Bible Commentaries
John 21

Verse 1

Joh 21:1

John 21:1

After these things Jesus manifested himself again to the disciples at the sea of Tiberias; and he manifested himself on this wise.—Jesus had promised to meet his disciples in Galilee. All the apostles that are now faithful to him were Galileans. Jesus was reared in Galilee, and the greater por­tion of his public life had been spent in that country. The greater number of his following were Galileans. So he had promised to meet them in Galilee. He showed himself to over five hundred brethren at one time in Galilee, but now he meets a few fishermen at the Sea of Galilee or Tiberias.

Verses 1-14

Joh 21:1-14

Jesus and the Miraculous Catch of Fish - John 21:1-14

Open It

1. What are some of your hobbies or favorite pastimes?

2. Why do people enjoy eating together?

3. What kind of foods do you like to prepare when you have people over for dinner?

4. *With whom have you recently shared a meal?

Explore It

5. When did Jesus appear to His disciples? (John 21:1)

6. What familiar activity did several of Jesus’ disciples do together? (John 21:2-3)

7. Who had gone out to fish? (John 21:2-3)

8. How successful had Peter and the others been at fishing that night? (John 21:3)

9. What did Jesus ask His disciples? (John 21:5)

10. What did Jesus tell His disciples to do? (John 21:6)

*What happened when the disciples did what Jesus had told them to do? (John 21:6)

11. What did Peter do when he realized that it was the Lord who was talking? (John 21:7)

12. *What did Jesus ask His disciples to do once they were on shore? (John 21:8-10)

13. Why didn’t the disciples ask Jesus who He was? (John 21:12)

14. *What did Jesus do with the bread and fish? (John 21:13)

15. How many times had Jesus appeared to His disciples? (John 21:14)

Get It

16. Why do you think several of Jesus’ disciples went fishing?

17. How has God brought you together with other Christians?

18. *When have you been so glad to see someone that you just had to run out to meet that person?

19. Why is it hard for us to see God working in our lives?

20. Through what ordinary events in life have you encountered Jesus?

21. When has God miraculously and abundantly provided for your needs?

22. *When do you experience fellowship with Jesus?

Apply It

23. *What steps can you take to have fellowship with God today?

24. For what specific need that God has met in your life will you thank Him today?

Verse 2

Joh 21:2

John 21:2

There were together Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two other of his disciples.—Five apostles are mentioned by name, and two others not named who may have been other than apostles.

Verse 3

Joh 21:3

John 21:3

Simon Peter saith unto them, I go a fishing. They say unto him, We also come with thee. They went forth, and entered into the boat; and that night they took nothing.—Simon Peter was a leader. He determined to go fishing. The others said they would go with him. They fished all night and caught nothing. [Although the night was considered the most favorable season they caught nothing. Doubtless a symbol of the utter failure of fishers of men without Christ, and verse 6 illustrates their abundant success with Christ.]

Verse 4

Joh 21:4

John 21:4

But when day was now breaking, Jesus stood on the beach: yet the disciples knew not that it was Jesus.—The disciples consisting of Peter, Thomas, Nathanael (supposed to be Bartholomew), James and John (sons of Zebedee), and the others not named had spent the night fishing in the Sea of Tiberias, or Galilee. They caught nothing. When morn­ing came Jesus stood on the shore. The disciples did not know him. Whether it was yet too dark to distinguish a person, or they were too far from shore, or whether he trans­formed himself, as Mark 16:12 intimates, so they could not know him, is not told. That he was near enough to talk with them as he did would indicate either the first or the last was the truth.

Verse 5

Joh 21:5

John 21:5

Jesus therefore saith unto them, Children, have ye aught to eat?—He calls them “children,” an affectionate and familiar style of address. Still they did not recognize him. [He meant have you caught any fish? His manner was that of a householder, desiring to purchase for the morning meal.]

