17 Bible Verses about Fishes

Most Relevant Verses

Genesis 1:20-21

Then God said, “Let the waters swarm and abundantly produce living creatures, and let birds soar above the earth in the open expanse of the heavens.” God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed according to their kind, and every winged bird according to its kind; and God saw that it was good and He affirmed and sustained it.

Deuteronomy 4:15-18

“So pay attention and watch yourselves carefully—for you did not see any form [of God] on the day the Lord spoke to you at Horeb from the midst of the fire— so that you do not act corruptly and make for yourselves a carved or sculpted image [to worship] in the form of any figure, the likeness of male or female, the likeness of any animal that is on the earth, or of any winged bird that flies in the sky, read more.
the likeness of anything that crawls on the ground, or of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth.

Matthew 4:18

As Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He noticed two brothers, Simon who was called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen.

Matthew 4:18-21

As Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He noticed two brothers, Simon who was called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. And He said to them, “Follow Me [as My disciples, accepting Me as your Master and Teacher and walking the same path of life that I walk], and I will make you fishers of men.” Immediately they left their nets and followed Him [becoming His disciples, believing and trusting in Him and following His example]. read more.
And going on [further] from there He noticed two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets; and He called them [to follow Him as His disciples].

Jonah 1:17

Now the Lord had prepared (appointed, destined) a great fish to swallow Jonah. And Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights.

Matthew 14:17-21

They replied, “We have nothing here except five loaves and two fish.” He said, “Bring them here to Me.” Then He ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass, and He took the five loaves and the two fish and, looking up toward heaven, He blessed and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people, read more.
and they all ate and were satisfied. They picked up twelve full baskets of the leftover broken pieces. There were about 5,000 men who ate, besides women and children.

Ezekiel 47:9

It will come about that every living creature which swarms in every place where the river goes, will live. And there will be a very great number of fish, because these waters go there so that the waters of the sea are healed and become fresh; so everything will live wherever the river goes.

Exodus 7:18

The fish in the Nile will die, and the Nile will become foul, and the Egyptians will not be able to drink water from the Nile.”’”

Isaiah 19:8


The fishermen will lament (cry out in grief),
And all those who cast a hook into the Nile will mourn,
And those who spread nets upon the waters will languish.

Jeremiah 16:16

“Behold (listen carefully), I will send for many fishermen,” says the Lord, “and they will fish for them; and afterward I will send for many hunters, and they will hunt them from every mountain and from every hill and out of the clefts of the rocks.

Matthew 7:9-10

Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will [instead] give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will [instead] give him a snake?

Matthew 14:17

They replied, “We have nothing here except five loaves and two fish.”

Numbers 11:5

We remember the fish we ate freely and without cost in Egypt, the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic.

John 21:13

Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and likewise the fish.

Matthew 12:40

for just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

From Thematic Bible


Fishes » Distinction between clean, and unclean

Leviticus 11:9-12

These you may eat of all that are in the waters: whatever has fins and scales in the waters, in the seas, and in the rivers, these you may eat; But all that have not fins and scales in the seas and in the rivers, of all the creeping things in the waters, and of all the living creatures which are in the waters, they are [to be considered] an abomination and abhorrence to you. They shall continue to be an abomination to you; you shall not eat of their flesh, but you shall detest their carcasses. read more.
Everything in the waters that has not fins or scales shall be abhorrent and detestable to you.

Deuteronomy 14:9-10

These you may eat of all that are in the waters: whatever has fins and scales you may eat, And whatever has not fins and scales you may not eat; it is unclean for you.

Fishes » Sold near the fish gate at jerusalem

2 Chronicles 33:14

After this he built an outer wall for the City of David on the west side of Gihon, in the river valley, to the entrance of the Fish Gate; and he encircled the Ophel with it and made it very high. Then he put military commanders in all the fortified cities of Judah.

Zephaniah 1:10


“On that day,” declares the Lord,
“There will be the sound of crying from the Fish (Damascus) Gate [in the northern wall of Jerusalem where invaders enter]
And wailing from the Second Quarter [of the city],
And a loud crash from the hills.

Fishes » Inhabit » Ponds

Song of Songs 7:4


“Your neck is like a tower of ivory,
Your eyes the [sparkling] pools of Heshbon
By the gate of Bath-rabbim.
Your nose is like the tower of Lebanon
Which looks toward Damascus.

Isaiah 19:10


[Those who are] the pillars and foundations of Egypt will be crushed;
And all those who work for wages will be grieved in soul.

