ilee;
and it was, probably, in that district He appeared to the company of
upwards of five hundred brethren who saw Him after His resurrection.
[37:1] He had itinerated extensively as a missionary; and, from some
statements incidentally occurring in the gospels, we may infer, that
there were individuals who had imbibed His doctrines in the cities and
villages of almost all parts of Palestine. [37:2] But the most signal
and decisive proof of the power of His ministry is presented in the fact
that, during the three years of its duration, He enlisted and sent forth
no less than eighty-two preachers. Part of these have since been known
as "The Twelve," and the rest as "The Seventy."

The Twelve are frequently mentioned in the New Testament, and yet the
information we possess respecting them is exceedingly scanty. Of some we
know little more than their names. It has been supposed that a town
called Kerioth, [37:3] or Karioth, belonging to the tribe of Judah, was
the birthplace of Judas, the traitor; [37:4] but it is probable that all
his colleagues were natives of Galilee. [37:5] Some of them had various
names; and the consequent diversity which the sacred catalogues present
has frequently perplexed the reader of the evangelical narratives.
Matthew was also called Levi; [37:6] Nathanael was designated
Bartholomew; [36:7] and Jude had the two other names of Lebbaeus and
Thaddaeus. [38:1] Thomas was called Didymus, [38:2] or the twin, in
reference, we may presume, to the circumstances of his birth; James the
son of Alphaeus was styled, perhaps by way of distinction, James "the
Less" [38:3]--in allusion, it would seem, to the inferiority of his
stature; the other James and John were surnamed Boanerges, [38:4] or the
sons of thunder--a title probably indicative of the peculiar solemnity
and power of their ministrations; and Simon stands at the head of all
the lists, and is expressly said to be "first" of the Twelve, [38:5]
because, as we have reason to believe, whilst his advanced age might
have warranted him to claim precedence, his superior energy and
promptitude enabled him to occupy the most prominent position. The same
individual was called Cephas, or Peter, or _Stone_, [38:6] apparently on
account of the firmness of his character. His namesake, the other Simon,
was termed the Canaanite, and also Zelotes, [38:7] or the zealot--a
title expressive, in all likelihood, of the zeal and earnestness with
which he was wont to carry