Seventy Disciples

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Icon of the Seventy Apostles.

The Seventy Disciples or Seventy-two Disciples were early followers of Jesus mentioned in the Gospel of Luke 10:1-24. According to Luke, the only gospel in which they appear, Jesus appointed them and sent them out in pairs to spread his message. In Western Christianity it is usual to refer to them as Disciples while in Eastern Christianity they are usually referred to as Apostles. Using the original Greek words, both titles are descriptive as an apostle is one sent on a mission whereas a disciple is a student, but the two traditions differ on the scope of the word apostle.

[edit] Text

The passage from Luke 10 reads:^[1]

1. And after these things, the Lord did appoint also other seventy, and sent them by twos before his face, to every city and place whither he himself was about to come,
2. then said he unto them, `The harvest indeed [is] abundant, but the workmen few; beseech ye then the Lord of the harvest, that He may put forth workmen to His harvest.
3. `Go away; lo, I send you forth as lambs in the midst of wolves;
4. carry no bag, no scrip, nor sandals; and salute no one on the way;
5. and into whatever house ye do enter, first say, Peace to this house;
6. and if indeed there may be there the son of peace, rest on it shall your peace; and if not so, upon you it shall turn back.
7. `And in that house remain, eating and drinking the things they have, for worthy [is] the workman of his hire; go not from house to house,
8. and into whatever city ye enter, and they may receive you, eat the things set before you,
9. and heal the ailing in it, and say to them, The reign of God hath come nigh to you.
10. `And into whatever city ye do enter, and they may not receive you, having gone forth to its broad places, say,
11. And the dust that hath cleaved to us, from your city, we do wipe off against you, but this know ye, that the reign of God hath come nigh to you;
12. and I say to you, that for Sodom in that day it shall be more tolerable than for that city.
13. `Wo to thee, Chorazin; wo to thee, Bethsaida; for if in Tyre and Sidon had been done the mighty works that were done in you, long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes, they had reformed;
14. but for Tyre and Sidon it shall be more tolerable in the judgment than for you.
15. `And thou, Capernaum, which unto the heaven wast exalted, unto hades thou shalt be brought down.
16. `He who is hearing you, doth hear me; and he who is putting you away, doth put me away; and he who is putting me away, doth put away Him who sent me.'
17. And the seventy turned back with joy, saying, `Sir, and the demons are being subjected to us in thy name;'
18. and he said to them, `I was beholding the Adversary, as lightning from the heaven having fallen;
19. lo, I give to you the authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and on all the power of the enemy, and nothing by any means shall hurt you;
20. but, in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subjected to you, but rejoice rather that your names were written in the heavens.'

[edit] Analysis

This is the only mention of the group in the Bible. The number is seventy in manuscripts in the Alexandrian (such as Codex Sinaiticus) and Caesarean text traditions but seventy-two in most other Alexandrian and Western texts. It may derive from the 70 nations of Genesis or the many other 70 in the Bible, or the 72 translators of the Septuagint from the Letter of Aristeas.^[2] In editing the Vulgate, Jerome selected the reading of seventy-two.

The Gospel of Luke is alone among the synoptic gospels in containing two episodes in which Jesus sends out his followers on a mission. The first occasion (Luke 9:1-6) is closely based on the mission in Mark 6:6b-13, which however recounts the sending out of the Twelve Apostles, rather than seventy, though with similar details. The parallels (also Matthew 9:35,10:1,7-11), suggest a common origin in the posited Q document.

What has been said to the seventy (two) in Luke 10:4 is referred in passing to the Twelve in Luke 22:35:

"He said to them, "When I sent you forth without a money bag or a sack or sandals, were you in need of anything?" "No, nothing," they replied.

See also: Great Commission

[edit] Feast days

The feast day commemorating the Seventy is known as the "Synaxis of the Seventy Apostles" in Eastern Orthodoxy, and is celebrated on January 4. Each of the Seventy Apostles also have individual commemorations scattered throughout the liturgical year (see Eastern Orthodox Church calendar).

[edit] Lists

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The Orthodox Church tradition of supplying names to the Seventy whose "names are written in heaven" is associated with a late 3rd century bishop Dorotheus of Tyre, unknown except in this context, to whom has been ascribed an account of the Seventy, of which the surviving version is 8th century. The names of these disciples are given in several lists: Chronicon Paschale, and the Pseudo-Dorotheus (printed in Migne's Patrologiae cursus completus, XCII, 521-524; 543-545; 1061-1065).

Roman Catholic scholars commonly judged that "these lists are unfortunately worthless" (Catholic Encyclopedia, 1908, "Apostle").

Eusebius positively asserted that no such roll existed in his time, and mentioned among the disciples only Barnabas, Sosthenes, Cephas, Matthias, Thaddeus and James "the Lord's brother" (Historia Ecclesiae I.xii).

Many of the names included among the Seventy are recognizable for their other achievements. The names included in various lists differ slightly. In the lists Luke is also one of these seventy himself. The following list gives a widely accepted canon.

