Have you ever heard of the story of Jiang Taigong’s fishing?
King Wen went out hunting on the north bank of the Wei River. He saw Jiang Taigong sitting on the grass fishing.
King Wen greeted him and asked: “Do you take pleasure in fishing?”
Jiang replied: “According to my knowledge, learned men take pleasure in achieving their goals and ordinary people take pleasure in doing their favourite things. Now I am fishing here for the similar principles rather than just for pleasure.”
King Wen asked: “what do you mean by the similar principles?
Jiang replied:” if compared to management of human resources, fishing has 3 forms of tactics. As you can attract fish with bait, you can attract talented people with good salaries, rewards, or high offices. And thus they will be willing to work for you, die for you, and be loyal to you. Fishing is to seek for what is desired, and it has a deep nature. By understanding the principles of fishing, you can understand the principles of governing.”
King Wen said: “I would like to hear more about the principles.”
Jiang said: “When the line is thin and the bait is visible, small fish will eat it. When the line is big and long and the bait generous, large fish will eat it. When the fish eats the bait, they will be caught on the line. When men take their salaries, they will have to submit to the ruler. So when you fish with bait, you can catch and kill the fish. When you attract talented people with salaries, you can make them fully use their skills. Thus if you use the family, the smallest unit of the society, to gain the state, you can acquire the state. If you use the state to get the world, you can acquire the world. The consideration of a sage is to have everyone in a place appropriate to his abilities and to develop the ideas and techniques needed to attract people.
King Wen inquired: “What kind of ideas and techniques should we develop so that all the people of the world will give their allegiance?”
Jiang said: “The world does not belong to a single person, but is shared by all the people of the world. One who shares profit with all the people of the world will gain the world. One who monopolises profit will lose the world. Everyone hates death and takes pleasure in life, and everyone loves virtue and inclines to profit. When one protects the security of the people and produces profit for the people, he observes the virtues of a king, where there are kingly virtues, all the people of the world will give their support.”
King Wen bowed and said: “You are right. I dare not disobey the Mandate of Heaven.” King Wen established Jiang as his teacher.
周文王到渭水北岸打猎。见到了太公正坐在长满茅草的河岸边钓鱼。
文王上前慰劳并询问：“先生喜欢钓鱼吗？”
太公回答说：“我听说君子乐于实现自己的抱负，平凡人乐于做好自己的事情。现在我钓鱼，与这个道理很相似，并不是真正喜欢钓鱼。”
文王问：“这两者之间有何相似之处呢？”
太公回答说：“钓鱼比如人事，有三种权术。用厚禄收买人才，如同用饵钓鱼；用重金收买死士，也如同用饵钓鱼；用官职招揽人才，也如同用饵钓鱼。凡是垂钓，目的都是为了得鱼，其中的道理十分深奥，从中可以看到大的道理。”
文王说：“我愿意听听这深奥的道理。”
太公说：“钓丝细微，鱼饵可见，小鱼就会上钩；钓丝粗长，鱼饵丰盛，大鱼就会上钩。鱼要贪吃香饵，就会被钓丝牵住；人要得到君主俸禄，就会服从君主任使。所以用香饵钓鱼，鱼便可供烹食；用爵禄网罗人才，人才就能尽为所用；以家为基础取国，国就能被据为己有；以国为基础取天下，天下就可全部征服。微妙啊！圣人的德化，就在于独创地、潜移默化地收揽人心。欢乐啊！圣人所思虑的事情，就是使天下人人各得其所，而建立起各种争取人心的办法。”
文王问道：“该制定什么办法才能使天下归心呢？”
太公回答说：“天下不是一个人的天下，而是天下所有人共有的天下。能同天下所有人共同分享天下利益的，就可以取得天下；独占天下利益的，就会失掉天下。人们无不厌恶死亡而乐于生存，欢迎恩德而追求利益，能为天下人谋求利益的，就是王道。王道所在，天下之人就会归附。”
文王再次拜谢后说：“先生讲得太好了。我怎敢不接受上天的旨意！”
于是，把太公请上猎车，一起回到国都，并拜他为师。
This is the story of Jiang Taigong’s fishing. Jiang Taigong was teaching King Wen how to build his kingdom and gain the world. With the right bait, you can fish for any person you need. And if you are willing to share the profits of the world with the world, then the world will become yours. People generally yearn for their personal interests. Hence, if anyone has the ability to satisfy such needs, just like in fishing, they can become fishers of men.
