“I came that you may have and enjoy life,
And have it in abundance
To the full, till it overflows!”
John 10:10 AMP
Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” Simon Peter climbed aboard and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask Him, “Who are You?” They knew it was the Lord. Jesus came, took the bread, and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. This was now the third time Jesus appeared to His disciples after He was raised from the dead (John 21:10-14).
What is the significance of the number 153? The following information was taken from several different articles that reference the meaning of numbers.
100 – Wholeness, Bride of Christ, Holy Flock, Message, Forgiveness of Sin, Mouth of Confession, What is Full
50 – Freedom, Release, New Cycle, Completeness, Fulfillment, Joy, Feast, Denotes a Full Price and Full Payment
3 – Completeness, Harmony, Wholeness, Resurrection, Perfection, the Trinity
153 – Grace, the Seven Gifts of Holy Spirit, Law, the Ten Commandments, Abundance, Overflow Blessings from God, Total Victory and Resurrection
You may find this article written by Brady Stephenson interesting, “153 Fishes = I AM G-D?”:
For centuries, people have wondered why the Bible records 153 fish were caught by the disciples after Jesus told them to throw their nets on the opposite side of the boat in John 21:4-12. As I have mentioned before, EVERYTHING in the Bible is there for a reason. People would have figured out the mystery long ago if they had bothered to learn Hebrew.
In Hebrew, every letter has a number attached to it. The Hebrews used their alphabet as a numbering system. The numbers attached to the letters in a Hebrew word could be added together to give a numerical total. The number 153 is the numerical total for the Hebrew words “Ani Elohim”– I AM G-D. When Jesus caused the disciples to catch exactly 153 fish, He was declaring to them that not only was He the Son of G-d, but that He was G-d Himself.
https://versebyverseministry.org/bible-answers/153-fishes-i-am-g-d?locale=en
In the article, “153 A Symbolic Number,” John Estorge wrote:
Jesus could have sought to communicate something in the specific number of fish in the miraculous catch, or John could have used 153 as an approximate number to communicate a deeper symbolic meaning. Here are some possibilities for the symbolic meaning of the number 153:
1) Some have noted the Hebrew name for God “YHWH” occurs 153 times in the book of Genesis.
2) In the fourth century, it was assumed there were a grand total of 153 species of fish, so an early church father named Jerome saw that miraculous catch represented ALL fish so he interpreted the number symbolically as a reference to the universality and completeness of the church which embraces all kinds of people from every tongue, tribe and nation.
3) Augustine thought the number 153 was significant because it is the sum of the first 17 integers (1+2+3+4+5+6+7+8+9+10+11+12+13+14+15+16+17=153). And this is only significant because the number 17 is the combination of God’s grace, in the 7 gifts of the Spirit, plus the law summarily comprehended in the 10 Commandments (7gifts +10 laws =17). https://johnestorge.com/2011/05/05/153-a-symbolic-number/
This number 153 provides a complete picture of God’s love for humanity.
“This Temple is going to end up far better than it started out, a glorious beginning but an even more glorious finish: A place in which I will hand out wholeness and holiness,” Haggai 2:9 Message.
For the Church, the Body of Christ, is made full and complete by Christ, Who fills all things everywhere with Himself (Ephesians 1:23 NLT).
For it pleased the Father that all the divine fullness – the sum total of the divine perfection, powers, and attributes – should dwell in Jesus permanently (Colossians 1:19).
The Word of Faith we proclaim: If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth you confess and are saved (Romans 10:8-10).
During His ministry Jesus preached, “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near!” Matthew 4:17.
John the Baptist explained how essential: Freedom, release, new cycle, joy, completeness, harmony, victory.. are all of these and so much more, given to us through the life and death ministry of Christ Jesus, as John the Baptist testifies, “Make a way for the Lord, for I baptize with water those who repent of their sins and turn to God. But Someone is coming soon Who is greater than I am – so much greater that I’m not worthy even to be His slave and carry His sandals.”
“He will baptize you with Holy Spirit and with fire. He is ready to separate the chaff from the wheat with His winnowing fork. Then He will clean up the threshing area, gathering the wheat into His barn but burning the chaff with never-ending fire,” Matthew 3:11-12 NLT.
Bring the knowledge of Salvation,
Given to people through the forgiveness of our sins,
Because of the tender mercy of our God,
By which the rising Sun will come to us from heaven
To shine on those living in darkness
And in the shadow of Death
To guide our feet into the Path of Peace!
Luke 1:76-79