that it was Jesus. Then Jesus saith unto them, Children, have ye any meat? They answered Him, No. And He said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the whom they know not, but who knows them right well. There is the same withholding Himself from their recognition, in this instance, as in all others since His resurrection. The inference is obvious, that Christ is present, watching the labours of those who work for Him, long before they are permitted to recognize Him; and that He is there to speak the blessing, which they require, to crown their labours with success. It may be in the early morning of life; it may be as the day of eternity is dawning to them; but there stands the figure of Christ, ready to manifest Himself to them, and to accept their work.

7. children. He addresses them with kindliness and interest, as a stranger might; not, as some say, with apparent curiosity, or as if desirous to buy fish of them. He does not gain from them much response, or confession of their ill success. They are wearied and disappointed with their failure; their right hand had lost her cunning, and they have no heart to meet a stranger's sympathy, though it may have touched them; they simply, and somewhat roughly, answer, "No." The terse roughness, and abrupt speech, of seafaring men, is familiar to us; it has neither intentional rudeness, nor unkindliness.

8. the shore.-Ancient writers explain the sea to mean the world, into which the Apostles of Christ, and their successors, cast the net of the Gospel mission. Success is slow, and effort often painful; but Christ gives the word, and results follow, far more stupendous than can be accounted for by their efforts. The fish are explained to be the souls of mankind, saved through their ministrations; the ship is the Church of Christ. Christ Himself stands on the shore of the eternal world, where "there is no more sea," and no more work of probation. He receives His labourers, and welcomes His elect; and makes them sit down together with Him, in heavenly places, and sets before them the feast of the kingdom.

9. the right side.—Again the stranger speaks; and, for whatever reason, His direction meets with prompt obedience. They may have thrown right and left before, but in vain; but now they find the fullest success. It is not that they have lost their ancient skill, or their loved lake its abundance; there are fish enough around them, and they are now to draw an unexpected ingathering. And this is the case often, in the experience of those who toil for Christ in the world; they toil “all night” in vain; but there comes the day of an unhoped-for success. It is not that all previous efforts have been thrown away; had they never speeded to labour, they had never known success. The lesson is one of special importance, with regard to missionary enterprise. The connection between work and success is direct; but God gives the word for success, to crown effort in His

ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved saith unto Peter, It is the Lord. Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his fisher's coat unto him, (for he was naked,) and did cast himself into the sea. And the other disciples came in a little ship; (for they were not far from the land, but as it were two hundred cause. The term "right side" has much exercised the ingenuity of commentators. Hengestenberg considers it to mean, that on the right side of the ship the Gentiles are gathered to the Church; whilst they had laboured on the left side in vain for the Jews. But, following the allegorical meaning of the miracle, the opinion of the ancient Church appears to be the best, that on the right side were found the good only (cf. Matt. xxv. 33, 34), and that this was the general gathering of the good and saved into the kingdom; whilst, in the other miracle, we have the gathering of all nominal Christians, good and bad, into the visible Church.

10. not able to draw it.—A significant intimation that results should follow, far greater than they could have anticipated, in their day of work; and altogether beyond their powers of management, unaided by the good Lord, who gave the word for success. This issue to the labours of weak and erring men, when applying the gospel of truth and redemption to the necessities of the world, is inexplicable, except by Divine assistance and impulse. The result of individual labour may seem difficult to trace, and long deferred; but it is sure, and far beyond the human power put forth to produce it. (See notes 8, 9.)

11. that disciple.-This is S. John's designation of himself; it included the realization of all he hoped for, and of all honour that he could desire. His love detects the Saviour, who so greatly loved him. S. Jerome says that John recognized our Lord, because of the great purity and spirituality of his heart and life; and that he thus realizes the promise," Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." We notice "the Lord," as for the first time applied to Christ. He has once before been called the "Lord Jesus" (see i. 12); now the disciples seem to have taken up the profession of Thomas, "My Lord, and my God." He had, previous to his resurrection, been addressed as “Lord,” but apparently not in the same sense. (See I. xxiv. c. 14.)

12. he girt, etc.-He had taken off this upper dress, which impeded him in his work, and wore only his under garment; for this is the meaning of the classical expression rendered "naked." Our Lord notices his reverential action, in thus reassuming this upper coat before he threw himself into the sea, in his eagerness to be first to reach Him. (See note 27.)

cubits,) dragging the net with fishes. As soon then as they were come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid thereon, and bread. Jesus saith unto them, Bring of the fish which ye have now caught. Simon

13. dragging the net.—They did not, like Peter, throw everything aside to reach Christ. They were now in the ship's boat, at some little distance; and they came more slowly, being hindered by the difficulties arising from their work. They must drag with them the net and the fish, and must come to Christ in the ship. They represent those whose aim and object is to come to Christ; but they come with the distractions of worldly life about them, by which they are much hindered. Yet such persons may serve Christ, with equal faithfulness with those who give up everything to Him, since they consecrate their life's labours to His cause; and out of the entanglements of life, with His aid, they bring to Him, at the last, much treasure won from the ways of life. For we notice that what they brought in with care and toil, were fish, the converts of the Gospel net.

14. a fire of coals.-This came there, they knew not, and we know not how; probably our Lord alone can answer, for it is His promise to supply what may be necessary, and what man has not. He caused it

to be there; it is not said miraculously, but, considering the character of this miracle, we are sure that He did cause it to be there, together with the "fish laid thereon, and bread." In the allegorical sense of the miracle, this is considered to represent the heavenly feast, the Supper of the Lamb, the marriage feast of the King's Son, to which Christ invites those who have laboured for Him on earth, and who reach the eternal shore, whither they bring with them the souls they have gained to His Gospel from the world. It is remarkable that, on both occasions when our Lord fed the multitudes, He gave, as here also, fish with the bread; early writers explain the broiled fish as emblematic of Christ's body, "burnt up with the agony of His Passion." We know that the fish was an early Christian emblem of Christ's titles; but mystery surrounds the point.

