Chapter Twenty-One

1–14. The appearance of the risen Christ at the Sea of Tiberias. – 15–23. The miraculous catch of fish and a meal by the sea. The prediction of the fate of Peter and John. – 24–25. A second conclusion to the Gospel.

John 21:1. After this Jesus appeared again to His disciples at the Sea of Tiberias. And He appeared in this way: “After this,” that is, after the events described in chapter 20. “Jesus appeared again.” As is evident from verse 14, this appearance was the third in the sequence of appearances to the disciples. The first took place on the first day after the resurrection, the second on the eighth (John 20:19). “At the Sea of Tiberias” – see the commentary on John 6:1.

John 21:2. there were together Simon Peter, and Thomas called the Twin, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples. Seven disciples of Christ were by the sea at this time in total: five apostles, who are named individually (though John, by his custom, refers to himself and his brother James only by their patronymic), and two others, perhaps not even from among the apostles.

John 21:3. Simon Peter says to them: I am going to fish. They say to him: We will go with you. They went out and immediately got into the boat, and caught nothing that night. The apostles, evidently, took up their former occupations, since they had not yet received the final commission to preach the Gospel. Peter – apparently in the evening – sets out to sea to fish, and six other disciples join him. As is evident from the subsequent account, all of them fit in one boat, having one net.

John 21:4. But when it was already morning, Jesus stood on the shore; but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. After spending the whole night on the sea and catching nothing, the disciples saw early in the morning that someone was standing on the shore. It was Jesus, whom the disciples did not recognize because of the distance.

John 21:5. Jesus says to them: Children! Do you have any food? They answered Him: No. The Lord addressed the disciples when they began to row toward the shore, asking if they had anything to eat, of course, with the idea that they had caught some fish. The disciples, busy, probably, gathering the net, were not looking at the one questioning them and briefly answered negatively to his question.

John 21:6. But He said to them: Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find. They cast it, and now they were not able to pull it in because of the multitude of fish. The Lord then gave them the advice to cast the net once more and specifically on the right side of the boat – then they would catch. Thinking that before them stood a man experienced in fishing, the disciples followed his advice and captured an enormous quantity of fish.

John 21:7. Then the disciple whom Jesus loved says to Peter: It is the Lord. Simon Peter then, hearing that it was the Lord, girded his outer garment about him (for he was naked) and threw himself into the sea. John 21:8. But the other disciples came in the little boat (for they were not far from the shore, about two hundred cubits), dragging the net with the fish. Seeing the extraordinary swift fulfillment of the stranger’s words, John was the first to recognize in this stranger the Lord who had appeared again. Moreover, there may have come to mind another similar occasion (Luke 5:1-11). But while John himself remained with the other disciples to help them deal with such a rich catch, Peter, always impetuous in his love for Christ, jumped out of the boat to swim more quickly to shore and come to Jesus. Since he had been fishing in just a shirt, out of respect for the Lord he put on what was like a short blouse for himself, which Syrian and Phoenician fishers wore (Blessed Theophylact), and fastened himself tightly with a belt (he is called naked precisely because he had been in just a shirt or tunic). “Two hundred cubits” – concerning the cubit, see the commentary on Matt 6:27.

John 21:9. When they came out on land, they saw a fire of coals there and a fish lying on it and bread. John 21:10. Jesus says to them: Bring some of the fish which you have now caught. John 21:11. Simon Peter went out and dragged the net to land, full of large fish, one hundred and fifty-three; and although there were so many, the net was not torn. The evangelist does not say that Peter, having come to Jesus, began some conversation with Him. Perhaps he did not even dare to address Christ with any question and waited, standing by the water, for the other apostles to arrive. The Lord did not start a conversation with him. When all the other disciples came ashore, they saw that on the laid-out fire fish was already being cooked, and near the fire lay bread. But Christ requires them to bring also the fish which they had caught. Then Peter, as the chief fisherman (cf. verse 3), “went,” or more precisely, went up, climbed to the higher shore (ἀνέβη); he had been standing at the very water’s edge, as if abashed to approach the place where Christ stood, and dragged the net which his companions had brought to the very shore. John noticed that all the fish the apostles counted in the net amounted to 153 – this was obviously an extraordinary catch. Moreover, what especially struck John was the fact that the net did not tear from such a great weight.

