John 21:16

He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep.

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Word by word — the Greek

Word	Greek	Strong’s	Meaning
saith	λέγει legei	G3004	properly · verb — present active indicative, 3rd person singular
him	αὐτῷ autō	G846	the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — dative singular masculine
again	πάλιν palin	G3825	(adverbially) anew · adverb
time	δεύτερον· deuteron	G1208	(ordinal) second (in time · adjective — accusative singular neuter
Simon	Σίμων Simōn	G4613	Simon (i.e. Shimon) · noun — vocative singular masculine, a proper name
of Jonas	Ἰωνᾶς Iōnâs	G2495	Jonas (i.e. Jonah)
lovest thou	ἀγαπᾷς agapas	G25	to love (in a social or moral sense) · verb — present active indicative, 2nd person singular
me	με; me	G3165	me · personal pronoun — 1st person accusative singular
saith	λέγει legei	G3004	properly · verb — present active indicative, 3rd person singular
him	αὐτῷ· autō	G846	the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — dative singular masculine
Yea	ναὶ nai	G3483	yes · particle
Lord	κύριε, kurie	G2962	supreme in authority · noun — vocative singular masculine, a title
thou	σὺ su	G4771	thou · personal pronoun — 2nd person nominative singular
knowest	εἴδω eídō	G1492	used only in certain past tenses
that	ὅτι hoti	G3754	demonstrative · conjunction
love	φιλῶ philō	G5368	to be a friend to (fond of (an individual or an object)) · verb — present active indicative, 1st person singular
thee	σέ sé	G4571	thee
saith	λέγει legei	G3004	properly · verb — present active indicative, 3rd person singular
him	αὐτῷ· autō	G846	the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — dative singular masculine
Feed	ποίμαινε poimaine	G4165	to tend as a shepherd of (figuratively · verb — present active imperative, 2nd person singular
my	μοῦ moû	G3450	of me
sheep	πρόβατά probata	G4263	something that walks forward (a quadruped) · noun — accusative plural neuter

Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).

Cross-references

Acts 20:28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God,…
1 Peter 5:2 Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a rea…
1 Peter 2:25 For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.
Psalms 100:3 Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
John 10:11-16 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
Psalms 95:7 For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice,
Luke 19:10 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.
Zechariah 13:7 Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, and against the man that is my fellow, saith the LORD of hosts: smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall…

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on John 21:15-19

We have here Christ's discourse with Peter after dinner, so much of it as relates to himself, in which, I. He examines his love to him, and gives him a charge concerning his flock, Joh 21:15-17. Observe, 1. When Christ entered into this discourse with Peter. - It was after they had dined: they had all eaten, and were filled, and, it is probable, were entertained with such edifying discourse as our Lord Jesus used to make his table-talk. Christ foresaw that what he had to say to Peter would give him some uneasiness, and therefore would not say it till they had dined, because he would not spoil his dinner. Peter was conscious to himself that he had incurred his Master's displeasure, and could…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on John 21:16

He saith to him . . . the second time . . . lovest thou me, &c.--In this repetition of the question, though the wound was meant to be reopened, the words "more than these" are not repeated; for Christ is a tender as well as skilful Physician, and Peter's silence on that point was confession enough of his sin and folly. On Peter's repeating his protestation in the same words, our Lord rises higher in the manifestation of His restoring grace. Feed--keep. my sheep--It has been observed that the word here is studiously changed, from one signifying simply to feed, to one signifying to tend as a shepherd, denoting the abiding exercise of that vocation, and in its highest functions.

Adam Clarke on John 21:15

Simon lovest thou me - Peter had thrice denied his Lord, and now Christ gives him an opportunity in some measure to repair his fault by a triple confession. More than these? - This was a kind of reproach to Peter: he had professed a more affectionate attachment to Christ than the rest; he had been more forward in making professions of friendship and love than any of the others; and no one (Judas excepted) had treated his Lord so basely. As he had before intimated that his attachment to his Master was more than that of the rest, our Lord now puts the question to him, Dost thou love me more than these? To which Peter made the most modest reply - Thou knowest I love thee, but no longer dwells o…

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The Church Fathers

If the faith of the apostle Peter is shaken by his Lord's passion, it is so that with bitter weeping he may hear the soothing words "Feed my sheep."
— Jerome, LETTER 38.1

Peter also restrained himself in this inquiry of our Lord's by answering cautiously, for he remembered earlier on, when Christ's passion was drawing near, he had attributed greater constancy to himself than he possessed.
— Bede, Homilies on the Gospels 2.22

A second time he said to him, "Tend my Sheep," that is, Simon, tend the men who are mature in faith and possessing proven wisdom, who obey you in the prescribed degrees of the church, in the apostolate, in the priesthood, and in the pastoral office.
— Theodore of Mopsuestia, COMMENTARY ON JOHN 7.21.16

The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).

Dictionary and topics

Galilee, Sea of — (Matt. 4:18; 15:29), is mentioned in the Bible under three other names. (1.) In the Old Testament it is called the “sea of Chinnereth” (Num. 34:11; Josh. 12:3; 13:27), as is supposed from its…
John, Gospel of — The genuineness of this Gospel, i.e., the fact that the apostle John was its author, is beyond all reasonable doubt. In recent times, from about 1820, many attempts have been made to impugn its…
Jonas — (1.) Greek form of Jonah (Matt. 12:39, 40, 41, etc.). (2.) The father of the apostles Peter (John 21:15-17) and Andrew; but the reading should be (also in 1:42), as in the Revised Version, “John,”…
Love — This word seems to require explanation only in the case of its use by our Lord in his interview with “Simon, the son of Jonas,” after his resurrection (John 21:16, 17). When our Lord says, “Lovest…
Peter — Originally called Simon (=Simeon, i.e., “hearing”), a very common Jewish name in the New Testament. He was the son of Jona (Matt. 16:17). His mother is nowhere named in Scripture. He had a younger…
Apostles · Commission of — Commission of
Discipleship · Tests of — Tests of
Jonas · 2. Father of Peter — 2. Father of Peter
Love To Christ · Exemplified: Peter — Exemplified: Peter
Minister, Christian · PASTORS — PASTORS
Ministers · Are bound to: Feed the Church — Are bound to: Feed the Church
Sheep · Illustrative: Of the people of Christ

John 21:16

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on John 21:15-19

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on John 21:16

Adam Clarke on John 21:15

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John 21:16

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on John 21:15-19

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on John 21:16

Adam Clarke on John 21:15

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John Gill on John 21:16

John Calvin on John 21:15-19

Tyndale Open Study Notes on John 21:15-17