1. James "the Lord's brother", author of the Epistle of James, and first Bishop of Jerusalem
2. Mark the Evangelist, author of the Gospel of Mark and Bishop of Alexandria
3. Luke the Evangelist, author of the Gospel of Luke
4. Cleopas
5. Symeon, son of Cleopas, 2nd Bishop of Jerusalem
6. Barnabas, Bishop of Milan
7. Justus, Bishop of Eleutheropolis
8. Thaddeus of Edessa (not the Apostle called Thaddeus) also known as Saint Addai
9. Ananias, Bishop of Damascus
10. Stephen, of the Seven Deacons, the first martyr
11. Philip the Evangelist, of the Seven, Bishop of Tralia in Asia Minor
12. Prochorus, of the Seven, Bishop of Nicomedia in Bithynia
13. Nicanor the Deacon, of the Seven
14. Timon, of the Seven
15. Parmenas the Deacon, of the Seven
16. Timothy, Bishop of Ephesus
17. Titus, Bishop of Crete
18. Philemon, Bishop of Gaza
19. Onesimus (Not the Onesimus mentioned in the Epistle to Philemon)
20. Epaphras, Bishop of Andriaca
21. Archippus
22. Silas, Bishop of Corinth
23. Silvanus
24. Crescens
25. Crispus, Bishop of Chalcedon in Galilee
26. Epenetus, Bishop of Carthage
27. Andronicus, Bishop of Pannonia
28. Stachys, Bishop of Byzantium
29. Amplias, Bishop of Odissa (Odessus)
30. Urban, Bishop of Macedonia
31. Narcissus, Bishop of Athens
32. Apelles, Bishop of Heraklion
33. Aristobulus, Bishop of Britain
34. Herodion, Bishop of Patras
35. Agabus the Prophet
36. Rufus, Bishop of Thebes
37. Asyncritus, Bishop of Hyrcania
38. Phlegon, Bishop of Marathon
39. Hermes, Bishop of Philippopolis
40. Parrobus, Bishop of Pottole
41. Hermas, Bishop of Dalmatia
42. Pope Linus, Bishop of Rome
43. Gaius, Bishop of Ephesus
44. Philologus, Bishop of Sinope
45. Lucius of Cyrene, Bishop of Laodicea in Syria
46. Jason, Bishop of Tarsis
47. Sosipater, Bishop of Iconium
48. Olympas
49. Tertius, transcriber of the Epistle to the Romans and Bishop of Iconium
50. Erastus, Bishop of Paneas
51. Quartus, Bishop of Berytus
52. Euodias, Bishop of Antioch
53. Onesiphorus, Bishop of Cyrene
54. Clement, Bishop of Sardice
55. Sosthenes, Bishop of Colophon
56. Apollos, Bishop of Caesarea
57. Tychicus, Bishop of Colophon
58. Epaphroditus
59. Carpus, Bishop of Beroea in Thrace
60. Quadratus
61. John Mark (commonly considered identical to Mark the Evangelist), bishop of Byblos^[3]
62. Zenas the Lawyer, Bishop of Diospolis
63. Aristarchus, Bishop of Apamea in Syria
64. Pudens
65. Trophimus
66. Mark, Bishop of Apollonia
67. Artemas, Bishop of Lystra
68. Aquila
69. Fortunatus
70. Achaicus

Matthias, who would later replace Judas Iscariot as one of the Twelve Apostles, is also often numbered among the Seventy.^[4]

Also, some lists name a few different disciples than the ones listed above. Other names commonly included are:

• Another Stephen
• Rodion
• Cephas, Bishop of Iconium
• Caesar, Bishop of Dyrrhachium
• Another Mark, Bishop of Apollonias
• Another Tychicus of Chalcedon, Bishop of Chalcedon in Bithynia

These are usually included at the expense of the aforementioned Timothy, Titus, Archippus, Crescens, Olympas, Epaphroditus, Quadratus, Aquila, Fortunatus, and/or Achaicus.

Solomon, Nestorian bishop of Basra in the 13th century offers the following list:^[3]

"The names of the seventy. James, the son of Joseph; Simon the son of Cleopas; Cleopas his father; Joses; Simon; Judah; Barnabas; Manaeus (?); Ananias, who baptised Paul; Cephas, who preached at Antioch; Joseph the senator; Nicodemus the archon; Nathaniel the chief scribe; Justus, that is Joseph, who is called Barshabbâ; Silas; Judah; John, surnamed Mark; Mnason, who received Paul; Manaël, the foster-brother of Herod; Simon called Niger; Jason, who is (mentioned) in the Acts (of the Apostles); Rufus; Alexander; Simon the Cyrenian, their father; Lucius the Cyrenian; another Judah, who is mentioned in the Acts (of the Apostles); Judah, who is called Simon; Eurion (Orion) the splay-footed; Thôrus (?); Thorîsus (?); Zabdon; Zakron.

[edit] References

1. ^ From translation from Young's Literal Translation (1898)
2. ^ Bruce Metzger's Textual Commentary on the Greek NT
3. ^ ^{a b} The Book of the Bee, Chapter XLIX, The Names of the Apostles in Order (1886accessdate=2008-02-21).
4. ^ Catholic Encyclopedia: St. Matthias (1911). Retrieved on 2008-02-21.

[edit] External links

• Luke 10 in Greek
• Luke 10 in Greek transliterated
• The Seventy Apostles
• The Book of the Bee, chapter XLIX "The names of the Apostles in order" by Solomon, Nestorian bishop of Basra, 13th century (edited by Ernest A. Wallace Budge, 1886).
• Synaxis of the Seventy Apostles Orthodox Synaxarion