The Appointment of the Twelve Apostles

We are not told when this occurred, but it was probably in the late summer or early fall of 31 A.D. We don’t know how long the seven who were added to the first five who had traveled with Jesus. Most likely, before this time, none had been a part of his permanent cadre, but that’s speculation since we aren’t told.

What was their relationships and what drew them to join Jesus in his ministry? This side of heaven we can only guess. If they reacted like people generally do, there would have been closer friendships between some than others. We know of the closeness of Jesus to Peter, James, and John. Surely, this trio had a unique bond they didn’t share with the other nine. The one who may not have related very well with any of the others was Judas Iscariot. Common experience is the glue that bonds us together and Judas had little in common with the rest. His major variance was that he was a Judean, while the rest were from the Galilee.

The way the writers list the apostles may give us an indication of their level of influence and their natural groupings—or it may merely list the order in which they began to follow Jesus. If it is by influence within the group, Simon is obviously the most influential. Luke lists Andrew next, but that may be because he was Peter’s brother. Next come the Sons of Thunder, James and John. Mark lists Andrew fourth, after the central trio, Peter, James and John. Philip and Bartholomew seem to be a pair as are Thomas and Matthew. Since Bartholomew is what we would call a “sir name,” literally the son of Tolmai, it is believed that Bartholomew was Nathaniel, the friend Phillip introduced to Jesus.

The writers list James ben (son of) Alphaeus next, with Matthew and Mark paring Thaddeus with him. Luke uses another name for Thaddeus, Judas ben (son of) James. Why does his name differ in Luke? We don’t know, but assuming Luke was Greek rather than Jewish, he would have felt less shame over the disgrace that Judas brought to this noble Jewish name. Even more, Thaddeus may have chosen to discard the name Judas after the betrayal by Judas Iscariot.

Next to last in Mark’s list is Simon, who is refered to as the Canaanite, which was a name of a specific rebel group founded by Judas of Gamala. Luke uses the more common term and calls him Simon, the Zealot. All note his political commitment as a terrorist revolutionary. Judas Iscariot is listed last by all.

Matthew also gives a list of the twelve, but seems to save it for when they were sent out on their first ministry assignments.