English Standard Version
Matthew 4:19
19And he said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men."
Matthew 4:19 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.
- New International Version (NIV)“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.”
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
- New Living Translation (NLT)Jesus called out to them, “Come, follow me, and I will show you how to fish for people!”
Context of Matthew 4:19
17From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." 18While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And he said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." 20Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them.
Read all of Matthew 4Matthew 4:19 word by word
καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς· δεῦτε ὀπίσω μου, καὶ ποιήσω ὑμᾶς ἁλιεῖς ἀνθρώπων.Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Matthew 4:19
- Matthew 8:22And Jesus said to him, "Follow me, and leave the dead to bury their own dead."
- Matthew 9:9As Jesus passed on from there, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, "Follow me." And he rose and followed him.
- Matthew 16:24Then Jesus told his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.
- Matthew 19:21Jesus said to him, "If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me."
- Mark 2:14And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, "Follow me." And he rose and followed him.
- Luke 5:27After this he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax booth. And he said to him, "Follow me."
- Luke 9:59To another he said, "Follow me." But he said, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."
- John 1:43The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, "Follow me."
- John 12:26If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.
- John 21:22Jesus said to him, "If it is my will that he remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!"
- Ezekiel 47:9And wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish. For this water goes there, that the waters of the sea may become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes.
- Mark 1:17And Jesus said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men."
- Luke 5:10and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men."
- 1 Corinthians 9:20To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law.
- 2 Corinthians 12:16But granting that I myself did not burden you, I was crafty, you say, and got the better of you by deceit.
Commentaries on Matthew 4:19
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 19Follow me - Come after me, . Receive my doctrines, imitate me in my conduct - in every respect be my disciples. We may observe that most of the calls of God to man are expressed in a few solemn words, which alarm, the conscience, and deeply impress the heart. I will make you fishers of men - Ezekiel 47:8-10, casts much light on this place; and to this prophet our Lord probably alludes. To follow Christ, and be admitted into a partnership of his ministry…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 19Fishers of men - Ministers or preachers of the gospel, whose business it shall be to win souls to Christ.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 18-22Verses 18-22 When Christ began to preach, he began to gather disciples, who should be hearers, and afterwards preachers of his doctrine, who should be witnesses of his miracles, and afterwards testify concerning them. He went not to Herod's court, not to Jerusalem, among the chief priests and the elders, but to the sea of Galilee, among the fishermen. The same power which called Peter and Andrew, could have wrought upon Annas and Caiaphas, for with God…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 19Come, follow Me: This meant accepting the beliefs and lifestyle of a teacher as your own (Matthew 16:24; Deuteronomy 5:33; 1 Kings 19:19–21). fishers of men: The disciples would help in the saving and judging work of the kingdom of heaven (see Matthew 10:5–15; 13:47–51; Ezekiel 29:4–5; Amos 4:2).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1919. And he saith unto them, Follow me--rather, as the same expression is rendered in Mark, "Come ye after Me" (Mr 1:17). and I will make you fishers of men--raising them from a lower to a higher fishing, as David was from a lower to a higher feeding (Psa 78:70-72).Read the comment
Topics related to Matthew 4:19
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Matthew 4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Catena Aurea
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Family Bible Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- John Lightfoot Commentary
- Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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