Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Matthew 10:3
Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the [son] of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus whose surname was Thaddaeus;
3. Philip, also a Greek name prevalent at the time, partly through the influence of the Macedonian monarchy, whose real founder was Philip, father of Alexander the Great.
Lebbus, Thaddus, Jude the [son] of James, are all names of one and the same person. He was the son in all probability of a James or Jacob, not, as usually translated, brother of James. The name “Lebbus” = “courageous” from a Hebrew word signifying “heart.”
This Jude or Judas must not be confused with Jude or Judas the “brother” of our Lord; nor must James the son of Alphus be confused with James the brother of our Lord. The “brethren of the Lord” believed not on Him, and could not have been among His apostles. James and Judas were both common names, and the variety of names seems to have been small at this epoch. According to this theory there are four persons named James (1) the son of Zebedee, (2) the son of Alphus, (3) the father of Jude, (4) “The less” or rather “the little,” the brother of the Lord: and three named Judas (1) the brother of the Lord, (2) the apostle, son of James, (3) Iscariot.
Matthew or Levi also was son of an Alphus, but there is no evidence or hint that he was connected with James son of Alphus.
Bartholomew = son of Tolmai, probably to be identified with Nathanael. (1) St John, who twice mentions the name of Nathanael, never mentions that of Bartholomew; (2) the three Synoptists mention Bartholomew but not Nathanael. (3) Philip is closely connected with Nathanael and also with Bartholomew. (4) Lastly, Nathanael is mentioned with six other disciples as if like them he belonged to the Twelve.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Philip and Bartholomew – These two were probably sent out together. Philip was a native of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. He is not the same as Philip the evangelist, mentioned in Act 6:5; Act 21:8. Bartholomew (literally, the son of Tolmai).
Thomas – Literally, a twin, in reference to which he is also called Didymus, Joh 11:16. For his character, see the notes at Joh 20:25. And Matthew the publican. See the notes at Mat 9:9. James the son of Alpheus. See the note above.
And Lebbeus, called Thaddeus – These two words have the same signification in Hebrew. Luke calls him Judas, by a slight change from the name Thaddeus. Such changes are common in all writings.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Mat 10:3
Matthew the publican.
Matthew the publican
I. The power, and grace of the divine call. Power is measured by the amount or degree of resistance which it is able to overcome. There were three chief obstacles in the way of this mans conversion.
1. His business exposed hint constantly to temptations which were well nigh irresistible.
2. The standard of morality recognized by his associates was proverbially low.
3. He had no character to sustain.
II. A sinners conversion is a cause of joy.
III. Converted souls desire to promote the conversion others.
IV. Matthews chief characteristic was humility. (W. F. Bishop.)
The tax-collector who became a bishop
St. Matthews example led to one of the holiest lives recorded in the annals of the early Church. One of the most able and useful men of the North African Church was the Bishop Nulgertius. He had originally been receiver of taxes, but it one day occurred to him: May I not be like Matthew, become from a tax-gatherer a preacher of the gospel. He accordingly left his worldly employment, became an ecclesiastic, and was ultimately a most useful bishop.
A humble acknowledger of an unworthy past
We read the histories of such persons with vast interest and pleasure; and there is one circumstance which you generally meet with, and which always peculiarly engages our attention, and that is, the remembrance which these men had in their elevation of the poverty and obscurity from which they had been raised. You will commonly find that they had kept about them some memento of the insignificance of their origin, as though they felt a pride in reminding others and themselves how little they owed to the achievements of ancestors. In the splendid halls in which their latter days were spent, they have delighted to hang pictures of the hovels in which they were born: so that the stranger passing through the magnificent scene, after admiring a thousand gorgeous works of art, and confessing the grandeur and taste of their owner, might come suddenly on the representation of a lowly cottage, and learning that this cottage was the home of the parents of the man who had possessed himself of all this glory, might have a feeling of far higher reverence and wonder, than if there had been spread before him the evidences of a most illustrious pedigree. And it is very curious to observe how the biographers of such a man will labour to throw some kind of lustre around his origin, as though they could not bear that their hero should be deficient in aught to which the world attaches worth. (H. Melvill.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 3. Bartholomew] Many are of opinion that this was Nathanael, mentioned Joh 1:46, whose name was probably Nathanael bar Talmai, Nathanael, the son of Talmai: here, his own name is repressed, and he is called Bar Talmai, or Bartholomew, from his father.
Matthew the publican] The writer of this history. See the preface.
