So whowasthis person the Bible calls Simon the Zealot, and what do we actually know about him? The period of early Christianity during the lifetimes of the apostles is called the Apostolic Age. It is unknown how Eleazar ben Simon died. And I was delivered from the lions mouth. The Bible reveals nothing significant about this apostle. Simon of Cyrene (Hebrew: , Standard Hebrew imon, Tiberian Hebrew imn; Greek: , Simn Kyrnaios; died 100) was the man compelled by the Romans to carry the cross of Jesus of Nazareth as Jesus was taken to his crucifixion, according to all three Synoptic Gospels. We know little about him other than his name. In fact, whenever he is listed in the Gospel writings it is with the designationSimon the Zealot. Jesus teachings (such as turning the other cheek and loving your enemies) were often the complete opposite of the ideology the Zealots embraced. Scholars generally believe he was killed in Jerusalem in 44 AD. The fall of Jerusalem also spurred a Jewish Diaspora throughout the ancient world because of enslavement and a large number of fleeing refugees. Nothing else is known about him. His apostolic symbol is a fish lying on a Bible, which indicates he was a former fisherman who became a fisher of men through preaching. And I was delivered from the lions mouth. His remains are buried in a crypt in Rome. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that dayand not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing., At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. According to The Golden Legend, when Simon and Jude commanded demons to come out of idols, the religious leaders killed them: And when the bishops saw this, they ran upon the apostles and hewed them to death anon. The Lives Of Faith: Simon The Zealot, Simon The Sorcerer, And Simeon Of Jerusalem. Tertullian, a Christian writer in the second and third centuries, recorded that before the Romans exiled John, they brought him into a coliseum and immersed him in a barrel of boiling oil. Today, anyone who has trusted in Christ is a disciple but the days of apostleship is over and ended with the conclusion of the New Testament. According to Eusebius, he returned to Jerusalem in the year 62 and assisted at the election of his brother, St. Simeon, as Bishop of Jerusalem. Despite the Zealots' failure to achieve political and religious liberation, Eleazar ben Simon helped cultivate the idea of an independent Jewish state and ingrained a sense of fear in future Roman leaders in the Middle East. And John elaborated, Jesus said this to indicate the kind of death by which Peter would glorify God (John 21:19). Therefore, it is anachronistic to view people acting with zeal before 68 C.E. Listen to the heartbreaking last words of Paul as he awaited his execution in 2 Timothy 4:16-18: At my first defense, no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. This year was marked by bitter civil war between the three factions under Simon, John, and Eleazar. Matthias was the apostle that was selected to replace Judas who hung himself. This is the most inconspicuous of all the apostles and he is called James the Less to distinguish him from the other apostle named James and the James who was Jesus half-brother. TheNew Testamentlists all twelve apostles four timesMatthew 10:2-4,Mark 3:14-19,Luke 6:13-16, andActs 1:13-16. Simon was surnamed the Zealot for his rigid adherence to the Jewish law and to the Canaanite law. Some scholars believe Josephus exaggerated the Zealots to keep the peace, blaming the war on a small Jewish sect and some bad Roman leaders. And the king bare the bodies of the apostles into his city, and did do make a church of marvellous greatness in the honour of them.. [1] The fact that he was in Greece may mean that he was participating in the Great Commission and taking the gospel to the whole worldat least the known world. In this history of the Jewish revolt, Josephus portrays Eleazar ben Simon as a murderous and impulsive Zealot who regarded his own personal ambitions above the well-being of the Jewish people. Simon the Zealot's death is disputed amongst scholars. He usually has a small flame above his head and he often carries a pen. Few pseudepigraphical writings were . It may not even be accurate to call him a disciple because he truly did not follow Christ Who said that whoever would be my disciple must follow after me (Matthew 16:24). Revised and edited for New Advent by Kevin Knight. 2010 3 May. There are two St. James among the original twelve apostles: St. James the Greater whose feast is on July 25, and St. James the Less, the Lesser, or the Minor, whose feast is on May 3 and shared with St. Philip. Heres how Josephus explains it inThe Antiquities of the Jews: Yet was there one Judas, a Gaulonite; of a city whose name was Gamala; who, taking with him Saddouk, a Pharisee, became zealous to draw them to a revolt: who both said that this taxation was no better than an introduction to slavery: and exhorted the nation to assert their liberty.. The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom. Judas is often identified as a Zealot, an attribute held by only one other disciple, Simon the Zealot. Nearly every image of him depicts him wearing a medallion with a profile of Jesus. If you like what you're reading, you can get free daily updates through the RSS feed here. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); Online Christian Articles and Information Hub. His relics reside at Saint Peter's in Rome, at Rheims, and at Toulouse, France. Simon was called by Jesus and was completely changed. The three Synoptic Gospels recount how Peters mother-in-law was healed by Jesus at their home in Capernaum (Matthew 8:1417, Mark 1:2931, Luke 4:38); this passage clearly depicts Peter as being married. We think of Jesus' disciple, Simon "the Zealot" or "Canaanite", and of Josephus's account of Judas the Galilean in 6 CE apparently responsible for what became the Zealot party and a widespread "nationalist" movement against Roman rule. The apostle Simon is not Simon Peter (Andrews brother) but Simon the Zealot. There are no early church records of Simon the Zealots ministry, so its hard to say where he spread the gospelbut presumably, he did. [1] We must understand that they were first called disciples which are what every believer is called. Nothing is known of Eleazar's fate after this betrayal, except for the fact that Josephus mentioned him as still commanding the Zealots when they rejoined John in his fight against Simon bar Giora. Yet when the revolt broke out in 66 CE, the Galilean zealots fled the Roman massacres and sought refuge in the last major Jewish stronghold: Jerusalem. The apostle Simon is not Simon Peter (Andrew's brother) but Simon the Zealot. There were many Magi in Persia and so the chances that it would be the same ones who sought Jesus were the same ones who crucified Jude is highly unlikely. 