“Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, ‘Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.’ And immediately they left their nets and followed him.” (Mk 1:16-18)
There are two ways to catch a prey: to fish and to hunt. God says in Jeremiah:
“Behold, I am sending for many fishers, declares the LORD, and they shall catch them. And afterward I will send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain and every hill, and out of the clefts of the rocks.” (Jer 16:16)
A fisherman lures the pray to come voluntarily into the net while it is still alive. A hunter usually either drives the pray into a snare or shoots it.
We read about Nimrod in Genesis:
“Cush fathered Nimrod; he was the first on earth to be a mighty man. He was a mighty hunter before the LORD. Therefore it is said, ‘Like Nimrod a mighty hunter before the LORD.’ The beginning of his kingdom was Babel.” (Ge 10:8-10)
Nimrod, who founded Babel, was a mighty hunter. He is a picture of the anti-messiah who will hunt people to catch them. While Isaac and Jacob became farmers and shepherds, both Ishmael and Esau became hunters with a bow. (Ge 21:20; 25:27)
We have a presentation of the ultimate hunter in the Book of Revelation when the first seal is broken.
“Now I watched when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say with a voice like thunder, ‘Come!’ And I looked, and behold, a white horse! And its rider had a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he came out conquering, and to conquer.” (Rev 6:1-2)
The anti-messiah is riding a white horse just as Messiah will do when he comes. But he is a counterfeit Messiah. He is a hunter with a bow. It is a picture of the deception that will spread in the end times and catch people’s minds, the first sign heralding the beginning of the end, just as Yeshua warned.
“…the disciples came to him privately, saying, ‘Tell us, when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the close of the age?’ And Jesus answered them, ‘See that no one leads you astray.'” (Mt 24:3-4)
A hunter scares, drives and catches or kills the prey. A fisherman waits for the fish come into the net of its own choice. Yeshua will make us fishers of men, not hunters. God never forces anyone. He calls us to voluntarily come to him and to do His will of our own choice when we hear his voice.
Messiah is not a hunter. He never comes with threats, fear or intimidation. We choose to follow Him and to love Him because He first loved us. Bless His holy Name!
He has called us to be fishers of men, not hunters.
