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Matthew, the seventh apostle, was chosen by Andrew. Matthew belonged to a family of tax gatherers, or publicans, but was himself a customs collector in Capernaum, where he lived. He was thirty-one years old and married and had four children. He was a man of moderate wealth, the only one of any means belonging to the apostolic corps. He was a good business man, a good social mixer, and was gifted with the ability to make friends and to get along smoothly with a great variety of people. Andrew appointed Matthew the financial representative of the apostles. In a way he was the fiscal agent and publicity spokesman for the apostolic organization. He was a keen judge of human nature and a very efficient propagandist. His is a personality difficult to visualize, but he was a very earnest disciple and an increasing believer in the mission of Jesus and in the certainty of the kingdom. Jesus never gave Levi a nickname, but his fellow apostles commonly referred to him as the "money-getter." Levi's strong point was his wholehearted devotion to the cause. That he, a publican, had been taken in by Jesus and his apostles was the cause for overwhelming gratitude on the part of the former revenue collector. However, it required some little time for the rest of the apostles, especially Simon Zelotes and Judas Iscariot, to become reconciled to the publican's presence in their midst. Matthew's weakness was his shortsighted and materialistic viewpoint of life. But in all these matters he made great progress as the months went by. He, of course, had to be absent from many of the most precious seasons of instruction as it was his duty to keep the treasury replenished. It was the Master's forgiving disposition which Matthew most appreciated. He would never cease to recount that faith only was necessary in the business of finding God. He always liked to speak of the kingdom as "this business of finding God." Though Matthew was a man with a past, he gave an excellent account of himself, and as time went on, his associates became proud of the publican's performances. He was one of the apostles who made extensive notes on the sayings of Jesus, and these notes were used as the basis of Isador's subsequent narrative of the sayings and doings of Jesus, which has become known as the Gospel according to Matthew. The great and useful life of Matthew, the business man and customs collector of Capernaum, has been the means of leading thousands upon thousands of other business men, public officials, and politicians, down through the subsequent ages, also to hear that engaging voice of the Master saying, "Follow me." Matthew really was a shrewd politician, but he was intensely loyal to Jesus and supremely devoted to the task of seeing that the messengers of the coming kingdom were adequately financed. The presence of Matthew among the twelve was the means of keeping the doors of the kingdom wide open to hosts of downhearted and outcast souls who had regarded themselves as long since without the bounds of religious consolation. Outcast and despairing men and women flocked to hear Jesus, and he never turned one away. Matthew received freely tendered offerings from believing disciples and the immediate auditors of the Master's teachings, but he never openly solicited funds from the multitudes. He did all his financial work in a quiet and personal way and raised most of the money among the more substantial class of interested believers. He gave practically the whole of his modest fortune to the work of the Master and his apostles, but they never knew of this generosity, save Jesus, who knew all about it. Matthew hesitated openly to contribute to the apostolic funds for fear that Jesus and his associates might regard his money as being tainted; so he gave much in the names of other believers. During the earlier months, when Matthew knew his presence among them was more or less of a trial, he was strongly tempted to let them know that his funds often supplied them with their daily bread, but he did not yield. When evidence of the disdain of the publican would become manifest, Levi would burn to reveal to them his generosity, but always he managed to keep still. When the funds for the week were short of the estimated requirements, Levi would often draw heavily upon his own personal resources. Also, sometimes when he became greatly interested in Jesus' teaching, he preferred to remain and hear the instruction, even though he knew he must personally make up for his failure to solicit the necessary funds. But Levi did so wish that Jesus might know that much of the money came from his pocket! He little realized that the Master knew all about it. The apostles all died without knowing that Matthew was their benefactor to such an extent that, when he went forth to proclaim the gospel of the kingdom after the beginning of the persecutions, he was practically penniless. When these persecutions caused the believers to forsake Jerusalem, Matthew journeyed north, preaching the gospel of the kingdom and baptizing believers. He was lost to the knowledge of his former apostolic associates, but on he went, preaching and baptizing, through Syria, Cappadocia, Galatia, Bithynia, and Thrace. And it was in Thrace, at Lysimachia, that certain unbelieving Jews conspired with the Roman soldiers to encompass his death. And this regenerated publican died triumphant in the faith of a salvation he had so surely learned from the teachings of the Master during his recent sojourn on earth. The Urantia Book, Pages 1559-1560, (139:7.1)

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A:The original New Testament gospel, now known as Mark's Gospel, refers to Levi, son of Alphaeus, as a tax collector. However, for some reason, Mark never again refers to Levi, but introduces Matthew and James, son of Alphaeus, as disciples in the list of the twelve disciples (verse 3:14-19). Luke's Gospel follows this more or less faithfully when copying from Mark.

Because disciples are not supposed to just disappear, the author of the book now known as Matthew's Gospel resolved this problem by not referring to Levi, but instead saying in the corresponding place in the text that the tax collector Jesus called was Matthew.

