Was Matthias the Twelfth Apostle?
Background Verses
Acts 1:15-26 (English Standard Version used throughout, unless otherwise noted):
In those days Peter stood up among the brothers (the company of persons was in all about 120) and said, 16"Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke beforehand by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus. 17For he was numbered among us and was allotted his share in this ministry." 18(Now this man bought a field with the reward of his wickedness, and falling headlong he burst open in the middle and all his bowels gushed out. 19And it became known to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the field was called in their own language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.) 20"For it is written in the Book of Psalms, 'May his camp become desolate, and let there be no one to dwell in it'; and 'Let another take his office.' “ 21So one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22beginning from the baptism of John until the day when he was taken up from us—one of these men must become with us a witness to his resurrection." 23And they put forward two, Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also called Justus, and Matthias. 24And they prayed and said, "You, Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which one of these two you have chosen 25to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place." 26And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.
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Introduction
In spite of the New Testament passage cited above, the view is held by some that Matthias was not the legitimate successor to the apostolic position forfeited by Judas after he betrayed Christ and subsequently took his own life. Those who hold this position contend that the apostle Paul filled that vacancy.
This viewpoint is the result of concerns regarding the occasion and circumstances under which Matthias was chosen, and it also results from an awareness of the prominent role Paul played, not only in terms of spreading the gospel throughout much of the Roman Empire, but also because of the sheer volume and spiritual depth of biblical material written about him and by him. Some consider him the greatest of all the apostles, and the obvious choice as Judas’ successor, particularly since the Twelve comprised a group of believers hand-picked by Jesus, and are viewed as the most prestigious of the Lord’s followers. In other words, it is easy to want Paul to be one of the Twelve.
I disagree with this stance, and I do so without in any way denigrating the enormous achievements God was able to effect through the willing cooperation and zeal of the apostle Paul. My reasons are presented below.
1. Were there apostles other than the Twelve?
The Greek word, apostolos (apostoloV) is an Anglicized (untranslated) term that means “delegate,” or “one who is sent,” and is used in reference to various individuals in the New Testament besides the Twelve. [1]
The list includes Barnabas (Acts 14:14) and James, the Lord’s brother (Gal.1:19). Silas was also an apostle (and perhaps Timothy, too), although it is necessary to do a little scriptural scouting to discover this. In 1 Thessalonians 2, Paul describes the manner in which the Thessalonians were originally approached with the gospel. In vs. 6, he writes: “Nor did we seek glory from people, whether from you or from others, though we could have made demands as apostles of Christ.” When Acts 17 is examined, which describes Paul’s visit to Thessalonica, we discover that Silas was his co-worker. The “we” in 1 Thessalonians 2:6 includes Silas (also see vs.14 regarding Timothy).
I bring this up only to make the point that it was possible to be called an apostle without being one the Twelve. Therefore, it is not necessary to assume Paul was one of the Twelve simply because he was an apostle. The Twelve were “sent ones” especially chosen by Jesus as His immediate and closest disciples, who were personally instructed to begin the propagation of the gospel and pass along His teachings to first-century believers.
2. Was Matthias ever heard from again?
Perhaps the most common argument I have heard over the years from friends and acquaintances who feel that Matthias was a false apostle is that he is never again mentioned in Scripture. That is, once he was ordained, he seems to have disappeared.
This view, that Matthias could not have been God’s choice as a replacement for Judas because his name is never mentioned again, is an issue that really should not have to be debated, because whether or not his name appears in the Bible following his apostolic appointment proves nothing regarding his position as one of the Twelve. In fact, the names of nine of the original twelve apostles are never mentioned again in Acts following the chapter in which Matthias assumes his position as an apostle (Acts 1).
Of the original twelve apostles, only the names of Peter, James and John appear in Acts beyond the first chapter; and the only subsequent reference to the apostle James is in connection with his death at the hands of Herod (Acts 12:2). Shall we assume that eight out of twelve (I’m omitting Judas at this point) fell by the wayside because they were no longer named?
But in fact they are mentioned, although not by name. I draw the reader’s attention to the following passage from Acts 6:
Acts 6:2:
And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables.”
In the above reference—five chapters after Matthias was chosen as the replacement for Judas—we discover that there are twelve functioning apostles. Obviously, Matthias is among them. (Paul does not become a believer until Acts 9.)
