When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, 'Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?' He said, 'Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.' Jesus said to him, 'Feed my lambs' — Jesus uses Peter's birth name (Simon son of John) before his restored name, invoking his original identity before proceeding to restoration. The question 'more than these?' (more than the other disciples, or more than these fish/nets?) tests Peter's priority. Jesus' first query employs agapaō (divine love), and Peter responds with phileō (affectionate love). Many interpreters note this distinction (agape vs. philos, self-giving vs. affection), though the verbs may be stylistically variant.

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