Church Fathers on Matthew 13:47

In the foregoing parables He has commended the Gospel preaching; now, that we may not trust in preaching only, nor think that faith alone is sufficient for our salvation, He adds another fearful parable, saying, 'Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a net cast into the sea.'

In fulfilment of that prophecy of Hieremias, who said, 'I will send unto you many fishers,' [Jer 16:16] when Peter and Andrew, James and John, heard the words, 'Follow me, I will make you fishers of men,' they put together a net for themselves formed of the Old and New Testaments, and cast it into the sea of this world, and that remains spread until this day, taking up out of the salt and bitter and whirlpools whatever falls into it, that is good men and bad; and this is that…

Or otherwise; The Holy Church is likened to a net, because it is given into the hands of fishers, and by it each man is drawn into the heavenly kingdom out of the waves of this present world, that he should not be drowned in the depth of eternal death. This net gathers of every kind of fishes, because the wise and the foolish, the free and the slave, the rich and the poor, the strong and the weak, are called to forgiveness of sin; it is then fully filled when in the end of…