He went on to Ca-per-na-um, and great crowds came there to hear him, and pushed so that there was scarce room for him to stand on the sea-shore. And he saw two boats close at hand, out of which the men had gone to mend their nets. And he went in one of the boats, which was Pe-ter's and told him to push it out from the land. And he sat down, and taught the crowd out of the boat.
When he left off, he said to Pe-ter and An-drew, Sail out where the sea is deep, and let down your nets to catch fish.
Pe-ter said, Mas-ter, we have been hard at work all the night, and not a fish have we caught; but, since thou dost bid me, I will let down the net.
When they had done this, they caught such a large haul of fish that the net broke. Then they called to their friends in the boat by the shore, and bade them come to their aid. And they came, and there was more fish than the two boats could hold.
When Pe-ter saw this he fell down at the feet of Je-sus, and said, I fear thee, for I am full of sin, O Lord. And those with him were spell-bound at sight of the fish they had caught.
Je-sus did this great won-der so that these men might see it and know that he was the Son of God; for they were to aid him in his work, and to go with him from place to place.
Je-sus said to Pe-ter, Fear not; from this time forth thou shalt catch men and not fish. He meant by this that Pe-ter was to preach, and to save men from sin, and from the nets that Sa-tan spreads. And he said to them all, Come with me. And they left their boats and their nets, and all that they had, and were with Je-sus till the end of his life on earth.
THE WON-DER-FUL DRAUGHT OF FISH-ES.
On the Day of Rest, Je-sus went in-to the church and taught the folks there. And in their midst was a man who was not in his right mind, and it was as if he were torn by fiends, and he cried out to Je-sus, Let us a-lone. What have we to do with thee, thou Je-sus of Naz-a-reth? Art thou come to kill us? I know thee, that thou art the Son of God. Je-sus said to the fiends that were in the man, Be still, and come out of him. Then the fiends threw the man down, and cried with a loud voice, and came out of him. And all those in the church were struck with awe, and they said a-mong them-selves, What does this mean? for he speaks to the fiends so that they are forced to do his will!