tc.1a.
Sons of thunder.
The annals that have come down to us are sketchy about the careers of these apostles. Though John is traditionally thought to have written the books
John
and
Revelation,
there is no firm proof of those claims.
In any case, think of a very strong preacher, giving a rousing sermon from the pulpit. If he is Spirit-filled, he very likely is being very effective at proclaiming the Word in such a way that many hearers are moved. Such a preacher might be fairly described as a "son of thunder" and in fact the word boanerges (Aramaic for sons of thunder ) is often used to describe such a preacher.
In any case, these two apostles may have become effective preachers without having their words and deeds much recorded.
tc.1. We may conjecture that Judah was the only apostle from Judaea. Simon/Peter and his brother Andrew were from Bethsaida, on the northeast shore of Lake Galilee, as was Philip. James and John were from North Galilee, probably Bethsaida.
Matthew worked in Capernaum. Bartholomew very likely came from Bethsaida. Of Thomas's home area we cannot be certain. His name is Semitic, meaning he might have been from anywhere Jews were settled. In the case of Simon and Andrew, their non-Semitic names suggest Jews residing where the Greek culture of the Gentiles was influential.
( Simon could be Semitic, or Greek. But Andrew is assuredly Greek. To reinforce that point, we note that Philip is a Greek name. The scholar Raymond E. Brown identifies the Galilean Philip as a leader of the Hellenist [Greek] faction of the early church at Jerusalem, whereas the Galilean Peter was aligned with the more Jewish group.)
Of James, son of Alphaeus, we know little as to origin. Yet, Alphaeus is also the name of the father of the taxman, Levi, mentioned in Mark 2:14. So if Levi and Matthew are the same person and if there is one father named Alphaeus, that would make James a resident of Capernaum.
Of the Zealot Simon's home area, we cannot say much. But we may observe that possibly two rebellions led by a Galilean named Judah occurred in Galilee, and the Zealot movement seems to have been an outgrowth of those rebellions.
The idea that Judas Iscariot means Judah of Kerioth in Judaea has plenty of support, but we have no absolute certainty.
tc.2. That is, we have the twin, intertwined doctrines of remission of sin by Jesus and justification by faith, not works.
In any case, think of a very strong preacher, giving a rousing sermon from the pulpit. If he is Spirit-filled, he very likely is being very effective at proclaiming the Word in such a way that many hearers are moved. Such a preacher might be fairly described as a "son of thunder" and in fact the word boanerges (Aramaic for sons of thunder ) is often used to describe such a preacher.
In any case, these two apostles may have become effective preachers without having their words and deeds much recorded.
tc.1. We may conjecture that Judah was the only apostle from Judaea. Simon/Peter and his brother Andrew were from Bethsaida, on the northeast shore of Lake Galilee, as was Philip. James and John were from North Galilee, probably Bethsaida.
Matthew worked in Capernaum. Bartholomew very likely came from Bethsaida. Of Thomas's home area we cannot be certain. His name is Semitic, meaning he might have been from anywhere Jews were settled. In the case of Simon and Andrew, their non-Semitic names suggest Jews residing where the Greek culture of the Gentiles was influential.
( Simon could be Semitic, or Greek. But Andrew is assuredly Greek. To reinforce that point, we note that Philip is a Greek name. The scholar Raymond E. Brown identifies the Galilean Philip as a leader of the Hellenist [Greek] faction of the early church at Jerusalem, whereas the Galilean Peter was aligned with the more Jewish group.)
Of James, son of Alphaeus, we know little as to origin. Yet, Alphaeus is also the name of the father of the taxman, Levi, mentioned in Mark 2:14. So if Levi and Matthew are the same person and if there is one father named Alphaeus, that would make James a resident of Capernaum.
Of the Zealot Simon's home area, we cannot say much. But we may observe that possibly two rebellions led by a Galilean named Judah occurred in Galilee, and the Zealot movement seems to have been an outgrowth of those rebellions.
The idea that Judas Iscariot means Judah of Kerioth in Judaea has plenty of support, but we have no absolute certainty.
tc.2. That is, we have the twin, intertwined doctrines of remission of sin by Jesus and justification by faith, not works.
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