References (15)
Philip
and Bartholomew [Bartolomaios, Hebrew name, "son of Talmais". This is probably the same person as Nathanael, who is mentioned together with Philip, see . In that case, he came from Cana, see ],
Thomas [Hebrew word meaning "twin", see ; ]
and Matthew, the tax collector (publican) [the author of this gospel],
James, son of Alphaeus,
and Thaddaeus [Judas, not Iscariot],
Andrew,
Philip [Greek word meaning "one who loves horses"],
Bartholomew [also called Nathanael],
Matthew,
Thomas [Hebrew word meaning "twin," see ; ],
James, son of Alphaeus,
Thaddaeus [Greek word meaning "one who has a warm heart" or "beloved child". He was also called Jude, son of James; he probably changed his name to avoid being associated with Judas Iscariot],
Simon "the Zealot" (fanatic, zealot, nationalist, Selot) [literally "Simon the Canaanite," the Aramaic equivalent of the Greek term "Zealot," both words meaning "the devoted, zealous, fanatical," may also indicate that he was involved in the Jewish resistance movement against the Roman Empire before becoming a disciple of Jesus],
Simon, whom he also named Peter,
and his brother Andrew,
and James,
and John,
and Philip,
and Bartholomew [also called Nathanael],
The next day Jesus decided to go to
Galilee.
[Probably to attend the wedding mentioned in .] He met
Philip [who later became one of the twelve disciples] and Jesus said to him, "Follow me."
Philip was from
(born in) Bethsaida, the same town as Andrew and Peter.
Philip sought out Nathanael and said to him, "We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law
(Torah – Gk. nomos) and the prophets wrote about – Jesus of
Nazareth, the son of Joseph
[adopted]."
Nathanael said to him, "Can anything good come out of
Nazareth?"
Philip answered, "Come and see."
[Jesus was born in Bethlehem but grew up in Nazareth in Galilee, which was a city of ill repute. Jesus fulfilled the prophecy of being called a Nazarene, see . The prophets speak of the root shoot (Hebr. netzer), which is similar to Nazareth, see ; ; . The derogatory term Nazarene is also fulfilled in how Jesus was despised, see ; . Philip's response is not an argument but an invitation to meet Jesus himself.]Nathanael asked him, "How do you know me?" [How do you know these things about me?]
Jesus answered him, "Before Philip called you, when you were still sitting under the fig tree, I saw you."
[The fig tree is a symbol of the nation of Israel, see ; ; . Sitting under the fig tree was a rabbinical image for praying and studying Scripture. One's own fig tree also refers to one's own home, see ; . The fig tree, with its broad, thick leaves, provided good protection from the sun. Something in Jesus' answer must have caused Nathanael to go from being a skeptic to becoming a believer, see . Nathanael, who had traveled down to the Jordan Valley to listen to John the Baptist's teaching, was probably familiar with the rabbinical teaching on prayer, which said, "He who prays and does not pray for the coming of the Messiah has not yet prayed."]
When Jesus looked up and saw a large crowd [thousands of people] approaching him, he said to Philip, "Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?"
Philip answered him, "Two hundred denarii worth of bread is enough for each of them to have a little." [A denarius was the wage for a day's work. It seems that they had two hundred days’ wages in the treasury, which is equivalent to some thousands US dollars, but even that would not be enough to feed everyone there.]
They came to
Philip, who was from
Bethsaida [which literally means "fish house"] in
Galilee, and asked him repeatedly, "Sir, we would like to see
(gain a clear understanding of) Jesus."
Philip came and told Andrew, and they both went together and told Jesus.
[At Jesus' birth, wise men came from the east, and now before his death, "wise" Greeks come from the west. This event suggests once again that even non-Jude, now excluded from the temple, will soon be allowed to worship, see . The fact that these Greeks come to Philip in particular may be because he, like Andrew, has a Greek name. The mention of their hometown Bethsaida, see , is also a point of contact. The city borders the non-Jewish area Decapolis east of Galilee on the non-Jewish side of the Sea of Galilee. These two disciples were familiar with Greek culture and speaking with Greeks. It seems that Philip and Andrew left the Greeks there and went to Jesus with their question. Jesus may have been inside the wall that separated the Gentiles from the outer parts of the temple area, see . The text does not answer whether the Greeks personally met Jesus there and then, but we know that at the end of Jesus' answer he says that when he rises, he will draw all people to himself, see , i.e. that the gospel is for everyone.] Philip said, "Lord, let us see the Father, then we will be satisfied (that is all we ask)."
Jesus answered him, "I have been with you so long, and you have not known me (had a personal experience of me), Philip? He who has seen (observed, considered) me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'?
When they arrived, they went up to the upper room where they used to be (had a habit of gathering):
Peter
and James
and John
and Andrew;
Philip
and Thomas,
Bartholomew [also called Nathanael]
and Matthew;
James, the son of Alphaeus,
and Simon the Zealot
[Zealot literally means "the devoted, zealous, fanatical," and may imply that he was a member of the Jewish resistance movement against the Roman Empire.]
and Judas, the son of James.
[Three groups emerge when the apostles are listed. Peter, Philip, and James are always mentioned as the first names in each group, see ; ; . In the original text, all names except Peter, Philip, Bartholomew, and James are preceded by the Greek kai, the word "and". A linguistic detail for grouping.]
