Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The {a} first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother;

(a) Theophylact says that Peter and Andrew are called the first, because they were first called.

People's New Testament

10:2-4 Now the names of the twelve apostles are these. Of the twelve apostles there are four lists, found in Mt 10:2-4 Mr 3:16-19 Lu 6:14-16 Ac 1:13. They differ in the following particulars: (1) Luke, in the book of Acts, does not insert the name of Judas Iscariot, who was then dead; (2) both in the Gospel and in Acts he entitles the Simon, who, here and in Mark, is called the Canaanite, Simon Zelotes; Matthew gives as the tenth disciple, Lebbeus; Mark calls him Thaddeus; (3) Luke and Acts, Judas of James, i.e. either son or brother of James; and Mark says that James and John were surnamed by Christ, Boanerges, i.e. the sons of thunder. In other respects the four lists are identical. There are three pairs of brothers among them. Andrew and Peter, James and John, James the Less and Judas, or Thaddeus. James and John I believe to have been cousins of our Lord. With the exception of Judas Iscariot, all were Galileans; several of them were by trade fishermen, a laborious and profitable calling; there was neither priest nor scribe among them; all were from the ranks of the common people.

Wesley's Notes

10:2 The first, Simon - The first who was called to a constant attendance on Christ; although Andrew had seen him before Simon. Acts 1:13.

Scofield Reference Notes

[1] apostles

The word apostle, = "one sent forth," is used of our Lord Heb 3:1. Elsewhere it is used for the twelve who were called to that office by our Lord during His earth ministry; of Paul, called to the apostleship by the risen and ascended Lord, and of Barnabas Acts 14:14 specially designated by the Holy Spirit Acts 13:2. Of Matthias, chosen by lot by the eleven to take the place of Judas Iscariot, Acts 1:16-26 it is said: "And he was numbered with the eleven." Acts 1:26.

The "signs" of an apostle were

(1) They were chosen directly by the Lord Himself, or, as in the case of Barnabas, by the Holy Spirit Mt 10:1,2 Mk 3:13,14 Lk 6:13 Acts 9:6,15 13:2 22:10,14,15 Rom 1:1

(2) They were endued with sign gifts, miraculous powers which were the divine credentials of their office Mt 10:1 Acts 5:15,16 16:16-18 Mt 28:8,9.

(3) Their relation to the kingdom was that of heralds, announcing to Israel only Mt 10:5,6 the kingdom as at hand. See Scofield Note: "Mt 4:17" and manifesting kingdom powers Mt 10:7,8.

(4) To one of them, Peter, the keys of the kingdom of heaven, viewed as the sphere of Christian profession, as in Mat 13, were given Mt 16:19.

(5) Their future relation to the king will be that of judges over the twelve tribes Mt 19:28.

(6) Consequent upon the rejection of the kingdom, and the revelation of the mystery hid in God Mt 16:18 Eph 3:1-12 the Church, the apostolic office was invested with a new enduement, the baptism with the Holy Spirit Acts 2:1-4 a new power, that of imparting the Spirit to Jewish-Christian believers; a new relation, that of foundation stones of the new temple Eph 2:20-22 and a new function, that of preaching the glad tidings of salvation through a crucified and risen Lord to Jew and gentile alike.

(7) The indispensable qualification of an apostle was that he should have been an eye-witness of the resurrection Acts 1:22 1Cor 9:1.

Margin James son of Zebedee

See Scofield Note: "Mt 4:21".

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

2. Now the names of the twelve apostles are these-The other Evangelists enumerate the twelve in immediate connection with their appointment (Mr 3:13-19; Lu 6:13-16). But our Evangelist, not intending to record the appointment, but only the Mission of the Twelve, gives their names here. And as in the Acts (Ac 1:13) we have a list of the Eleven who met daily in the upper room with the other disciples after their Master's ascension until the day of Pentecost, we have four catalogues in all for comparison.

The first, Simon, who is called Peter-(See on [1252]Joh 1:42).

and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother-named after James, as the younger of the two.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

10:1-4 The word apostle signifies messenger; they were Christ's messengers, sent forth to proclaim his kingdom. Christ gave them power to heal all manner of sickness. In the grace of the gospel there is a slave for every sore, a remedy for every malady. There is no spiritual disease, but there is power in Christ for the cure of it. There names are recorded, and it is their honour; yet they had more reason to rejoice that their names were written in heaven, while the high and mighty names of the great ones of the earth are buried in the dust.