James the son of Alpheus] This person was also called Cleopas, or Clopas, Lu 24:18; Joh 19:25. He had married Mary, sister to the blessed Virgin, Joh 19:25.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
3. Philip and BartholomewThatthis person is the same with “Nathanael of Cana in Galilee”is justly concluded for the three following reasons: First, becauseBartholomew is not so properly an individual’s name as a familysurname; next, because not only in this list, but in Mark’s andLuke’s (Mar 3:18; Luk 6:14),he follows the name of “Philip,” who was the instrument ofbringing Nathanael first to Jesus (Joh1:45); and again, when our Lord, after His resurrection, appearedat the Sea of Tiberias, “Nathanael of Cana in Galilee” ismentioned along with six others, all of them apostles, as beingpresent (Joh 21:2).
Matthew the publicanInnone of the four lists of the Twelve is this apostle so branded butin his own, as if he would have all to know how deep a debtor he hadbeen to his Lord. (See on Mt 1:3, 5,6; 9:9).
James the son of Alphaeusthesame person apparently who is called Cleopas or Clopas(Luk 24:18; Joh 19:25);and, as he was the husband of Mary, sister to the Virgin, James theLess must have been our Lord’s cousin.
and Lebbaeus, whose surnamewas Thaddaeusthe same, without doubt, as “Judas thebrother of James,” mentioned in both the lists of Luke (Luk 6:16;Act 1:13), while no one of thename of Lebbaeus or Thaddaeus is so. It is he who in John (Joh14:22) is sweetly called “Judas, not Iscariot.” That hewas the author of the Catholic Epistle of “Jude,” and not”the Lord’s brother” (Mt13:55), unless these be the same, is most likely.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Philip and Bartholomew,…. The first of these was called next; his name is a Greek one, which his parents, though Jews, might take from the Greeks that dwelt among them, see Joh 12:20 mention is made of one R. Phelipi, and Phulipa, in the Jewish writings q. The latter of these, Bartholomew, is conjectured, by Dr. Lightfoot, to be the same with Nathanael, he being called next in order after Philip; and that his name was Nathanael, , “Bar Talmai”, or “the son of Talmai”, or “Ptolomy”: a name once common to the kings of Egypt: so Talmai, king of Geshur, is by the Septuagint, in 2Sa 3:3
2Sa 13:37 called Tholmi, and in 1Ch 3:2 Tholmai: hence it appears, that Bartholomew is no other than Bartholmi, or the son of Tholmi. We read of one R. Jonathan, , “ben Abtolemus”, in the Talmud r, whether the same name with this, may be considered.
Thomas, and Matthew the publican: by the other evangelists Matthew is mentioned first; but he being the writer of this Gospel, puts Thomas first, which is an instance of his modesty; and also calls himself the “publican”, which the other do not: this he mentions, to magnify the grace of God in his vocation. The Jews s speak of
, “Matthai”, or “Matthew”, as a disciple of Jesus. Thomas was sometimes called Didymus; the one was his Hebrew, the other his Greek name, and both signify a “twin”, as it is very likely he was: mention is made of R. Thoma, or Thomas bar Papias, in a Jewish writer t. Next follow,
James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus: the former of these is so called, to distinguish him from James, the son of Zebedee. This is the James, who was the brother of our Lord, Ga 1:19 and is called “James the less”, Mr 15:40. Alphaeus his father, is the same with Cleopas, Lu 24:18 or Cleophas,
Joh 19:25. The Hebrew name, , which often occurs among the Jews u, may be pronounced either Chlophi, or Alphi, or with the Greek termination Cleopas, or Alphaeus. The latter of this pair of apostles is the same person with Jude, the writer of the epistle, which bears that name, and was the brother of James, with whom he is coupled: he was called Lebbaeus, either from the town of Lebba, a sea coast town of Galilee, as Dr. Lightfoot thinks; or from the Hebrew word , “my heart”, as others, either for his prudence, or through the affections of his parents to him; as the Latins call one they love, “meum corculum”, “my little heart”; or from , “a lion”, that being the motto of the tribe of Judah. His surname Thaddaeus, is thought by some to be a deflexion of Jude; or Judas, and as coming from the same root, , which signifies “to praise”, or “give thanks”; or from the Syriac word, , “a breast”, and may be so called for the same reason as he was Lebbaeus. Frequent mention is made of this name, , “Thaddai”, or “Thaddaeus”, among the Talmudic w doctors. The Jews themselves speak x of one , “Thodah”, as a disciple of Jesus, by whom no doubt they mean this same disciple. Eusebius y mentions one Thaddaeus, as one of the seventy disciples, who was sent to Agbarus, king of Edessa, who was healed and converted by him. This Agbarus is reported to have wrote a letter to Jesus Christ, desiring him to come and cure him of his disease; to which Christ is said to return an answer, promising to send one of his disciples, who should do it; and that accordingly, after Christ’s death, Thomas sent this Thaddaeus to him.
