John 21:7-8

‘So when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put his coat around him for he was stripped to the waist, and threw himself in the sea, but the other disciples came in the small boat, for they were not far from land, about two hundred cubits off, dragging the net full of fish.'

It would appear that the catch was so large that they could not take it into the small boat so that they had to drag the net behind them as they made for the shore which was no great distance away. Meanwhile Peter felt that he could not wait and plunged into the lake in order to get to Jesus as quickly as possible.

As we have seen we are probably justified in seeing in this incident a deliberate reminder to Peter of his first call to be a disciple and the suggestion that that calling still applies in spite of his previous failure. It is typical of Peter that he could not wait. He flung himself into the sea and swam ashore, after modestly covering himself up. The remaining disciples were left to bring the boat in with the fish. They may not have been as prominent as Peter but they were certainly more practical. All types are needed in fulfilling the purposes of God. The catching of the fish reminds us of Matthew 13:47, ‘the Reign of Heaven is like a net that was cast into the sea and gathered of every kind.' Once the fish are caught they will need to be sorted and dealt with. Peter will go racing on, very successfully, others will tend and separate the fish.