I now draw the reader’s attention to the following five passages, all of which appear prior to the passage cited above (Acts 6:2):
Acts 2:37:
Now when they [the Jews who heard Peter’s message on the day of Pentecost] heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Brothers, what shall we do?"
Acts 2:43:
And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles.
Acts 4:33:
And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all.
Acts 5:12:
Now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the apostles. And they were all together in Solomon's Portico.
Acts 5:29:
But Peter and the apostles answered, "We must obey God rather than men.
First of all, if Matthias is clearly included in Acts 6:2—the first verse I quoted— then it is perfectly reasonable to assume that he is included in the five passages chronologically preceding that verse, unless we are to understand that he plays no role in the activities of the apostles before the sixth chapter of Acts, and then suddenly appears to help choose the seven deacons (as they are sometimes called).
Secondly, if it is reasonable to include Matthias among the apostles in the five references prior to Acts 6, is there any substantive reason to assume he is not performing the same signs, wonders and responsibilities as the other apostles? Indeed, if that had happened, it would surely have been noticed and mentioned by someone.
Thirdly, shall we assume that God would allow Matthias to perform the same miraculous acts as the other apostles, and participate in their decision-making processes, if he was a false apostle? As it stands, if Matthias was disapproved by God as one of the Twelve, none of the writers of the New Testament seemed to know anything about it; or if they did, they certainly did not share that information.
In fact, then, Matthias is mentioned after Acts 1, and so are the other eleven—not by name, but as a group. When the number “twelve” is used in Acts 6:2, it is clear that all the apostles, including Matthias, are present, accounted for, and carrying out their apostolic responsibilities.
3. Was Paul qualified to be one of the Twelve?
It is interesting to observe that those who discredit the appointment of Matthias as one of the Twelve nevertheless accept the criteria Peter proposed as the basis for making that choice in the first chapter of Acts. One might suppose that an erroneous decision would be the result of faulty reasoning; that is, if the decision to appoint Matthias was a mistake, the reasoning process behind that decision must also have been faulty. Incorrect reasoning is not likely to lead to correct conclusions, except through sheer luck.
Still, while claiming that Matthias was a false apostle, most individuals who hold this view nevertheless seem to accept Peter’s quotes from Psalms 69 and 109 (Acts 1:20) as properly applying to the matter of replacing Judas, and they also agree with Peter that a member of the Twelve had to be someone who was part of the group that followed the Lord “.. from the baptism of John until the day when he [Jesus] was taken up.. “ (Acts 1:21).
Regarding the second part of this criteria, however, supporters of Paul seem to be willing to accept as a suitable substitute his having only “.. seen Jesus our Lord..” (1 Cor. 9:1), and this by means of revelation. In fact, Paul did not follow Jesus “from the baptism of John until the day when he [Jesus] was taken up.”
This is not to say that Paul was a deficient apostle. If it is safe to make such assessments, one might easily conclude that Paul was the greatest of all the apostles. Even if this is true, however, it does not follow that he was one of the Twelve.
I liken this to charter members of a local church, and those who join that church at a later date. A group of individuals might initiate a Christian work in a given community, including the construction of a meeting hall. They are the charter members. Later, others might join their fellowship who are better and more effective Christians than any of the original members. Nevertheless, they are not charter members.
Paul may have been the greatest Christian of the first century, even greater than all the other apostles combined (if we wish to engage in exaggeration), but that did not make him one of the Twelve. He just did not satisfy the requirements.
The fact is, we have Scripture supporting the choice of Matthias as Judas’ replacement (and scriptural support for his having functioned along with the other eleven), but not a word anywhere making the same claim for Paul—not by Paul himself or anyone else (see also #6, below).
4. Did the apostles have the Holy Spirit when Matthias was chosen?
Another objection to the ordination of Matthias as one of the Twelve is made on the basis of the event having transpired prior to the day of Pentecost. It is claimed that the Holy Spirit was not given until Pentecost, fifty days after Passover, and that Peter and the others acted on their own volition, apart from God’s direction.
However, this overlooks John 20:22. On the occasion of the Lord’s first appearance to the disciples on the evening of the day of His resurrection “.. He breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit…’ “ Unless we are to assume that what He commanded did not happen, it sounds very much as though the disciples were infused with the Holy Spirit at that time. At least I cannot think of any other meaning “receive the Holy Spirit” might have.
