Reference: FISH, FISHER
American
The Hebrews have very few names of particular species of fish. Moses says in general, that all sorts of river, lake, or sea fish, which have scales and fins, may be eaten; all others shall be to the Hebrews an abomination, Le 11:9-12; De 14:9-10. The Nile had an early celebrity, which it still retains, for the abundance and excellence of its fish, Ex 7:18-21; Nu 11:5. The Sea of Tiberias also still abounds in fish, Lu 5:5; Joh 21:6-11. They were a common article of food among the Jews, Mt 7:10, and were obtained from the Mediterranean, Ne 13:16, and from the Jordan. They were caught with hooks, Am 4:2, spears, Job 41:7, and nets, Isa 19:8-10. The "great fish," Jon 1:17, which swallowed Jonah, may have been of the shark genus, as this animal is common in the Mediterranean. The original word, both in Hebrew and Greek, Mt 12:40, means a fish, and not specifically a "whale." See WHALE. Fishermen are often spoken of in the Bible, and a large proportion of the twelve apostles of our Lord were of that occupation. Christ made them "fishers of men," Mt 4:18-22.
The early Christians, in times of persecution, used to engrave the form of a fish on their medals, seals, and tombs, as a tacit confession of their faith; as the five letters of the Greek word for fish are the initial letters of five words, signifying "Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Savior." This symbol has thus become the subject of a superstitious regard.
See Verses Found in Dictionary
The fish in the Nile will die, the river will stink, and the Egyptians will be unable to drink water from it." So the Lord said to Moses, "Tell Aaron: Take your staff and stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt-over their rivers, canals, ponds, and all their water reservoirs-and they will become blood. There will be blood throughout the land of Egypt, even in wooden and stone [containers]." read more. Moses and Aaron did just as the Lord had commanded; in the sight of Pharaoh and his officials, he raised the staff and struck the water in the Nile, and all the water in the Nile was turned to blood. The fish in the Nile died, and the river smelled so bad the Egyptians could not drink water from it. There was blood throughout the land of Egypt.
"This [is what] you may eat from all that is in the water: You may eat everything in the water that has fins and scales, whether in the seas or streams. But these are to be detestable to you: everything that does not have fins and scales in the seas or streams, among all the swarming things and [other] living creatures in the water. read more. They are to remain detestable to you; you must not eat any of their meat, and you must detest their carcasses. Everything in the water that does not have fins and scales will be detestable to you.
We remember the free fish we ate in Egypt, along with the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic.
"You may eat everything from the water that has fins and scales, but you may not eat anything that does not have fins and scales-it is unclean for you.
The Tyrians living there were importing fish and all kinds of merchandise and selling them on the Sabbath to the people of Judah in Jerusalem.
Can you fill his hide with harpoons or his head with fishing spears?
Then the fishermen will mourn. All those who cast hooks into the Nile will lament, and those who spread nets on the water will shrivel up. Those who work with flax will be dismayed; the combers and weavers will turn pale. read more. [Egypt's] weavers will be dejected; all her wage earners will be demoralized.
The Lord God has sworn by His holiness: Look, the days are coming when you will be taken away with hooks, every last [one] of you with fishhooks.
Then the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the fish three days and three nights.
As He was walking along the Sea of Galilee, He saw two brothers, Simon, who was called Peter, and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the sea, since they were fishermen. "Follow Me," He told them, "and I will make you fish for people!" read more. Immediately they left their nets and followed Him. Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They were in a boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and He called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed Him.
For as Jonah was in the belly of the great fish three days and three nights, so the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights.
"Master," Simon replied, "we've worked hard all night long and caught nothing! But at Your word, I'll let down the nets."
"Cast the net on the right side of the boat," He told them, "and you'll find some." So they did, and they were unable to haul it in because of the large number of fish. Therefore the disciple, the one Jesus loved, said to Peter, "It is the Lord!" When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he tied his outer garment around him (for he was stripped) and plunged into the sea. read more. But since they were not far from land (about 100 yards away), the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish. When they got out on land, they saw a charcoal fire there, with fish lying on it, and bread. "Bring some of the fish you've just caught," Jesus told them. So Simon Peter got up and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish-153 of them. Even though there were so many, the net was not torn.