It Is the Lord!
The “disciple whom Jesus loved,” known as John, either John ben Zebedee (the Apostle), or John the Elder, wrote down his recollections of his experiences with Jesus so that those who hear or read would believe Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and would find eternal life in His name (John 1:1-20:31). Many might consider John 20:30-31 to represent a satisfying conclusion, but John the Evangelist did not think so. There was one more story of Jesus’ revealing Himself to His disciples to tell (John 21:1-22).
According to John, Simon Peter, Thomas, Nathanael, the sons of Zebedee (James and John, Mark 1:19-20), and two other disciples were together (John 21:2). The “disciple whom Jesus loved” was present according to John 21:7; he might be John ben Zebedee, or John the Evangelist, and if the latter, then one of the two otherwise unnamed disciples. This is the first instance in which John spoke of the “sons of Zebedee”; here we also learn Nathanael, whom we have not seen mentioned since John 1:45-49, was from Cana in Galilee.
John assumes we have figured out these disciples were near the Sea of Tiberias, and therefore in Galilee (John 21:1). Simon Peter announced he was going fishing, and the rest decided to go with him (John 21:3).
We do not really know when exactly this transpired within the forty days between Jesus’ resurrection and His ascension (Acts 1:3). We assume it would take place after the eighth day and the events described in John 20:1-31; we likewise should assume it did not take place toward the very end of that period of forty days, since the disciples were all back in Jerusalem when Jesus ascended according to Acts 1:4-11. In Matthew’s account of the resurrection, Jesus told the women to tell the disciples to go to Galilee, and Jesus would appear to them there, and He did so (Matthew 28:10, 16); perhaps this is why the disciples decided to return to Galilee for a moment.
While Luke made it known how Jesus appeared to the disciples over that forty-day period and spoke with them regarding the Kingdom in Acts 1:3, it would not seem His appearances took up even the majority of that time. The disciples had been with Jesus intensively over three years; He had died and now He was raised from the dead; He had commissioned them, but the day of Pentecost and all it would make known had not yet arrived (cf. Acts 2:1-41). The disciples dwelt in the in-between time without fully understanding what was about to happen, or that it was even an in-between time. We can therefore understand why the disciples might have felt a bit aimless during this period. It would be natural, especially for someone as generally impetuous as Simon Peter, to want to go and do something. He was a fisherman; fishing is what he knew. He very likely also had financial imperatives driving his behavior: the disciples were not wealthy, and he and his family needed to eat. The sons of Zebedee were also fishermen (cf. Mark 1:19-20), and so it makes sense why they would go fish with him. The rest of the disciples might have joined them out of a sense of solidarity and also to give them all something to do.
They fished all night and caught nothing (John 21:3), which did not augur well for them. Very early in the morning, Jesus stood on the beach; it was not immediately apparent to the disciples it was Jesus (John 21:4). He asked them if they had caught any fish, and they responded they had not; He told them to cast their nets on the right side of their boats to find some (John 21:5-6a). When they did so, they could not bring the net back in on account of the number of fish present (John 21:6b).
The “disciple whom Jesus loved,” be it John ben Zebedee or a different John as the Evangelist, somehow discerned who had been speaking with them, and told Peter it was the Lord (John 21:7a). When Peter heard this, he immediately accepted it; he put on his outer garment, since he had stripped down for work, jumped into the sea, and ostensibly swam to Jesus (John 21:7b). The rest of the disciples sailed the final one hundred yards with the boat and the net full of fish (John 21:8).
When they arrived on shore, they saw Jesus had already prepared a charcoal fire with a fish on it and some bread (John 21:9). Jesus asked them to bring some of the fish they had caught; Peter brought the net to shore (John 21:10-11a). There were 153 large fish, and yet the net was not torn (John 21:11b; the precision of the count need not be an invitation to gematria or anything of the sort, but likely remained a detail which so suitably impressed our Evangelist as to remember and record so many years later). Jesus invited the disciples to have breakfast with Him; the whole meal was enjoyed with what was likely an awkward silence, for none of them asked Jesus who he was, since they knew He was the Lord, but He also did not seem to do much speaking with them at this moment (John 21:12-13). John the Evangelist commented regarding how this was the third time Jesus was revealed to His disciples after His resurrection (John 21:14; John seems to have excluded the appearance to Mary Magdalene in John 20:11-18).
