Bible Strands
Matthew 4:18
As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Jesus walks beside the Sea of Galilee and sees Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew casting a net. This moment directly follows Jesus beginning to preach that the kingdom of heaven is near.
The words — Περιπατῶν (Peripatōn) means walking, denoting Jesus’ physical movement along the shore. παρὰ (para) translates as beside, establishing the precise spatial proximity between Jesus and the water.
The thread — The recruitment of these two brothers is parallel in Mark 1:16 and later enumerated in Matthew 10:2. Andrew’s prior response to John’s testimony is noted in John 1:40.
Why it lands — The text states Jesus observes working fishermen and initiates their calling, which Matthew 4:19 immediately follows with a direct command to follow Him. A reader must track the shift from public proclamation to personal summons without adding external narrative details.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.
Cross-references
- John 1:40 Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard John’s testimony and followed Jesus.
- Matthew 10:2 These are the names of the twelve apostles: first Simon, called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John;
- Mark 1:16 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen.
- Luke 6:14 Simon, whom He named Peter, and his brother Andrew; James and John; Philip and Bartholomew;
- Luke 5:1 On one occasion, while Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret with the crowd pressing in on Him to hear the word of God,
- Matthew 16:18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.
- Matthew 15:29 Moving on from there, Jesus went along the Sea of Galilee. Then He went up on a mountain and sat down.
- Mark 7:31 Then Jesus left the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee and into the region of the Decapolis.
- John 6:1 After this, Jesus crossed to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberias).
- John 21:1 Later, by the Sea of Tiberias, Jesus again revealed Himself to the disciples. He made Himself known in this way: