The Fourteen Apostles Of Jesus

 

The Twelve chosen by Jesus who he named Apostles are recorded in the Gospels.

 

Matthew 10:2-4 (NIV)

These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

 

1. Peter: His original name was Simon however Jesus gave him the name Peter in Mark 3:16. He was also known as: Simon bar Jonah, Simon bar Jochanan, Cephas (The Rock), and is most commonly known as Simon Peter. He was born in Bethsaida on the Sea of Galilee. He was also a leader of the early Christian church and reportedly the first Roman Catholic Pope. He was also acquainted with the later Apostle Paul and the letters 1 and 2 Peter bears his name. Tradition holds that Peter was crucified upside down by the Romans during the reign of Emperor Nero as reported by Origen.

 

2. Andrew: He was the brother of Peter (Simon) and was one of the disciples of John the Baptist. He was also born in Bethsaida on the Sea of Galilee and tradition holds that he was crucified on an X shaped cross at Patrae where two ends were buried in the ground because he criticized the Achaian proconsul for idolatry.

 

Note: Peter and Andrew were fishermen by trade on the Sea of Galilee and when Jesus saw them casting their net into the water he told them “Come, follow me, Jesus said, and I will make you fishers of men” Matthew 4:19

 

3. James: This is the first James that Jesus chose and he was a son of Zebedee. He was also known as James the Greater to distinguish him from James the son of Alphaeus and was one of the first disciples to follow Jesus. He was also the first of The Twelve to be martyred and was put to death with a sword by Herod Agrippa (Acts 12:1-2)

 

4. John: He was the older brother of James and is known as the disciple whom Jesus loved and John of Patmos. His Gospel John bears his name as do his letters 1, 2 and 3 John. After the death and resurrection of Jesus John (John 19:27) took Mary the mother of Jesus to Ephesus to live with him. John was later taken from Ephesus to prison on the Island of Patmos by Domitian in the Aegean Sea 50 miles southeast of Ephesus where he wrote Revelation in 95 AD. After his release he returned to Ephesus where he died five years later in about 100 AD of old age and his traditional tomb is thought to be located in Selcuk near Ephesus where he and Mary lived.

 

Note: “To them (The Sons Of Zebedee) he gave the name Boanerges, which means Sons of Thunder. (Mark 3:17)

 

5. Philip: Like Peter and Andrew was from Bethsaida (John 1:43) and he was also known as Philip the Evangelist. Tradition holds that he died as a martyr at Hierapolis in Phrygia after being flogged, imprisoned, and later crucified.

 

6. Bartholomew: Other than being named as an apostle in the Gospels he is only mentioned one other time as a witness to the Ascension. Tradition holds that he preached in India or Armenia and was said to have been tortured, flayed alive or crucified upside down in India.

 

7. Matthew: His original name was Levi and he was also known as Matthew the tax collector from Capernaum. His Gospel Matthew bears his name. Legend has it that he preached in unspecified foreign nations and tradition holds that he died by a halberd which is a pike fitted with an ax head in Nadabah.

 

8. Thomas: He was also known as Judas Thomas Didymus and Doubting Thomas because he didn’t believe it when told of Jesus’ Resurrection. Like Bartholomew is thought by some to have been killed in India but with a spear or a lance.

 

9. James: This is the second James Jesus chose and he was the son of Alphaeus. He was also known as James the Less, James the Younger and James the Just and is only mentioned a few times in the New Testament. Tradition holds that he was beaten or clubbed to death in Jerusalem but his death is really unknown.

 

10. Thaddeus: He was also known as Judas the son of James, Jude of James, Jude Thaddaeus, Judas Thaddaeus, Lebbaeus but most commonly referred to as Judas not Iscariot. He was also identified with Jude Jesus brother. He was said by some to have been crucified at Edessa but like James his death is really unknown.

 

11. Simon: He was also known as Simon Zelotes but most commonly known as Simon the Zealot because he was a member of the Zealots sect who held strong political views. Some say that he was crucified in Britain but like James and Thaddaeus his death is really unknown.

 

12. Judas Iscariot: He was also known as Judas the son of Simon but is most commonly known as the disciple who betrayed Jesus. He committed suicide by hanging himself from a tree (Matthew 27:5) after betraying Jesus.

 

Matthias: In order to bring the number back up to twelve after Judas hanged himself Matthias was chosen by the remaining eleven apostles to take his place (Acts 1:25-26). His Gospel bearing his name was not included in the cannon of scripture. Tradition holds that he was stoned and then beheaded in Jerusalem.

 

Paul: His original name was Saul and he was known as Paul the Apostle, the Apostle Paul or Paul of Tarsus and was called by Jesus after his ascension to be an apostle to the Gentiles (Acts 9:1-31). Tradition holds that he was stripped naked and beheaded by the command of Nero along the Appian Way.

 

 

The King James Bible Language Debate

 

The King James Version (KJV) of the Bible with its Elizabethan language like the Puritans and Pilgrims spoke or Spake is very hard to understand and much of it is even harder to read out loud with its antiquated outdated language. For me the language is just too difficult to read let alone comprehend much like the works by William Shakespeare (1564–1616) who penned his famous Plays and Sonnets when the King James Version was assembled and then printed.

 

Many claim that the King James Version is the only “Real” or authentic English version of the bible translated from Masoretic Hebrew and Greek texts and first published in 1611 in England as the “Authorized King James Version” since it was authorized by King James I of England (1566–1625). This may be true simply because it was the first commonly available English translation thanks in part to the invention of movable type printing developed by Johannes Gutenberg (1398-1468) and his Gutenberg press. Prior to that works in the cannon of scripture that make up the Bible had to be transcribed by hand by Monks and the like and were commissioned by wealthy patrons and was not readily available to the masses. Most of the people living then could not read or write and books that make up the bible such as the scrolls of the Old Testament that the Jew had and the Dead Sea Scrolls of the Essenes were available to the Priests, the wealthy and learned educated patrons.

 

As a result of that little invention the most common edition of the Bible available today is the 1987 edition printing of the King James Version which is in the public domain which means there is no Copyright for it. With this in mind you do not have to adhere to all of the Copyright limitation rules, qualifications and regulations like the ever so slightly updated version the New King James Version (NKJV) and other versions and that is in part why it is so popular:

 

Copyright Information

The text of the New King James Version® (NKJV®) may be quoted or reprinted without prior written permission with the following qualifications:

Up to and including 1,000 verses may be quoted in printed form as long as the verses quoted amount to less than 50% of a complete book of the Bible and make up less than 50% of the total work in which they are quoted; all NKJV quotations must conform accurately to the NKJV text.

Any use of the NKJV text must include a proper acknowledgment as follows:

“Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.”

However, when quotations from the NKJV text are used in church bulletins, orders of service, Sunday School lessons, church newsletters and similar works in the course of religious instruction or services at a place of worship or other religious assembly, the following notice may be used at the end of each quotation: “NKJV.”

 

Publications such as Lifeway’s Open Windows and their Life Ventures quarterlies use the King James Version quotations for that reason as well as other publishers and that is one of the reasons why the King James Version is so popular. With the internet the King James Version can be posted, published or quoted in its entirety without restraint so that it can be read on line from many web sites or even downloaded to your computer. Since it is so easy to get that too contributes to its popularity. However just because it is so easy to get for free does not make the best Bible version translation out there.

 

Because it was written in the 17Th century which is the Early Modern period (1601-1700) it is nearly 4 centuries old and it contains language that was spoken by those such as William Shakespeare who were living when the 1611 edition was printed. This was also about the time that the flintlock musket and the refracting telescope were invented and Ice cream, Tea and coffee were just becoming popular in Europe. Jamestown the first English colony in America was only settled by the Pilgrims five years before in 1607.

 

It is not the worst version of the Bible out there because it does not change the original scriptures that are the inspired word of God to reflect personal agendas – I leave that distinction to the New World Translation (NTW) version of the Watchtower societies Jehovah’s Witnesses with its theologically motivated mistranslations. Bibles such as The Message (MSG) bible which is in my opinion the worst “Christian” bible out there next to the Amplified Bible (AMP) with its lexicons hanging off each word try to update the language for the modern reader but fail short. I have to agree that the King James Version is very poetic however I prefer the New International Version (NIV) and the New Living Translation (NLT) over it however there is quite a bit of debate over which of them is the most accurate translation.

 

To read the bible as it was originally written as far as we know – due to the fact that Monks in Monasteries originally copied manuscripts by hand and had the opportunity to modify the text – you have to read Hebrew for the Old Testament books and Greek for the New Testament Books but the same problem of accuracy exists there. However that poses a problem as well. Much of the Old Testament was handed down by oral traditions and was not “written down” until centuries later. We have very old texts such as the Dead Sea Scrolls but we do not have any originals per se. The same can be said of the later New Testament scriptures which were written 400 years after Malachi as well. We know for a fact that the Epistles or letters of Paul and John’s book of Revelation were originally hand written as we read in the scriptures. However we have none of the original circular letters written 2000 years ago, but I digress.

 

The point is that the King James Version language is old fashion and laughable. When the King James Version scriptures are read out loud to groups of school aged children often times they giggle at the old language of the scriptures. The very young school aged children tend to think that it is funny and laugh and when they do so the scriptures loose their meaning. The New King James Version is better or should I say easier to read and understand but some the old language still exists.

 

For example Psalm 60:10 in the King James Version reads: Wilt not thou, O God, which hadst cast us off? and thou, O God, which didst not go out with our armies? Is one example of scripture that is both hard to read out loud or to your self and is hard to understand and comprehend. The New King James Version is much easier to read out loud or to your self and is easier to understand and comprehend: Is it not You, O God, who cast us off? And You, O God, who did not go out with our armies?