q Massechet Sopherim, c. 21. sect. 7. Bereshit Rabba, sect. 71. fol. 63. 4. r T. Bab. Nidda, fol. 19. 1. s T. Bab. Sanhedrim, fol. 43. 1. t Juchasin, fol. 105. 2. u Echa Rabbati, fol. 58. 4. Midrash Kohelet, fol. 60. 4. Juchasin, fol. 92. 1. w T. Hieros. Celaim, fol. 27. 2. Sabbat, fol. 6. 1. Erubim, fol. 23. 3. Bab. Sabbat, fol. 123. 1. & Erubim, fol. 71. 2. Juchasin, fol. 81. 1. & 105. 2. & 108. 1. x T. Bab. Sanhedrim, fol. 43. l. y Eccl. Hist. l. 1. c. 12, 13.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
1) “Philip, and Bartholomew;” (Philippos kai Barthalomaios) “Philip and Bartholomew,” the latter is also probably identical with Nathaniel of Cana of Galilee, Joh 1:45-46; Joh 21:2; Philip had brought Nathaniel to the Lord, Joh 1:45-51.
2) “Thomas and Matthew the publican;” (Thomas kai Mattaios ho telones) “Thomas and Matthew who was the tax-collector;” To the name Matthew is added the phrase “the publican,” a title adopted by Matthew of himself, as if to emphasize his indebtedness to Jesus as his Lord, Mat 9:9.
3) “James the son of Alphaeus,” (lakobos ho tous Alphaiou kai thaddaios) “James the heir son of Alphaeus and Thaddaeus,” who was the husband of Mary, the sister of Mary who was the mother of Jesus. This James was therefore a cousin of Jesus, Luk 24:18; Joh 19:25.
4) “And Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus,” (not included in older manuscripts of Matthew) Lebbaeus is also known as Judas, brother of James, pastor of the church at Jerusalem. This is the Jude who was author of the book of Jude, Luk 6:16; Act 1:13; Joh 4:22.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
3. Philip Philip was the fifth of the apostles who came from Bethsaida. He was one of the less conspicuous of the twelve. His first acquaintance with the Lord is narrated in the first chapter of John. To him our Lord put the question previous to the miracle of feeding the five thousand, which tested his faith, and proved him not to be very spiritual. The same want of spirituality is manifested by his request at the last supper: “Lord, show us the Father, and it sufficeth us.” When certain Greeks desired of him an introduction to Jesus, he hesitated, and consulted Andrew concerning the matter. This indicates that he enjoyed less nearness to Jesus than other apostles. Tradition says that he preached the Gospel in Phrygia. Nor did his early want of spiritual elevation prevent his wearing a martyr’s crown, as he is said to have incurred a martyr’s fate at Hierapolis.
Bartholomew The Hebrew form of this name is Bar-tolmai, or son of Tolma. Bartholomew is supposed to be identical with Nathanael, mentioned in the first chapter of John’s Gospel. The reason for this supposition is that Philip and Bartholomew are mentioned together in the first three Gospels, while no Nathanael is mentioned; whereas in the fourth Gospel Philip and Nathanael are associated, without any mention of Bartholomew. Bartholomew, then, was the “Israelite indeed, in whom there was no guile.” He is not often distinctively mentioned by the evangelists. He is said to have preached the Gospel in India. It is an authentic fact of ecclesiastical history, that a copy of Matthew’s Gospel in Hebrew was found by Pantaenus in India, left there by Bartholomew. It is not known where he died.
Thomas The two names of this apostle, Thomas and Didymus, signify in the Greek and Hebrew languages respectively, twin. Of his origin or family relations there is no authentic account. He is remarkable among the apostles for his rigid demand of sensible evidence of the Lord’s resurrection. Yet his appears not to have been a diseased skepticism. His mind travelled slowly, and required a solid basis of truth. When he felt his foundations firm, his fidelity to his Lord was true, and his courage bold. Thomas is said, traditionally, to have preached the Gospel in Parthia. The Christians of the Syrian Church in India claim him as their founder, and call themselves by his name.
Matthew the publican Of Matthew a full account is prefixed to his Gospel in this volume.
James the son of Alpheus Called by Mark, James the Less. His father Alpheus is also called Cleophas, and his mother was Mary, sister of the virgin mother. James was therefore cousin of the Lord.
Our view is that there were three Jameses, of whom the following parallel sketches will give a correct view.
