Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon,
he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore.
Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat.
Jesus involved himself in Simon's life by asking of him the favor of using his boat as a platform from which to teach the crowds. Simon's own attempt to use the boat for its primary purpose of fishing had already ended in disappointment. Whether he was thrilled that Jesus chose him for this or not is unclear, but in any event he put up with it. As a consequence he was positioned near Jesus where he could take in more of the teaching then he could have when he was at work for his own purposes. Somewhere along the way his esteem of Jesus seemed to grow. When Jesus suggested something that seemed humanly pointless he was willing to trust Jesus over and above his own judgment, and this in spite of the fact that Jesus wasn't a fisher, and therefore not apparently an expert.
After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon,
"Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch."
Simon said in reply,
"Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing,
but at your command I will lower the nets."
Jesus told Simon to put out into the deep. This meant moving away from the shore and away from comfort. It meant moving it territory that was new and untried and potentially intimidating. Shallow waters were safe no matter what happened. But in the deep all danger was magnified by the lack of easy options for escape. But it was in the depths, guided by Jesus, that new and unguessed opportunity was to be found.
When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish
and their nets were tearing.
They signaled to their partners in the other boat
to come to help them.
This great catch of fish seemed so improbable after the complete lack of success from which Simon had come that he practically couldn't believe it. He was overwhelmed by the prescience with which Jesus knew exactly where fish were to be found. But it wasn't as though Jesus was merely some kind of precision sonar fish finder. The sheer quantity of the catch was clearly beyond anything Simon had ever seen.
When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said,
"Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man."
No doubt it was always the plan of Jesus to do this for Simon. But his plan was not to enhance his business by making him a more accurate fisher. He did this rather to reveal himself and to give a sign to indicate what he had planned for the future of Simon and his companions.
Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid;
from now on you will be catching men."
The lives of Simon and his companions to that point had been a preparation, not so much of the specific skills they would use going forward, but as a context into which Jesus was able to speak. He connected with them at a deeper level than even than that into which the fishing boats ventured. The whole history of their past lives was thereby taken up, transformed, and given new meaning. They had previously been catching fish. But Jesus demonstrated that even, as it were, winning at that game, was to be a purpose far inferior to accompanying him into the ever deepening waters of mission.
When they brought their boats to the shore,
they left everything and followed him.
After the event in the boat they no longer felt the need to make a gradual transition from their previous lives or to have contingency plans in place before making the change. Jesus had demonstrated that he was trustworthy and reliable to a supernatural degree.
Peter came to trust in the wisdom of Jesus over and above his own so as to allow himself to be led into the depths. We sometimes prefer to think of ourselves as wise and refuse to let ourselves be led. But if the depths are where true life is found let us listen to Paul and "become a fool, so as to become wise".
Deep calls to deep
in the roar of your torrents (see Psalm 42:8)
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