I have deliberately used the term, “disciples” (as does Jn. 20:19ff), rather than “apostles,” in the preceding paragraph, because there is reason to believe that an unspecified number of Christ’s followers received the Holy Spirit at the same time (in the upper room), and not just the apostles. My reasoning is as follows:
In Luke 24:13f, the story is told about the meeting between two disciples and Jesus as they were walking from Jerusalem toward the town of Emmaus. This is a seven-mile trek, and takes about two hours or so, depending on the vigor and determination of the travelers. This event took place on the day of resurrection, as is clear from an examination of the biblical passage describing it (see vs. 13 and the preceding verses).
At supper time, after Jesus revealed Himself to the two disciples and disappeared, the disciples left immediately (“..that same hour..”) for Jerusalem (vs. 33), arriving where the apostles were staying later that evening; that is, the evening of the day of Christ’s resurrection—the same evening during which Jesus breathed the Holy Spirit into the disciples.
Now, Luke 24:33 indicates that there were others with the apostles when the two disciples arrived from Emmaus. Since this is the same location and the same evening, it is entirely possible that these “others” were present with the apostles when Jesus breathed the Holy Spirit into them. There may even have been numerous others, since we are told that there were about 120 disciples gathered together in Jerusalem at that time (Acts 1:15). While all of them might not have been present during Jesus’ visitation (Thomas, in fact, was absent), it is possible that a substantial number of them were there.
Therefore, not only had the apostles received the Holy Spirit when they cast lots to determine Judas’ successor, but the same may have been true of others in their group. Remember, also, that the decision to choose a replacement for Judas was accompanied by fervent prayer, as the context shows, and a considerable amount of faith in God’s willingness to honor the casting of lots. Speaking of which…
5. Was the casting of lots a frivolous act, bordering on gambling?
Casting lots was a time-honored, God-honored method of determining God’s will. I do not know of a single biblical example of anyone casting lots in a serious attempt to gain divine intervention that was not responded to positively by God. Indeed, God Himself often commanded the practice. You may not wish to read all the passages below, but they illustrate the point.
Old Testament Examples of Casting Lots
Leviticus 16:8-10:
And Aaron shall cast lots over the two goats, one lot for the Lord and the other lot for Azazel. And Aaron shall present the goat on which the lot fell for the Lord and use it as a sin offering, but the goat on which the lot fell for Azazel shall be presented alive before the Lord to make atonement over it, that it may be sent away into the wilderness to Azazel.
Numbers 26:55-56:
But the land shall be divided by lot. According to the names of the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit. Their inheritance shall be divided according to lot between the larger and the smaller."
Numbers 33:54:
You shall inherit the land by lot according to your clans. To a large tribe you shall give a large inheritance, and to a small tribe you shall give a small inheritance. Wherever the lot falls for anyone, that shall be his. According to the tribes of your fathers you shall inherit.
Numbers 34:13:
Moses commanded the people of Israel, saying, "This is the land that you shall inherit by lot, which the Lord has commanded to give to the nine tribes and to the half-tribe.
Numbers 36:2-3:
They said, "The Lord commanded my lord to give the land for inheritance by lot to the people of Israel, and my lord was commanded by the Lord to give the inheritance of Zelophehad our brother to his daughters. But if they are married to any of the sons of the other tribes of the people of Israel, then their inheritance will be taken from the inheritance of our fathers and added to the inheritance of the tribe into which they marry. So it will be taken away from the lot of our inheritance.
Joshua 7:14-18:
In the morning therefore you shall be brought near by your tribes. And the tribe that the Lord takes by lot shall come near by clans. And the clan that the Lord takes shall come near by households. And the household that the Lord takes shall come near man by man. And he who is taken with the devoted things shall be burned with fire, he and all that he has, because he has transgressed the covenant of the Lord, and because he has done an outrageous thing in Israel.' "
So Joshua rose early in the morning and brought Israel near tribe by tribe, and the tribe of Judah was taken. And he brought near the clans of Judah, and the clan of the Zerahites was taken. And he brought near the clan of the Zerahites man by man, and Zabdi was taken. And he brought near his household man by man, and Achan the son of Carmi, son of Zabdi, son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was taken.
Joshua 14:2:
Their inheritance was by lot, just as the Lord had commanded by the hand of Moses for the nine and one-half tribes.
Joshua 18:6:
And you shall describe the land in seven divisions and bring the description here to me. And I will cast lots for you here before the Lord our God.
Joshua 18:8:
So the men arose and went, and Joshua charged those who went to write the description of the land, saying, "Go up and down in the land and write a description and return to me. And I will cast lots for you here before the Lord in Shiloh."
