Matthew 4:21 - Exposition

Other two brethren (cf. Matthew 4:18 , note); in Matthew only. James the son of Zebedee . Why is the father of Peter and Andrew never mentioned, save incidentally, and by our Lord ( Matthew 16:17 ; John 1:42 ; John 21:15-17 )? Probably Zebedee and his wife Salome became, unlike Peter's parents, well-known believerses It may be that Peter was the eldest of the Twelve, and that his father was already dead or, though perhaps believing on Jesus, was too old to take any special part in the work. Luke ( Luke 5:10 ) adds, "Who were partners with Simon"—an item of information perhaps obtained from the same source as his first and second chapters. In a ship; in the boot (Revised Version), and so always in the Gospels. The word ( πλοῖον ) may be used of any sized vessel (equivalent to "large ship ' in Acts 27:1-44 .), but here, as managed by so few men, it is equivalent to "boat." Other words translated "boat" in the New Testament are πλοιάριον , "little boat" (Mark once, John four times), and σκάφη , "small ship's boat" ( Acts 27:16 , Acts 27:30 , Acts 27:32 ). Josephus says ('Bell. Jud.,' Luke 2:21 .8) that when he gathered all the boats on the lake to attack Tiberius, there were "not more than four sailors in each;" by which he probably means, not the number of men wherewith he was able to equip them, but the number he found already managing them. With Zebedee their father . In Matthew only. Mending their nets . The first pair of brothers were in the excitement of catching; the second had perhaps caught, and were mending their nets with a view to a fresh attempt; in neither case was there a moment's delay. And he called them . This time his words are not given.