Set to dark modeSet to dark modeThe Bible Says Commentary on Luke 5
Please choose a passage in Luke 5
Jesus begins to recruit His disciples. As Jesus walks along the shore of the Sea of Galilee, He sees two sets of brothers who are fishermen: Simon and Andrew, and James and John. After He finishes His teaching, Jesus tells Simon to cast off from shore and let down his nets to fish. Simon obeys and they catch two boats full of fish. Simon recognizes that Jesus is the Christ and He tells him that from now on Simon will be catching men instead. After returning to shore, the four men leave everything and follow Jesus.
A leper comes to Jesus, asking to be made clean. Jesus touches and miraculously heals the leper instantly. Jesus commands the man to tell no one and to show himself to the priest to make an offering for his cleansing.
Luke makes the observation that it was Jesus’s practice to often slip away to the wilderness so He could spend time by Himself with God, praying.
Jesus publicly and dramatically heals a paralytic. Before Jesus heals this man, He tells him that his sins are forgiven, which causes some of the scribes and Pharisees in the crowd to silently accuse Jesus of blasphemy in their hearts. Jesus calls out their blasphemous unbelief and demonstrates that He is Who He claims to be by healing the paralytic, telling him to get up and go home. Accordingly, the crowds are amazed and begin glorifying God.
Jesus calls Levi (Matthew), a despised tax collector, to follow Him. Levi does. Later Jesus is reclining at a table in Levi’s home with other tax collectors and sinners when the Pharisees ask Jesus’s disciples why their master associates with vile people. Jesus responds to them with a parable about how physicians spend their time with those who are sick rather than those who are healthy.
The Pharisees confront Jesus about why His disciples do not fast and pray (like they and the disciples of John the Baptizer do). Jesus answers them by parable, explaining that it is not appropriate for the attendants of the Bridegroom to fast when he is with them. That is the time for celebrating. But once he leaves, then will come the days for fasting.
In response to the Pharisees’ question, Jesus shares two more parables about the incompatibility between the new patterns of legalism as taught by the Pharisees, and the old and better way of life that He fulfills and has come to offer.
Luke Chapter 5 begins by describing Jesus teaching beside the Lake of Gennesaret, also known as the Sea of Galilee. This body of water in northern Israel measures approximately thirteen miles long and eight miles wide, and it served as a thriving hub for fishermen in that region. At this point in history, the region was under Roman authority, with Emperor Tiberius ruling (AD 14-37), and Herod Antipas acting as tetrarch. Into that setting, Jesus provided miraculous proof of His identity when He instructed Simon Peter, a local fisherman, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch” (Luke 5:4). Peter and his companions caught so many fish that their nets began to break. Jesus responded to Peter’s awe by saying, “Do not fear, from now on you will be catching men” (Luke 5:10). In this way, Jesus called His first disciples—ordinary fishermen—into an extraordinary mission.
Following this miraculous calling, Luke’s account highlights Jesus’s authority in healing and forgiving sins. A man covered with leprosy approached Jesus, and Jesus demonstrated His compassion and divine power by touching and healing him immediately. Soon afterward, a group of friends brought a paralyzed man to Jesus, lowering him through the roof of a crowded house. Jesus not only healed the man physically, but He also forgave his sins, prompting religious leaders to question His authority. By meeting the physical need and announcing the forgiveness of sins, Jesus revealed His identity as the Messiah who comes with power over both visible and invisible realms.
Luke then recounts how Jesus called Levi, also known as Matthew, a tax collector by profession. Tax collectors were typically despised in Jewish society because of their association with Rome, and yet Jesus extended an invitation for Levi to become His disciple. Levi responded by leaving everything behind and following Him, illustrating Jesus’s pattern of reaching out to those on the margins. Afterwards, Jesus took the opportunity to teach about fasting, comparing old traditions and new practices to “new wine” in “fresh wineskins” (Luke 5:37-38). He emphasized the importance of responding to the new work He was doing, rather than clinging to the old systems or rituals.
In the broader context of the Gospel of Luke, these events establish Jesus as the promised Savior who demonstrates both compassion and authority. The miraculous catch of fish confirms His power over nature, the healing of the leper and the paralytic shows His compassion for the afflicted, and His call of Levi reveals His inclusive mission to rescue sinners. All of these moments prefigure Jesus’s ultimate redemptive work on the cross (Hebrews 9:26) and set the stage for His growing ministry, which culminates in the message of salvation that extends to all people. By calling common fishermen to follow Him and forgiving the outcasts of society, Jesus displays the heart of God’s kingdom—a kingdom that will fully unfold in His life, death, and resurrection (Luke 24:46-47).
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