They answered him, No.—[Evidently without a suspicion of his identity. There was nothing in his question that made the disciples suspect who he was.]

Verse 6

Joh 21:6

John 21:6

And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes.—They did as he directed, and caught as many as their net could hold. A similar occurrence took place in the early part of his ministry. (Luke 5:1-10). The command was so done that they obeyed without inquiring why. [They were fishing on the wrong side to catch fish; you must fish where fish are. The fish were on the right side of the boat and Jesus knew it; not by natural signs, for the disciples would read these as well as he, but by his supernatural insight.]

Verse 7

Joh 21:7

John 21:7

That disciple therefore whom Jesus loved saith unto Peter, It is the Lord. So when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his coat about him (for he was naked), and cast himself into the sea.—This was John, who, on sev­eral occasions, speaks of himself in this way. (John 13:23; John 20:2). Doubtless the similarity of this to what had been done before suggested to John, “It is the Lord.” The number of fishes after the night of fruitless toil, and the voice of Jesus, im­pressed on John the idea that it was Jesus, and he so told Peter. It is to John’s credit that he was reminded of Jesus. While John first thought of him, Peter as usual is the first to go to him. He had nothing on the upper part of his body, but threw his coat about him and left the fishermen’s vessel, and went through the water to the land. The water was doubtless shallow so he waded to the shore.

Verse 8

Joh 21:8

John 21:8

But the other disciples came in the little boat (for they were not far from the land, but about two hundred cubits off), dragging the net full of fishes.—They were about one hundred yards from shore. The ships were boats, or canoes. In one of these they came to the shore, dragging the net with fishes. Their fishing vessel was a small one. The net likely had one end fastened to the shore. The boat with the other end made a circuit and caught all the fish in the circuit.

Verse 9

Joh 21:9

John 21:9

So when they got out upon the land, they see a fire of coals there, and fish laid thereon, and bread.—Jesus had “a fire of coals there, and fish laid thereon, and bread.” Whence the fire and the fish we do not know. This shows that Jesus ate bread and fish when he was in the state between the resurrection and the ascension as recorded in Luke 24:41. He had risen from the dead, seemed at will to assume the invisible state, and would seem to be immaterial in appearing and disappearing from houses, yet he ate material food. The angels did the same who appeared to Abraham, and we find it difficult to gain clear conceptions of beings in the spirit-land. Jesus said “a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye behold me having.” (Luke 24:39). We take it that Jesus suffered hunger else he had not eaten. Nor is it clear that Jesus was clothed with an immortal body at this time. His hands had the prints of the nails in them, and his side the spear thrust. But it is possible he was changed at the moment of ascension. “It is not yet made manifest what we shall be. We know that, if he shall be manifested, we shall be like him; for we shall see him even as he is.” But in the time before the fall, when not subject to death, they ate and drank. But our ignorance of the future state is so dense that we cannot think about it intelligently.

Verse 10

Joh 21:10

John 21:10

Jesus saith unto them, Bring of the fish which ye have now taken.—Jesus asked them to bring of the fish they had caught to cook and eat. This, we take it, was to cook for a meal for the disciples. [The articles of food offered by Jesus must be made completely of the product of their own fish­ing. This detail would be absolutely incomprehensible unless this whole scene had a symbolic sense. Jesus wishes to tell them that he will occupy himself with their wants, but that their faithful labor must cooperate with his benediction and his aid.]

Verse 11

Joh 21:11

John 21:11

Simon Peter therefore went up, and drew the net to land, full of great fishes, a hundred and fifty and three: and for all there were so many, the net was not rent.—Peter ashore could pull the net more easily than those in the boat. He did it. The number, one hundred and fifty-three, even if very large fish, would not at all strain such nets as are now used. But then the material and workmanship of boats, nets, and all things requiring mechanical skill were of an inferior order. [We take it that he went to the water’s edge on the shore. The net was not a large one, as our people count large, on the fishing shores, else it would have held more than one hundred fifty fishes, and it would have been no wonder that it did not break. Now nets are dragged fre­quently that draw to the shore thousands of fishes.]