15. bring of the fish.-There is some difficulty here. Our Lord desires them to bring of the fish which they had caught. For what purpose is this? Taking the fish to represent the converts gathered by the labours of Christ's agents in the world, and primarily of His Apostles, we see the multitudes of the saved brought before God. The circumstances of the miracle require, that the "fishers of men" should be represented as bringing these converts where Christ is. But the passage reads as if Christ ordered that, of the fish caught by the Apostles, some should be brought, and prepared with those already on the coals; and some writers explain, that this was in order that they should see that those, which Christ is preparing, are not unsubstantial and mystical only, but actually the same as those brought in by the

Peter went up, and drew the net to land full of great fishes, one hundred and fifty and three and for all there

Apostles; others, that those who labour must find their happiness complete, through the presence of those whom they have brought to Christ. (See 1 Thess. ii. 19.) Others, again, declare that none of these were prepared, or eaten, but only those which Christ showed to them. It would seem unnecessary to press too closely the application, here, of the several features of the miracle, as we must always do those of our Lord's parables. We may, however, take the two lessons as clear: first, that the converts of the Gospel are gathered, and presented to our Lord, in connection with those who have laboured on earth for their everlasting good; and also, that there is illustration of the truth expressed in another figure: "the husbandman, labouring first” (i.e. not without labour), " must be partaker of the fruit" (2 Tim. ii. 6). Thus, the reward of the "fishers of men" is partly derived from the result of their work. We need not further entangle ourselves in the difficulty of making the fish at once the converts, and the food; an allegory may well have two independent lines of fulfilment. It may be also that the idea of sacrifice is included, in which both the minister of the Gospel, and those whom He has gained for Christ, are presented before Him, and are accepted through the sacrifice of Christ. (Cf. Rom. xv. 16; Phil. ii. 17; Eph. v. 2, 27).

16. went up.—i.e. into the ship. He now rejoined his associates, and prominently assisted in drawing the net to shore, which, as it came into shallow water, needed their whole strength.

The

The

17. great fishes.-The size, and abundance, of the fish in the Sea of Tiberias, are frequently spoken of in books of modern travel. number, in this instance, has caused much learned speculation. ancient writers, especially, have various explanations. That of the Greek Fathers is, that the number 100 signifies perfection and multitude, and represents the mighty gathering of the Gentile world; the number 50, the half or inferior number, that of the Jewish converts; whilst the number 3 contains the mystery of the Trinity, through which they are saved. The Latin Fathers interpret differently. S. Augustine makes the three fifties, and also the additional three, represent the mystery of the Trinity; whilst the number 50 itself gives that of the jubilee, when there is rest from labour. S. Gregory takes 10 as the number of the Law, expressed in the Decalogue; and 7 as the number of the spirits of God's might, which together give the number 17; this, multiplied three times, as the mystery of the Trinity, gives 51; and, again so multiplied, gives 153. None of these seem very satisfactory, though they are very ingenious. For, if the number of the fish is that of the saved, it is difficult to say why the mystery of the Holy Trinity should be brought in, as part of the number of the saved. Others have explained that we have here the number of

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were so many, yet was not the net broken. Jesus saith unto them, Čome and dine. And none of the disciples durst ask Him, Who art Thou? knowing that it was the Lord. Jesus then cometh, and taketh bread, and giveth the kinds of fish in the lake; or the number of the races of earth, to denote that they are gathered of all nations. There is, no doubt, a mystery in this peculiar number, which would not otherwise have been specified; but it is, at present, known only to God. Perhaps we may safely notice that it is not a complete, or definite, number; and, in this way, that it represents the great and indefinite number of the saved, "whom no man can number," but which God knows. We must observe the difference between the fish of this, and of the former miracle. Those were of various sizes, and were good and bad; these are all large fish, caught on the right side of the ship, and brought to land, none being thrown away. Thus the net of the Gospel may be spread over multitudes, who, may nominally be gathered into it, and amongst whom separation must be made at the last; but, when gathered before Christ, only the good will be brought in.

18. broken. In the former miracle, "the net brake;" the contrary is here designedly noted. Archbishop Trench points out how the breaking of the net, in the former instance, shows the rents which schism has made in the present condition of the Church, and that the sinking ship of the Church, receiving the bad and good together, is almost shipwrecked by the evil livers within it. (See I. viii. 23.) Here, however, the good are gathered from the Church, which has reached the eternal shore; there is no rent in the unity of the faith of the Gospel, which gathers them in. And the Apostles, representative of an agency, humanly speaking, so inadequate in strength, have no power given them, to bring all in safety to the Saviour's presence.

19. come and dine.-This, as has been said, is generally thought to represent the supper of the Gospel, the marriage supper of the King's Son in heaven. Our Lord Himself comes forth to serve those who sit at His table in His kingdom (Luke xii. 37, xxii. 30). See the invitation to "the blessings of Christ's dwellings, in His come and see earlier call in John i. 39.

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20. durst ask. Though Christ had not said so much, and perhaps still withheld entire recognition, they all felt, and were convinced, that it was He who was near them; and that none other than He had wrought the miracle of the fishes, and had provided the meat.

21. then cometh.—It is likely that He had joined them in the meal itself; but this seems distinct from it. He appears to have risen, and, in some solemn way, to communicate to them of the "breaking the bread." Some writers, therefore, both ancient and modern, see in this a sacramental act, if not a celebration of the Eucharist itself. They also notice the number of the disciples present on this occasion, namely