Simon Zelotes 

Simon Zelotes was born in 3 BCE. He lived with his family in Capernaum, a town on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee. He became Jesus’ eleventh apostle in July, 26 CE. When Jesus asked each of the first six apostles to choose another, Simon Peter, the second apostle, selected Simon Zelotes. Simon was a merchant in Capernaum at one time, but then he turned his attention to a patriotic organization, the Zealots. The Zealots advocated expelling the Roman government from Palestine by rebellion, and Simon held a high office in that organization.

Before joining the apostles, Simon held tightly to the traditional belief that a Messiah would come to power and liberate the Jewish people from their Roman oppressors. After becoming an apostle, he came to believe that Jesus was that Messiah, despite Jesus’ repeated statements to the contrary. He was a stubborn and fiery agitator and often spoke without thinking. But during his nearly four years’ working for and with Jesus, Simon, for the most part, performed admirably. And his loyalty to Jesus did not waver, even after the Master died.

Simon’s great weakness was his material-mindedness; his strength was his inspirational loyalty. Both were severely tested during his service as Jesus’ apostle. He deeply admired Jesus and remained a devoted follower throughout all the trials and rigors of this service. After Jesus’ death, Simon became depressed for some time but later recovered and went deep into Africa carrying the gospel message. There he preached and baptized believers until he died of old age. He was buried in Africa.

Simon was a fearless man of intense loyalties and warm personal devotions, and he profoundly loved Jesus. The thing about Jesus which Simon so much admired was his calmness, assurance, poise, and inexplicable composure. Jesus was always patient with Simon, and they had many talks. But he never fully succeeded in converting Simon “the Zealot.” The four years he spent in the company of Jesus was too short a time for Simon to make such a complete intellectual and emotional transformation. He could not quickly and entirely change himself from a Jewish nationalist to a spiritually minded internationalist. Despite his shortcomings and occasional unwise choices, Simon contributed significantly to Jesus’ mission. And he never resented being corrected; he would listen to Jesus’ counsel even if he was slow to grasp the meaning.

On the day Jesus welcomed Simon as an apostle, he wanted to give a speech but Andrew, chief of the apostles, persuaded Simon not to make any public remarks. Andrew knew that Jesus did not want the Zealot movement to become confused with the gospel message. Simon was a rebel by nature and an iconoclast by training, but gradually Jesus won him for the higher concepts of the kingdom of heaven. He had always identified himself with the party of protest, but after becoming an apostle, he began to realize he belonged to the party of progress, unlimited and eternal progression of spirit and truth.

Jesus often told Simon that it was proper to want to see the social, economic, and political orders improved, but he would always add: “That is not the business of the kingdom of heaven. We must be dedicated to the doing of the Father’s will...” It was very difficult for Simon to comprehend, but, to his credit, he did eventually grasp some of the meaning of the Master’s many-sided teachings.

Simon learned a great lesson from Jesus one day while conducting classes for special groups of inquirers. When he could not bring a certain Persian businessman and fire-worshiper into the kingdom, he took the man to Jesus who did so easily. Later, when they were alone, Simon asked: “Why is it that I could not persuade him? Why did he so resist me and so readily lend an ear to you?” Jesus answered: “Simon, Simon, how many times have I instructed you to refrain from all efforts to take something out of the hearts of those who seek salvation? How often have I told you to labor only to put something into these hungry souls?” This repeated lesson served him well after Jesus died. Even before Jesus’ departure, Simon refined his methods and became the person that the other apostles would call on when it came to convincing undecided ones, especially intellectuals.

Simon became an apostle in July, 26 CE. He and his eleven fellows were ordained on January 12, 27 CE. Simon was given the responsibility for the diversions and relaxation of the group. He was a very efficient organizer of the play life and recreational activities of the twelve because he was an inspiring and persuasive man. After he harnessed and refined his talents to inspire and persuade, these abilities worked well when the apostles found a man or woman who floundered in indecision about entering the kingdom. They would send for Simon and usually it required only about fifteen minutes for this enthusiastic advocate of salvation through faith in God to settle all doubts and remove all indecision. Simon was a great debater; he did like to argue. And when it came to dealing with the legalistic minds of the Jews or the Greeks, the task was always assigned to him.