The Gospel of Mark is a story about Jesus. And Jesus began his work with the proclamation: 15 “The time has come,” he said. “The kingdom of God has come near.” 15 说：“日期满了，神的国近了！你们当悔改，信福音！” So imagine if you know nothing about this man Jesus. What do you think is his main agenda? Immediately, you can conclude: his agenda is the building of this kingdom. This is something both the first listeners of Jesus’ message and the readers of Mark’s gospel know. But there is something only the readers know and the first listeners do not know: Jesus is the Son of God. This is revealed privately to us at the opening in verse 1 and at Jesus’ baptism in verse 11. And this is where knowing Psalm 2 will prepare us well.[1] The Son of God refers to kingship. In this coming kingdom of God, Jesus is the divinely-anointed king, baptized with the Holy Spirit. But remember: this is something only the readers know, but the first listeners do not know.[2]
Again, if you forget everything you know about Jesus, and imagine you are listening or reading about Jesus for the first time, with a fresh pair of eyes and ears, just by starting from Mark chapter 1, verses from Isaiah and the use of Psalm 2 should fire you up with loads of anticipation. The story characters still do not know the truth. But you already know: that Jesus is the chosen king. And then you start observing Jesus, 16 As Jesus walked beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 17 “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” 18 At once they left their nets and followed him. 16 耶稣顺着加利利的海边走，看见西门和西门的兄弟安得烈在海里撒网，他们本是打鱼的。17 耶稣对他们说：“来跟从我，我要叫你们得人如得鱼一样。” 18 他们就立刻舍了网，跟从了他。
Upon those words, even if you do not know the story of Jiang Taigong’s fishing, you will still feel excited by Jesus’ first public activity. Why? Jiang Taigong is right! The first step to kingdom building is always about recruiting people. In time to come, the apostles Peter and Andrew, James and John, would transform from fishermen to become fishers of men. But we must keep our focus on Jesus himself. He is the apex Fisher of Men. But first, a fruit for thought for all of you: if Jesus is the Fisher, then what is his bait? Remember? You need big baits for big fishes. So what do you think these initial apostles desired, that made them willingly follow Jesus? If you think hard about this, then you might understand some of their future behaviors. The clue is in this story itself: They wanted to become fishers of men.
But let’s return to the story. And see how Jesus continues his kingdom building. 21 They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. 22 The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law. 21 到了迦百农，耶稣就在安息日进了会堂教训人。 22 众人很稀奇他的教训，因为他教训他们正像有权柄的人，不像文士。 At this point, the people may be amazed, but not for us. Such development is actually falling within our expectations. We know why he taught and acted with authority. Jesus was speaking for himself, and about himself. He is the one anointed and empowered by God. And with his miracles, 28 News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee. 28 耶稣的名声就传遍了加利利的四方。 Besides exorcism, he also performed healing. We were told, 32 That evening after sunset the people brought to Jesus all the sick and demon-possessed. 33 The whole town gathered at the door, 34 and Jesus healed many who had various diseases. He also drove out many demons. 32 天晚日落的时候，有人带着一切害病的和被鬼附的来到耶稣跟前。 33 合城的人都聚集在门前。 34 耶稣治好了许多害各样病的人，又赶出许多鬼
At this point in the story, Jesus and his disciples must be feeling really good. People were flocking to them. If they were building a kingdom, and if their first objective was to fish for men, this was precisely the way it should be. Then all of a sudden, at the height of Jesus’ initial popularity, Mark surprised us with the very first plot twist.
35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. 36 Simon and his companions went to look for him, 37 and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!” 35 次日早晨，天未亮的时候，耶稣起来到旷野地方去，在那里祷告。 36 西门和同伴追了他去， 37 遇见了就对他说：“众人都找你。” I would say that Simon Peter and his gang have indeed become excellent fishers of men. They knew what the people wanted, and what the people wanted was Jesus. As long as Jesus kept giving what the people wanted, the completion of this kingdom was just round the corner.
But strangely, Jesus refused.
