With the following article we will know everything about the names of the 12 Apostles of the Lord, details of their lives and how was their relationship with Christ, in addition to some other curiosities. We invite you to continue reading this interesting article.
The apostles
The 12 apostles, as they are known, are the disciples of Jesus, who were of great importance for the creation of his church. In the Bible, more specifically in the verse of the Apocalipsis 21: 14, it talks about the Holy City of Jerusalem, but it also refers specifically to the fact that the names of the 12 apostles of Jesus would be written on the walls of this city.
Returning to the previous idea, in this way it is shown that Jesus had a lot of appreciation for them and took them very seriously. If you study about the disciples and what they were for Jesus according to the Bible, you can see that he saw them as an example for his parishioners and as his pupils, those who should learn his teachings and transmit them to the world. We invite you to read the article Archangels
As expressed in the new Testament of the Bible, the names of the 12 apostles had a marked impact on history, as a result of this, many stories were created around them in honor of each of them, and even traditions and prayers have emerged, however, the The veracity of these stories has always been a matter of debate, what is certain is that they had an impact on the world that was so significant that even 21 centuries later their legacy remains.
To get into the subject, the names of the 12 Apostles are:
- Andrés
- Bartholomew
- Santiago, the Elder
- James the Younger
- Juan
- Judas Iscariot
- Judas Thaddeus
- Mateo
- Pedro
- Felipe
- Simon
- Thomas
Andrés
The apostle Andrés was the son of Jonah and brother of Pedro, before being known as a disciple of Jesus, lived in the city of bersaida and in Capernaum, was just a humble fisherman before receiving the call of Jesus. In his early days, he followed Juan Bautista, this is reflected from the verse of Mark 1: 16 up to the verse Mark 1: 18.
In the verse of Juan 1: 40 it is related how Andrés took his brother Pedro before the presence of Jesus, due to this event Andrés was the first to obtain the title of missionary, both in the cities where he lived, as well as in the foreign cities that he himself would later decide to visit to preach .
There are three countries in which the religious community considers him their Patron Saint, these countries are: Scotland, Russia and Greece, according to some historians and Bible scholars, this fact is due to the fact that, during his life as a missionary, he preached the word of Jesus in the Asian part of Russia, Greece and Sitia.
It is said that the apostle Andrew brought other people to Jesus, this through the messages he preached, some Bible scholars say that his situation was difficult, the reason is that he had all the necessary reasons to have felt jealousy and resentment of Jesus, however, despite that he was satisfied with his mission in life.
Based on this, many have come to the conclusion that Andrew's main objective or purpose in his life was to bring those who were deviated from the path to know Jesus and his deep love for humanity, this served so that he felt satisfied.
Sadly, the apostle Andrew died unjustly and was considered a martyr. In Greece, the town of Patras was the site of this tragedy, the governor's wife was sick, he went to see her and not only healed her, he took her to the path of Christianity, in addition to this, he also converted the governor's brother to the Christian faith, this gesture, although noble, it cost him his life because the governor was upset by that act.
The apostle Andrew was first sentenced to prison and then his execution was ordered, the problem is that he would die crucified, he felt that he did not deserve to die the same as Christ died, because he considered that dying in the same way that Jesus did would be a honor, therefore, he asked his executioners that his cross not be the same as the cross where Jesus died.
His wish was fulfilled and despite having been crucified, his cross was different from that of Jesus, he would die on a cross in the shape of an "X" while his master Jesus would die on a cross in the shape of a "T". This cross where the apostle Andrew died today is used as a religious symbol, the image of two intertwined fish is also used to represent it, this is motivated by the fact that before being a disciple of Jesus he was a fisherman.
Bartholomew
This apostle lived in the city of Canaan in Galilee, his full name is Bartholomew Nathanael and was the son of Talmai. According to historical records, he was a missionary in Armenia, in fact, many people claim that, of all the disciples of Jesus, Bartholomew in particular was the only one who came from a noble family, that is, he had royal blood.
according to the bible verse Samuel 3:3, the name Bartholomew has the meaning "son of Talmai", he was the king of the nation of Gesur (southern Syria), his daughter was called maaca and she was David's wife, therefore she was the mother of Absalom. The name of this apostle, that is, Bartholomew, is mentioned in several biblical verses such as, Matthew 10: 3; Mark 3:18; Luke 6:14 y Acts 1:13. He is also on absolutely every list of Jesus' disciples.