1 . JAMES, son of Zebedee and Salome, and brother of John. 2 . JAMES, (the Less,) son of Alpheus or Cleophas. 3. JAMES, son of Joseph and Mary, and half brother of the Lord Jesus. One of the twelve. Mat 10:2. One of the twelve. Mat 10:2. Not one of the twelve nor at first a believer in Jesus. Mat 10:2-4; Joh 7:5. One of the three specially honoured disciples. Mat 17:1; Mat 26:37. Jude the apostle was his brother, (Luk 6:16,) and this Jude was author of Jude’s epistle. Jud 1:1. Named among the family of Jesus. Mat 13:55; Mar 6:3. Killed with the sword of Herod-Agrippa Act 12:2. The mother of James was Mary, sister of the blessed mother; so that he was cousin of the Lord. Joh 19:25; Luk 24:10. Brethren of the Lord appear as believers, yet separate from the twelve. Act 1:13-14. He had a brother Joses. Mat 27:56. James, not one of the twelve, has a vision of the risen Lord. 1Co 15:5; 1Co 15:7. James, though not of the twelve, postnamed an apostle. Gal 1:19. Called by Eusebius “the Just.” Resident pastor at Jerusalem. “James, Cephas, and John, who seemed to be pillars.” Gal 2:9. “Paul went in with us unto James: and all the elders were present.” Act 21:18. Certain came from James to Peter. Gal 2:12. Present at council. Act 15:6-29. Author of the Epistle. Martyred at Jerusalem Lebbeus, whose surname was Thaddeus He is called Thaddeus by Mark, and Judas (the Greek form of the name Judah) by Luke. He is the “Judas not Iscariot” mentioned by John, Joh 14:22. He was probably brother of James the Less, son of Mary, (sister of the virgin mother,)and therefore cousin-german of the Saviour. His name is found in the question of the Nazarenes, “James and Joses and Simon and Judas.” He was probably the Jude who wrote the epistle bearing that name. Little or nothing is known of his subsequent history. But his grandchildren are summoned to appear before the Emperor Domitian, as has been mentioned in our notes on the first chapter of Matthew.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Mat 10:3 . ] , son of Tolmai, LXX. 2Sa 13:37 , patronymic. His proper name was Nathanael; see note on Joh 1:46 , and Keim, II. p. 311.
] , , twin (Joh 11:16 ; Joh 20:24 ; Joh 21:2 ), perhaps so called from the nature of his birth. In Eusebius and the Acts of Thomas he is called (see Thilo, p. 94 ff.) .
] In reference to Mat 9:9 without any special object.
] Matthew’s father was likewise called Alphaeus (Mar 2:14 ), but this is a different person; see Introduction, sec. 1.
] who must be identical with Judas Jacobi, [441] Luk 6:16 (comp. Joh 14:22 ), Act 1:13 ; who, however, is not the author of the New Testament epistle bearing that name. Lebbaeus ( the courageous one , from ), according to our passsage, had become his regular apostolic name. According to Mar 3:18 , he had the apostolic name of (which must not be taken as the correct reading of the present passage; see the critical notes), and it is in vain to inquire how this twofold appellation has arisen. The name Thaddaeus , however, is not “deflexio nominis Judae, ut rectius hic distingueretur ab Iscariota” (Lightfoot, Wetstein), but the independent name , which is also currently used in the Talmud (Lightfoot, Schoettgen, Wetstein). There is the less reason to seek for an etymology of . such as will make the name almost synonymous with ., as if from (which, however, signifies mamma ), or even from , one of the names of God, and meaning potens (Ebrard). For the apocryphal but ancient Acts of Lebbaeus, see Tischendorf, Acta ap. apocr. p. 261 ff. According to these, he received the name when John the Baptist baptized him, and was previously known by the name of Lebbaeus . This is in accordance with the reading of the Received text in the case of the present passage, and with the designation in the Constit. apost. , , 6. 14. 1, 8. 25, a circumstance which, at the same time, goes to show that the name of the apostle as given in Mark is to be preferred to that found in Matthew
[441] On the relation of the genitive in Judas Jacobi (not brother , but son ), see note on Luk 6:16 ; Act 1:13 . Comp. Nonnus, Joh 14:22 : . The view that this Judas is a different person from Lebbaeus, and that he had succeeded to the place rendered vacant, probably by the death of Lebbaeus (Schleiermacher, Ewald), cannot possibly be entertained, for this reason, that in that case the statement in Luk 6:13 ( , etc.) would be simply incorrect, which is not to be supposed in connection with a matter so important and generally known (Rufinus, in Praef. ad Origen in ep. ad Rom .). According to Strauss, only the most prominent of the Twelve were known, while the others had places assigned them in conformity with the various traditions that prevailed.
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
3 Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus;
Ver. 3. Bartholomew ] This, say some, was that Nathanael, Joh 1:45-49 He is by Dionysius quoted to have said of divinity, Et magnam esse et minimam ( , ), that it was large in a little room. Ambrose Chircher the Jesuit tells of a tradition they have in China, that one Olo Puen (or Bartholomew) was brought thither from Judea in the clouds, and preached Christianity among them; whereof he left twenty-seven tomes behind him. Sed fides sit penes authorem. But let faith belong to authority.
Matthew the publican ] See here, as in a mirror, Christ’s free grace in such a choice, and Matthew’s true grace in not dissembling his old trade, but shaming himself, that God might be glorified; and thankfully crying out, with Iphicrates, , from how sinful and shameful to how high and honourable a calling and course of life am I advanced!
