Verse 18: Verse 18 speaks of when Jesus began His ministry in earnest. He did so by choosing some disciples. We are told that he walked along the Sea of Tiberias (or Sea of Galilee depending on your translation). It was called Tiberias because Tiberias was the name of the large city which was located near the lake’s southwestern shore. Some translations also call it the Sea of Kinneret. This is based on the Hebrew word kinnar, which means harp. The lake was harp shaped.
Jesus spotted a couple fishermen who were brothers. He offered to make them fishers of men. One was called Andrew and the other Simon Peter. In Hebrew, Simon Peter is Shimon Kefa. This is translated in other parts of the Bible as Cephas. We are told these two brother did not hesitate. They left their nets and followed Jesus.
An interesting feature about disciples and their masters in the first century was that it was frequently the disciples who chose their teachers. There were many teachers to choose from if a Jewish man wanted to become a disciple. Some of the most elite teachers were highly sought after and the teacher choose his students. We are told the Apostle Paul studied under a scholar named Gameliel. Gameliel had many students and had the ability to choose who he wanted to teach.
Jesus selected his disciples. There were the inner 12 Jesus choose; however, we read there were many others who followed Him. These other men would have been tougher from a distance. They would not have had the intimate relationship with Jesus which the inner 12 had. Moreover, the inner 12 disciples did everything with Jesus. There are many stories in which just the 12 disciples were present. Often times, it was further reduced to just 2 or 3 disciples.
Before we talk about some other men who Jesus rerouted, notice that the candidates are not recorded as asking “why” they should follow Him. The wording makes it seem as if there was an immediate acceptance. They just stood up and left with Him. In fact, it seems that Jesus’ offer was not an invitation but a command. The question which should be asked is: why would these men obey and follow Him?
In Judaism, there is a kind of Jewish man who is called a tzaddik. Literally, it means a “righteous man”. It is someone who was holy and who was able to rise above sin. When we read the Book of Job, Job is considered a tzaddik. He is tempted many times to sin against God, but he does not. His ability to resist sin and to stay faithful to God despite incredible challenges leads many Jewish scholars to call Job a tzaddik.
Some of the tzaddik had the ability to heal sicknesses, cure disabilities and fix other bodily maladies.
In Jewish literature from around 70 A.D., there were several tzaddik noted in literature. Two of these men were from the Galilee. These men were divinely gifted and were thought to be closer to God than the average person.
Recall in Jesus’ day, the bleed of the Jews was that the era of the prophets such as those seen in the Old Testament, was over. Prophets were the miracle workers of bygone days. However, these holy men called tzaddikim were able to perform miracles and seemed to have a more intimate relationship with God.
Scribes, who were the main authorities of the Synagogue system (they were the elites of the Pharisees), were highly referred. There was a tension and competition between the scribes and the tzaddikim. The people sought out a tzaddik for healing, something a scribe could not do. This created a natural conflict between the scribes and tzaddikim.
Many of the tzaddikim practiced poverty. This was in sharp contrast to the Sadducees and scribes who tried to obtain as much wealth as possible. The common Jew, who was generally not affluent, felt more of a connection to the holy men, who often had few possessions. It was also common for the tzaddikim to perform their miracles in private in order not to glorify themselves.
All the characteristics of a tzaddik ring true to the description we have about Jesus. He was not a man of wealth. He did lots of miracles, many of which were done privately, or in front of a small crowd. We read of Jesus healing the sick, excising demons and spending time with the general public. It is His miracles which often attracted people to Him. He gained a huge following and also drew the attention of many religious authorities.
Now back to the question which was asked earlier: why would these fishermen and other disciples who did not have any prior contact with Jesus just jump up and follow Jesus when they were commanded to do so? It was most likely because they recognized Jesus to be a highly learned teacher and a righteous man, a holy man. The men probably had heard of Jesus because we are told in Luke’s gospel that after Jesus was tempted in the wilderness, He returned to the Galilee and began teaching in synagogues. His reputation spread before He started appointing disciples. It would be an honor to be Jesus’ disciple. It would allow these men to increase their knowledge of Scripture and gain a higher status among religious Jews.
After choosing Andrew and Peter, Jesus found another pair of fishermen brothers and choose them. So the first four disciples were fishermen. Many scholars have gone on to spiritualize the meaning of having the first four disciples as being fishermen. However, I want to remind you, Jesus was living in Capernaum. This was a seaside town. Fishing was one of the main, if not the main, industries for the residents of Capernaum. We also read that Jesus was walking along the seashore. So he was bound to run into some fishermen.
Fishermen, despite what you have heard, were not uneducated and illiterate. Fishing was not an occupation of last resort. Rather, fishing was what we might call today a blue collar job. These were vernally happy family men making a simple but sufficient living. They could read and write. They probably spoke at least two languages—Hebrew and Aramaic. Some may also have had knowledge of Greek. Capernaum was an important city on the Via Maris trade route. So these men would have had interactions with people from all around the Greek empire and potentially the world.
Fishermen shared their catch with their family and also sold the rest at market. They attended synagogue, made the journey three times a year for the biblical feasts and had a good knowledge of Scripture.
The second pair of breathing that Jesus commanded to become His disciples were James and John, son of Zebedee. Just as Andrew and Peter immediately left their nets and boats, so did James and John. It is hard to know if these men gave up everything and walked away, or if there was more to the story. Did these men have families? Did they have a way to provide for their families while they went to spend their days with Jesus? I do not have the answers to these questions, but it is something to think about.
Over the next several years, these men would operate almost exclusively within the Holy Land, they would not have been listened to or respected if they had made their wives and children homeless beggars in order to follow Jesus. So the statement that these men left their nets and boats is most likely an abbreviated statement about their instant connection with Jesus and their immediate obedience to obey His command to follow Him. Nonetheless, this would have had serious consequences and would have put a great strain on their families.
Verse 23: In verse 23, it states that Jesus went around speaking in synagogues. This is where people worshiped, learned, fellow-shipped and gathered information. Jesus also went about healing people form disease.
Verse 25: In verse 25, we are told that people were coming from places like the Galilee, the Ten Towns (also known as the Decapolis), Jerusalem, the province of Judean to the south and even areas to the east of the Jordan River. It is interesting to note that Galilee and Judea are mentioned, but Samaria (which lays between them) is not in the list. Also, the prominent sites of Sidon and Tyre are not mentioned. Why is this omission made? These areas were mostly gentiles and people who were mixed blood. The gentiles would not have understood the meaning behind Jesus’ teachings and His miracles. The multitudes who came to be helped and to hear Jesus were almost exclusively Jews.
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