Although he is known as Bartholomew, this is not his first name, it is his second, it is known that his first name was actually NathanaelBecause of this, Jesus decided to call him "A true Israelite", someone in whom there is no deception, this is seen in the biblical verse of Juan 1: 47.
There is very little information about this apostle in the new testament, even so, the information that there is about him says that he was a great scholar, who did a lot of research about writing and studied the laws in depth, he was also in charge of studying the prophets that were in the past.
Bartholomew was a great apostle, but above all, he was a man who feared God, also a great worshiper of the latter, he decided to put himself completely at the service of Jesus, therefore, this made him become a very adventurous missionary. and that he got quite a reputation.
Due to this, it was that the church of Armenia proclaimed him as its founder, the reason is that he preached accompanied by Philip in Phrygia and Hierapolis, they preached in many places, but in Armenia it was where they stood out the most, this resulted in after suffering the torturous death he had, they would consider him a martyr of that church.
His death was sad, the reason for this was that he decided to go to India, once he arrived he preached about Jesus, however, this cost him his life mainly because in that country they are polytheists and practice a completely different religion; this caused three men to remove his skin with knives while he was alive, after great pain caused by being skinned alive, he bled to death. As a result of this he is represented with three knives.
Santiago (the old man)
This Apostle was the son of Zebedee and Salomé, therefore, he is the brother of the Apostle John, he was a fisherman who lived in some important cities of the time, such as the holy city of Jerusalem, The city of Bethsaida and finally, Capernaum, where he preached quite a lot about the word of Jesus.
This apostle sadly suffered beheading by order of Herod, this happened in the year 44 AD, an event that is narrated in the biblical verse Acts 12:1 y Acts 12:2. Due to the importance of him having preached in Jerusalem and Judea, he was one of the members of the so-called Inner Circle, this was made up of people who were said to have received special privileges.
When reading the new testament it can be seen that there is not much information about the Apostle Santiago, in addition, every time mentions are made of him, or every time an event about his life appears and is narrated, he is not spoken of individually because , his brother John is included, According to biblical verses Mark 1:1; Mark 1:20; Matthew 4:21 and Luke 5:1 to 11These brothers apparently had a very close bond, so they were always together.
It is said that Santiago was a man who always enjoyed great courage, but above all things his spirit was calm and full of forgiveness, he was a person without envy, therefore, he did not mind living overshadowed by his brother Juan In addition, he is also described as a man of great faith, unfortunately he was the first of the 12 apostles to die thus becoming a martyr, his symbol is three shells, this because he pilgrimage through the seas.
Santiago the lesser (younger)
This apostle was the Brother of the apostle Judas Thaddeus, their parents were Alphaeus (Cleophas) y María, lived in Galilee. According to historical records, he himself wrote an epistle (The epistle is a letter) to Santiago, it is known that he preached in countries such as Palestine and Egypt, the latter being where he would die crucified.
Of all the 12 apostles, this is the apostle with the least historical data, therefore, it is difficult to know about his history, at least with fully verifiable data, however, some historians have speculated based on some ambiguous verses (Ambiguous is that can have more than one meaning) that James and Matthew were brothers.
According to what is said about him, he was a man with a quite strong and implacable character, he stood out among most men. Like the other apostles, he was assassinated and therefore became a martyr, his body, after being crucified, was wildly cut to pieces with a saw, therefore his symbol as an apostle is a saw .
Juan
The apostle John was the brother of the apostle James (the elder), therefore, he was the son of Zebedee and Salomé. This disciple quickly forged a great reputation, he was a well-known man because he was loved by Jesus to the point of being in charge of taking care of Mary once he was crucified, it was to him that the following words were spoken «woman there you have your son, son there you have your mother«.
Before being a full apostle, he was just a humble fisherman, like his brother, he lived in the cities of Bethsaida, Capernaum and Jerusalem, due to his status he was a member of the city's Inner Circle. Of all the apostles, this is the one that stands out the most, not only because he was in charge of his teacher's mother.