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
3. . . . ] Philip was called by our Lord the second day after the visit of Andrew and John, and the day after the naming of Peter. He was also of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter, James and John.
and are Greek names. See Joh 12:20-22 .
, son of Talmai or Tolomus, has been generally supposed to be the same with Nathanael of Cana in Galilee; and with reason: for (1) the name Bartholomew is not his own name, but a patronymic: (2) He follows next in order, as Nathanael , in Joh 1:46 , to the Apostles just mentioned, with the same formula which had just been used of Philip’s own call ( Joh 1:44 ), .: (3) He is there, as here, and in Mark and Luke (Gospel), in connexion with Philip (that he was his brother , was conjectured by Dr. Donaldson; but rendered improbable by the fact that John in the case of Andrew a few verses above, expressly says , whereas in Joh 1:46 no such specification is found): (4) In Joh 21:2 , at the appearance of our Lord on the shore of the sea of Tiberias, Nathanael is mentioned as present, where seven Apostles ( ) are recounted.
. . . ] Thomas ( ), in Greek , Joh 11:16 ; Joh 20:24 ; Joh 21:2 . . . is clearly by this appellation identified with the Matthew of ch. Mat 9:9 . We hear nothing of him, except in these two passages. Dr. Donaldson (Jashar. p. 10 f.) believed Matthew and Thomas to have been twin brothers. Eus [112] , H. E. i. 13, preserves a tradition that Thomas’s real name was Judas: , .
[112] Eusebius, Bp. of Csarea, 315 320
. . ] From Joh 19:25 , some infer (but see note there), that Mary the (wife?) of was sister of Mary the mother of our Lord. From Mar 15:40 , that Mary was the mother of James , which may be this James. Hence it would appear, if these two passages point to the same person, that = . And indeed the two Greek names are but different ways of expressing the Hebrew name . If this be so, then this James the Less may possibly be the mentioned Gal 1:19 apparently as an Apostle, and one of the mentioned Mat 13:55 (where see note) (?). But on the difficulties attending this view, see note on Joh 7:5 .
] Much difficulty rests on this name, both from the various readings, and the questions arising from the other lists. The rec [113] . reading appears to be a conjunction of the two ancient ones, and : the latter of these having been introduced from Mark. (But it is noticeable, that in Mark [114] has .) Whichever of these is the true reading, the Apostle himself has generally been supposed to be identical with in both Luke’s catalogues, i.e. (see note there) Judas the brother (Dr. Donaldson supposed son: see note on Luk 24:13 ) of James, and so son of Alphus, and commonly supposed to be (?) one of the named Mat 13:55 . In Joh 14:22 we have a ‘Judas, not Iscariot,’ among the Apostles: and the catholic epistle is written by a ‘Judas brother of James.’ What in this case the names and are, is impossible to say. The common idea that they are cognate names, . being from , heart, and . from , breast, is disproved by De Wette, who observes that the latter signifies mamma , and not pectus . So that the whole rests on conjecture, which however does not contradict any known fact, and may be allowed as the only escape from the difficulty.
[113] The Textus Receptus or received text of the Greek Testament. Used in this Edition when elz and Steph agree
[114] The CODEX CANTABRIGIENSIS, or BEZ, so called because it was presented by Beza in 1581 to the University Library at Cambridge; where it is now exposed to view in a glass case. He procured it in 1562, from the monastery of St. Irenus at Lyons. It is on parchment, and contains the Gospels and Acts, with a Latin version. Its lacun, which are many, will be perceived by the inner marginal letters in this edition. It once contained the Catholic Epistles: 3Jn 1:11-14 in Latin is all that now remains. It was edited with very accurate imitative types, at the expense of the University of Cambridge, by Dr. Kipling, in 1793. A new edition carefully revised and more generally accessible was published by Mr. Scrivener in 1864, and has been collated for this Edition. In the introduction some ten or twelve correctors are distinguished, whose readings are found in the notes at the end of the volume. The text of the Codex Bez is a very peculiar one, deviating more from the received readings and from the principal manuscript authorities than any other. It appears to have been written in France, and by a Latin transcriber ignorant of Greek, from many curious mistakes which occur in the text, and version attached. It is closely and singularly allied to the ancient Latin versions, so much so that some critics have supposed it to have been altered from the Latin: and certainly many of the phnomena of the MS. seem to bear out the idea. Where D differs in unimportant points from the other Greek MSS., the difference appears to be traceable to the influence of Latin forms and constructions. It has been observed, that in such cases it frequently agrees with the Latin codex e (see the list further on). Its peculiarities are so great, that in many passages, while the sense remains for the most part unaltered, hardly three words together are the same as in the commonly received text. And that these variations often arise from capricious alteration, is evident from the way in which the Gospels, in parallel passages, have been more than commonly interpolated from one another in this MS. The concurrence with the ancient Latin versions seems to point to a very early state of the text; and it is impossible to set aside the value of D as an index to its history; but in critical weight it ranks the lowest of the leading MSS. Its age has been very variously given: the general opinion now is that it was written in the latter end of the fifth or the sixth century .