Harmony within the apostolic group was not instantaneous. When one of Simon’s fellow apostles, Matthew Levi, formerly a tax collector, became the group’s finance officer, it took a while for Simon to accept him since tax collectors were universally disliked. There were other times when Simon’s self-righteous belligerence caused disharmony, but he never entertained betrayal and was never disloyal. As he worked with his fellow apostles and observed Jesus, Simon slowly, gradually, subdued his fiery nature and became a powerful and effective preacher of “Peace on earth and good will among men.”

Simon witnessed many of Jesus’ miracles and he was there when the Master gave the Sermon on the Mount. But he, and the others, struggled with some of Jesus’ teachings. Simon was confused about who could be admitted into the “kingdom of heaven.” It came as a shock to him when Jesus declared that everyone is a member of God’s family. At the evening meal after Jesus had ordained the apostles, Simon Zelotes asked, “But, Master, are all men the sons of God?” Jesus replied: “Yes, Simon, all are children of God, and that is the good news you are going to proclaim.”

Simon did not easily surrender his tendency to think certain groups and some individuals were not worthy of entering the kingdom. And he was not above the inclination to solve some problems with brute force. There was an incident at their campsite near Bethsaida, where Simon was in favor of treating a disruptive trance prophet rather roughly, but Jesus intervened and gave the man full liberty. After a few days, almost everyone realized his teachings were faulty and he left. Such lessons impressed Simon and he came to trust Jesus as a teacher and a true holy man even if he could not understand the Master’s refusal to use force.

There were other incidents when Simon wanted to use muscle instead of wisdom. One day, after Jesus had preached at the Nazareth synagogue, men who had been hired to cause trouble were jostling and accusing him. Simon was furious and quickly gathered several friends to rescue the Master. But that only enraged the mob. They took Jesus to a nearby cliff and were about to throw him over when he turned on them, folded his arms, and then walked away unhindered. This had a sobering effect on Simon and the others. They realized the kingdom would not come without its troubles. And when trouble came, Simon’s inclination to fight always conflicted with Jesus’ non-violent attitude.

Simon was sometimes thoughtless and bigoted. When a woman whose daughter had frequent convulsions approached Simon and asked for Jesus to heal her, Simon tried to send her away saying: “Woman, you are a Greek-speaking gentile. It is not right that you should expect the Master to take the bread intended for the children of the favored household and cast it to the dogs.” The woman prevailed and Jesus healed the girl. And he used the incident to teach Simon, yet again, that gentiles are also children of God.

Simon’s bias against gentiles, especially Samaritans, was exposed once more when Jesus restored the health of ten lepers—nine Jews and one Samaritan. Before the healing, Simon had tried to persuade Jesus to ignore them when he saw that one of them was a Samaritan. Jesus replied: “Should we sit in judgment on our fellow men? Who can tell? if we make these ten men whole, perhaps the Samaritan will prove more grateful even than the Jews. Do you feel certain about your opinions, Simon?” Simon assured Jesus he was certain. But after Jesus healed the ten and the Samaritan was the only one to give proper thanks and glorify God, Simon had to face his bigotry. And he continued to struggle to reconcile his belief in Jewish superiority with Jesus’ teaching on the spiritual equality of all humanity, even the Samaritans.

On another occasion Simon, Judas Iscariot, and Andrew presumed they could cure an epileptic boy but could not. They called to Jesus, and he healed the child. Afterward, he told Simon and the others that he presumption of God's will and personal pride was the cause of their failure. Simon was indeed a stubborn and slow learner, even a bigot, but he never resisted being taught by Jesus.

Simon’s intentions were good, but he could not let go of his desire to see Jesus become a political leader, a king, and a liberator of the Jews. When a false rumor circulated that Jesus would soon be made a king, Simon and three other apostles favored it. This was before Jesus miraculously fed the five thousand. After they had eaten, calls to crown him king grew loud. When Jesus refused and told them to make God their king, Simon was crushed. But even this episode did not fully convince Simon to give up the notion that Jesus would become an earthly ruler, a king to sit on “David’s throne.”

