The Twelve Apostles – Part 9
Bartholomew
“And when it was day, He called unto Him His disciples: and of them He chose twelve, whom also He named apostles…Bartholomew” (Luke 6:13-14).
His name appears in each list of the disciples (Matthew 10:3; Mark 3:18; Luke 6:14; Acts 1:13). Other than this we know little about him from Scripture. Some scholars have equated him with Nathaniel, but there is no scriptural basis to back this except by the inference given in John 1:45-46 when he is called by Philip, and in John 21:2, when he joined Peter and others in their fishing expedition, and the Lord appeared to them in resurrection the next morning.
It is interesting and instructive to see the different roles that each of the twelve disciples played. They must have been so different from one another in personality, temperament, and certainly in upbringing and background. But the Lord had a special and unique place for each one in His work and service, both while he was here on earth with them, and after He ascended back to heaven, and left them to carry on the work of making known the gospel.