Verse 12

Joh 21:12

John 21:12

Jesus saith unto them, Come and break your fast. And none of the disciples durst inquire of him, Who art thou? knowing that it was the Lord.—It is presumed that some of the fish they caught were cooked on the fire, and Jesus as host invited them to come and eat. It was so manifest to them all that he was Jesus that they did not ask who he was.

Verse 13

Joh 21:13

John 21:13

Jesus cometh, and taketh the bread, and giveth them, and the fish likewise.—He helped them to bread and fish. We know not whence the bread came. Possibly Jesus pro­vided it by his power. As leader he took the bread he had and distributed to his disciples and the fish likewise. They all ate as they had done before his death while traveling around together.

Verse 14

Joh 21:14

John 21:14

This is now the third time that Jesus was manifested to the disciples, after that he was risen from the dead.—Jesus appeared to the eleven disciples the night after he arose from the dead. On the night of the eighth day follow­ing he met with them again. (John 19:8). This is the third time, showing that while he met with them on the first and eighth days after he was raised, he did not meet with them during the interim. He seems to have designed this to sanc­tify the first day, the day of his resurrection as the day for his disciples to meet with the assurance that he would meet with them to bless them. Thomas, failing to be with them, followed by a sense of doubt and uncertainty that may be a significant lesson to us. Where he was when not with the disciples we know not. Since his body seemed subject to the law of the natural world, we do not even know that he was in the body when not with the disciples.

Verse 15

Joh 21:15

John 21:15

So when they had broken their fast, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of John, lovest thou me more than these?—Peter, with self-confidence, had declared that though all oth­ers, including his fellow disciples, should deny him, he would never deny him. But he had been the first to deny him, and had denied him three times in succession. This occurred be­fore the crucifixion of Jesus. This seems to have been done as a reproof to this falling away of Peter and to result in the restoration to the favor of Jesus. After the restoration, Jesus asked Peter this question. Peter had boasted, if all “shall be offended in thee, I will never be offended.” The usual inter­pretation given to it is that these refer to the other apostles and disciples who were with him, and attribute his asking such a question to Peter’s bold declaration, “If all shall be offended in thee, I will never be offended.” But we are sure from the structure of the sentence both in English and in Greek that it refers to the fishes and things of like character. Peter, do you love me more than you love these things of the flesh? We think fishes stand as the antecedent of these. The Greek more clearly indicates this than the English.

He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee.—This response was an appeal to the knowledge of Jesus. Some think he meant to imply, I do not know myself. He was careful not to say, “More than these,” but the modest affirmative, “thou knowest that I love thee.”

He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.—The tender ones of the flock. It was an assurance of the restoration of the Master’s confidence.

Verses 15-25

Joh 21:15-25

Jesus Reinstates Peter - John 21:15-25

Open It

1. *Who are some people who have died for their beliefs?

2. When did you ever have to restore a broken relationship?

3. When have you taken care of another person?

Explore It

4. What did Jesus ask Peter three times? (John 21:15-17)

5. What did Jesus tell Peter to do? (John 21:15-17)

6. How did Peter feel after Jesus had asked him the same question three times? (John 21:17)

7. What did Jesus predict about Peter’s future? (John 21:18-19)

8. What command did Jesus give to Peter? (John 21:19)

9. *What concern did Peter raise? (John 21:20-21)

10. *With what did Jesus want Peter to concern himself? (John 21:22)

11. How did Jesus want Peter to serve Him? (John 21:22)

12. What rumor spread as the result of Jesus’ talk with Peter? (John 21:23)

13. *How did John serve Christ after Jesus left earth? (John 21:24)

14. What did John do with the testimony he had concerning Jesus? (John 21:24)

15. How many of Jesus’ deeds did John leave out of his Gospel? (John 21:25)

Get It

16. How should we demonstrate our love for Jesus?

17. Who are Jesus’ sheep?

18. How are we to serve and care for other Christians?

19. *How do we each serve God in a unique way?