The first Sunday of April, 30 CE, when Jesus entered Jerusalem for the last time, was the greatest and the worst day of Simon’s life as an apostle. When the Passover crowd shouted and cheered Jesus as he rode into the city, Simon assumed that crowning him would soon follow. Simon saw in his mind’s eye the nationalists springing into action as soon as the new Jewish kingdom under Jesus’ rule was announced. Simon imagined he would be the supreme commander of the assembling military forces of the new kingdom. By that evening, when nothing happened except Jesus entering the city unharmed, Simon was crushed, disillusioned, and depressed. This depression stayed with him long after Jesus resurrected.

On the following Tuesday morning, when Jesus sought to encourage his downcast apostles, he said this to Simon:

“Simon, you may be crushed by disappointment, but your spirit shall rise above all that may come upon you. What you have failed to learn from me, my spirit will teach you. Seek the true realities of the spirit and cease to be attracted by unreal and material shadows.”

And he did eventually recover, after a long bout with depression. Overall, and despite his human flaws and emotional upheavals, Simon was an observant and thoughtful man. He once asked Jesus: “Why are some persons so much more happy and contented than others? Is contentment a matter of religious experience?” Jesus answered, in part:

“Simon, some persons are naturally more happy than others. Much, very much, depends upon the willingness of man to be led and directed by the Father’s spirit which lives within him…”

On the evening of the Last Supper, April 6, 30 CE, Jesus spoke with all his apostles individually. He and Simon had this conversation:

“You are a true son of Abraham, but what a time I have had trying to make you a son of this heavenly kingdom. I love you and so do all of your brethren. I know that you love me, Simon, and that you also love the kingdom, but you are still set on making this kingdom come according to your liking. I know full well that you will eventually grasp the spiritual nature and meaning of my gospel, and that you will do valiant work in its proclamation, but I am distressed about what may happen to you when I depart. I would rejoice to know that you would not falter; I would be made happy if I could know that, after I go to the Father, you would not cease to be my apostle, and that you would acceptably deport yourself as an ambassador of the heavenly kingdom.”

Jesus had hardly ceased speaking to Simon Zelotes when the fiery patriot, drying his eyes, replied: “Master, have no fears for my loyalty. I have turned my back upon everything that I might dedicate my life to the establishment of your kingdom on earth, and I will not falter. I have survived every disappointment so far, and I will not forsake you.”

And then, laying his hand on Simon’s shoulder, Jesus said: “It is indeed refreshing to hear you talk like that, especially at such a time as this, but, my good friend, you still do not know what you are talking about. Not for one moment would I doubt your loyalty, your devotion; I know you would not hesitate to go forth in battle and die for me, as all these others would” (and they all nodded a vigorous approval), “but that will not be required of you. I have repeatedly told you that my kingdom is not of this world, and that my disciples will not fight to effect its establishment. I have told you this many times, Simon, but you refuse to face the truth. I am not concerned with your loyalty to me and to the kingdom, but what will you do when I go away and you at last wake up to the realization that you have failed to grasp the meaning of my teaching, and that you must adjust your misconceptions to the reality of another and spiritual order of affairs in the kingdom?”

Simon wanted to speak further, but Jesus raised his hand and, stopping him, went on to say: “None of my apostles are more sincere and honest at heart than you, but not one of them will be so upset and disheartened as you, after my departure. In all of your discouragement my spirit shall abide with you, and these, your brethren, will not forsake you. Do not forget what I have taught you regarding the relation of citizenship on earth to sonship in the Father’s spiritual kingdom. Ponder well all that I have said to you about rendering to Caesar the things which are Caesar’s and to God that which is God’s. Dedicate your life, Simon, to showing how acceptably mortal man may fulfill my injunction concerning the simultaneous recognition of temporal duty to civil powers and spiritual service in the brotherhood of the kingdom. If you will be taught by the Spirit of Truth, never will there be conflict between the requirements of citizenship on earth and sonship in heaven unless the temporal rulers presume to require of you the homage and worship which belong only to God.

