Abstract
Although many people throughout the Graeco-Roman world consumed fish, only the wealthy could afford to buy large, fresh fish, which they would feast upon at banquets. Despite the significance of fishing guilds in some contexts, the fisher was generally perceived as a lowly figure, subject to exploitative taxes, tolls, and corruption among the elites. How then, might we make sense of some of the fish tales in the Gospels? Why do the disciples—some of them fishers—get to eat large fresh fish on the beach with the risen Jesus? Why is the fish in Parable of the Fisher in the Gospel of Thomas 8 described as large and good? What might the gospel of Mark be up to in contrasting the banquet of the 5000 in Mark 6:30–44, where the people dine on fresh fish, with the horrid dinner party of Herod Antipas, during which John the Baptist's head arrives on a platter? Finally, what might be the significance of the risen Jesus’ consumption of a piece of broiled fish in Luke 24:41–43?
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Schedule a callMore From: Biblical Theology Bulletin: Journal of Bible and Culture
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