Fishes » Miracles connected with » Multiplying a few

Matthew 14:17-21

They said to Him, We have nothing here but five loaves and two fish. He said, Bring them here to Me. Then He ordered the crowds to recline on the grass; and He took the five loaves and the two fish, and, looking up to heaven, He gave thanks and blessed and broke the loaves and handed the pieces to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. read more.
And they all ate and were satisfied. And they picked up twelve [ small hand] baskets full of the broken pieces left over. And those who ate were about 5,000 men, not including women and children.

Matthew 15:34

And Jesus asked them, “How many loaves [of bread] do you have?” They replied, “Seven, and a few small fish.”

Fishes » No likeness of, to be made for worship

Exodus 20:4

“You shall not make for yourself any idol, or any likeness (form, manifestation) of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth [as an object to worship].

Deuteronomy 4:18

the likeness of anything that crawls on the ground, or of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth.

Fishes » Inhabit » Seas

Ezekiel 47:10

And it will come about that fishermen will stand beside it [at the banks of the Dead Sea]; from Engedi to Eneglaim there will be dry places to spread nets. Their fish will be of very many kinds, like the fish of the Great [Mediterranean] Sea.

Numbers 11:22

Should flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, to be sufficient for them? Or should all the fish of the sea be collected for them to be sufficient for them?”

Fishes » Mentioned in scripture » Whale

Genesis 1:21

God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, with which the waters swarmed according to their kind, and every winged bird according to its kind; and God saw that it was good and He affirmed and sustained it.

Matthew 12:40

for just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.

Fishes » Man given dominion over

Genesis 1:26

Then God said, “Let Us (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) make man in Our image, according to Our likeness [not physical, but a spiritual personality and moral likeness]; and let them have complete authority over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the cattle, and over the entire earth, and over everything that creeps and crawls on the earth.”

Fishes » Often suffered for man's sin

Ezekiel 38:20

so that the fishes of the sea, the birds of the sky, the animals of the field, all the creatures that crawl on the earth, and all the men that are on the face of the earth will tremble and shake at My presence; the mountains will crumble, the steep places will fall, and every wall will fall to the ground.

Exodus 7:21

The fish in the Nile died, and the river became foul smelling, and the Egyptians could not drink its water, and there was blood throughout all the land of Egypt.

Fishes » Inhabit » Rivers

Exodus 7:18

The fish in the Nile will die, and the Nile will become foul, and the Egyptians will not be able to drink water from the Nile.”’”

Ezekiel 29:5


“I will abandon you to the wilderness, you and all the fish of your rivers;
You will fall on the open field; and you will not be gathered up or buried.
I have given you as food to the [wild] animals of the earth and the birds of the sky.

Fishes » Taken with » Hooks

Matthew 17:27

However, so that we do not offend them, go to the sea and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a shekel. Take it and give it to them [to pay the temple tax] for you and Me.”

Amos 4:2


The Lord God has sworn [an oath] by His holiness
That, “Behold, the days are coming upon you
When they shall take you away with meat hooks,
And the last of you with fish hooks.

Fishes » Taken with » Nets

Luke 5:4-6

When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon (Peter), Put out into the deep [water], and lower your nets for a haul. And Simon (Peter) answered, Master, we toiled all night [ exhaustingly] and caught nothing [in our nets]. But on the ground of Your word, I will lower the nets [again]. And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish; and as their nets were [ at the point of] breaking,

John 21:6-8

And He said to them, Cast the net on the right side of the boat and you will find [some]. So they cast the net, and now they were not able to haul it in for such a big catch (mass, quantity) of fish [was in it]. Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, It is the Lord! Simon Peter, hearing him say that it was the Lord, put (girded) on his upper garment (his fisherman's coat, his outer tunic) -- "for he was stripped [for work] -- "and sprang into the sea. And the other disciples came in the small boat, for they were not far from shore, only some hundred yards away, dragging the net full of fish.

Fishes » Catching of, a trade

Matthew 4:18

As Jesus was walking by the Sea of Galilee, He noticed two brothers, Simon who was called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen.

Luke 5:2

that He saw two boats lying at the edge of the lake, but the fishermen had gotten out of them and were washing their nets.

Fishes » Mentioned in scripture » Leviathan

Job 41:1

Can you draw out Leviathan with a fishhook?
Or press down his tongue with a cord?

Psalm 74:14


You crushed the heads of Leviathan (Egypt);
You gave him as food for the creatures of the wilderness.

Fishes » Mode of cooking alluded to

John 21:9

So when they got out on the beach, they saw a charcoal fire set up and fish on it cooking, and bread.

Fishes » Different in flesh from beasts, &c

1 Corinthians 15:39

All flesh is not the same. There is one kind for humans, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish.