He wrote several gospels, in addition to having done that, he also dedicated himself to visiting churches in Asia and preached in them, he suffered exile when he was on the island of Patmos, he was also imprisoned, however, his sentence was only temporary, so Therefore, he was able to go free, finally, he died of natural causes, very different from the disciples mentioned above.
He was one of the most relevant apostles, in the New Testament has a great role because, he is mentioned many times in various places, he is described as a man who was always ready for anything, it is also noted that he had many ambitions, was a bit irritable and it is said that, despite all his good characteristics, his heart was intolerant.
It is known that both he and his brother Santiago the elder came from a good family, in fact, there are those who claim that his family was in a better social position than the families of the rest of the apostles, it is also known that his middle name was Boanerges, its literal meaning is "son of thunder", hence its character.
According to the verse Mark 1: 20, it is known that Juan's father frequently hired helpers, this with the intention of facilitating his work with the fishing boat, it is speculated that having had servants he probably could have felt superior or far above them.
It is known that Juan was always very close to Pedro, they even participated together in several events, they also served in the same ministry, however, Pedro was always the one who spoke before the public, that is, the voice of the group.
Over the years, as he grew older, Juan changed his character, when he was already an older man, he reached a state of maturity, he had put aside many of his characteristic traits, the bad traits should be noted, it was evident that he had already abandoned his ambitions, also that explosive behavior that defined him, the only thing that remained the same until the day of his death was the love and admiration he felt for Jesus, his teacher.
Although it is said that Juan suffered an assassination attempt, he died naturally, the method they tried to use with him was quite subtle, whoever carried it out used a chalice of wine, only instead of the This drink had poison, however God saved him, as was said before, for this attack he is represented with a chalice that has a snake.
Judas Iscariot
Judas Iscariot is perhaps one of the most recognized apostles, this is because his role was to sell Jesus Christ in exchange for money, more specifically thirty pieces of silver, however, after receiving his reward Judas decided to end his life, for this very reason he hanged himself, as narrated in the verses of Matthew 26: 14 – 16.
It is known that his father's name was Simón and that he was born in Kerioth. En el New Testament Judas is shown as a rather mysterious and difficult person to understand, he is called a traitor because he sold his master Jesus, this is narrated with some pain because he was quite close to Jesus becoming friends, he managed to see the miracles that his master performed, he even received many of his teachings, so no one can explain what led him to commit this betrayal.
Judas enters the lists of the names of the 12 apostles, although he only appears in three of these, in the gospels Matthew 10:4; Mark 3:19 and Luke 6:19, this may be due to a kind of retaliation for his betrayal of the grandmaster. His origin story is not entirely clear because it is not known with certainty where he came from, it is assumed that he came from the city of Judah, very close to Jericho.
It is known for sure that Judas had Judaism as a religion, this differed from the rest of the disciples of Jesus because all the others were Galileans. It is also known that Judas was in charge of managing the money, in other words, he was treasurer of the group of apostles, it is also known that he was a born leader because he dominated the conversations.
A very characteristic trait that Judas had is that he was a Jew with a lot of patriotism, this sometimes ended up revealing very strong and aggressive traits on his part, it is also known that he had personal interests to follow Jesus, he hoped that following Jesus all your desires and your personal goals could be fulfilled.
Due to his position as treasurer of the group, also influenced by his personality traits, no one could save Judas from criticism, in fact, there were many who knew him for being greedy, therefore, that earned him some bad opinions, too. it is known that he took advantage of his position as treasurer to obtain the money from the common purse for his personal benefit.
A fact that went down in history, even to become a popular saying, was the famous kiss of Judas, this was given by him to Jesus moments before betraying him, however, no one has a clear and more personal reason why Judas had betrayed Jesus his master, therefore it is only assumed that it was for the thirty silver coins.
Despite what is believed, Judas's betrayal of Jesus was not the main reason why he was crucified, the real reason was to save us from our sins. The symbol with which Judas is identified and associated is a gallows descending to behead someone, although it is sometimes replaced with a bag full of silver coins coming out of it.