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
Mat 10:3 . , the 6th, one of the doubtful names, commonly identified with Nathanael (Joh 1:46 ). , one of four in the list with epithets: Peter the first , Simon the zealot , Judas the traitor , Matthew the publican ; surely not without reason, except as echoing Mat 9:9 (Meyer). Matthew stands second in his pair here, before Thomas in Mark and Luke. Position and epithet agree, indicative, Euthy. suggests, of modesty and self-abasement.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
Bartholomew, Thomas, and Matthew . . . Alphaeus . . . Thaddaeus. These are all Aramaic words. See App-94.
the publican = the tax-gatherer. Note the Figure of speech Ampliatio. App-6.
Alphaeus. Hebrew. halphah. Same root as Cleophas; and probably the same name, if not the same person, as Joh 19:25.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
3. . . .] Philip was called by our Lord the second day after the visit of Andrew and John, and the day after the naming of Peter. He was also of Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter, James and John.
and are Greek names. See Joh 12:20-22.
, son of Talmai or Tolomus, has been generally supposed to be the same with Nathanael of Cana in Galilee; and with reason: for (1) the name Bartholomew is not his own name, but a patronymic:-(2) He follows next in order, as Nathanael, in Joh 1:46, to the Apostles just mentioned, with the same formula which had just been used of Philips own call (Joh 1:44),- .:-(3) He is there, as here, and in Mark and Luke (Gospel), in connexion with Philip (that he was his brother, was conjectured by Dr. Donaldson; but rendered improbable by the fact that John in the case of Andrew a few verses above, expressly says , whereas in Joh 1:46 no such specification is found):-(4) In Joh 21:2, at the appearance of our Lord on the shore of the sea of Tiberias, Nathanael is mentioned as present, where seven Apostles () are recounted.
. . .] Thomas (), in Greek , Joh 11:16; Joh 20:24; Joh 21:2. . . is clearly by this appellation identified with the Matthew of ch. Mat 9:9. We hear nothing of him, except in these two passages. Dr. Donaldson (Jashar. p. 10 f.) believed Matthew and Thomas to have been twin brothers. Eus[112], H. E. i. 13, preserves a tradition that Thomass real name was Judas: , .
[112] Eusebius, Bp. of Csarea, 315-320
. . ] From Joh 19:25, some infer (but see note there), that Mary the (wife?) of was sister of Mary the mother of our Lord. From Mar 15:40, that Mary was the mother of James , which may be this James. Hence it would appear, if these two passages point to the same person, that = . And indeed the two Greek names are but different ways of expressing the Hebrew name . If this be so, then this James the Less may possibly be the mentioned Gal 1:19 apparently as an Apostle, and one of the mentioned Mat 13:55 (where see note) (?). But on the difficulties attending this view, see note on Joh 7:5.
] Much difficulty rests on this name, both from the various readings, and the questions arising from the other lists. The rec[113]. reading appears to be a conjunction of the two ancient ones, and : the latter of these having been introduced from Mark. (But it is noticeable, that in Mark [114] has .) Whichever of these is the true reading, the Apostle himself has generally been supposed to be identical with in both Lukes catalogues, i.e. (see note there) Judas the brother (Dr. Donaldson supposed son: see note on Luk 24:13) of James, and so son of Alphus, and commonly supposed to be (?) one of the named Mat 13:55. In Joh 14:22 we have a Judas, not Iscariot, among the Apostles: and the catholic epistle is written by a Judas brother of James. What in this case the names and are, is impossible to say. The common idea that they are cognate names, . being from , heart, and . from , breast, is disproved by De Wette, who observes that the latter signifies mamma, and not pectus. So that the whole rests on conjecture, which however does not contradict any known fact, and may be allowed as the only escape from the difficulty.
