Matthew 13:47 - Printer Friendly

ESV: “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind.

NIV: Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was let down into the lake and caught all kinds of fish.

NASB: Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered fish of every kind;

CSB: "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a large net thrown into the sea. It collected every kind of fish,

NLT: Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a fishing net that was thrown into the water and caught fish of every kind.

KJV: Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net, that was cast into the sea, and gathered of every kind:

NKJV: “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind,

Jesus continues His catalogue of parables meant to describe the kingdom of heaven. He is concluding with a few very brief lessons. Recent examples compared seeking the kingdom of heaven to men selling all they had to obtain an even-more-valuable treasure (Matthew 14:44–46).

In this story, Jesus compares the kingdom of heaven to another scene which would have been familiar to most Israelites. It would have been especially meaningful to those who lived and worked around the Sea of Galilee. This describes a common process of fishing, which is the use of a net. An especially common form of net fishing is sometimes called trawling, which involves sweeping a net through the water. Alternatively, a large net is thrown flat onto the surface of the water, and sinkers pull it down, trapping everything underneath inside the net. Either method gathers up everything it surrounds, including many varieties of fish and animals. Some of these are useful to a fisherman, others are not.

This is the central idea of the parable: the net collects everything, but not everything collected is kept. Jesus will show the fate of the captured creatures in the following verses.

Matthew 13:47–50 contains a parable about fisherman. This is closely related to the parable of the wheat and the weeds (Matthew 13:24–30). Fishermen use a dragnet to bring up a large catch, which includes many kinds of fish, good and bad. The workers sort the fish, discarding those which are "bad." Jesus immediately explains that this is like the angels who will come and separate the evil from the righteous at the end of the age. They will throw those who reject faith in Christ into the fiery furnace where there is anguish and misery.

Matthew 13 focuses mainly on a series of parables. Jesus first describes these to a large crowd along the shore of the Sea of Galilee. Later, in a house, He explains to the disciples the meanings of the parables of the sower, the weeds, and the fish caught in the net. Jesus then travels to Nazareth, teaches in the synagogue, and is rejected by the people of His original hometown.

Matthew 13 follows Jesus from the overcrowded house at the end of the previous chapter to a crowded beach on the Sea of Galilee. He teaches a large crowd in a series of parables, which He doesn't fully explain. However, He reveals their meaning to His disciples inside a nearby house. Jesus pictures the kingdom of heaven as a sower, a sabotaged field of wheat, a mustard seed, and a pearl dealer, among other things. He then travels to His original hometown of Nazareth where He is rejected by the people He grew up with. This leads Matthew back to depictions of Jesus' miracles, after sadly recording John the Baptist's death.

The Gospel of Matthew clearly shows the influence of its writer's background, and his effort to reach a specific audience. Matthew was one of Jesus' twelve disciples, a Jewish man, and a former tax collector. This profession would have required literacy, and Matthew may have transcribed some of Jesus' words as they were spoken. This book is filled with references to the Old Testament, demonstrating to Israel that Jesus is the Promised One. Matthew also includes many references to coins, likely due to his former profession. Matthew records extensive accounts of Jesus' teaching, more than the other three Gospels.