John Calvin Commentary Luke 5

He stood near the lake. Matthew and Mark, according to the usual custom of their language, call it the sea of Galilee. The proper name of this lake among the ancient Hebrews was כנרת (Chinnereth)³³⁸; but, when the language became corrupted, the word was changed to Gennesaret. Secular authors call it Gennesar; and that part which lay towards Galilee was called by them the sea of Galilee. The bank that adjoined Tiberias received its name from that city.

Its breadth and situation will be more appropriately discussed elsewhere. Let us now turn to the event related here.

Luke says that Christ entered a ship belonging to Peter and withdrew a moderate distance from the land, so that he might more conveniently address the multitudes from it, who flocked from various places to hear him. After teaching, he demonstrated his divine power through a miracle.

Indeed, it was not unusual for fishers to cast their nets on many occasions with little success, and for all their fruitless toil to be later recompensed by one successful throw. But this was proven to be a miracle by the fact that they had caught nothing during the whole night (which, however, is more suitable for catching fish), and then suddenly a great multitude of fishes was collected into their nets, enough to fill the ships.

Peter and his companions, therefore, readily concluded that a take, so far beyond the ordinary amount, was not accidental but was given to them by divine intervention.

Depart from me, O Lord. Although men are earnest in seeking the presence of God, yet as soon as God appears, they must be struck with terror, and almost rendered lifeless by dread and alarm, until He administers consolation. They have the best reason for earnestly calling on God, because they cannot avoid feeling that they are miserable while He is absent from them; and, on the other hand, His presence is appalling, because they begin to feel that they are nothing and are overpowered by an immense mass of evils.

In this manner, Peter views Christ with reverence in the miracle, and yet is so overawed by His majesty that he does all he can to avoid His presence. Nor was this the case with Peter alone, for we learn, from the context, that astonishment had overpowered all who were with him. Therefore, we see that it is natural for all men to tremble at the presence of God.

And this is beneficial for us, to humble any foolish confidence or pride that may be in us, provided it is immediately followed by soothing consolation. And so Christ relieves Peter’s mind with a mild and friendly reply, saying to him, Fear not. Thus Christ sinks His own people in the grave, that He may afterwards raise them to life.³³⁹

For afterwards thou shalt catch men. The words of Matthew are, I will make you fishers of men; and those of Mark are, I will cause that you may become fishers of men. They teach us that Peter, and the other three, were not only gathered by Christ to be his disciples, but were made apostles, or, at least, chosen with a view to the apostleship. It is, therefore, not merely a general call to faith, but a special call to a particular office, that is here described. The duties of instruction, I do admit, are not yet enjoined upon them; but still it is to prepare them for being instructors,³⁴⁰ that Christ receives and admits them into his family.

This ought to be carefully weighed; for all are not commanded to leave their parents and their former occupation, and literally³⁴¹ to follow Christ. There are some whom the Lord is satisfied with having in his flock and his Church, while he assigns to others their own station. Those who have received from him a public office ought to know that something more is required from them than from private individuals. In the case of others, our Lord makes no change as to the ordinary way of life; but he withdraws those four disciples from the employment from which they had until then derived their subsistence, that he may employ their labors in a nobler office.

Christ selected rough mechanics—persons not only destitute of learning, but inferior in capacity—that he might train, or rather renew them by the power of his Spirit, so as to excel all the wise men of the world. He intended to humble, in this manner, the pride of the flesh, and to present, in their persons, a remarkable instance of spiritual grace, that we may learn to implore from heaven the light of faith, when we know that it cannot be acquired by our own exertions.

Again, though he chose unlearned and ignorant persons, he did not leave them in that condition; and, therefore, what he did ought not to be held by us to be an example, as if we were now to ordain pastors, who were afterwards to be trained to the discharge of their office. We know the rule which he prescribes for us, by the mouth of Paul, that none ought to be called to it, unless they are “apt to teach,” (1 Timothy 3:2). When our Lord chose persons of this description, it was not because he preferred ignorance to learning, as some fanatics do, who are delighted with their own ignorance, and fancy that, in proportion as they hate literature, they approach nearer to the apostles. He resolved at first, no doubt, to choose contemptible persons, in order to humble the pride of those who think that heaven is not open to the unlearned; but he afterwards gave to those fishers, as an associate in their office, Paul, who had been carefully educated from his childhood.

As to the meaning of the metaphor, fishers of men, there is no necessity for a minute investigation. Yet, as it was drawn from the present occurrence, the allusion which Christ made to fishing, when he spoke of the preaching of the Gospel, was appropriate: for men stray and wander in the world, as in a great and troubled sea, until they are gathered by the Gospel. The history related by the Evangelist John (John 1:37–42): differs from this, for Andrew, who had been one of John’s disciples, was handed over by him to Christ, and afterwards brought his brother along with him. At that time, they embraced him as their master, but were afterwards elevated to a higher rank.