Posted by Geraint Lewis on March 01, 2004 at 14:50:33 from 217.154.252.204 user Geraint_Lewis.
In Reply to: Re: why fish from right? posted by Laurence Monkhouse on March 01, 2004 at 13:43:53:
Your stats on the numbers of fish caught at Lowestoft makes me think again about the Biblical account. 153 fish suddenly sounds like very, very few, especially if intended as an example of an unbelievably large catch for the location and time.
Looking at a commentary on the story, it says that the event may simply be a literal account, but the Gospel author might also have intended parts of it to be taken allegorically. In this respect the commentator claims that the Hebrews might have believed that there were 153 species of fish in existance (I suppose they might have believed that about Galilee itself at the time?)
More likely the commentator reckons 153 should be interpreted as being = to 17 + 16 + 15, etc, with 17 being used to start the progression because 17 = 10 + 7, two numbers with Divine significance as representing wholeness and completeness. In this context the event is presumably showing the disciples that they are going to become "fishers of men" and that their nets will be big enough and strong enough to hold humans of all types.
Where does that leave us? Firstly the Galilean fishermen may not have been quite as bad compared to the Lowestoft variety as our earlier calculation suggested. Secondly - and in a rather dubious attempt to get back "on topic", I'm wondering now whether 153 would adequately represent the number of different types of Ransome enthusiast in the World...?