20. *How can you bring glory to God through your life and the unique opportunities God has given you?

21. What might cause us to be more concerned about someone else’s relationship with Christ than our own?

Apply It

22. *How can you focus your attention solely on your service to God this week?

23. How can you serve or care for a fellow Christian?

Verse 16

Joh 21:16

John 21:16

He saith to him again a second time, Simon, son of John, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Tend my sheep.—[In re­peating the question, he leaves off “more than these.” Peter gives the same answer. If there was special significance in changing from lambs to sheep, I do not know what it is.]

Verse 17

Joh 21:17

John 21:17

He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of John, lovest thou me?—This corresponds to the number of times that Peter denied him. Jesus desired to assure him of his full and complete forgiveness. That he might do this fully, he must repent fully. So he repented.

Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me?—Peter was grieved because of his apparent distrust of his statements.

And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest: all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.—His profession of love without self-confidence or boast was thus apparently equal to the number of denials, and Jesus repeats the admonition. [Peter, pierced to the heart by these repeated questions, throws himself on the knowledge the Lord has of his heart. The third time the Lord charges him to act as a shepherd under him and to take care of the sheep. Three times Peter had denied the Master; three times the Master questions his love; three times he gives him courage concerning his work. The questioning was painful, Peter was grieved, but the grief was wholesome and Peter’s whole sub­sequent life bore proof of the discipline. His rashness was forever gone.]

Verse 18

Joh 21:18

John 21:18

Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not.—This was added by way of illustrating Peter’s life-work. When one is young he feels buoyant and self­confident, but when the infirmities of age come, he feels de­pendent and stretches out his hands for help and is led whither he would not go. [“Peter had denied his Master to save his own life. Now that he is reinstated in the old confidence and charged with the Master’s work, he is told that he will be called on to die for it. He will be girded, not with a girdle, but with bonds, and he shall be led where he would not, unto death.”]

Verse 19

Joh 21:19

John 21:19

Now this he spake, signifying by what manner of death he should glorify God.—Peter would be taken and slain in his old age for the name of Christ. Jesus foretold it by this method.

And when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, Follow me.—As much as to say, while the future had good in store for him, all would depend on his fidelity to Christ. [I take the two verses that, though Peter was weak and ungrounded at first, he will increase in faith and courage sufficiently to die a martyr. The universal testimony of the historians of the early church is that he thus died—that he was crucified. He was to follow Jesus until he had drunk the cup that his Master had drunk, and thus “glorify God.”]

Verse 20

Joh 21:20

John 21:20

Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved following; who also leaned back on his breast at the supper, and said, Lord, who is he that betrayeth thee?—Jesus did not conceal his love for John. John leaned on his breast at the supper. This did not seem to excite envy or animosity of the other disciples, but brought John into prominence among them.

Verse 21

Joh 21:21

John 21:21

Peter therefore seeing him saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do?—As Jesus had foretold the future of Peter, Peter asked what should become of John. Jesus seems to reprove the curiosity that made Peter seek to know the end of John. [Three years before on the banks of the same sea, our Lord had called Peter and Andrew, and the sons of Zebedee to become fishers of men. Peter seems to fully un­derstand the prophecy with regard to himself, and is anxious to know what shall be the fate of his friend and co-laborer.]

Verse 22

Joh 21:22

John 21:22

Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me.—So he gave an evasive answer with the hint that it did not concern him. [John did literally tarry until Jesus came, until he saw him, heard him speak and recorded in the last revelation from the Lord to the world in the book of Revelation. About sixty years from the time that Jesus uttered these words, John was an exile in Patmos. There, on a Lord’s day, Jesus came and revealed to him the message he addresses to the seven churches of Asia.]

