The Apostle Peter

Simon is the brother of Andrew. The relationship between them comes from John 1:44. As I continue to introduce Peter, I will put in parentheses the scripture text.

Simon Peter known in Greek as petros which means rock can be found one hundred eighty-three (183) times in the New Testament. His name is Simon, but Jesus called him Peter. (Matthew 16:18) Cephas is Aramaic for rock. He is the son of Jona. (Matthew 16:17; Luke 1:42) His hometown was Bethsaida. (John 1:44) He was a Galilean fisherman. (Mark 1:16, Luke 5:2-3, and John 21:3) His business partners were James and John. (Luke 5:10) He was married. (Mark 1:30) He lived in Capernaum. (Mark 1:21-31) He associated with John the Baptist. (John 1:40)

Peter was the leader and spokesman for the disciples. (Mark 8:29 and Matthew 17:24) He posed questions to Jesus regarding others concerns. (Matthew 15:15, Matthew 18:21, Mark 11:21, and Luke 12:41) He was presumptuous (Matthew 16:22, John 13:8, and John 18:10), timid (Matthew 14:30 and Matthew 26:69-72), self-seeking (Matthew 19:27), self-sacrificing (Mark 1:18), spiritually perceptive (Matthew 16:16, John 6:68), slow to understand spiritual matters (Matthew 15:15-16), arrested twice and warned to stop preaching about Jesus (Acts 4:1-22, Acts 5:12-40, Acts 12:3-5), and arrested by Herod and freed by an angel. (Acts 12:6-11)

Peter helped establish the Jerusalem church. (Acts 1-5) He spread the gospel to the Gentiles. (Acts 11-12) He served as a bridge to hold together the diverse people of the early church. (Acts 15)[1]

Bibliography

Cox, Steven L. “Peter,” In Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary, 1254-1255. Nashville, TN: Holman Reference, 2015.

[1] Steven L Cox, “Peter,” in Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary, (Nashville, TN: Holman Reference, 2015), 1254-1255.