Jesus Calls His First Disciples^(A)

5 One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret,^[a] the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God.^{(B) 2} He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. ³ He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.^(C)

⁴ When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”^(D)

⁵ Simon answered, “Master,^(E) we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything.^(F) But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”

⁶ When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break.^{(G) 7} So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

⁸ When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!”^{(H) 9} For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, ¹⁰ and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.

Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid;^(I) from now on you will fish for people.” ¹¹ So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.^(J)

Jesus Calls Levi and Eats With Sinners^(A)

²⁷ After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. “Follow me,”^(B) Jesus said to him, ²⁸ and Levi got up, left everything and followed him.^(C)

²⁹ Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors^(D) and others were eating with them. ³⁰ But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect^(E) complained to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”^(F)

³¹ Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. ³² I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”^(G)

John’s Disciples Follow Jesus^(A)

³⁵ The next day John^(B) was there again with two of his disciples. ³⁶ When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, “Look, the Lamb of God!”^(C)

³⁷ When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. ³⁸ Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, “What do you want?”

They said, “Rabbi”^(D) (which means “Teacher”), “where are you staying?”

³⁹ “Come,” he replied, “and you will see.”

So they went and saw where he was staying, and they spent that day with him. It was about four in the afternoon.

⁴⁰ Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, was one of the two who heard what John had said and who had followed Jesus. ⁴¹ The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ).^{(E) 42} And he brought him to Jesus.

Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John. You will be called^(F) Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter^[a]).^(G)

Jesus Calls Philip and Nathanael

⁴³ The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip,^(H) he said to him, “Follow me.”^(I)

⁴⁴ Philip, like Andrew and Peter, was from the town of Bethsaida.^{(J) 45} Philip found Nathanael^(K) and told him, “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law,^(L) and about whom the prophets also wrote^(M)—Jesus of Nazareth,^(N) the son of Joseph.”^(O)

⁴⁶ “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?”^(P) Nathanael asked.

“Come and see,” said Philip.

⁴⁷ When Jesus saw Nathanael approaching, he said of him, “Here truly is an Israelite^(Q) in whom there is no deceit.”^(R)

⁴⁸ “How do you know me?” Nathanael asked.

Jesus answered, “I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you.”

⁴⁹ Then Nathanael declared, “Rabbi,^(S) you are the Son of God;^(T) you are the king of Israel.”^(U)

⁵⁰ Jesus said, “You believe^[b] because I told you I saw you under the fig tree. You will see greater things than that.” ⁵¹ He then added, “Very truly I tell you,^[c] you^[d] will see ‘heaven open,^(V) and the angels of God ascending and descending^(W) on’^[e] the Son of Man.”^(X)