Judas Thaddeus
This was the brother of Santiago the Younger, therefore, he was also the son of Alphaeus (Cleofás) and Mary, in addition to being known as Judas Tadeo, he was also known as lebeo. Not much data is known about the life of this apostle because there is not enough historical data, but it is known that he lived in Galilee.
From the few historical records that there are of him, they reveal that he dedicated himself to preaching about the word of God in Syria and Persia, in this last place where he unfortunately died, like most of the apostles of Jesus, he was also converted into a matir for this.
This apostle stands out mainly for the number of names by which people used to address him and also name him, this made him worthy of being known as «trinomials«, distinction granted by Jerónimo, and which means «man with three names«.
in the bible verse Mark 3: 18, it is called Thaddeus, but in the Bible verse Matthew 10:3 it is called lebeofinally in the bible verses Luke 6:16 and Acts 1:13, he is called Judas the Brother of Santiago, the latter as a distinctive feature to differentiate him from Judas Iscariot, despite the fact that his last name was Tadeo, they also called him «Judas the Zealot«.
It is known that he had a very strong, intense and violent character and personality, it is known that he was quite a nationalist, but this nationalism took him to the next level because it is known that his heart was full of hunger for power, even to the point of wanting to dominate in the chosen people.
Thanks to the historical records that are related in the new testament, it is known by the biblical verse Juan 14: 22 that he in a conversation with Jesus during the last supper, that he asked Jesus why he decided to manifest himself only before them, that is, his disciples, and he did not do so in front of the rest of the world.
In spite of everything, Judas Tadeo asked Jesus these questions at the last supper because he wanted the rest of the world to have the opportunity to know Jesus, he wanted everyone to know his teachings, but more importantly, not that know of him only as the savior who suffered, he wanted the rest of the world to know him as a merciful king.
Jesus answered all this to Judas Tadeo that, to become a king, love could not be substituted for power, this answer is enough to clarify any doubt that he had. It is known according to some historical data that Judas Tadeo preached the Gospel of Jesus in the city of Edesa, very close to the river Euphrates.
Once in the place he not only preached, he also took the opportunity to heal all the wounded he found, once his management was over he dedicated himself to preaching the gospel in more regions. He was eventually killed by an arrow attack on Ararat. The symbol with which this saint is represented is a boat, the reason is that he was a missionary, his task was to be a fisher of men, metaphorically speaking.
Mateo
It is known that he was the son of AlpheusDuring his youth he lived in the city of Capernaum, his name was Mateo, but he was also known as I took it. It is known that, for a time, he worked as a tax collector in the town. Finally, he wrote the gospel according to matthew and later, he died in Ethiopia being considered a martyr.
In several verses of the Bible references are made to his name because, in Luke 5:27 and 28; his own gospel Matthew 9:9 and in Mark 2:14, the issue of his identity is discussed because he was also known as Levi, in this way it is known that this was his second name, finally, they also narrate how he joined the 12 apostles.
Having two names is common today, however, at that time this was only common in the Middle East, being rare in other parts of the world. His name Matthew means "a gift from God", but the name of Levi according to the Bible verses implies that he was given to Matthew by Jesus.
It is speculated that he was the half-brother of Santiago the minor on his father's side, this is because his father was Alphaeus, however, relatively little is known about the apostle Matthew, on a personal level it is worth mentioning that his life as a collector of taxes was a fact that stood out above the others.
The biblical version Reina Valera recognizes this apostle as a publican, this is because he had a strong commitment to serve the public, which was related to his profession as a tax collector. It is well known that at that time everyone hated the tax collectors, but the nation that hated and despised them the most in the whole world was the Jewish nation.
The most devoted Jews of God, fervently believed that the only one who deserved to be paid economic tributes was God and no one else, paying taxes to any human being, regardless of whether they were political leaders or kings was considered one of the greatest sins .
The reason why all those who were dedicated to collecting taxes were hated, is not only due to religious beliefs, this is also because the taxes were disproportionate, currently the taxes that are collected are calculated based on the income of people, in ancient times taxes were calculated based on what the collectors themselves wanted.
In the biblical verses of the new testament of Luke 5:30; Mark 2:15 and 16; and Matthew 18:17, 21:31-33 and 9:10, tax collectors were considered just as sinful as the cruelest criminals, but the hatred was so great that even being a tax collector was considered worse than engaging in prostitution.
