Fish for People

Matthew 4: 18-23 (January 23, 2011)

1) The Text

18As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. 19And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.” 20Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. 22Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.

23Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.

2) The Context

The Sea of Galilee is a large freshwater lake, about 7 miles wide and 13 miles long. The shore is dotted with villages connected with the local fishing industry, among which Capernaum was foremost. Fishermen of that day did not operate in a "free market" economy. The fishing industry was state-regulated for the benefit of the urban elite. These urban elites were Greeks or Romans who had settled in Palestine following their military conquests, or they were Jews well-connected with King Herod and his sons. Everybody else was poor. Caesar and Herod benefited from the fishing trade in a variety of ways. They sold the fishing leases which entitled local groups to fish in the sea. Fishing rights generally were awarded not to individuals, but to local "coops" based in kinship--like, for example, the brothers Simon and Andrew, and the Zebedee family. There were also taxes on both the fish product and on the processing, as well as tolls on shipping and land transport. Fisherman were at the bottom of a very detailed economic hierarchy, the main beneficiaries of which were Caesar, then Herod, then major tax collectors.

Jesus made a strong appeal to local fishermen. The known harbors of the Sea of Galilee in the first century strongly correlate with locations where Jesus either lived or traveled--Bethsaida, Capernaum, Gennesar, Magdala, Gadara and Gergasa. The original name of Magdala, was Tarichaeae, which means "processed fish-ville." It was only a few miles south of Capernaum.

3) Interpretation

For the third time in Matthew, Jesus finds himself embracing a new hometown. Jesus was born in Bethlehem. In doing so, prophecy was fulfilled (2:5-6). The first move finds the family fleeing Bethlehem and Herod's furor and arriving in Egypt. In doing so, Jesus' life emulates Moses' journeys. The second move allows the family to return to Israel after Herod's demise but the reign of his progeny leads the family to resettle in Nazareth. In doing so, prophecy was fulfilled (2:23). A third move brings Jesus to Capernaum. In doing so, prophecy was fulfilled (4:14-16). Thus, these moves are not rooted in human will. Matthew argues that God has orchestrated these geographical dislocations and thus given them great significance. What is that significance?

Here we get a glimpse of Jesus' peripatetic existence. From his earliest days through his adult life and ministry, Matthew's Jesus is an itinerant preacher, a constant wanderer. Jesus does not opt for the comforts of the familiar but embraces God's call to find those in need of a word of God wherever they might live. After all, this is the message of the prophecy. God has promised to reach all the nations. Light has reached those who formerly dwelled in darkness and death. Jesus has come to them and, in a sense, become one of them by becoming their neighbor. Moreover, Jesus' first ministry locale is known as "Galilee of the Gentiles." Thus, from the first and in consonance with prophetic promise, Jesus ministers in an ethnically diverse land.

In an ever more mobile and diverse culture, Jesus' moves are in some sense familiar to many of us. The dislocation of a new place and new neighbors can be both thrilling and intimidating. New surroundings can provide us a new start, a nearly blank slate that might allow us to recreate how others perceive and how we perceive ourselves. New surroundings also can cause us to question every dimension of our selves. The richness of diverse communities can help us understand others better but also ourselves. Jesus' peripatetic experiences must have shaped his perspective, helping him understand a community as both insider and outsider.

The power of Jesus' call becomes quickly evident. The call of his first followers is profoundly inspired. Jesus doesn't have to pitch the idea to these individuals nor does he need to persuade them. After all, each has little reason to leave their current way of life. Each seemingly has a steady job and, more importantly, familial ties to their vocations. At the same time, these are not individuals of great social power or individual wealth. Though Jesus' disciples will play a vital function in the earliest days of the church, on this day they are utterly ordinary individuals called to an extraordinary task. They may not have completely understood what it would mean to become fishers of people at the moment, yet they follow without hesitation.

Having begun to assemble his disciples, Jesus turns to his work. He teaches in the synagogues. He pronounces "the good news of the kingdom." He makes the sick and infirmed whole. These will be the defining characteristics of Jesus' daily labors in Matthew. Teaching, proclaiming the kingdom, and healing are integrated components of his ministry, not discrete pieces. The proclamation of the kingdom is not solely verbal, not just a teaching but a series of actions designed to bring wholeness to individuals and communities.

This passage also makes a statement about dominant values. Jesus creates social dislocation by placing the challenge of the kingdom ahead of family and work loyalties. Local systems of work and family were crucial for security and the fabric of society. Jesus' challenge sets these priorities aside, not in principle and not for everyone, but nevertheless in a way that relativizes them. There is something great, more fundamental, than family and the local economy. To challenge these is to take a real risk, but for many people as well as communities and congregations, real growth will never happen until they can make such a move.

4) Thought Exercise

Jesus does not ask everyone to leave everything behind - but nobody can be a disciple without leaving something behind. What have you had to leave behind - or let go of - to follow Jesus?