Verse 23

Joh 21:23

John 21:23

This saying therefore went forth among the brethren, that that disciple should not die: yet Jesus said not unto him, that he should not die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?—From this indefinite answer they drew the conclusion that John would not die, but remain till Jesus comes again. [John corrected the error that had spread among the disciples without accusing any one of lying. It is a pity that such a spirit does not prevail among brethren today.]

Verse 24

Joh 21:24

John 21:24

This is the disciple that beareth witness of these things, and wrote these things: and we know that his witness is true.—John who heard these things wrote them down and affirms their certainty.

Verse 25

Joh 21:25

John 21:25

And there are also many other things which Jesus did,—The writer of this affirms that only a small portion of the works performed by Jesus are recorded. They are recorded that those who read them may believe in Christ Jesus the Lord. (John 20:30-31). The record made is sufficient to produce faith in all who read with the desire to do the will of God. More would be cumbersome.

A man then to believe must know and accept the things written concerning Christ in the scriptures; he must receive the seed into a good and understanding heart; he must hear and attend to the things written in the word of God. No example is found in the scriptures of a man believing, save as he heard the word of God, the testimonies given in it concerning Christ and his teaching and work. God gives us food by giving us the means of producing food. He gives the soil, the seed, the ability to plant and cultivate the seed so as to multiply it an hundredfold and to use this for food. He gives to man a heart to believe Jesus as the object of our faith, the testimony on which our faith in him must rest, and he gives the mental ability to understand and believe upon those testimonies, and then he requires us to use these means to produce faith. We have the power to use them or not as we like. The duty of the unbeliever is to faithfully and candidly study the word of God to see if these things be so with the desire of knowing and doing the truth. The testimonies are sufficient to con­vince every honest and true heart that Jesus is the Christ the Son of God.

the which if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself would not contain the books that should be written.—In this strong expression, he clearly means that all the books in the world would not hold the record of the things said and done by Jesus. In the things revealed are the words of life eternal. [“The ministry of Christ was so busy, his teaching so voluminous and his deeds of mercy so numerous that the verse states that it would be impossible to make a minute record, and in order to convey this idea forcibly an oriental hyperbole is employed.” I take it that he does not mean this material world, but that the mind of man would not be able to understand and comprehend all that Jesus said and did were all these things recorded in books.]

Questions on John Chapter Twenty-One

E.M. Zerr

1. Where did Jesus next appear to the disciples?

2. What were they doing?

3. Name some of them who were there.

4. Who had proposed this action of theirs?

5. And who seconded it?

6. What was their success?

7. Who was near in the morning?

8. How about the recognition?

9. What did he ask them?

10. Repeat his instructions.

11. State the result.

12. Who now recognized Jesus?

13. At this what did Peter do?

14. How did the others come?

15. What did they bring?

16. Upon landing, what did they see?

17. What did Jesus call for?

18. How many had they caught?

19. What was remarkable about it?

20. Repeat Jesus’ invitation to them here.

21. On what were they silent?

22. Why was it so?

23. Who served the group?

24. How often has Jesus appeared since resurrection?

25. After dinner what did Jesus ask Peter?

26. How often did he ask?

27. Tell how Peter felt about it.

28. Explain why three times.

29. What was he told to do?

30. When was Peter strong?

31. State the prediction of Jesus.

32. What did this signify?

33. What did he now bid him do?

34. Tell whom Peter noticed.

35. What is said about this man and Jesus?

36. Where had he sat at supper?

37. Tell what he had asked.

38. Repeat Peter’s question now.

39. And the answer.

40. This started what report?

41. What was wrong about the report?

42. State the lesson Peter should have received.

43. Who is doing the writing of this book?

44. What did he know?

45. Did he record all the works of Jesus?

46. For what purpose were these written?

47. Which chapter and verse shows this?

48. Had all been written, then what?

49. What is meant by the world?

50. What is John’s endorsement of this book?