Part of the bad reputation that these had was due to the fact that they were unfair, the reason being that, if they wanted to, they would charge a person an absurd amount of money.
In many cases, people did not have to pay those high taxes that they demanded, thus triggering them to lose everything, another reason why they had a bad reputation is that they took advantage of travelers, they gave them money loans with an interest rate that tripled the original sum of money that was lent.
At first Matthew was no exception, however, Jesus decided to give him a chance and chose him as his disciple, this was surprising for many, because the great teacher had chosen a man hated by all, however, Jesus responded to everything this, that he observed that he was not a man with a bad heart, he also said that he saw all that he could achieve if he was supported.
This fact could be clearly noticed when Mateo, unlike the rest of the apostles, had the ability to read and write, the others, as they had previously dedicated themselves to fishing, had not developed that knowledge. Thanks to the fact that Matthew had become one of the apostles, he was the first man in the world to transcribe in Hebrew all the teachings that Jesus gave to the world.
At the time of choosing Mateo as a disciple, everyone was amazed, because nobody thought that it could be possible that someone of such a ilk could be reformed, however, this was only proof that for God the impossible does not exist, which served to demonstrate to the Christian community that they should not judge people no matter who they are.
As a result of all this, Mateo was officially the first to write about Jesus and his message to the world, Mateo was a great missionary who preached his word of the gospel, he was very grateful because he changed the course of his life thanks to Jesus. He is associated with the symbol of three bags full of coins, this to represent the life he previously had as a collector. We invite you to read gods of buddhism
Pedro
Peter was the son of Jonah, like other apostles, before joining Jesus as his disciple he was a fisherman who lived in the cities of Bethsaida and Capernaum. He is known to have done his evangelistic work preaching to the Jews, even going as far away as Babylon.
Peter was a member of the inner circle of the city of Jerusalem, he wrote two epistles for the new testament that bear his name. According to the historical records that we have of him, it is known that he was also crucified in the city of Rome, unlike the other apostles who crucified him upside down.
In all the lists of the apostles he is always mentioned as Peter, however, he was known by other names, in the years of Christ, the best known language was Greek while Hebrew was less known. This resulted in his name being "Simon" in Greek and "Cephas" in Hebrew, both meaning rock, this is seen in the verses Mark 1:16; John 1:40 to 41; Corinthians 1:12, 3:22 and 9:5; Galatians 2:9.
Like other disciples, Peter came from Galilee, the Galileans were known for always innovating in everything they did, they were very open to the changes they presented, they were also ready to start an insurrection if it were necessary, it was known that they were warriors, but despite that fact, they were recognized for being gentlemen.
According to Talmud (a work that collects Jewish traditions), the Galileans were people who longed for honor much more than victory, they had strong temperaments and were impulsive, they were also known to be very emotional, they were passionate about the idea of living the adventure, they were loyal to the end. In the end, even though he was just another Galilean among his group, he was the leader.
In the biblical verse Matthew 15: 15, it is narrated how he asked Jesus the meaning of the parable, in addition, he asked other questions to the teacher Jesus, such as how often we should forgive others, even thanks to him is that we know the reward that there is when following Jesus. Jesus, this is why he stood out as the spokesman for the apostles.
Another fact about Peter is that he was one of the first to confess to Jesus, reaching the point of even declaring him as the Son of God the father. Peter accompanied Jesus to the mountain where he performed the transfiguration, witnessed the miracles of Christ, well, he saw how Jairus's daughter came back to life, unfortunately, she also denied Christ before a servant.
Even though Peter made a lot of mistakes, he was a person who always preached and dedicated his life to Jesus, that's why he always had his grace, that's why it didn't matter that he fell several times, even that he failed, he always had grace It helped him regain his courage. When he died he said to be crucified upside down because he did not deserve the honor of dying like Jesus, that is why he is symbolized with an upside down cross and crossed keys.
Felipe
Like the rest of Jesus' disciples, Philip was also a fisherman, in fact, he was originally from Bethsaida like other apostles. According to the historical records that exist, Philip dedicated himself to preaching in Phrygia and finally died a martyr in Hierapolis, and although he is mentioned in the biblical verses of Matthew 10:3; Mark 3:18; Luke 6:14 and Acts 1:13, he is only spoken of doing things in the gospel according to John.