1 Chronicles 16:11 Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually! Jesus predicted Peters death when He said to him, when you are old you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go (John 21:18). This was done to him after he repeatedly refused to deny his faith in Jesus. Resources: New International Version Bible THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION, NIV Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc. Used by permission. First we need to establish exactly who Simon the Zealot was. Bible Study, 21.7.12. Not much beyond this is known since Matthew was in such a remote place in Africa and went where few historian or Christians ventured to go. Feast Day: October 28th. He is usually identified with the Apostle Simon the Zealot, with whom he shares a surname, or with the Apostle Jude. Hes never mentioned in the Gospel of John, but John never explicitly lists all the apostles.This means Simon was one of the people who was closest to Jesus, and that he spent about three years living with him, witnessing his miracles, and hearing his teachings. Bible Based. In any case, the gospel writers used this description to distinguishthisSimon from Simon Peterand the other Simons in the New Testament. God loves each of us as if there were only one of us"- Augustine. 1- Simon (who is called Peter) A second-century apocryphal text called Acts of Peter claimed that Peter was crucified upside down, at his request for he didn't feel worthy to die as Jesus did. [citation needed]. Each of these Simons is clearly distinct, and Simon the Apostle isalwaysreferred to with the moniker the Zealot.. having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ, Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were young, you used to dress yourself and walk wherever you wanted, but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go., How the Apostle Bartholomew or Nathaniel Died, How the Apostle James (son of Zebedee) Died, Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on His breast at the supper, and said, Lord, who is the one who betrays You?, Peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, But Lord, what about this man? Jesus said to him, If I will that he remain till I come, what is that to you? The Acts of Philip document gives an account of his martyrdom. It is unlikely that the Magi mentioned in the New Testament who were searching for the child King, Jesus, and the ones who crucified Jude were one and the same. Second Timothy was the last letter ever written by Paul and in it he knew that the time of his death drew near as he wrote to Timothy For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. Yet prior to this encounter, little is known about his early life and rise to power. To him be glory for ever and ever. This faith in the Zealot cause attracted many Jews to help fight against Rome, which resulted in vast casualties. We have studied James, the brother of John, an apostle that was among our Lord's closest disciples. In the midst of his pain as he hangs on the cross, unjustly accused, sentenced, and condemned to death, he does not cry out curses and abuse on his tormentors, as do the dying "lestai." The apostle James is not the same James as Jesus brother so we need to establish that fact. We will now examine the historical evidence of how these men died. After his resurrection, Jesus sent eleven of them (minus Judas Iscariot, who by then had died ) by the Great Commission to spread his teachings to all nations. In this instance Canaanite is being used in its political sense, and does not refer to Simon's place of origin. And is not Galilee a hotbed of these messianic and nationalist rebels? [citation needed]. Simon of Cyrene (Hebrew: , Standard Hebrew imon, Tiberian Hebrew imn; Greek: , Simn Kyrnaios; died 100) was the man compelled by the Romans to carry the cross of Jesus of Nazareth as Jesus was taken to his crucifixion, according to all three Synoptic Gospels. Sts. The Bible does not expressly give details about the ways in which the apostles died. And that same hour, which was right fair weather, came so great thunder and lightning that the temple was smitten in three, and the two enchanters were turned into coals by the stroke of thunder. In Josephus' Bellum Judaicum, the primary source of the First Jewish-Roman War, important historical figures are introduced with their patrimonial name when they first appear, and addressed by first name in all following appearances. May it not be held against them. Another tradition says, he was stoned by Jews in Jerusalem and then beheaded. Return to: The apocryphal Acts of Thomas says this apostle was martyred in Mylapore, India, where he was stabbed with spears. James the Greater was nicknamed one of the Sons of Thunder by Jesus. This is the disciple that replaced Judas Iscariot (Acts 1:12-26) that betrayed Jesus and then hanged himself (Matthew 27:5). The knowledge of Peters death is widespread among secular and church historians. He is an author of an epistle (letter) to the Churches of the East, in particular the Jewish converts, directed against the heresies of the Simonians, Nicolaites, and Gnostics. He died after being crucified in Jerusalem during the First Revolt against Rome (also known as the Great Revolt). The church, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone cannot have other apostles any more than it can have another cornerstone (Ephesians 2:20) because no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ (1 Corintians 3:11). Hammond and Grotius think that St. Simon was called the Zealot, before his coming to Christ, because he was one of that particular sect or party among the Jews called Zealots, from a singular zeal they possessed for the honour of God and the purity of religion. You follow Me., whoever would be my disciple must follow after me, For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. Little is known about the post-Pentecost life of St. Simon, who had been called a Zealot. The cause of his death in unclear because of the existence of two versions: (1) He was crucified in Edessa, Turkey; (2) He was clubbed-to-death and his body was either sawed or axed in pieces after (together with Simon the Zealot). St. Jude, known as Thaddaeus, was a brother of St. James the Lesser, and a relative of Jesus. Amen.. how did 12 apostles die, Jack Wellman is a father and grandfather and a Christian author and pastor of Heritage Evangelical Free Church in Udall, KS [https://modelchrist.org/] & also a Prison Minister. In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. 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