Lesson #14 - The Apostle Simon The Zealot

Terry Siverd
11/06/19 - Wed Bible Study

LESSON #14 – THE APOSTLE SIMON THE ZEALOT  

WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT SIMON THE ZEALOT?

~ Including Simon The Zealot, the New Testament references a dozen different men named Simon.

The most famous Simon was the apostle, Simon Peter bar Jona (Mt.16:16-17 - - also called Simeon/Acts 15:14) …

Simeon of Jerusalem (Lk.2:25) … Simeon of Jesus' lineage (Lk.3:30) … Simon the leper (Mt.26:6f & Mk.14:3) ...

Simon the Pharisee (Lk.7:36-50) ... Simon Iscariot, the father of Judas Iscariot (Jn.6:71 and  13:2 & 26) …

Simon of Cyrene (Mt.27:32) … Simon a sorcerer (Acts 8:9) … Simon a tanner (Acts 10:6) ... Simeon a prophet (Acts 13:1) …

And Simon, one of Jesus’ brothers (Mt.13:55 and Mk.6:3).

~ Regarding the latter, I have not read from anyone who contends that Simon the Zealot was a brother to Jesus.

~ The only instances in the New Testament when Simon the Zealot appears is when mentioned in the listings of The Twelve.

cf. Mt.10:4;  Mk.3:18;  Lk.6:15  and  Acts 1:13.

“Simon the Zealot is as obscure as Simon Peter is famous.”

While we know nothing about the apostle Peter’s political background, that is all we know of Simon the Zealot.

~ Since the New Testament tells us nothing about this Simon except the fact that he was a zealot, all that we are

able to discern regarding him from the text of Scripture derives from inferences about his “party affiliation". 

~ In the first-century there were several sects within Judaism:  Essenes … Pharisees … Saducees … and Zealots.

The Zealots were hardcore Jewish “patriots” who became revolutionaries - -  fanatical freedom fighters.

With a tunnel-vision zeal for all things Israel they engaged in rebellion, insurrection and assassination (Acts 21:37-38).

Herod the Great's death in 4 B.C. and the subsequent census in 6 A.D. (Acts 5:36-37) rekindled past fires of revolt.

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According to the writing of Josephus and The Book of Maccabees, Mattathias Maccabeus led a Jewish revolt (167-160 B.C.), which served as a prominent forerunner to the first-century zealotry movement. Mattathias' dying words were:

My children, be zealous for the Law and give your lives for the covenant of our fathers.  After the close of the Old Testament (400 B.C.), Alexander the Great conquered Egypt and Syria, including Palestine.  Wedged in between was the nation of Israel.  Ptolemy, Alexander’s general who first governed these regions tolerated the practices of the Jews, but when General Seleucus took control, Jewish religious practices were curtailed.  Finally, in 175 B.C., Antiochus Epiphanes came to power and began to persecute the Jews, outlawing Jewish practices like dietary laws, keeping of The Sabbath and circumcision.  Antiochus ordered the Jews to worship the Greek god Zeus.  Antiochus Epiphanes' ultimate act of desecration was to sacrifice a pig to Zeus in the temple of Jerusalem.  This precipitated the Maccabean Revolt, which was essentially a rebellion against enforced Hellenistic assimilation.  This anti-Greek sentiment continued to foment in the minds of many first-century Jews in first-century, prompting zealots to lash out at any who appeared to pose a threat to their ideals regarding the Law of Moses.

This persistence anti-Roman rebellion eventually led to the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D..

~ Jesus “revolutionized” Simon the Zealot.  Since the New Testament reveals no negative critiques of Simon,

we can feel confident that Simon surrendered his dagger for a cross.  He went from being an insurrectionist to being a follower of the Prince of Peace.  His ardor and passion were redirected and consecrated.  Tradition says he preached in

Asia Minor, northern Africa, regions around the Black Sea and Babylon and that he was murdered by a mob in Persia.