Many Bible scholars have quarrels about Philip, this is because in the different gospels of the Bible that he is spoken of, he is always described as a different person, however, this may be due to the fact that as they were written by different people, the way of describing him was also different, an argument used by some of his defenders.
In the Gospel of John, Philip is spoken of as one of the first to receive the word of Jesus, this was reason enough for other apostles to tell him when they met before Christ «At last we found the son of God, the one whom Moses and other prophets described.
Bartholomew was a little distrustful, however, Philip did not show this type of distrust, on the contrary, he responded to Jesus "Come and See" therefore, it can be seen that despite having seen him for the first time he decided to trust Christ, also that Felipe had a good intuition as a missionary.
Felipe is described as a person with a good heart, although unfortunately he is also said to be pessimistic, he is described as someone who would have liked to do good deeds for others, however, according to him, he did not see how he could do this, no However, he always gave his best, revealing in this way why God chose him.
Sadly, he died hanging, but he used his last strength to ask that his body not be wrapped in fine linen because he did not deserve to be treated like Jesus, he preferred to be wrapped in papyrus. He is symbolized as a basket of food by a biblical story, it is also said that he was the first to treat the cross as a Christian and victorious symbol.
Simon
Not much is known about the apostle Simon, but he was known as "the Zealot" it is also known that he was a Galilean, according to historical records he died on the cross. There is a debate about how to name it because, in the Reina Valera Biblical version it is called "Cananist" in the verses Matthew 10:4 and Mark 3:18, while in other versions of the Bible in the verses of Luke 6:15 and Acts 1:13, he is called Simon Zealot.
In the new testament he is hardly named, only the fact that he was a zealot stands out, that is how all those who were nationalist Jews were called, they had lost their sanity because they had a deep hatred towards the Romans, in fact , their hatred was so great that it motivated them to destroy the city of Jerusalem (action of the Zealots that did not involve Simon).
The Zealots are described as a reckless, jealous and extravagant group, it can be seen in the records about Simon that he was also an extremist patriot, and like the other Zealots he also had a mistrust of Rome that ate him up inside. However, Simon, following in the footsteps of Jesus and becoming an apostle, abandoned all those dark feelings.
It is known that he was able to leave behind all that hatred thanks to the teachings of Jesus, despite having killed for being loyal to Israel, he changed completely when he surrendered to the will of God. Like the other apostles, he was a martyr, his symbol is a fish on a Bible, this is because at one point in his life he was a fisherman.
Thomas
It is known that Thomas lived in the city of Galilee, it is known that he worked in the cities of parthia and in countries like Persia and India, unfortunately, like many other disciples of Jesus, he died becoming a martyr, this happened on the mount baptized as Saint Thomas located in India, and it is said that he was also crucified.
Thomas was the Hebrew name he had, although his Greek name was didymosHowever, some came to call him Judas. In the Gospels of Matthew, Luke and Mark there is almost no information about him, they only say his name, however, in the Gospel of John there is more information about him.
Thomas was present at the resurrection of Lazarus, this is described in the verse of John 11:2 to 16. He is also spoken of in the verses of John 14: 1 to 6, here it is narrated how he wanted to know the path of Jesus and how to follow it. Finally, in the biblical verse of Juan 20: 25, it is narrated how he refused to believe the resurrection of Jesus, he said that unless he could see the marks on his hands and feet, even his wound in the side he would not believe, that is why he was given the nickname "Thomas the unbeliever."
The way that Tomás could believe was doubt, he was quite pessimistic by nature, despite everything, he is known to be a man with courage, he is described as someone who had to see to believe, despite everything he was a man with devotion and faith towards Jesus Christ, when he was resurrected he told Thomas to see his wounds on his hands, side and feet that had cost him his life.
Although Thomas always believed that the good news was always too good to be true, his faith did not stop growing every day to serve Jesus. In his last years of life, he was commissioned to build a palace for the King of India, but when he finished it he was killed with a spear, in this way he became a martyr, he is symbolized with several spears grouped in stones and arrows. If you liked this article you can read Healing Mantras