follow me
These two brethren had been the disciples of John, as Theophylact thinks, and which seems agreeable to ( John 1:35-40 ) and though through John's pointing out Christ unto them, they had some knowledge of him, and conversation with him, yet they abode with him but for that day, ( John 1:37 John 1:38 John 1:39 ) and afterwards returned to their master; and upon his imprisonment, betook themselves to their former employment: from whence Christ now calls them to be his disciples, saying "follow me", or "come after me": that is, be a disciple of mine; see ( Luke 14:27 ) . And to encourage them to it, makes use of this argument; "and", or "for", I "will make you fishers of men": you shall be fishers still, but in a higher sense; and in a far more noble employment, and to much better purpose. The net they were to spread and cast was the Gospel, see ( Matthew 13:47 ) for Christ made them not (hrwt ygyyd) , "fishers of the law", to use the words of Maimonides {g}, but fishers of the Gospel. The sea into which they were to cast the net was first Judea, and then the whole world; the fish they were to catch were the souls of men, both among Jews and Gentiles; of whose conversion and faith they were to be the happy instruments: now none could make them fishers in this sense, or fit them for such service, and succeed them in it, but Christ; and who here promises it unto them.

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FOOTNOTES:

F7 Hilcot. Talmud. Torah, c. 1. sect. 12. so Dr. Lightfoot cites the phrase, but in Ed. Amsterd. it is (hrwt ynyd) , "the judgments of the law".

Matthew 4:19 In-Context

17 From that time began Jesus to preach and to say, Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens has drawn nigh.

18 And walking by the sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishers;

19 and he says to them, Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.

20 And they, having left their trawl-nets, immediately followed him.

21 And going on thence he saw other two brothers, James the [son] of Zebedee and John his brother, in the ship with Zebedee their father, mending their trawl-nets, and he called them;