(8) But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord."
(8) ἰδὼν δὲ Σίμων Πέτρος προσέπεσεν τοῖς γόνασιν Ἰησοῦ λέγων, Ἔξελθε ἀπ' ἐμοῦ, ὅτι ἀνὴρ ἁμαρτωλός εἰμι, κύριε·
One of my favorite passages in Scripture is Isaiah 6. I love Isaiah's reaction to being in the presence of God. He realizes the depth of his sin and his desperate need for atonement. There is no question about where Isaiah saw himself next to God.
Peter has the same reaction. He realizes that he is in the presence of holiness and is painfully aware of the depth of his sin. This seems to be the natural reaction for all of us. Look at the reaction you get when you mention the name of Jesus. People realize that the gospel begins with condemnation of sin before it gets to forgiveness. We all realize that we are sinful men who need atonement.
I think it is significant that Peter tacks κύριε on the end of his statement. He doesn't fully understand who Jesus is, but he knows that Jesus has authority over him. Nothing like a miraculous catch of fish to get a fisherman's attention.
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