He went up the mountain and summoned those whom he wanted and they came to him. 14 He appointed twelve [whom he also named apostles] that they might be with him and he might send them forth to preach 15 and to have authority to drive out demons: 16 [he appointed the twelve:] Simon, whom he named Peter; 17 James, son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James, whom he named Boanerges, that is, sons of thunder; 18 Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus; Thaddeus, Simon the Cananean, 19 and Judas Iscariot who betrayed him.
Jesus went up the mountain and spent the whole night in prayer (Lk. 6:12). Ascending a mountain is often associated with important events in the Bible. The next morning, he summoned specific disciples and appointed twelve to be his apostles to be sent forth with the mission to proclaim his message and to have authority over demons. The Twelve were to be his constant companions during his public ministry and be eyewitnesses to his miracles. They would gain intimate knowledge of his teaching and be able to proclaim the message of salvation after his death. The evangelists highlighted Simon/Peter’s primacy among the apostles by placing him first on all the lists of apostles. There is some variation in the order of the other apostles, but Judas is always placed last.
Going up the mountain to appoint the Twelve was reminiscent of Moses going up the mountain when God was forming Israel into a nation (Ex. 19:3-6). The evangelists depict the apostles not merely as a parallel to the twelve tribes of Israel in the Old Testament (Gen. 49:28; cf. Mt. 19:28), but as leaders of the new Israel Jesus was forming. It suggests that Jesus is symbolically reconstituting a new Israel, emphasizing the continuity and fulfillment of God's plan through his ministry and the establishment of a fresh community. The Twelve formed the nucleus of the new people of God being established by Jesus to restore all of God’s people. Their ministry of preaching and healing began later (Mk. 6:7-13).
Almighty God, we are sent to go make disciples of all nations, to call sinners to repentance, and to cure those who are afflicted in body and soul. Grant us the grace to obey your call no matter when or in what station of life we find ourselves. This we pray through Christ our Lord. Amen!
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References
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
Orchard, Bernard, et al. A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture. Feb. 1953.
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