Philip

About Philip

Philip was one of the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ, chosen by Him to be part of His inner circle of disciples. He was from Bethsaida, the same town as Andrew and Peter (Jhn.1.44).

Philip is first mentioned in the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) in the lists of the twelve apostles (Mat.10.3; Mrk.3.18; Luk.6.14). In the Gospel of John, he is introduced in the narrative of Jesus calling His first disciples. After being called by Jesus, Philip found Nathanael and told him about Jesus, describing Him as the one Moses and the prophets wrote about (Jhn.1.45).

Throughout the Gospel of John, Philip is portrayed as having a close relationship with Jesus. He was present at the feeding of the five thousand, where Jesus tested him by asking where they could buy bread to feed the multitude (Jhn.6.5-7). Philip was also approached by some Greeks who wanted to see Jesus, and he, along with Andrew, brought their request to Jesus (Jhn.12.21-22).

In Jhn.14.8-9, Philip asked Jesus to show them the Father, to which Jesus responded, "Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father."

After Jesus' ascension, Philip was among the apostles who gathered in Jerusalem to pray and await the coming of the Holy Spirit (Act.1.13). He played a significant role in the early Christian church and, according to tradition, preached the gospel in Phrygia and died a martyr's death in Hierapolis.

Description from STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House, Cambridge), CC BY 4.0, lightly reformatted. This is background reference material, not Scripture and not a FaithGraph editorial claim.