Joshua 18:10-11:
and Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the Lord. And there Joshua apportioned the land to the people of Israel, to each his portion. The lot of the tribe of the people of Benjamin according to its clans came up, and the territory allotted to it fell between the people of Judah and the people of Joseph.
Joshua 19:51:
These are the inheritances that Eleazar the priest and Joshua the son of Nun and the heads of the fathers' houses of the tribes of the people of Israel distributed by lot at Shiloh before the Lord, at the entrance of the tent of meeting. So they finished dividing the land.
Joshua 21:4-6:
The lot came out for the clans of the Kohathites. So those Levites who were descendants of Aaron the priest received by lot from the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin, thirteen cities. And the rest of the Kohathites received by lot from the clans of the tribe of Ephraim, from the tribe of Dan and the half-tribe of Manasseh, ten cities.
The Gershonites received by lot from the clans of the tribe of Issachar, from the tribe of Asher, from the tribe of Naphtali, and from the half-tribe of Manasseh in Bashan, thirteen cities.
Joshua 21:8:
These cities and their pasturelands the people of Israel gave by lot to the Levites, as the Lord had commanded through Moses.
Joshua 21:10:
which went to the descendants of Aaron, one of the clans of the Kohathites who belonged to the people of Levi; since the lot fell to them first.
Judges 20:9:
But now this is what we will do to Gibeah: we will go up against it by lot,
1 Samuel 10:20-21:
Then Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near, and the tribe of Benjamin was taken by lot. He brought the tribe of Benjamin near by its clans, and the clan of the Matrites was taken by lot; and Saul the son of Kish was taken by lot. But when they sought him, he could not be found.
1 Samuel 14:42:
Then Saul said, "Cast the lot between me and my son Jonathan." And Jonathan was taken.
1 Chron. 6:54:
These are their dwelling places according to their settlements within their borders: to the sons of Aaron of the clans of Kohathites, for theirs was the first lot,
1 Chron. 6:61:
To the rest of the Kohathites were given by lot out of the clan of the tribe, out of the half-tribe, the half of Manasseh, ten cities.
1 Chron. 6:65:
They gave by lot out of the tribes of Judah, Simeon, and Benjamin these cities that are mentioned by name.
1 Chron. 24:5:
They divided them by lot, all alike, for there were sacred officers and officers of God among both the sons of Eleazar and the sons of Ithamar.
1 Chron. 24:7:
The first lot fell to Jehoiarib, the second to Jedaiah,
1 Chron. 24:31:
These also, the head of each father's house and his younger brother alike, cast lots, just as their brothers the sons of Aaron, in the presence of King David, Zadok, Ahimelech, and the heads of fathers' houses of the priests and of the Levites.
1 Chron. 25:8-9:
And they cast lots for their duties, small and great, teacher and pupil alike.
1 Chron. 26:13-14:
And they cast lots by fathers' houses, small and great alike, for their gates. The lot for the east fell to Shelemiah. They cast lots also for his son Zechariah, a shrewd counselor, and his lot came out for the north.
Neh. 10:34:
We, the priests, the Levites, and the people, have likewise cast lots for the wood offering, to bring it into the house of our God, according to our fathers' houses, at times appointed, year by year, to burn on the altar of the LORD our God, as it is written in the Law.
Neh. 11:1:
Now the leaders of the people lived in Jerusalem. And the rest of the people cast lots to bring one out of ten to live in Jerusalem the holy city, while nine out of ten remained in the other towns.
Esther 3:7:
In the first month, which is the month of Nisan, in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, they cast Pur (that is, they cast lots) before Haman day after day; and they cast it month after month till the twelfth month, which is the month of Adar.
Psalm 16:5:
The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot.
Proverbs 16:33:
The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord.
Proverbs 18:18:
The lot puts an end to quarrels and decides between powerful contenders.
Isaiah 34:17:
He has cast the lot for them; his hand has portioned it out to them with the line;
they shall possess it forever; from generation to generation they shall dwell in it.
Jonah 1:7
And they said to one another, "Come, let us cast lots, that we may know on whose account this evil has come upon us." So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah.
Micah 2:5
Therefore you will have none to cast the line by lot in the assembly of the Lord.
Luke 1:9
..according to the custom of the priesthood, he was chosen by lot to enter the temple of
the Lord and burn incense.