 

The New International Version which reads: Is it not you, O God, you who have rejected us and no longer go out with our armies? Is closest to the King James however the New Living Translation is easier to understand which reads: Have you rejected us, O God? Will you no longer march with our armies? The point here is that it doesn’t really matter what version of the Bible you read most of them from our Century convey the same message and there is no need to use the King James Version. You would not wear the clothes your family members wore 4 centuries ago so why would you read the same Bible version they read with language where Wilt, Thou, Hadst, Smote, Spake and Ye are used?

 

 

Getting Mad And Angry

 

Jesus tells us in the Gospel of Matthew 5:22 (NIV)

But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca’, is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.

 

Note: Raca: vain, empty, worthless, only found in Matthew 5:22. The Jews used it as a word of contempt. It is derived from a root meaning “to spit.” – Easton’s Bible Dictionary

 

This describes anger that is ungodly in nature. However anger in a Godly manner can be good. Both God and Jesus become angry on occasions. God was angry with the following:

 

Moses – Exodus 4:14 (NIV)

Then the Lord’s anger burned against Moses and he said, “What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet you, and his heart will be glad when he sees you. 

Israelites – Deuteronomy 1:34-38 (NIV)

When the LORD heard what you said, he was angry and solemnly swore: “Not a man of this evil generation shall see the good land I swore to give your forefathers, except Caleb son of Jephunneh. He will see it, and I will give him and his descendants the land he set his feet on, because he followed the LORD wholeheartedly.”

Because of you the LORD became angry with me also and said, “You shall not enter it, either. But your assistant, Joshua son of Nun, will enter it. Encourage him, because he will lead Israel to inherit it.

 

Moses – Deuteronomy 3:25-27 (NIV)

Let me go over and see the good land beyond the Jordan—that fine hill country and Lebanon.” But because of you the LORD was angry with me and would not listen to me. “That is enough,” the LORD said. “Do not speak to me anymore about this matter. Go up to the top of Pisgah and look west and north and south and east. Look at the land with your own eyes, since you are not going to cross this Jordan.

 

Israelites Idolatry – Deuteronomy 4:20-22 (NIV)

But as for you, the LORD took you and brought you out of the iron-smelting furnace, out of Egypt, to be the people of his inheritance, as you now are.

The LORD was angry with me because of you, and he solemnly swore that I would not cross the Jordan and enter the good land the LORD your God is giving you as your inheritance. I will die in this land; I will not cross the Jordan; but you are about to cross over and take possession of that good land.

 

Aaron – Deuteronomy 9:19-21 (NIV)

I feared the anger and wrath of the LORD, for he was angry enough with you to destroy you. But again the LORD listened to me. And the LORD was angry enough with Aaron to destroy him, but at that time I prayed for Aaron too. Also I took that sinful thing of yours, the calf you had made, and burned it in the fire. Then I crushed it and ground it to powder as fine as dust and threw the dust into a stream that flowed down the mountain.

 

Solomon – 1 Kings 11:9 (NIV)

The Lord became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the Lord, the God of Israel, who had appeared to him twice.

 

Judah and Jerusalem – 2 Chronicles 24:17-19 (NIV)

After the death of Jehoiada, the officials of Judah came and paid homage to the king, and he listened to them. They abandoned the temple of the LORD, the God of their fathers, and worshiped Asherah poles and idols. Because of their guilt, God’s anger came upon Judah and Jerusalem. Although the LORD sent prophets to the people to bring them back to him, and though they testified against them, they would not listen.

 

Israel – Psalm 78:30-32 (NIV)

But before they turned from the food they craved, even while it was still in their mouths, God’s anger rose against them; he put to death the sturdiest among them, cutting down the young men of Israel. In spite of all this, they kept on sinning; in spite of his wonders, they did not believe.

 

David – Psalm 38:3 (NIV)

Because of your wrath there is no health in my body; my bones have no soundness because of my sin.

 

Israel – Psalm 106:39-41 (NIV)

They defiled themselves by what they did; by their deeds they prostituted themselves. Therefore the LORD was angry with his people and abhorred his inheritance.

He handed them over to the nations, and their foes ruled over them.

 

Jesus Himself got angry at the Pharisees when they tried to trap him and when he cleared the temple.

 

The Pharisees – Mark 3:1-6 (NIV)

Another time he went into the synagogue, and a man with a shriveled hand was there. Some of them were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath. Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.” Then Jesus asked them, “Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” But they remained silent. He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. Then the Pharisees went out and began to plot with the Herodians how they might kill Jesus.

 

Jesus Clears the Temple – John 2:12-16 (NIV)

After this he went down to Capernaum with his mother and brothers and his disciples. There they stayed for a few days. When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple courts he found men selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple area, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! How dare you turn my Father’s house into a market!”