Fishes » Miracles connected with » Immense draughts of

Luke 5:6

When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their nets were [at the point of] breaking;

Luke 5:9

For he and all his companions were completely astounded at the catch of fish which they had taken;

Fishes » Illustrative » Of men ignorant of future events

Ecclesiastes 9:12

For man also does not know his time [of death]; like fish caught in a treacherous net, and birds caught in the snare, so the sons of men are ensnared in an evil time when a dark cloud suddenly falls on them.

Fishes » Illustrative » (bad,) of mere professors

Matthew 13:48-49

When it was full, men dragged it up on the beach, and sat down and sorted out the good fish into baskets, but the worthless ones they threw away. So it will be at the close and consummation of the age. The angels will go forth and separate the wicked from the righteous (those who are upright and in right standing with God)

Fishes » Illustrative » (good,) of saints

Matthew 13:48-49

When it was full, men dragged it up on the beach, and sat down and sorted out the good fish into baskets, but the worthless ones they threw away. So it will be at the close and consummation of the age. The angels will go forth and separate the wicked from the righteous (those who are upright and in right standing with God)

Fishes » Created by God

Genesis 1:20-21

And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly and swarm with living creatures, and let birds fly over the earth in the open expanse of the heavens. God created the great sea monsters and every living creature that moves, which the waters brought forth abundantly, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good (suitable, admirable) and He approved it.

Fishes » Illustrative » Of the whole population of egypt

Ezekiel 29:4-5

But I will put hooks in your jaws [O Egyptian dragon] and I will cause the fish of your rivers to stick to your scales, and I will draw you up out of the midst of your streams with all the fish of your streams which stick to your scales. And I will cast you forth into the wilderness, you and all the fish of your rivers; you shall fall upon the open field and not be gathered up or buried. I have given you for food to the [wild] beasts of the earth and the birds of the heavens.

Fishes » The tyrians traded in

Nehemiah 13:16

Also men of Tyre were living there who brought fish and all kinds of merchandise, and they were selling them to the people of Judah on the Sabbath, even in Jerusalem.

Fishes » Miracles connected with » Procuring tribute money from

Matthew 17:27

However, so that we do not offend them, go to the sea and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a shekel. Take it and give it to them [to pay the temple tax] for you and Me.”

Fishes » Illustrative » Of those ensnared by the wicked

Habakkuk 1:14


Why do You make men like the fish of the sea,
Like reptiles and creeping things that have no ruler [and are helpless against their enemies]?

Fishes » Illustrative » Of the visible church

Matthew 13:48

and when it was full, they dragged it up on the beach; and they sat down and sorted out the good fish into baskets, but the worthless ones they threw away.

Fishes » Man permitted to eat

Genesis 9:2-3

And the fear of you and the dread and terror of you shall be upon every beast of the land, every bird of the air, all that creeps upon the ground, and upon all the fish of the sea; they are delivered into your hand. Every moving thing that lives shall be food for you; and as I gave you the green vegetables and plants, I give you everything.

Fishes » Used as food » By the egyptians

Numbers 11:5

We remember the fish we ate freely and without cost in Egypt, the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions, and garlic.

Fishes » Used as food » By the jews

Matthew 7:10

Or if he asks for a fish, will [instead] give him a snake?

Fishes » Number and variety of

Psalm 104:25


There is the sea, great and broad,
In which are swarms without number,
Creatures both small and great.

Fishes » Solomon wrote the history of

1 Kings 4:33

He spoke of trees, from the cedar which is in Lebanon to the hyssop [vine] that grows on the wall; he spoke also of animals, of birds, of creeping things, and fish.

Fishes » Cannot live without water

Isaiah 50:2


“Why, when I came, was there no man [to greet Me]?
When I called, why was there no one to answer?
Is My hand really so short that it cannot redeem [My servants]?
Or have I no power to rescue?
Listen carefully, with My rebuke I dry up the sea,
I make the rivers into a desert;
Their fish stink because there is no water
And die of thirst.

Fishes » Made for God's glory

Job 12:8-9

Or speak to the earth [with its other forms of life], and it will teach you; and the fish of the sea will declare [this truth] to you. Who [is so blind as] not to recognize in all these [that good and evil are promiscuously scattered throughout nature and human life] that it is God's hand which does it [and God's way]?

Fishes » Miracles connected with » Dressed on the shore

John 21:9

So when they got out on the beach, they saw a charcoal fire set up and fish on it cooking, and bread.

Fishes » Taken with » Spears

Job 41:7


“Can you fill his skin with harpoons,
Or his head with fishing spears?

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Theasaurus: Fishes