Of course, casting lots was also used for non-spiritual purposes by unbelievers. It may be remembered, for instance, that lots were cast by Roman soldiers to determine who would get the Lord’s robe at His crucifixion, and indeed that act was nothing less than gambling. Today they might have drawn straws or tried to pick the highest card out of a deck.
But to say that the apostles were acting irresponsibly when they decided to cast lots before God in order to determine a replacement for Judas, is to completely misunderstand the honor, importance and reverence Jews placed upon casting lots before the Lord. When the apostles cast lots in Acts 1, they did so in an entirely reverent manner, and I think even a casual reading of the verses in question reveals that.
Incidentally, a common way lots were cast was by placing stones representing the various options into a container, and then shaking the container until one of them fell out.
In the case of Matthias and Barsabbas (Acts 1:23), the two names were probably written on stones and placed in a basket or jar, which was shaken until the stone with Matthias’ name emerged.
6. Did Paul consider himself to be Judas’ replacement?
1 Cor. 15:3-5:
For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received; that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.
In the above passage, Paul’s mention of “the twelve” may at first seem to refer only to the Lord’s appearance to His disciples on the evening of the day of resurrection (Mk. 16:14f; Lk. 24:33,34; Jn. 20:19f). This is improbable, however, because that meeting occurred after the death of Judas, so that only eleven of the original apostles remained, not twelve. Furthermore, only ten of the apostles were present on that occasion, due to the absence of Thomas, who did not actually see the Lord until eight days later (Jn. 20:24f).
Paul’s use of the number “twelve” is significant because it indicates his clear acknowledgment that there were twelve apostles during the period between the resurrection of Christ and the day of Pentecost. (Remember, Acts 6:2 also indicates that there were twelve functioning apostles prior to the emergence of the apostle Paul.)
Who was this twelfth apostle? Naturally this number cannot include Paul, who was not even a Christian at that time, let alone an apostle. The only logical choice is Matthias (there are no other candidates), and the Corinthian passage must be interpreted accordingly. I offer the following explanation:
As noted above, only ten of the original apostles were present when Jesus appeared to them on the day of His resurrection, so Paul’s mention of the “twelve,” in 1 Cor. 15:5, cannot have reference to that meeting only. But we know that Jesus appeared to his disciples (not just the apostles) many times over a period of several weeks prior to the day of Pentecost (Acts 1:3, 1 Cor. 15:4-7). He appeared to individuals (Lk. 24:34; Jn. 20:16; 1 Cor. 15:5,7), small groups (Mt. 28:1,9; Lk. 24:13f), medium-sized gatherings (Jn. 20:19f, 26f, 30; 21:1f; Acts 1:4; 1 Cor. 15:5,7), and, on one occasion, to a crowd of more than 500 (1 Cor. 15:6). It is easy to surmise that Matthias was present at one or more of His appearances, even after being appointed an apostle, and this fact probably lies behind Paul’s statement that Jesus appeared to the “twelve.” Although Matthias had not yet been chosen as an apostle when Jesus first appeared to the disciples following His resurrection, Paul knew that Matthias had become an apostle, so he included him in his reference to “the twelve,” in 1 Corinthians 15:5. The same would be true of Thomas, who was not present with the others on the evening of the day of resurrection.
It is worth noting in this regard that the choice of Matthias as an apostle appears to have taken place fairly early in the period prior to Pentecost (Acts 1), so, again, it is entirely possible that at least one of Christ’s appearances included Matthias after he was “.. numbered with the eleven..” (Acts 1:26). That Paul cites the existence of twelve apostles indicates that he included Matthias (who is the only available choice, if Paul’s reference to “twelve” is correct), and 1 Cor. 15:5 can easily be read that way: “... he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve” (at times when Thomas and Matthias were present), over a period of forty days [Acts 1:3] ).
Remember, too, that Matthias had been “numbered with the eleven apostles” (Acts 1:26) for the entire 20-plus years prior to the writing of 1 Corinthians—unless he died somewhere along the way—because there is no evidence anywhere that he was ever deposed. Paul was no doubt entirely used to the idea that Matthias was one of the Twelve, so it would have been natural for him to include Matthias in his reference to “the twelve,” when he wrote to the Corinthians.