There would have been much for the disciples to think about during this breakfast. Perhaps some of them remembered how this had all happened before. While this might be the first time we have a story regarding fishing in the Gospel of John (and one of only a few stories set in Galilee), it was not the first time the disciples had experienced something like this with Jesus. According to Luke in Luke 5:1-11, there had been another futile night of fishing which Peter and the sons of Zebedee had suffered. Jesus had asked them to use one of their boats so He could better address the crowds. Afterward He told them to go out and lower their nets for a catch; Peter at first protested, but then did as he was told. On that day they also had caught so many fish the nets were about to tear, and they all were astounded at how much fish they caught. Peter recognized what had happened and what it meant regarding Jesus; he had fallen before Jesus’ knees and told Him to depart since he, Peter, was a sinful man.
This had been the moment Jesus had called Peter and the sons of Zebedee. A lot had happened in the intervening few years. But Peter now had more reasons to prove reflective: he was again before a charcoal fire. We all know the power of smell to evoke memories; it would not at all be surprising for Peter to smell the charcoal and be immediately brought back to that fateful night not long before in Annas’ courtyard and the events which took place therein (cf. John 18:15-27).
Or maybe Peter did not want to remember those moments at all. Yet it would be addressed. After breakfast, Jesus would ask Peter three times if he loved Him. Three times Peter would respond how Jesus knew he loved Him. Jesus would then tell him to feed His lambs, shepherd His sheep, and feed His sheep (John 21:15-17). Jesus then prophesied how Peter as a young man would go wherever he wanted, but when he would grow old, he would stretch out his hands, and others would tie him up and take him to where he did not want to go; John the Evangelist provided the appropriate commentary, associating this prophecy with the death by which Peter would die (John 21:18-19a). Jesus then told Peter to follow Him (John 21:19b).
Some want to make much of the distinction in Greek verbs between the love Jesus asked about (Greek agapao), and the love with which Peter would respond (Greek phileo). It may feel theologically satisfying to do so, as if Peter was only willing to go so far in his friendly love with Jesus, and shrunk from a more self-sacrificing love; yet it would not be wise to do so, for our Evangelist has already displayed the habit of using these two terms interchangeably (cf. John 3:35, 5:20; 11:3, 11:5; 13:34, 15:19). Perhaps Peter did not quite understand what was going on at first; but he certainly did so by the third question, at which point he was quite grieved (John 21:17). As Peter had denied Jesus three times, so Jesus asked Peter thrice regarding his love for Him.
We could rightly understand what Jesus was doing after breakfast as “restoring” Peter, although we should note how Jesus has already appeared to Peter before, Peter never seemed to be alienated from his fellow disciples, and Peter had just shown his enthusiasm for being with Jesus by jumping into the sea in John 21:7. We can also rightly understand Jesus as commissioning Peter. While some later religious organizations have perhaps made too much of Peter, believing he was given a level of authority above and beyond all the other apostles, we should also not entirely dismiss him, either. As it was throughout the days of Jesus’ ministry, so now after His resurrection Peter will be the one to stand up and be the spokesman for the group (cf. Acts 1:12-26). It will be Peter who will stand up and deliver the first sermon on Pentecost (Acts 2:14-41). It will be Peter who would truly be seen as the “first among equals,” a “pillar” of the church (cf. Acts 1:12-12:19, Galatians 2:6-9). Peter would serve as an elder in his own right according to 1 Peter 5:1-4, and Jesus manifestly commissioned him to do the work of shepherding and providing for Jesus’ “lambs” and “sheep,” His later followers (John 21:15-17). Jesus’ specific commissioning of Peter at this moment should not automatically be interpreted as exclusive, as if the other eleven were not likewise commissioned, or to assume John the Evangelist was thus demonstrating why Peter was elevated above others. Instead, we do better to see this as Jesus’ gentle restoration and commissioning of Peter: Jesus had already forgiven Peter, and Jesus knew Peter was repentant. The weaknesses Peter displayed that fateful night were inextricably tied up with the characteristics which would also prove to be Peter’s strengths. To this end Jesus commissioned Peter to direct his energies appropriately for His purposes in His Kingdom, and Peter would not prove disobedient to the Lord in these matters. The book of Acts testifies to the many things Peter would suffer for Jesus (cf. Acts 4:1-5:17-42, 12:1-19).
