Original Word: ἰχθύς
Part of Speech: Noun, Masculine
Transliteration: ichthus
Pronunciation: ikh-thoos'
Phonetic Spelling: (ikh-thoos')
KJV: fish
NASB: fish
Word Origin: [of uncertain affinity]

1. a fish

fish.

Of uncertain affinity; a fish -- fish.

Word Origin
a prim. word
Definition
a fish
NASB Translation
fish (20).

STRONGS NT 2486: ἰχθύς

ἰχθύς, ἰχθύος, ὁ (from Homer down), a fish: Matthew 7:10; Mark 6:38; Luke 5:6; John 21:11, etc.; 1 Corinthians 15:39.

Occurrence Overview

Ἰχθύς appears twenty times in the Greek New Testament, almost always in narratives that picture Jesus’ compassionate provision, His post-resurrection fellowship, or His didactic use of ordinary life. The term therefore functions as more than dietary detail; it becomes a vehicle through which divine identity, discipleship, and eschatological hope are displayed.

Galilean Fishing Context

First-century Galilee was economically dependent on the abundant fisheries of the Sea of Galilee. Commercial cooperatives such as those involving James and John (Luke 5:10) illustrate a professional network that supported villages like Capernaum. Jesus’ deliberate choice of fishermen as His earliest disciples (Matthew 4:18-22) locates the gospel’s launch within this working-class milieu. Their familiarity with nets, market cycles, and the unpredictable yield of the lake prepared them to grasp spiritual parallels about the kingdom’s harvest.

Miraculous Provision and Messianic Identity

1. Feeding of the Five Thousand (Matthew 14:17-21; Mark 6:38-44; Luke 9:13-17; John 6:1-14). The meager “five loaves and two fish” (Matthew 14:17) become a banquet for thousands, underscoring Jesus as the new and greater Moses who supplies bread—and fish—in the wilderness. The miracle validates His messianic authority and anticipates the eschatological banquet.
2. Feeding of the Four Thousand (Matthew 15:36; Mark 8:7). Again, small “fish” multiply, reinforcing that Gentile crowds are not excluded from covenant blessing.

Education in Faith for the Disciples

Matthew 17:27 depicts an unusual instruction: “Go to the sea, cast a hook, and take the first fish you catch. Open its mouth, and you will find a four-drachma coin”. The episode teaches that the King who claims temple dues also provides them, revealing His sovereignty over creation down to a single fish’s mouth.

Parabolic Illustrations of Divine Goodness

In teaching about prayer, Jesus chooses fish for the father/child analogy: “If your son asks for a fish, will you give him a snake instead?” (Luke 11:11; cf. Matthew 7:10). The contrast depends on a staple food item familiar to every household, making the assurance of the Father’s benevolence unmistakable.

Post-Resurrection Fellowship and Commission

1. Luke 24:42-43: The risen Christ eats “a piece of broiled fish” before the eleven, proving His bodily resurrection.
2. John 21:1-14: After an all-night failure, the disciples haul in “one hundred fifty-three large fish” (John 21:11) at Jesus’ directive, then share breakfast He prepares. The scene re-enrolls Peter—by a charcoal fire reminiscent of his denial—and links evangelistic mission with reliance on the risen Lord.

Eschatological Contrast of Kinds of Flesh

Paul’s argument for the resurrection body cites fish as a distinct order of flesh: “Men have one kind of flesh, animals have another, birds another, and fish another” (1 Corinthians 15:39). The natural diversity of created bodies assures believers that God can fashion a glorified body suited for the age to come.

Early Christian Symbol and Confession

Soon after the apostolic era, ἰχθύς became an acrostic: Ἰησοῦς Χριστός Θεοῦ Υἱός Σωτήρ—“Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Savior.” Carved in catacombs and scratched on house-church walls, the simple outline of a fish served both as a secret identifier under persecution and as a succinct confession of the gospel’s core.

Discipleship Imagery: Fishers of Men

Although the phrase “fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19; Mark 1:17) does not employ ἰχθύς itself, it draws directly from the fishing vocation. The miraculous catches (Luke 5; John 21) reinforce that human souls, like fish, are gathered through obedience to Christ’s word, not through human technique alone.

Theological Themes

1. Providence: God supplies physical needs (feedings) and spiritual needs (salvation symbolized by the fish).
2. Revelation: Miracles with fish unveil Jesus’ deity.
3. Resurrection: Shared fish meals certify bodily reality, countering docetic errors.
4. Mission: From the shoreline call to the post-Easter breakfast, fish scenes frame the apostles’ vocation and the Church’s evangelistic mandate.

Practical Applications

• Confidence in prayer springs from the Father’s generosity illustrated by giving fish, not serpents.
• Ministry effectiveness is tied to obedience; empty nets fill only when cast at Christ’s bidding.
• Fellowship with the risen Lord sustains service; He both invites to breakfast and sends to labor.
• The historic fish symbol invites believers today to confess Christ plainly in a pluralistic setting.

Summary

Ἰχθύς, though an ordinary table staple, carries extraordinary theological weight across the New Testament. Through it the Lord demonstrates creative power, covenant generosity, relational intimacy, and resurrection reality—calling every generation of disciples to trust, witness, and hope.

ιχθυας ιχθύας ἰχθύας ιχθυες ιχθύες ἰχθύες ιχθυν ιχθύν ἰχθύν ἰχθὺν ιχθυος ιχθύος ἰχθύος ιχθύς ιχθυων ιχθύων ἰχθύων ιχνευόντων ichthuas ichthues ichthun ichthuon ichthuōn ichthuos ichthyas ichthýas ichthyes ichthýes ichthyn ichthýn ichthỳn ichthyon ichthyōn ichthýon ichthýōn ichthyos ichthýosInterlinear Greek • Interlinear Hebrew • Strong's Numbers • Englishman's Greek Concordance • Englishman's Hebrew Concordance • Parallel Texts