However one chooses to view this passage, what it establishes is that Paul did not consider himself to be one of the Twelve. It is doubtful that Paul would identify a group of twelve apostles existing shortly after the death of Judas, in a letter he wrote some 20 years later, if he considered himself to be one of that group. If Paul was the twelfth apostle, that surely would have become evident at some point during the two decades prior to his correspondence with the Corinthians. But Paul never tells us that he is one of the Twelve (although he tells us he is not inferior to them in terms of the evidences of apostleship: 1 Cor. 9:1; 2 Cor. 11:5, 12:11,12—see below). No one else in the New Testament mentions it, and to my knowledge none of the church Fathers refer to it. Indeed, there appears to be no evidence at all that Paul or anyone else considered him to be Judas’ replacement. This is simply a point of view made up much later by those who felt that Paul’s prominence as an apostle qualified him as one of the Twelve, a view bolstered by his assertion that he was not inferior to the other apostles. This brings us to…
7. Paul’s Claim of Equality as an Apostle
1 Cor. 9:1, 2:
Am I not free? Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen Jesus our Lord? Are not you my workmanship in the Lord? [2] If to others I am not an apostle, at least I am to you, for you are the seal of my apostleship in the Lord.
2 Cor. 11:3-5 (NASB):
But I am afraid that, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds will be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ. [4] For if one comes and preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted, you bear this beautifully. [5] For I consider myself not in the least inferior to the most eminent apostles.
2 Cor. 12:11-12 (NASB):
I have become foolish; you yourselves compelled me. Actually I should have been commended by you, for in no respect was I inferior to the most eminent apostles, even though I am a nobody. [12] The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with with all perseverance, by signs and wonders and miracles.
The passages above are often cited as evidence that Paul considered himself to be one of the Twelve, because of his insistence that he was the equal of the most eminent apostles (Greek: the “super-apostles”). An examination of these verses, however, reveals no such claim.
False teachers had infiltrated the Corinthian church, convincing some that Paul was not a true apostle (2 Cor. 11:12-15). His response to these accusations was to state that he was not only an apostle, but in evidentiary terms he in no way fell short of the most prominent of the apostles. He reminded them that he had seen the Lord; that the Corinthians themselves were the seal of his apostleship; that the evidences of a true apostle were performed among the Corinthians, with “signs and wonders and mighty works;” and that his ancestral lineage was above reproach (2 Cor. 11:22f). He had demonstrated in their midst all the signs and outward manifestations that accompanied even the most important of the Lord’s hand-chosen followers. Indeed, he himself had been hand-chosen on the road to Damascus (Acts 9, 13:1-3).
However, all of this was only intended to prove to the Corinthians that he was a true apostle, not that he was one of the Twelve. The outward manifestations of his apostleship were no less than those of the Twelve, but he makes no claim to having replaced Judas. (Remember, in 1 Cor. 15:3-5, Paul acknowledged that twelve apostles existed shortly after the resurrection, thereby excluding himself from that group.)
Indeed, his letter to the Corinthians would have been the perfect opportunity to confirm that position, if it were true. What more effective way to convince the Corinthians than by saying: “Why do you question my apostleship? I am one of the Twelve, as everyone knows.” But 20 years after the crucifixion of Christ, Paul writes about the Lord’s post-resurrection appearance to the Twelve, and says nothing about having replaced Judas. And no one else in the New Testament makes that assertion, either.
8. Two Other Passages
Mt. 19:28:
28 Jesus said to them, "Truly, I say to you, in the new world, when the Son of Man will sit on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
Rev. 21:14:
14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.
In both of the passages above, we have to assume that Judas is not included, since Jesus refers to him in the following way:
John 17:12:
12 While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.
The only candidate is Matthias.
Summary
- The view that Matthias was never heard from again following Acts 1 is not true. All of the Twelve are mentioned as a group in subsequent chapters.
- Paul did not meet the requirements for inclusion in the Twelve described by Peter in Acts 1.
- The apostles, and perhaps others, had been infused with the Holy Spirit by the time they chose Matthias to be one of the Twelve.
- Far from being an irresponsible act, the casting of lots before the Lord was God-honored, and undertaken with great solemnity.
- Although Paul considered himself to be the equal of the most important apostles in terms of the evidences of apostleship, there is no reason to believe he viewed himself as one of the Twelve, and 1 Corinthians 15:3-5 supports that conclusion.
[1] For those who might be interested, a few other examples of untranslated terms in the New Testament include “angel” (Gr. angelos: messenger), “baptism” (Gr. baptismos: ablution, washing) and “deacon” (Gr. diakonos: helper, minister).