[113] The Textus Receptus or received text of the Greek Testament. Used in this Edition when elz and Steph agree
[114] The CODEX CANTABRIGIENSIS, or BEZ,-so called because it was presented by Beza in 1581 to the University Library at Cambridge; where it is now exposed to view in a glass case. He procured it in 1562, from the monastery of St. Irenus at Lyons. It is on parchment, and contains the Gospels and Acts, with a Latin version. Its lacun, which are many, will be perceived by the inner marginal letters in this edition. It once contained the Catholic Epistles: 3Jn 1:11-14 in Latin is all that now remains. It was edited with very accurate imitative types, at the expense of the University of Cambridge, by Dr. Kipling, in 1793. A new edition carefully revised and more generally accessible was published by Mr. Scrivener in 1864, and has been collated for this Edition. In the introduction some ten or twelve correctors are distinguished, whose readings are found in the notes at the end of the volume. The text of the Codex Bez is a very peculiar one, deviating more from the received readings and from the principal manuscript authorities than any other. It appears to have been written in France, and by a Latin transcriber ignorant of Greek, from many curious mistakes which occur in the text, and version attached. It is closely and singularly allied to the ancient Latin versions, so much so that some critics have supposed it to have been altered from the Latin: and certainly many of the phnomena of the MS. seem to bear out the idea. Where D differs in unimportant points from the other Greek MSS., the difference appears to be traceable to the influence of Latin forms and constructions. It has been observed, that in such cases it frequently agrees with the Latin codex e (see the list further on). Its peculiarities are so great, that in many passages, while the sense remains for the most part unaltered, hardly three words together are the same as in the commonly received text. And that these variations often arise from capricious alteration, is evident from the way in which the Gospels, in parallel passages, have been more than commonly interpolated from one another in this MS. The concurrence with the ancient Latin versions seems to point to a very early state of the text; and it is impossible to set aside the value of D as an index to its history;-but in critical weight it ranks the lowest of the leading MSS. Its age has been very variously given: the general opinion now is that it was written in the latter end of the fifth or the sixth century.
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Mat 10:3. , the son of Zebedee) To distinguish him from James the son of Alphaeus.- , the publican) A humble confession of the Evangelist concerning himself. He does not call Peter, Andrew, etc., the fishermen: but he does call himself the publican.
, Lebbaeus) According to Hiller, Thaddaeus, derived from the Chaldee , bosom, and Lebbaeus, from the Hebrew , heart, are synonymous terms, and denote a man of much heart:[448] see Onomata Sacra, p. 123. So Thomas means the same thing as Didymus. Those copies[449] which have in this passage only , are supported by the list of the apostles which Cotelerius[450] has published with the apostolical constitutions, and by Hesychius in the article .[451] As this reading is shorter and middle,[452] it appears to be the right one. Some persons having appended the disputed clause from the parallel passage of Mark as a gloss, others introduced it into the text from the same source. Their reading considers Thaddaeus as a surname, and Lebbaeus as the name of this apostle: His name, however, in reality was Judas the brother of James: but he was called Lebbaeus by name, as it were to distinguish him from Judas Iscariot.[453]
[448] Hominem pectorosum, lit. in classical Latin, a man of broad, large, or high breast.-(I. B.)
[449] The reading of E. M. is .-(I. B.)
[450] COTELERIUS, alias JEAN BAPTISTE COTELIER, born at Nismes in 1627, was one of the most eminent critics of modern times. As a mere child, he was considered a prodigy of learning; and he sustained this reputation at the Sorbonne, where he took the degree of Batchelor. In 1667 the great Minister Colbert selected him, together with the celebrated Du Cange, to examine and catalogue the Greek MSS. of the Royal Library. The able manner in which he performed this task procured him, in 1676, the Professorship of Greek in the Royal College at Paris. His labours were many and valuable. He died in 1686.-(I. B.)
[451] The passage referred to does not really occur under , but under , which is by mistake placed out of its alphabetical order. The article on consists of a single line, viz. .
[452] Media. See Authors Preface, viii. 14, and footnote in voc.-(I. B.)
[453] Lachm. with Bc Vulg. reads . Tischend. with D and MSS. in August, reads . ab have Judas. Mill attributes the reading here to some one wishing to call attention to the fact, that Mark and Luke call Matthew , Levi. It seems hard to account for the introduction of such a reading, if not genuine: and yet the weight of authorities are for here, which otherwise might well be a transcribers or harmonists correction from Mar 3:18; , as the less open to suspicion of transcribers corrections, being accounted as the genuine reading. Jerome calls him , triple-named; so that in his day Lebbeus must have been a recognised name either here or in Mark, as well as Thaddeus and Judas.-ED.
Then follow immediately the words referred to by Bengel: . , , , , .
In the note on Hesychius (Ed. Lugd. Bat. 1776), vol. xi. col. 10, are these words-
Nullus dubito quin diversos hic confuderit Gloss hujus insititi auctor, ex male intellecto Veteris cujusdam Scriptoris apostolicorum nominum laterculo, qualem ex MS. codice Bibliothec Regi protulit Cotelerius ad lib. ii. Constitut. Apostol. c. 63, p. 264, ed. Cleric.-(I. B.)