John also bore witness to what Jesus had said regarding Peter’s martyrdom. Such is the only New Testament witness to what tradition has affirmed. It would make the most sense to believe Peter’s martyrdom had already taken place by the time John wrote his testimony about it. The second century apocryphal Acts of Peter told the story tradition has held to ever since regarding how Peter died: Peter was planning on fleeing Rome but saw an apparition of Jesus who asked him, quo vadis? (where are you going?). Peter thus stayed in Rome and accepted his fate; he was condemned to be crucified. Since he could not bear to die the exact same way as his Lord did, he requested to be crucified upside down, and thus he suffered and bore witness to Jesus. While the Acts of Peter is not inspired, and many of its earlier stories seem fantastic and a bit challenging for us to accept, the story of how Peter suffered and died certainly sounds a lot like what we would expect from Simon Peter.
But that would be something Peter would experience likely ca. 64-65, over 30 years after eating breakfast with the Risen Lord along the Sea of Tiberias. On that morning, Peter no doubt understood the import of what Jesus was prophesying regarding him, but he certainly did not like that level of attention. In response, Peter asked Jesus about the “disciple whom Jesus loved,” the same one whom he indicated to ask Jesus about His betrayer at the final supper, regarding what he should do (John 21:20-21; cf. John 13:21-30). Jesus responded: if Jesus willed for him to remain until Jesus returned, what would that mean for Peter? Peter should follow Jesus (John 21:22).
Whenever we feel called out or pointed out, we have the natural tendency to want to shift the focus to others; therefore, we can understand Peter’s response that morning. We would likely have a similar response. To this end we do well to deeply consider Jesus’ response: do not worry regarding the burdens and path of others, but determine instead to follow Jesus no matter what. As Jesus well instructed in the Parable of the Talents, disciples are different, and each is called to prove faithful in terms of what they have been given (cf. Matthew 24:15-30). John the Evangelist would no doubt himself encounter various trials and tribulations as he followed the Lord Jesus, even though he would die a natural death according to tradition. Peter was called to suffer for the Lord Jesus in different ways. We must resist the temptation to make our lives in following Jesus a matter of competition or comparison with fellow Christians. So what if the Lord has called other disciples to experience different ways of living? It is for them to follow the Lord Jesus and for us to follow the Lord Jesus no matter what may come.
John has retold this story, at least in part, to offer some clarifications of misunderstandings which took place. Some had heard about what Jesus had spoken regarding John and concluded John would not die until the Lord Jesus returned; John emphasized how Jesus was speaking in a hypothetical, an if statement, and the inference they had drawn was unwarranted (John 21:23). The Evangelist then identified himself as this disciple whom Jesus loved (John 21:24). He concluded his Gospel with a statement somewhat like John 20:30, presuming the world could not contain all the books which could be written if they recorded all the many other things Jesus did (John 21:25).
We can perceive the care and concern John the Evangelist had for those who had heard his witness as he concluded his testimony. Many date his Gospel to the period between 75-90, which would mean he was likely at least in his sixties when he wrote it all down. He did not want anyone to despair in their hope when he died, presuming the Lord had proven unfaithful, or would otherwise be given reason to doubt the validity of his testimony. John the Evangelist would go the way of all flesh, and Jesus did not prove unfaithful to him; Jesus had never actually promised John would still be alive when Jesus returned, but only used that as a hypothetical in contrast to the result for which Peter was seemingly digging.
In this way John the Evangelist brought his testimony regarding his witness and experience of Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ, the Son of God, to an end. Jesus loved him, and he loved Jesus, and we should prove thankful for his testimony. May we accept it as the truth and believe in Jesus, and find eternal life in His name!
Ethan R. Longhenry
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