Luke 6:12-16

Amplified Bible

Choosing the Twelve

¹²Now at this time Jesus went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God. ¹³When day came, He called His disciples and selected twelve of them, whom He also named ^[a]apostles (special messengers, personally chosen representatives):^(A) ¹⁴Simon, whom He also named Peter, and his brother Andrew; and [the brothers] ^[b]James and John; and Philip, and Bartholomew [also called Nathanael]; ¹⁵and Matthew (Levi, the tax collector) and Thomas; and ^[c]James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon who was called the Zealot; ¹⁶Judas [also called Thaddaeus] the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor [to the Lord].

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Footnotes

Luke 6:13 In general usage the word “apostle” (Gr apostolos) means “sent one” or “messenger.” In this passage and others in reference to the “twelve,” the word “apostles” is used in a technical sense of the twelve disciples, and later Paul, whom Jesus chose. An apostle was one who had witnessed Christ’s resurrection (Acts 1:21, 22) or (in Paul’s case) had seen the resurrected Christ (1 Cor 9:1, 2). They validated their apostleship by performing “signs and wonders and miracles” (2 Cor 12:12), and were the foundation of the church.
Luke 6:14 The sons of Zebedee and Salome. Salome is believed to be a sister of Mary, the mother of Jesus.
Luke 6:15 Also called James the Less or James the Younger. His mother Mary (Gr Maria) is believed to be a sister or sister-in-law of Mary, the mother of Jesus.