Matthew 4:19

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.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)And he said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men."
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”

Context of Matthew 4:19

17From that time Jesus began to preach and say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” 18Now as Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon, who was called Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. And He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of people.” 20Immediately they left their nets and followed Him. 21Going on from there He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets; and He called them.

Matthew 4:19 word by word

καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς· δεῦτε ὀπίσω μου, καὶ ποιήσω ὑμᾶς ἁλιεῖς ἀνθρώπων.Read the interlinear

• And He saidλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
• Followδεῦτεdeute · comeG1205
• Followὀπίσωopisō · afterG3694
• Me, and I will makeποιέωpoieō · to do/make: doG4160
• you fishersἁλιεύςhalieus · fishermanG231
• of peopleἄνθρωποςanthrōpos · a humanG444

Cross-references for Matthew 4:19

• Matthew 8:22But Jesus said to him, “Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead.”
• Matthew 9:9As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man called Matthew sitting in the tax collector’s office; and He said to him, “Follow Me!” And he got up and followed Him.
• Matthew 16:24Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me.
• Matthew 19:21Jesus said to him, “If you want to be complete, go and sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”
• Mark 2:14As He passed by, He saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting in the tax office, and He said to him, “Follow Me!” And he got up and followed Him.
• Luke 5:27After that He went out and looked at a tax collector named Levi sitting in the tax office, and He said to him, “Follow Me.”
• Luke 9:59And He said to another, “Follow Me.” But he said, “Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father.”
• John 1:43The next day He decided to go to Galilee, and He found Philip. And Jesus said to him, “Follow Me.”
• John 12:26If anyone serves Me, he must follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also; if anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him.
• John 21:22Jesus said to him, “If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow Me!”
• Ezekiel 47:9And it will come about that every living creature which swarms in every place where the river goes, will live. And there will be very many fish, for these waters go there and the others become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes.
• Mark 1:17And Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will have you become fishers of people.”
• Luke 5:10and likewise also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not fear; from now on you will be catching people.”
• 1 Corinthians 9:20To the Jews I became as a Jew, so that I might gain Jews; to those who are under the Law, I became as one under the Law, though not being under the Law myself, so that I might gain those who are under the Law;
• 2 Corinthians 12:16But be that as it may, I did not burden you myself; nevertheless, devious person that I am, I took you in 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

• Agency
• Andrew
• Apostles
• Call
• Faith
• Fishermen
• Galilee
• Jesus, the Christ
• Minister, Christian
• Net
• Peter

In the dictionaries

• Andrew
• Dash
• Fame
• Fisher
• Light
• Peter
• Tempter
• Torment
• Fish
• Fisher; Fisherman

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