Fishers of Men: Providence and Purpose | Mark 1:16-20

Coffee & Commentary

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We’re starting a new segment here at Theological Letters. Coffee & Commentary will offer a glimpse inside my personal study journal, where I record reflections on sacred Scripture. Each week, I'll share a few verses along with the notes I’ve scribbled down.

This isn't polished commentary or formal exegesis. These are simply informal observations, questions, and reflections that emerge during my daily study. I share these in the hope that someone somewhere might benefit.

So, grab your coffee and pull up a chair as we study together.

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¹⁶ And as He walked by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew his brother casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. ¹⁷ Then Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.” ¹⁸ They immediately left their nets and followed Him. ¹⁹ When He had gone a little farther from there, He saw James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who also were in the boat mending their nets. ²⁰ And immediately He called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went after Him. (Mark 1:16-20, NKJV)

Mark 1:16

• We see here that Christ saw (εἶδεν) Simon and Andrew. The verb indicates a single complete act: The Maker of these men comprehending them. Notice also the intent to distinguish this initial act of comprehension from the moment of calling. For here, he sees them casting nets into the sea, while his calling specifies they were mending their nets.

Mark 1:17

• The language Christ uses for making these would-be disciples fishers of men is “craft” and “generate” (ποιήσω ὑμᾶς γενέσθαι) — the latter being the language of gestation or formation, where a creature moves from a seedling state to full maturity. In these words, Christ reveals himself to be the hand of providence, offering to mold these men, moving them toward proper formation, making them what they were created to be. For they were created for this very end, to be disciples of Christ and fishers of men.

• I say “for this very end” or purpose because of the Eastern patristic doctrine of the logoi (λόγοι), which we also see here. The pagan philosophers commonly recognized that our world is shaped by a providential hand, displaying structure and purpose, each facet of the cosmic organism having a telos (τέλος) or end. Yet, the pagans, believing God to be impersonal, saw the cosmic purpose as generic, never going beyond the common nature — the eye for seeing, the ear for hearing, and man for the rational life. But the Eastern fathers recognize that divine providence concerns more than mere generics: God does not simply create man but particular men, such as Simon and Andrew. Yes, there are generic structures and purposes that men share, which form the basis for the moral law, which is common to all who bear human nature. But alongside the generic call to virtue, we discover God’s designs for each person. His “words” (or logoi), which call all things into being include the individual man whom he speaks into existence. The particular man’s idiosyncrasies are thus by design, reflecting his Maker’s intent for what he is to become. The fact is proved by the Saints. For the Saints have all attained perfection but each one is different — some become teachers, others healers, others prophets, others servants. But this difference is set out for them by their Maker. In a word, though all men share a common purpose in the call to virtue and holiness, each one bears an idiosyncratic purpose from his Creator. And here, in the calling of Simon and Andrew, we see the idiosyncratic purpose for which they were made: To become fishers of men. So, their Maker, the Logos himself, reveals himself as such when he calls them, offering to craft them, forming them in accord with the purpose for which they were made.

• Notice, however, that the calling is without coercion. Christ spoke, and they obeyed. The calling is synergistic, requiring both the calling of their Maker and their cooperation. Such is the very dynamic the Eastern fathers see in the doctrine of the logoi. In Christ’s words to the goats at the judgment — I never knew you — Maximos the Confessor sees the fact that, though Christ has a predetermined end for each person — a design that reflects his desire for them to be saved and attain Sainthood — we are self-determining beings who can diverge from the designs of our Maker. Hence, in these words of Christ, Maximos hears something like, Whatever you have shaped yourself into is something I do not recognize, this condition being far from my designs for you. So, in the case of Simon and Andrew, the calling is in keeping with divine design, and yet, being free, these men must cooperate with their Maker if they are to be properly formed.

• The point raises a natural question, namely, were any called who refused? And we do, in fact, see this in the gospels. The Rich Young Ruler, for example, though looked upon and loved by Christ, refused the call, departing with great sorrow when receiving the directive to sell all he had and follow the Lord. So, the mere fact that Christ tells one to follow does not suffice for the creature’s obedience. Yet, in the case of Simon and Andrew, we see their readiness to cooperate.

Mark 1:19-20

• Why specify that they were mending their nets? The mention of the hired servants is no doubt to ensure that none think Simon and Andrew were negligent about their duties to their father in following Christ. Christ, of course, rebukes the Pharisees for using piety as an excuse to neglect one’s own family (Mk 7:9-13), and St. Paul, too, counts neglect of one’s family as a sin that makes a Christian worse than an unbeliever (1 Tim 5:8). Hence, the gospel makes clear that such neglect could not be imputed to Simon and Andrew. But what of the nets?

• Some fathers read the ships as a metaphor for the Church or for the Testaments, and the reason, no doubt, is Christ’s own metaphor for the mission of the evangelists — to become fishers of men. Building on this patristic allegory, perhaps this minor detail is to make note of their suitedness to the task to which Christ called them: They were diligently tending to the task at hand, watchful of tears that might hinder their effectiveness and quickly mending them. Notice that Chrysostom (as we will see) believes that the calling of Levi (or Matthew) comes later because Matthew was not yet ready to receive the calling, while these men were. The note of their immediateness (1:20) in obeying is testimony to the point. And so, it may well be that the same is subtly present in the detail about their attention to the nets.