So the margin of Bengels larger Ed., though in the text there stood . The first Ed. of the Gnomon gives the palm to the shorter reading, . So marg. of Ed. 2 and Vers. Germ., leaving it however to the decision of the reader, whether the words are to be accepted or rejected. Michaelis, in his Einleitung, T. ii., p. m. 1687, etc., shows, by many proofs, that Judas the brother of James is the same as Thaddeus and Lebbeus, and was called among the Syrians Adai or Adus.-E. B.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
Philip: Mar 3:18, Luk 6:14, Joh 1:43-46, Joh 6:5-7, Joh 12:21, Joh 12:22, Joh 14:9
Thomas: Luk 6:15, Joh 11:16, Joh 20:24-29, Joh 21:2
Matthew: Mat 9:9, Mar 2:14, Luk 5:27, Levi, Luk 6:15, Act 1:13
James: Mat 27:56, Mar 3:18, Luk 6:15, Luk 6:16, Act 1:13, Act 12:17, Act 15:13, Act 21:18, Gal 1:19, Gal 2:9, Jam 1:1
Lebbaeus: Mar 3:18, Luk 6:16, Judas the brother of James, Joh 14:22, Judas, not Iscariot, Act 1:13, Jud 1:1
Reciprocal: Joh 1:44 – Philip
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus:
[Bartholomew.] Compare the order wherein the disciples are called (John 1) with the order wherein they are for the most part reckoned, and you will find Bartholomew falling in at the same place with Nathanael; so that one may think he was the same with him: called Nathanael by his own name, and Bartholomew by his father’s; that is, the son of Talmai; for the Greek interpreters render Talmai, Tolmi; 2Sa 13:37. And Tholomaeus occurs in Josephus.
[Of Alpheus.] The name occurs also in the Talmudists: a word that may admit a doubt pronunciation; namely, either to sound Alphai; or Cleophi. Hence that Alpheus; who was the father of four apostles, is also called Cleopas; Luke 24; which sufficiently appears from hence, that she who is called “Mary, the mother of James the Less, and Joses,” Mar 15:40; by John is called, “Mary the wife of Cleopas,” Joh 19:25.
[Lebbeus, whose surname was Thaddeus.] Thaddai was a name known also to the Talmudists: R. Jose the son of Thaddeus. Eliezer Ben Thaddeus. It is a warping of the name Judas; that this apostle might be the better distinguished from Iscariot; He was called Lebbeus; I suppose, from the town Lebba; a sea-coast town of Galilee: of which Pliny speaks; “The promontory Carmel, and in the mountain a town of the same name, heretofore called Ecbatana: near by Getta Lebba;” etc.
Fuente: Lightfoot Commentary Gospels
Mat 10:3. Philip, not the Evangelist. The first disciple called, a native of Bethsaida. The name is Greek.
Bartholomew, i.e., the son of Thol-mai. He is probably identical with Nathanael (Joh 1:43), the friend of Philip, and is also supposed to have been a resident of Cana in Galilee.
Thomas, i.e., twin, the Greek name of the same meaning being Didymus. He is frequently mentioned in the Gospel according to John.
Matthew the publican, the writer of the Gospel, who inserts his previous employment as a token of the power of grace.
James (Jacob) the son of Alpheus, called James the less, or, the younger (Mar 15:40, where his mother Mary is mentioned). The name Alpheus has been considered identical with Clopas or Cleophas, since the mother of James the less (Mar 15:40) is identical with Mary, the wife of Cleophas (Joh 19:25). His mothers sister, in Joh 19:25, may refer to Salome (see above). The view that it refers to Mary, the wife of Cleophas, identifies this James with the Lords brother (Gal 1:19); the term being taken in the wide sense of relative. Others reject the notion that the two sisters had the same name, and think that Alpheus was an older brother of Joseph, who adopted his children, and that thus they were called our Lords brethren. We hold that James the Lords brother was the author of the Epistle, but not one of the Twelve, nor were any of His brethren, who were either the younger children of Joseph and Mary or the children of Joseph by a former wife. For the reasons, see notes on chap. Mat 13:55. We only remark here: In the many-varying lists of the Apostles there is no hint that these persons were the Lords brethren; that in Mat 12:46-50 these brethren are distinguished pointedly from the disciples, at a time after the Twelve were chosen; the taunt at Nazareth, which names these brethren, loses much of its force, if they were among His disciples; John (Joh 7:5) expressly states they did not believe on Him. On the whole subject see Langes Com., Matthew, pp. 255-260.
Lebbeus, whose surname (or other name) was Thaddeus. Both have the same meaning, courageous. He was also called Judas; was probably the brother of James, the son of Alpheus, and the author of the short Epistle of Jude. Comp. Luk 6:16; Act 1:13; Joh 14:22. One of the Lords brethren was called Judas (Mat 13:55); and has been identified with this Apostle. But Matthew was also the son of Alpheus, and yet no one affirms that he was the brother of James. It is as likely that there was a great number of persons about our Lord called James, Judas, and Simon, as that two of the Apostles mentioned together were not brothers, although the father of each was named Alpheus.