A Storytelling Commentary on John 21:1-19
Thomas E. Boomershine, PhD
The story of Jesus' appearance by the sea in the Gospel of John is one of the great stories
in the whole Gospel tradition. The description of the disciples who were gathered there in
Galilee is a list of most of the twelve. There are seven of them who are listed: Simon
Peter, Thomas, Nathaniel, James, John, and two others of the disciples. Counting Judas,
that were five who were not there. The missing disciples include Andrew, Simon Peter's
brother, and Philip—who were the ones to whom the Greeks went to question aboutJesus
and John.
Thus most of the disciples have gone back to Galilee and are sitting around doing nothing
by the sea of Tiberius. They are "sitting by the dock of the bay…wasting time." The
implication of this is that the disciples had gone back to life as usual as fishermen. The
tone to use in naming the disciples is therefore one of discouragement. Convey in the way
that you tell this that after Jesus' death, his disciples returned to their life as fishermen in
Galilee and were discouraged. This is the implication of the story.
Simon Peter's decision to go fishing is as if he is trying to generate some energy: to
paraphrase, "Well, I'm going fishing. I'm not going to just sit around here and be
depressed." The others then say, in effect, "All right, we'll go with you." So they go out
and they fish all night and catch nothing. The atmosphere of discouragement is only
heightened by their inability to catch any fish.
Jesus' appearance is told as a surprise: "Jesus appeared on the shore." His appearance is
not to be taken for granted. It is a very unusual thing that someone who had died would
appear on the shore of a lake. So it is not something to be stated as a matter of fact, but
rather with a tone and/or gesture of surprise. Of course, the dynamic of the story is that
the storyteller is telling this to the audience so that we as listeners know what is going on,
but the disciples do not. Part of the fascination of this episode of the story is that we know
what's going on, but the disciples don't know.
This is a characteristic of this resurrection appearance stories: e.g., the two on the road to
Emmaus and Mary Magdalene weeping at the tomb. There are many places in which the
storyteller talks directly to the audience and tells them things that Jesus' friends don't
know. This creates an intimate relationship between the storyteller and the audience.
Make the most of every opportunity you have as a storyteller to give your listeners this
inside information. Move forward or lean forward to address the audience. Make contact
with the audience so that they get the inside scoop about what's going on. Another
possibility is to speak softer as if telling a secret.
The call of Jesus obviously is a call across the sea, so it should not be delivered in a quiet
voice. The dynamic of the story is in part created by a change in tempo. The©2010 GoTell Communications 2
transformation of the scene from depression to excitement and energy is expressed here
by the tempo and the energy of the teller.
Regarding the comment about Peter being naked. On the one hand this is a guy story and
so it is not a big deal that he was fishing naked. On the other hand, there are lots of
sanctions in ancient Judaism against nakedness. There's been a lot of discussion about
whether he was totally naked or whether he had underwear on. In Mark the word "naked"
clearly means "no clothes." We know this because in a later use of the word the
description is "he had only a linen cloth around his body and when they seized him, he
left the linen cloth." The clear implication is that the linen cloth was all he had on. This is
told in Mark as a sign of the shame of the disciples running away.
I think it's likely that in this case it means that Peter had stripped and had nothing on. It
provides a note of humor, as well as a note of male vigor and energy. It's a sign of Peter
being a workingman who was working hard with the nets. However, that energy is made
present in the way the story is told, whether or not "naked" meant he had anything on.
The dragging of the net to the shore by the disciples is again a sign of their strength as
fishermen.
The contrast between the story of the catch of fish and the breakfast that follows is a
contrast of volume, speed, and tone. When the disciples get to the shore, it is now a
symbolic eucharistic celebration. They gathered around the fire and Jesus said to Simon
Peter, "Bring some of the fish you've caught," so Simon went on board and hauled off the
net full of 153 big fish. Jesus took the fish, cooked them, and gave it to them. This is a
moment of camaraderie among a group of young men.
In the middle of the description of the action, the storyteller explains to the audience,
"None of them dared ask him 'Who are you?' because they all knew that it was the Lord."
This is an inside view of what's going on in the disciples' minds. It tells us, the audience,
what they were thinking. The audience is invited to identify fully with the disciples. It is
an opportunity for the audience to see the event from the disciples' point of view—to
share their feelings. So it is important to effectively convey the inside view.
The conversation between Jesus and Simon Peter is the most intimate conversation
between Jesus and another person in the whole of the Gospel tradition. It is a dialogue in
indirect speech. What Jesus is saying is conveyed as much by the tone of his words as by
their content.
