Scripture tells us little about Simon. Luke and Acts call him the Zealot. Matthew and Mark call him the Cananaean, a word that most scholars think carries the same meaning. We do not know for certain whether it named a political cause or simply his religious zeal.
What we do know is the company he kept. Jesus put him in the same small group as Matthew, a tax collector (Matthew 9:9, 10:3-4). Whatever Simon had been zealous for before, he spent three years following a King who did not take up the sword.
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All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer
Name means
Simon means “he has heard”
Home
Not recorded
Role
Apostle, one of the Twelve
Read in
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Simon the Zealot's story
All of them fled
Beginning
Called the Zealot
Jesus chose him as one of the Twelve. Luke records the name he carried, Simon who was called the Zealot.
Turning point
Scattered at the arrest
When the crowd came with swords and clubs, all the disciples left Jesus and fled.
Ending
One accord in prayer
After the ascension he is in the upper room, praying with the other apostles, the women, and Jesus' family.
Starts as a man defined by his zeal. Ends as an apostle of a kingdom not of this world.
Where Simon the Zealot lived and went
Only places Scripture records. Softer, dotted pins are traditional or uncertain sites. Tap a pin for the passage.
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Scripture records only his presence in the upper room.
How Simon the Zealot is wired
Why there's no type here
His nickname tells us about his reputation, not his inner motives, and Scripture records nothing else.
Strengths & struggles
What's good in Simon the Zealot
Zeal. His nickname suggests a man who cared deeply and was willing to act ().
Where Simon the Zealot struggles
Scripture records no specific failing of his own. He fled with the others when Jesus was arrested ().
Jesus gathers rivals into one body under his peace.
Simon's zeal and Matthew's past should have kept them apart. In Jesus they sat at the same table. Before Pilate, Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world” (). His kingdom does not advance by force. It advances by the cross, where he made enemies one.
Questions to sit with
1
What are you zealous for that Jesus might want to redirect?
2
Who would be the “Matthew” in your life that Jesus would seat beside you?
Study Simon the Zealot with your group
Ready-to-lead group studies with discussion questions and a leader's note are on the way.
