Section 4:18–22

Jesus chose his first four disciples

This section describes two related events that happened near Lake Galilee during the early part of Jesus’ ministry in Galilee. First Jesus asked Peter and his brother Andrew to become his disciples. Later he asked James and his brother John to become his disciples. All four of these men were fishermen. These became four of his twelve disciples.

Here are some other headings for this section:

Jesus chose four fishermen to be his disciples
-or-
Jesus asked four men to follow him

There are parallel passages for this section in Mark 1:16–20 and Luke 5:1–11.

Paragraph 4:18–20

4:18a–e

Verse 4:18b–e gives four pieces of information about Simon and Andrew:

18bthey were brothers

18ctheir names were Simon and Andrew

18dthey were casting their net into the lake

18ethey were fishermen

You should put these four pieces of information in the order that is most natural in your language for introducing these new characters. Here is one example of a way to reorder:

18aAs Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, 18ehe saw two fishermen 18dwho were casting their net into the lake. 18bThey were brothers, 18cand their names were Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew.

4:18a

As Jesus was walking: This clause describes the setting for the story that follows. In some languages, it may be natural to introduce this story with a time word or phrase. For example:

One day as Jesus was walking (New Living Translation (2004))

beside the Sea of Galilee: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as beside indicates that Jesus was walking close to the Sea of Galilee. Here are some other ways to translate this word:

by the Sea of Galilee (English Standard Version)
-or-
along the Sea of Galilee (God’s Word)
-or-
along the shore of Lake Galilee (Contemporary English Version)

the Sea of Galilee: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible here translates as Sea is the same word that is translated as “sea” in 4:13. You should translate it here as you did there.

4:18b

He saw two brothers: The phrase two brothers refers to two men who were brothers of one another. These men were not brothers of Jesus.

Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

he saw a man and his brother
-or-
he saw two men who were brothers

Simon was the older brother of Andrew. If your language needs to indicate whether it is an older or a younger brother, you can say:

he saw a man and his ⌊younger⌋ brother

4:18c

Simon called Peter: This phrase indicates that Simon had another name. This other name was Peter.

Here are some other ways to translate this:

Simon who was ⌊also⌋ called/named Peter
-or-
Simon, also known as Peter (Contemporary English Version)

and his brother Andrew: Some languages use different words for brother or “sibling,” depending on:

(a) whether a person is younger or older

(b) whether a person is the brother of a woman or brother of a man

(c) whether they are brothers of the same father or mother

(d) whether it is important to specify whether a sibling is male or female

Most scholars assume that Peter was the older brother, because he was mentioned first in this passage. We may also assume that Peter and Andrew had the same father and mother. For Peter’s brother Andrew, use whatever term is natural in your language to refer to a younger male sibling with the same father and mother. For example:

his younger brother Andrew

4:18d

They were casting a net into the sea: In Greek, the phrase casting a net is a single word. It describes someone who stands on shore or in a boat and repeatedly throws a net into the water to catch fish. The net mentioned here was made of string or thread knotted together. The net was circular with small weights attached around its edge to make it sink quickly. It was small enough for one man to handle.

In some languages, it may be difficult to translate the idea of throwing a net into the water. In these languages, it may be necessary to use a more general expression. For example:

catching fish…with a net (Good News Translation)
-or-
fishing with a net (New Living Translation (1996))
-or-
catching fish

Be sure not to use an expression that implies that Simon and Andrew were throwing their nets away.

into the sea: In areas where people are familiar with net fishing, it may be redundant to include the words into the sea. That information will be clear from the context. So you can leave it implicit. In other areas, it may be necessary to include this information. Do whatever is clear and natural in your language.

4:18e

for: The Greek conjunction that the Berean Standard Bible translates as for introduces some additional background information about Simon and Andrew. This information is that these men were fishermen. In some languages, it will be more natural to put this information at another part of the verse. See the note above on 4:18a–e for an example.

Some English versions translate this word as “because.” However, 4:18e is not a direct reason for 4:18d.

they were fishermen: The word fishermen refers to men whose job is to catch fish and sell them.

If your translation of “casting a net” in 4:18d already made explicit a phrase such as “to catch fish,” you may not need to repeat that information here. You may be able to say:

that was their work

Their work was to throw a net into the lake to catch fish. They earned their living by fishing. Here is another way to translate this phrase:

their work was fishing

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