“And now, Simon, when you do finally see all of this, and after you have shaken off your depression and have gone forth proclaiming this gospel in great power, never forget that I was with you even through all of your season of discouragement, and that I will go on with you to the very end. You shall always be my apostle, and after you become willing to see by the eye of the spirit and more fully to yield your will to the will of the Father in heaven, then will you return to labor as my ambassador, and no one shall take away from you the authority which I have conferred upon you, because of your slowness of comprehending the truths I have taught you. And so, Simon, once more I warn you that they who fight with the sword perish with the sword, while they who labor in the spirit achieve life everlasting in the kingdom to come with joy and peace in the kingdom which now is. And when the work given into your hands is finished on earth, you, Simon, shall sit down with me in my kingdom over there. You shall really see the kingdom you have longed for, but not in this life. Continue to believe in me and in that which I have revealed to you, and you shall receive the gift of eternal life.”

After the Last Supper, they all went to their camp to rest. It was dawning on Simon that Jesus would probably be arrested later that night. That was when he arranged to have swords stored in his tent. He then told the other apostles about his concern and offered them swords. Eight of them accepted and went to their tents with these weapons hidden under their clothing. But Simon was asleep when the arrest happened. After awakening and being told Jesus was in the hands of the Romans, he tried to convince the others to mount a rescue, but he failed when Nathaniel recalled that Jesus told them to hide and save their lives for proclaiming the gospel after he died. It was decided they should follow Jesus’ instructions and go into hiding. Reluctantly, Simon laid down his sword and hid in Jerusalem.

Jesus died on Friday afternoon. Simon and the other apostles remained hidden until late Saturday night when they received word to gather at the same room where the Last Supper took place. There they stayed all day Sunday, during which Simon laid on a couch facing the wall and saying almost nothing. Finally, and to their astonishment, the risen Jesus appeared to them about nine that evening. After speaking briefly and dispelling all doubt about his resurrection, Jesus vanished. Simon and the others fell to the floor praising God.

Jesus appeared before his apostles, as a group, seven times in all. At his appearance to the apostles, he told them to go to Galilee where he would meet with them again. As they traveled, Simon fell into a depression and departed for home when they reached Bethsaida. After Jesus met with the others on the shore of Galilee and talked with them individually, he asked Peter and Andrew to go and find Simon and bring him back, which they did. Simon remained with his fellow apostles until Jesus ascended.

At Jesus’ last appearance, on May 18th 30 CE, during his final words to the apostles, Simon the Zealot broke in with yet another question about establishing an earthly kingdom. As the apostles were about to have breakfast, Jesus suddenly appeared and said:

“Peace be upon you. I have asked you to tarry here in Jerusalem until I ascend to the Father, even until I send you the Spirit of Truth, who shall soon be poured out upon all flesh, and who shall endow you with power from on high.” Simon interrupted Jesus, asking, “Then, Master, will you restore the kingdom, and will we see the glory of God manifested on earth?” When Jesus had listened to Simon’s question, he answered: “Simon, you still cling to your old ideas about the Jewish Messiah and the material kingdom. But you will receive spiritual power after the spirit has descended upon you, and you will presently go into all the world preaching this gospel of the kingdom.”

Jesus then took them to Mount Olivet to say goodbye. Shortly after that Simon went into a deep depression. He was confused too. As a nationalist patriot he had surrendered in deference to Jesus’ teachings; now all was lost. Now Jesus was gone and soon the other apostles were dispersed because of persecutions in Jerusalem. In nearly complete despair, Simon went into retirement. As he mulled over Jesus’ answer to a question Peter asked, he mistakenly came to believe Jesus would reappear before John Zebedee died. The effect of that belief, although erroneous, got Simon back to work and kept him at it for the remainder of his life. But this took time and Simon had to go through a spell of discouragement before he went back to work. After a few years, when this period of despair had run its course, Jesus’ prediction that Simon would do valiant work proclaiming the gospel was fulfilled. Simon rallied his hopes and went south proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom.

He went first to Alexandria, Egypt, and, after working up the Nile to its headwaters, penetrated deep into Africa, everywhere preaching the gospel of Jesus and baptizing believers. He labored until he was old and feeble. He died and was buried in the heart of Africa.

Simon, like the other Apostles, is regarded as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Churches, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, the Eastern Catholic Churches, the churches of the Anglican Communion and the Lutheran Church. Simon is remembered in the Church of England with a Festival on October 28th.

In Islam, Muslim exegesis and Qur’an commentary name the twelve apostles and include Simon among them. Muslim tradition says that Simon was sent to preach the faith of God to the Berbers, outside North Africa.