John 21:12. Jesus says to them: Come and have breakfast. None of the disciples dared to ask Him, Who are You? knowing that it was the Lord. John 21:13. Jesus comes and takes the bread and gives it to them, and likewise the fish. John 21:14. This was now the third time that Jesus appeared to His disciples after rising from the dead. A feeling of reverent awe did not allow the disciples themselves to begin a conversation with Christ when He invited them to have breakfast. The Lord said nothing to the disciples about the purpose of His appearance, but they themselves, without any special explanation, were to understand the meaning of everything that happened. The miraculous catch of fish was to indicate to them the success they would have in the work of attracting human souls to Christ, provided they followed Christ’s directives in everything. The breakfast to which Christ invited them signified, first, the restoration of close friendly relations between them and Christ, and second, it served as assurance that at the time when they would be occupied with the work of preaching, the Lord would provide for the satisfaction of their earthly needs.

John 21:15. When they had breakfast, Jesus says to Simon Peter: Simon, son of John! Do you love Me more than these? Peter says to Him: Yes, Lord; You know that I love You. Jesus says to him: Feed My lambs. Besides this general purpose, this appearance had a special purpose as well: the restoration of the apostle Peter to his apostolic office, who had denied Christ. After breakfast (more precisely from the Greek, when they had eaten – ἠρίστησαν), the Lord asks Peter whether he loves Him more than the others. Of course, Christ asks this for the purpose of reminding Peter of his former declaration of his love for Christ (John 13:37). And the threefold repetition of the same question was to remind Peter of his threefold denial of Christ. It is quite probable that the fire, near which he now stood, was to bring to his mind that fire near which he had warmed himself at night in the courtyard of the high priest. Peter’s answer shows how much he had humbled himself: he no longer speaks of his unreserved devotion to Christ, but merely gives an affirmative answer to Christ’s question. What is more, he humbly declares that his love for Christ is not such as Christ wished to see from him. Christ asks him whether he loves Him with the love which is based on conviction in the high merits of the beloved, which is an act of the human will (such is the meaning of the verb ἀγαπᾶν used here by Christ). Peter in his answer speaks only of his friendly, heartfelt disposition toward Christ (in such a sense the verb φιλεῖν is used by him, cf. John 11:3). However, the Lord accepts Peter’s confession and entrusts him with feeding His lambs. By this Peter is not given any special authority which would set him apart from the other apostles. No, he is here only restored to his dignity, which he had lost with his denial. The Lord entrusts to him, as to the other apostles, care for the believers. It should be noted that the believers the Lord calls here lambs or little lambs, in order to show how much they need care from the apostles, and He designates this care itself as feeding, nourishment (βόσκε ἀρνία μου).

John 21:16. He says to him again a second time: Simon, son of John! Do you love Me? Peter says to Him: Yes, Lord; You know that I love You. Jesus says to him: Tend My sheep. The Lord, evidently after some time, addresses Peter again with the same question, omitting only the phrase “more than these.” He seems to be asking Peter whether he at least has the love which all Christ’s disciples ought to have for Christ (here again the verb ἀγαπᾶν is used). But Peter did not pay attention to the true meaning of Christ’s question and gives an answer in exactly the same words as in the first case. The Lord again says nothing to Peter about a certain inadequacy of his answer and now entrusts him with tending, or more precisely, managing His sheep, that is, the whole flock of Christ (cf. John 10:3-27), without distinction of age and strength of the animals comprising the flock (ποίμαινε τὰ πρόβατά μου).

John 21:17. He says to him the third time: Simon, son of John! Do you love Me? Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, Do you love Me? and he said to Him: Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You. Jesus says to him: Feed My sheep. In asking Peter the third time, the Lord used for the concept of love the same verb that Peter had just used (φιλεῖν). By this the Lord put in doubt even the friendly disposition which, by Peter’s own admission, he had. This greatly grieved Peter, and his grief was expressed in the fact that he gave a different form to his answer. He omits the affirmation “Yes” and no longer speaks of his love as something completely clear, of which Christ should know, but only expresses confidence that Christ, as God all-knowing, penetrates into his heart and finds there not only weaknesses, but at the same time sincere love for Him. After this sorrowful and humble confession of Peter, the Lord the third time entrusts him with the care of feeding His “sheep,” or more precisely, “little sheep” (βόσκε προβάτια), by whom He means the most vulnerable believers. Peter himself felt how difficult was the position of the weak in character – not in faith, because in his denial Peter showed not weakness of faith but rather insufficient firmness of character, and therefore the Lord specifically entrusts to him the strengthening and comforting of those people whom he himself had formerly resembled.