38 Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” 39 So he traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons. 38 耶稣对他们说：“我们可以往别处去，到邻近的乡村，我也好在那里传道，因为我是为这事出来的。” 39 于是在加利利全地，进了会堂，传道、赶鬼。
As I prepared this message, I kept mulling over the words “That is why I have come.” 因为我是为这事出来的。 Surely there must be a misunderstanding. His disciples must be wondering. Isn’t popularity with the masses why you have come? Don’t you want all of them to make you king? Why did Jesus step away just when people were flocking towards him? Jiang Taigong said: When one produces profit for the people, he observes the virtues of a king, where there are such kingly virtues, all the people of the world will give their support.能为天下人谋求利益的，就是王道。王道所在，天下之人就会归附。If Jesus wanted to be king, why was he stepping away from continuing to give out the benefits people desired? If he had continued to build on this popularity, he would have his people. He would have his kingdom. But Jesus said his mission was preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons. “This is why I have come.” 因为我是为这事出来的。 It is no coincidence that he said these words right after a solitary prayer very early in the morning. Prayer is how we realign with God about who we are. “This is why I have come.” 因为我是为这事出来的。 Jesus knew his true mission. The popularity was an unintended side effect. We might even call it an unwanted distraction from his true calling. We might have thought that the temptations of Jesus ended after 40 days in the wilderness. But I would argue that the temptations only ended on the Cross. The temptation to live by bread, the temptation to feel protected, the temptation to gain the world; all these are the temptations of popularity. And Jesus stayed true to his mission, with daily prayer, to realign to his divine calling.
The next story will elucidate this to us.
40 A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” 41 Jesus was moved. He reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” 42 Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed. 40 有一个长大麻风的来求耶稣，向他跪下，说：“你若肯，必能叫我洁净了。” 41 耶稣动了慈心，就伸手摸他，说：“我肯，你洁净了吧！” 42 大麻风即时离开他，他就洁净了。
The man asked “if you are willing”, and Jesus replied “I am willing”. This willingness may be something we have taken for granted. We assume that Jesus is so good and kind, he must be always willing. We might have continued to take it for granted if not for the fact that he had just refused his apostles. In the earlier passage, when people were flocking to him with their needs, and he was unwilling! What makes the key difference? We begin to sense that Jesus is no ordinary king. This kingdom of God that he preaches is no ordinary kingdom. Yes, he is out fishing for people. But what he wants is not their support for kingship, nor for them to fight for his throne. So why was he willing to heal the leper?
43 Jesus sent him away at once with a strong warning: 44 “See that you don’t tell this to anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.” 45 Instead he went out and began to talk freely, spreading the news. As a result, Jesus could no longer enter a town openly but stayed outside in lonely places. Yet the people still came to him from everywhere. 43 耶稣严严地嘱咐他，就打发他走， 44 对他说：“你要谨慎，什么话都不可告诉人，只要去把身体给祭司察看，又因为你洁净了，献上摩西所吩咐的礼物，对众人做证据。” 45 那人出去，倒说许多的话，把这件事传扬开了，叫耶稣以后不得再明明地进城，只好在外边旷野地方。人从各处都就了他来。This popularity was an unwanted effect. Instead, Jesus’ healing was simply to make the leper clean. And when this cleansed leper was presented before the priest, he could be restored back into the community. Jesus cleansed the unclean.
Then I began to see all the earlier miracles in a very different light. In Mark, the first miracle was an exorcism. Exocism were for people with unclean spirits. We are reconciled with God with the holy Spirit. The unclean spirits had to be cleansed from these people.
In the next miracle, the healing of Peter’s mother-in-law sounds interesting. We’re told in verse 31 He came and raised her up by gently taking her hand. Then the fever left her and she began to serve them. 31 耶稣进前拉着她的手，扶她起来，热就退了，她就服侍他们。 Doesn’t it seem strange to ask a person who just recovered from a major fever to “serve” Jesus and his disciples? But perhaps we can see what this healing is about. Mark is telling us that because of this healing, she could now serve Jesus, and in a way, serve the kingdom. I guess what I’m trying to say is this: Are these miracles of Jesus really just baits to gain popularity? I think not. Jesus is the Fisher of Men. But he is fishing them for God, to restore them back to God.
Brothers and sisters, as we embark on this journey to know Jesus through the narrative of Mark, let us put aside our assumptions of who Jesus ‘should be’ in our eyes. For now, we can be certain of 2 things. One, Jesus is the Son of God, and so he is king of the kingdom of God. Two, he is out fishing for men. But his mission and his ways surprise us. He doesn’t care about popularity, and that makes it radically different from Jiang Taigong’s fishing. Instead, he strikes me more as a cleaner. He is cleansing away the unclean spirits. He is removing the obstacles to serve. He is restoring the unclean people back into the community. This is how he fishes for his people.
Is this what the kingdom of God is about? Is this what being a Son of God means? Mark has not fully revealed the story yet, so I’m not giving any spoilers. I don’t have any answers, but I do have a hint: Mark is making us ponder and rethink about kingship and the kingdom of God. These are meaningful questions as we await further revelations from Mark. I hope you eagerly anticipate to observe how the story continues, and see Jesus in a new light. Let us pray.
