Footnotes:

1. John 21:1 Or “the Sea of Tiberias.”
2. John 21:2 Or in place of Jacob (James) and John, “the sons of Zebedee.”
3. John 21:3 According to Luke 24:49, the disciples were told to wait in Jerusalem for the day they would be clothed with power. These seven apostles were not following what they had been told, and for this reason they caught nothing until Jesus joined them. He became the eighth man.
4. John 21:5 Or “Have you caught anything to eat?”
5. John 21:7 It was John, the one whom Jesus loved, that recognized the voice of Jesus. Perhaps it was Peter’s discouragement that prevented him from recognizing the voice of the Master. Peter’s name was Simon (Hb. Simeon), which means “he who hears.” Our hearing his voice is hindered when we are confused and filled with doubts.
6. John 21:7 As translated from the Aramaic. The Greek is literally “because he was naked.” This is very strange and most expositors make quite a case for this not being the case, in spite of the Greek saying he was, indeed, naked. The problem is solved by the Aramaic, which says, “because Peter was athletic, he dove into the water.” There is no mention of being “naked” in the Aramaic.
7. John 21:9 It was while standing next to a fire that Peter denied Christ; now standing next to a fire, Jesus will restore his beloved friend.
8. John 21:11 This speaks of the great redemption of Christ for all nations and all people. One hundred and fifty-three large fish points to a mighty harvest from among the people groups of the world. This great catch of fish begins the process of inner healing for Peter and the guilt of his denial of Christ. Peter began to follow Jesus because of a great catch of fish (Luke 5:2-10), so Jesus now repeats that miracle, inviting Peter to begin to follow him again.
9. John 21:15 The Aramaic is “son of the dove.” See also vv. 16, 17.
10. John 21:15 The Aramaic word for “love” is hooba, and is taken from a root word that means “to set on fire.” This was the word Jesus would have used to ask Peter, “Do you burn with love for me?” Our love for Jesus must be passionate and kindle a holy flame within our hearts. See Song. 8:6-7.
11. John 21:15 As often is the case, Jesus’ words have more than one meaning. “These” can refer to the fish they had just caught, for Peter was a fisherman and loved to fish. He may have been counting and sorting the fish when Jesus asked him that question. But “these” most likely refers to the other disciples. It was Peter’s boast that he loved Jesus more than the others, and though everyone else would leave him, Peter never would. That boast proved empty, as within hours of making the claim, Peter denied he even knew Jesus three times. So Jesus asks Peter three times if he loved him. In essence, Jesus knew how to bring healing to Peter and remove the pain of his denial. Three times Peter denied Jesus, but three times he makes his confession of his deep love for Christ. By the third time, the “crowing rooster” inside Peter had been silenced, and now he was ready to be a shepherd for Jesus’ flock.
12. John 21:15 The Aramaic is “feed my rams” (male lambs). This may refer to the other disciples. In v. 16 the Aramaic is simply “sheep.” And in v. 17 in Aramaic, Jesus uses the third term, “ewes” (female lambs). Some see in these that Peter was symbolically given charge of three flocks: Jews, Samaritans, and gentiles. Regardless, men and women need to be cared for and fed by the leadership of Christ’s church among the nations.
13. John 21:17 Three times Peter denied Christ, so Jesus gave him three opportunities to redeem himself.
14. John 21:18 Or “you girded yourself.”
15. John 21:18 The Aramaic is “grayheaded.”
16. John 21:18 Or “stretch out your hands.” This was clearly a hint of the martyrdom Peter would experience in Rome one day, where historians have recorded that Peter was crucified upside down, at his request, because he said that he was unworthy to be crucified in the same way as his Lord. He once said he was willing to die for our Lord Jesus; now Christ promises that will happen.
17. John 21:24 The evidence both internally and externally clearly points to John as the author of this book, thus the explicit reference here.
18. John 21:24 The word we implies that John had conferred with the other disciples, as he has left us an accurate account of the life of Jesus Christ.
19. John 21:25 Implied in the Aramaic.
20. John 21:25 The Aramaic is very poetic, “The world itself would be emptied out into the books that would be written.” An alternate translation of the Aramaic could read “I suppose that forever is still not enough time for all the books to be written!”