John 21:18. Truly, truly, I say to you: When you were young, you girded yourself and walked where you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish to go. John 21:19. But He said this, indicating by what kind of death Peter would glorify God. And when He had said this, He says to him: Follow Me. After restoring Peter to his apostolic dignity, Christ foretells to Peter a martyr’s death. Just as an aged old man can no longer dress himself and walk as he wishes, but must resort to the help of others and go with them even where he would not wish to go, so there will come a time when the living apostle Peter, accustomed to acting by his own will, will have to go where enemies will lead him, that is, to a martyr’s death. By this death Peter will glorify God, that is, he will contribute to the increase in the number of true children of God – believers in Christ. One may even suppose that in the description of Peter being bound and led where he did not wish to go, there is depicted the very picture of Peter being crucified on a cross. Tertullian said: “then Peter is girded by another, when he is bound to a cross” (see Scorp. 15). Finally, reminding Peter of his promise to die for Christ (John 13:37), Christ invites Peter to follow Him, that is, as is evident from the context of the discourse (cf. verses 22–23), to prepare to suffer just as Christ suffered.

John 21:20. But Peter, having turned around, sees the disciple following whom Jesus loved, who also at supper had leaned on His breast and said, Lord, who is it that will betray You? John 21:21. Having seen this, Peter says to Jesus: Lord, what about him? John 21:22. Jesus says to him: If I wish that he remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow Me. John 21:23. And this word went out among the brothers, that that disciple would not die. Yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but: If I wish that he remain until I come, what is that to you? Together with Peter, the Lord began to withdraw from the place where the meal took place. Peter, probably having heard the footsteps of someone behind him, turned back and saw John walking behind him. Knowing that John was especially loved by the Lord, he naturally wanted to find out what fate awaited this most beloved disciple of Christ. He considered death for Christ as an honor for himself and was wondering whether Christ’s most beloved disciple would not be granted this honor. Peter spoke thus, evidently from a feeling of special affection for John, with whom he had been especially close, as can be seen, for example, from the fact that on the morning of the resurrection they were together and the two of them hastened to Christ’s tomb. In response to Peter’s question, the Lord tells him that he has no need to concern himself with John: he himself must first and foremost follow Christ, and as for John, even if he were to remain alive until the second coming of Christ, that would have no bearing on the fate of the apostle Peter – he must follow the path appointed to him. These words of the Lord about John, as the evangelist himself notes, gave the brothers, that is, Christians (cf. Phil 1:14), occasion to say that John would not die. These suppositions are explained by the fact that the first Christians thought that the coming of the Lord was near and that some of them would live to see that time (see 1 Thess 4:17; Jas 5:7-8). Especially the fact that Peter indeed died the death which the Lord had foretold to him, while John continued his activity for about a dozen years after Peter’s death, must have even more confirmed Christians in the correctness of their supposition. That is why John establishes in exact detail the meaning of the words which the Lord had said to him. One cannot help but note here that this addition to the Gospel clearly shows that John was alive at the time this addition appeared and that he himself made the addition. Indeed, what need would there have been to explain the true meaning of Christ’s words if John had already died? Then it would have been sufficient, in opposition to any fabrications about his fate, to point to the place where he had been buried.

John 21:24. This disciple testifies about these things and wrote these things; and we know that his testimony is true. John 21:25. And there are also many other things that Jesus did; but if every one of them were to be written down, I suppose that not even the whole world would contain the books that would be written. These verses can be regarded, first, as a conclusion to chapter 21 alone. In that case, they would mainly affirm the truthfulness of what was said about the fate of Peter and John. Second, here one can see the conclusion to the entire Gospel, and this opinion seems more correct, since verse 25 is clearly referring not to the small addition to the Gospel contained in chapter 21, but to the whole Gospel of John. Thus, in this conclusion – the second by count – “this disciple,” that is, John himself, says that he is a witness to the truthfulness of everything said in the Gospel, that he himself wrote it, and then those people who surrounded John (“we know”) also join in his testimony, that is, probably some apostles and other eyewitnesses of the events described in John’s Gospel. Finally, the evangelist’s remark that the whole world could not contain the books in which everything that the apostles knew about Christ would be written, should, of course, be understood as a hyperbolic expression. N. Rozanov.