Test Your Bible Power

Which Disciple Was It?

After a night of prayer, Jesus chose 12 men from among his followers to be apostles (Luke 6:13). Test your knowledge of these unique individuals. Questions are arranged in order of increasing difficulty. How many can you answer before you're stumped?

Simon Peter, Bartholomew,
Andrew, Matthew, James,
Simon the Zealot, John,
Judas Iscariot, Philip, Thomas,
Judas son of James, James son of Alphaeus, Nathanael

1. Which three disciples did Jesus ask to "keep watch with me" in the Garden of Gethsemane?

2. Jesus spoke to this disciple while hanging on the cross, saying, "Here is your mother."

3. This disciple wasn't with all the others when Jesus appeared to them on the evening after his resurrection.

4. One disciple objected when Jesus washed his feet at the Last Supper; another objected when Mary washed Jesus' feet with expensive perfume. Who were these two objectors?

5. Jesus assigned these two disciples the important task of preparing the Upper Room for the Passover meal, also known as the Last Supper.

6. Which of Jesus' disciples were the first two to die?

7. While they were fishing, Jesus appeared to these five named disciples after his resurrection.

Answers to Test Your Bible Power

1. Peter, James, and John (Matt. 26:37, 38). This same trio saw Jesus' glory on the Mount of Transfiguration, where Moses and Elijah spoke with Jesus about his approaching death (Luke 9:28-31). Perhaps Jesus hoped these disciples would recall that event and encourage him as he faced the cross.

2. John (John 19:26-27). A widow in Jesus' day depended on her oldest son for her financial support. When Jesus saw his mother (presumably a widow) standing at the foot of the cross, he asked John ("the disciple whom he loved") to fulfill this duty for him.

3. Thomas (John 20:19-29). "The disciples [except for Thomas] were together with the doors locked for fear of the Jews" when Jesus appeared. Thomas doubted their report, but Jesus later showed him proof.

4. Peter and Judas Iscariot (John 13:8; 12:4). Peter objected to the foot-washing because it was the task of a servant, not the Messiah. Judas objected to Mary's act, saying that the expensive perfume might have been sold to help the poor. Judas was really a thief who stole from the disciples' money bag he kept for the group. Knowing Judas's heart, Jesus still washed his feet at the Last Supper.

5. Peter and John (Luke 22:8-20). Jesus entrusted the arrangements for the event to the two men closest to him. The Passover meal, celebrating Israel's deliverance from slavery, became the Christians' Communion meal celebrating our deliverance from sin.

6. Judas and James (Matt. 27:5; Acts 12:2). Judas hanged himself after betraying Jesus, and the apostles chose Matthias by lot to replace him (Acts 1:26). The first disciple to be martyred for his faith was James the brother of John, killed by King Herod Agrippa I approximately 10 years after Jesus' resurrection (Acts 12:2).

7. Peter, Thomas, Nathanel, James, and John (John 21:2). These five men, along with two other unnamed disciples, had finished an unsuccessful night of fishing when Jesus appeared to them for the third time and prepared breakfast for them beside the Sea of Galilee. Peter, James, and John had once been fishing partners (Luke 5:10).

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