First, Jesus addresses Peter as "Simon, son of John." He does not use his affectionate
nickname "Peter," but rather his formal name. This is the only time in the Gospel
tradition in which we learn that Simon's father's name was John. It is a formal address to
Peter. It is not a friend's manner of address, but rather the kind of statement that is made
at a wedding when the minister addressesthe woman and the man, each by their formal
name.©2010 GoTell Communications 3
The question Jesus asks three times is, "Do you love me?" with the additional phrase,
"more than these" the first time. Repetitions in biblical storytelling are never for the sake
of simply repeating the words. They are always intended to create intensity. There is a
change in tone every time the words are repeated. This series of questions is a crescendo
of intensity in which Jesus' question becomes more and more intimate, intense, and quiet.
The first time the question is asked includes a reference to "these": "Simon, son of John,
do you love me more than these?" What does "these" refer to? The referent is ambiguous.
Is it all these things—fishing, Galilee, a certain way of life? Or does it refer to the other
disciples? Given the context of a return to fishing after being in Jesus' traveling seminary,
the dominant implication is "more than this place and all the things associated with this
way of life," rather than a comparison between whether Peter loves Jesus more than the
other disciples.
A big deal is sometimes made about the Greek words used for "love" in Jesus' repeated
question. In Greek, the first two times Jesus asks Simon Peter, "Do you love me?" the
word used for "love" is agape. The last time he asks, the word used for "love" isfilee.
Peter always responds with the Greek word fileo. My sense is that there isn't a lot to be
made of that difference. And there is no way to distinguish the two Greek words for
"love" in English.
The dynamic is that with each repetition the word "love" is more intense in Jesus'
question and then in Peter's response. The third is the most intense. Jesus' intensity can be
conveyed with a deadly serious and quiet tone. In Peter's reply, you want to convey his
grief, because the implication of the story is that at this point he makes the connection
between these three questions that Jesus is asking him and his three denials of Jesus.
The three responses of Jesus are sometimes confusing to remember. The order is: feedtend-feed, lambs-sheep-sheep. In other words, it is feed my lambs, tend my sheep, feed
my sheep. Try to remember feed-tend-feed and then lambs-sheep-sheep. Start with the
young ones, then the elders who are first tended and then fed.
Also notice that the first two episodes of the conversation are the same question and
answer with minor variations. The third time there is expansion: Peter is deeply grieved,
saying, "You know everything, Lord; you know that I love you." The next episode is
Jesus' expanded response.
Just a comment about fishing versus shepherding. Fishing was a great vocation. You're
out on the water every day. Peter had an independent business as an entrepreneur. Fishing
was respected in the ancient world and it was a great vocation. Herding on the other hand
was the pits. At one point in the Mishnah the rabbis say don't have your sons do three
things: be a butcher, a doctor or a shepherd. They were the three vocations to avoid
because they involved uncleanness. Also, shepherding was considered a low class thing
to do. It was a hot, dusty, and boring job. So Jesus is asking Peter to leave something that©2010 GoTell Communications 4
he loved, and symbolically to take care of his sheep. In terms of its cultural associations,
this was a definite step down.
The prophecy that Jesus then makes is that Peter must face the fact that he will be
martyred and not to run away from that future. The statement "When you were young,
you girded yourself and you went wherever you wanted; when you are old you will
stretch out your hands and another will bind you and take you where you don't want to
go" is a prophecy of Peter's death. This istough talk. It's let's-face-the-facts and what-areyou-going-to-do questioning: "Are you going to deny me again? Are you going to run
away? Or are you going to stay the course?" The invitation, as well as the command, is,
"Follow me." The tone, however, is invitational, not commanding. Jesus knows a
command will not work. This is an invitation to follow his way.
The common motif at the end of all of the Gospels is the mission of the disciples. John's
story is most like the ending of Mark where the issue is confronting fear and facing the
realities of what it will mean to be a disciple and tell the stories. John's treatment of this
common motif is the most intimate, the most direct, and the most personal. It is thereby
consistent with the approach of the whole Gospel of John. In John 21, we get to know
Jesus intimately, just as we did in the long discourse in chapters 13-17. First at supper
and then at breakfast, there is the opportunity in these stories of John to come to know
Jesus more directly as a person than anywhere else in the Gospel tradition.
This story is a great opportunity and I hope you enjoy telling it. I trust you will take its
telling as an opportunity to invite everyone to embrace the story for their own journey of
discipleship.
