A basic ingredient of diet in biblical times. Fishing was regarded as a trade rather than a recreation.
Fish as part of God's creation
Genesis 1:20–22 See also Genesis 1:26, Genesis 9:2; 1 Kings 4:33; Psalm 8:8; 1 Corinthians 15:39
And God said, “Let the waters teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth in the open expanse of the sky.” So God created the great sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the waters teemed according to their kinds, and every winged bird after its kind. And God saw that it was good. Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters of the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth.”
Fish as food
Matthew 7:9–10 parallel Luke 11:11Matthew 14:17 parallels Mark 6:38, Luke 9:16, John 6:9 See also Numbers 11:5; Nehemiah 13:16; Matthew 15:34 parallel Mark 8:7; Luke 24:42; John 21:13
Which of you, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake?
“We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered.
Rules about eating fish
Leviticus 11:9–12; Deuteronomy 14:9–10
Fish related to judgment
Exodus 7:18; Isaiah 19:8 See also Psalm 105:29; Isaiah 50:2; Hosea 4:3; Zephaniah 1:3
The fish in the Nile will die, the river will stink, and the Egyptians will be unable to drink its water.’”
Then the fishermen will mourn, all who cast a hook into the Nile will lament, and those who spread nets on the waters will pine away.
Fish as the object of pagan worship
Deuteronomy 4:15–18 See also Judges 16:23 Dagon was the fish god.
So since you saw no form of any kind on the day the LORD spoke to you out of the fire at Horeb, be careful that you do not act corruptly and make an idol for yourselves of any form or shape, whether in the likeness of a male or female, of any beast that is on the earth or bird that flies in the air, or of any creature that crawls on the ground or fish that is in the waters below.
Fish involved in miracles
Jonah 1:17; Luke 5:4–7 See also Matthew 14:19–21 parallels Mark 6:39–44, Luke 9:14–17, John 6:10–13; Matthew 15:35–38 parallel Mark 8:7–9; Matthew 17:24–27; John 21:5–6
Now the LORD had appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah spent three days and three nights in the belly of the fish.
When Jesus had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” “Master,” Simon replied, “we have worked hard all night without catching anything. But because You say so, I will let down the nets.” When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to tear. So they signaled to 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.
Figurative uses of fish
Fish as a symbol of entrapment
Ecclesiastes 9:12 See also Ezekiel 29:4–5; Habakkuk 1:14–17
For surely no man knows his time: Like fish caught in a cruel net or birds trapped in a snare, so men are ensnared in an evil time that suddenly falls upon them.
Fish as a symbol of the kingdom of God
Matthew 13:47–48 See also Ezekiel 47:10
Once again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was cast into the sea and caught all kinds of fish. When it was full, the men pulled it ashore. Then they sat down and sorted the good fish into containers, but threw the bad away.
Fish as a symbol of the resurrection
For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so the Son of Man will be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
Fishermen as the first disciples
Matthew 4:18 parallel Mark 1:16
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.
Figurative use of fishermen
Jeremiah 16:16; Matthew 4:19 Describing the disciples' evangelistic role.
But for now I will send for many fishermen, declares the LORD, and they will catch them. After that I will send for many hunters, and they will hunt them down on every mountain and hill, even from the clefts of the rocks.
“Come, follow Me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.”
Related themes
Dictionary of Bible Themes © 1999 Martin Manser, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0, via Bible Aquifer. Formatted for this site, with Scripture from the Berean Standard Bible.