Verse 5. And Jesus said to them, Children, eat what you eat?.. 4 He called the disciples children (παιδια), using the usual name of laborers, and he called them so because they were now in the prime of life and full of strength for the labors that lay ahead of them. Jesus Christ speaks to them as if He wants to buy something from them.

Verses 5-6. He answered Him, "No." And he said to them, "Cast in the right hand of the ship, and ye shall find..." 5 The disciples did not yet know that this was Jesus Christ, although they should have known: how could an ordinary person know that if they cast a net on the right side of the boat, they would catch? Jesus Christ definitely instructed to cast the net on the right side, so that the fishing would not seem accidental.

Verse 6... And he was plunged... 6 (Immediately the disciples obeyed, either because they assumed that the one who spoke to them knew by some sign that a fish was swimming in this particular place, or because they themselves might have seen that it had already rushed there.)

Verse 6... And therefore thou canst not draw it away from the multitude of fishes.7 In the absence of the Saviour, the disciples caught nothing, but in His presence they caught a net of many fishes, so that we might know that without Him we do nothing useful, but with Him we do very much. Therefore, in obedience to the commandments of the Saviour, we must work and remember the right side, because this side is praiseworthy (Find in the fifth chapter of the Gospel of Luke the passage where it says: "And James and John the son of Zebedee, who is the best of Simon's promise" (Luke 5:10),8 etc., and read the interpretation of this passage. which also goes to these words).

Verse 7. And the disciple of that disciple, whom Jesus loved, said to Peter, "The Lord is..."9 concluding from the successful fishing and from the fact that as if by His command such a multitude of fish were gathered in one place.

Verse 7... But Simon Peter, hearing that the Lord was, girded himself with an ependite, for he was naked, and was cast into the sea.10 John was more perceptive because of the greatness of his purity, and Peter was more ardent because of the fervor of love. Therefore, John recognizes Jesus Christ before Peter, but Peter comes to Him before John. As soon as Peter heard that this was the Lord, he immediately threw down everything that he had in his hands, and without waiting for the ship to approach the shore, he threw himself into the sea in order to come to Him as soon as possible. Ependite was a sleeveless linen garment that covered the body up to the knees. It was usually used by fishermen for the sake of convenience and decency. Peter was naked, i.e. he had no other clothes on him, but only one ependite and even then not girded; it was quite unseemly to be completely naked. Now, girded himself, he expressed his reverence for Jesus Christ.

Verse 8. And the friends of the apprentice came by ship, not far from the land, but like two steles of fish, dragging the fish to death.1 They sailed up, dragging the ropes with the help of which the net was pulled.

Verse 9. And when she climbed down to the ground, she saw a fire lying on it, and a fish lying on it, and bread...,2 a fish lying on coals, and bread apart. Jesus Christ created all this out of nothing in order to show His disciples His power and, giving them the opportunity to strengthen their strength after their labors, to express His loving care for them.

Verse 10. (And) Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fishes, which you eat today."3 He said this because he knew that the disciples had caught it. And before Jesus Christ said, "Cut in the right hand of the ship, and you will find, also because you knew that they would catch you." However, the Lord commanded that this be done so that the deed itself would not seem to be some kind of ghost, and so that the disciples would be even more surprised when they saw that a great many fish had been caught, the fish were very large, and, nevertheless, the net was not broken.

Verse 11. Simon Peter got in... He entered the vessel as more skilful in fishing, but of course the others followed him.

Verse 11... Thou shalt bring forth the darkness to the earth, full of great fishes, a hundred (and) fifty (and) three.. 4 Some interpret this to mean that the hundred fish signified those that were to be caught into Christianity from the Gentiles, and the fifty fishes meant those that were to be caught from the Jews, since more of the Gentiles believed in Christ than of the Jews. And the three fish pointed to the Most Holy Trinity, in Whom these people must believe.

Verse 11... And only to those who existed, the darkness did not break through...,5 not because it was strong, but because the Lord arranged it so.

Verse 12. Jesus said to them, "Come, dine...", since it was already lunchtime and it was time to rest after their labors (Probably some of the fish caught was baked for the hungry disciples, and the rest of it was distributed to the poor).

Verse 12... And not one dared to torment Him from the disciples, Who art Thou; knowing that the Lord exists.6 Seeing that His image had changed and was filled with amazing majesty, the disciples would have asked questions, but did not dare, knowing from the miraculous circumstances described above that it was the Lord.