Because of the change of name in Matthew, it has become accepted by Christians that Matthew and Levi were one and the same person, although Mark's Gospel makes this seem unlikely.

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Mark's Gospel, now known to be the original New Testament gospel, mentions Levi , son of Alpheus (Alphaeus) as a tax collector whom Jesus called to follow him (Mark 2:14). Mark never again refers to Levi, who is not mentioned in the full list of the twelve disciples (verses 3:14-19), where Mark introduces other disciples including Matthew, Thaddeus (Thaddaeus), and James, son of Alpheus. Disciples are not meant to change their minds when called by Jesus, yet this seems to happen when Mark omits Levi in the list of all the twelve apostles.

Luke follows Mark closely, in that it mentions Levi but only in the context of a story in which Jesus is criticised for consorting with tax collectors, with Matthew being one of the twelve (Luke 6:15).

As with Luke, Matthew's Gospel is known to have been based substantially on Mark and, when copying the original gospel, its anonymous author resolves Levi's unexplained absence simply by not mentioning Levi at all, and by having Matthew as the disciple who was a tax collector, so that two thousand years of tradition have held that Levi and Matthew must be the same person.


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Q: What was Levi the tax collector name changed to?
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Was St. Paul a tax collector?

St. Matthew (Levi) was a tax collector. Paul was reportedly a tent maker and Pharisee.


What job did St. Matthew have?

Before he became an apostle of Our Lord, Matthew (Levi) was a tax collector for the Roman government.He was a tax collector.


Why was mathew also called Levi in the bible?

Matthew is also called a Levi in the bible as he was a tax collector.


What was the occupation of the Apostle Saint Matthew?

Matthew (Levi) was a tax collector for King Herod.


What was St. Matthew's occupation?

Matthew (Levi) was a tax collector for the Roman government before he became an apostle.


Where saint Matthew lived?

Matthew's original name was Levi, and his father was named Alphaeus, a Greek name. He was a tax-collector from Capernaum when he met Jesus. Jesus gave him the name Matthew. Obviously he had a gift for writing.


Was Zacchaeus surnamed Matthias in the Bible?

Luke 19 includes the account of Jesus and Zacchaeus the tax collector, and there is no mention of Zacchaeus being surnamed Matthias. Indeed, Zacchaeus's family name is not mentioned at all. However, there was another tax collector named Matthew, also known as Levi, who (like Zacchaeus) changed his ways after meeting Jesus. In Acts chapter one, when Matthias is chosen to replace Judas as one of the twelve apostles, there is no mention of another name for him.


In the New Testament who was Matthew?

Matthew, a former tax collector and one of Jesus's Twelve Apostles, also known as Levi.


What name did Matthew use before Jesus renamed him?

A:The original New Testament gospel, now known as Mark's Gospel, refers to Levi, son of Alphaeus, as a tax collector. However, for some reason, Mark never again refers to Levi, but introduces other disciples, including Matthew (verse 3:18) and James, son of Alphaeus. The implication is that Levi just disappeared after being called to follow Jesus, unless one of the twelve disciples listed in Mark 3:16-19 must be another name for Levi. Matthew's Gospel, which is now known to have been based on Mark, resolves this by never referring to Levi, speaking instead of the disciple and former tax collector as Matthew. As Matthew's Gospel is derivative, the author must have found a clue in Mark that he believed pointed to Levi and Matthew as the same person, yet no such clue seems to exist. It would even seem more likely that Levi, son of Alphaeus, and James, son of Alphaeus, could be the same person. At the very least they appear to have the same father. Luke's Gospel, in copying from Mark, retains Levi as the tax collector in the parallel passage.Matthew's Gospel does not equate Matthew with Levi, but simply replaces Levi by Matthew. Because of this decision by its author, most modern Christians assume that Levi was another name for Matthew.


What did mathew do before being a disciple?

Matthew, also known as Levi, worked as a tax collectorfor the occupying Roman government when Jesus called him. According to the gospel that bears his name, he literally got up and "walked off the job" to follow Jesus. (Matthew 9:9)


Which apostle was the tax collector?

The original New Testament gospel, now known as Mark's Gospel, refers to Levi, son of Alphaeus, as a tax collector. However, for some reason, Mark never again refers to Levi, but introduces Matthew and James, son of Alphaeus, as disciples in the list of the twelve disciples (verse 3:14-19). Luke's Gospel follows this more or less faithfully when copying from Mark.Because disciples are not supposed to just disappear, the author of the book now known as Matthew's Gospel resolved this problem by not referring to Levi, but instead saying in the corresponding place in the text that the tax collector Jesus called was Matthew.Because of the change of name in Matthew, it has become accepted by Christians that Matthew and Levi were one and the same person, although Mark's Gospel makes this seem unlikely.A:Matthew, also called Levi.A:(Matthew 10:3) Matthew was a tax collector (Matthew 9:9; Mark 2:14).


Who Matthew in the gospel?

There is no clear-cut answer to who Matthew was in the Bible. The original New Testament gospel, now known as Mark's Gospel, refers to Levi, son of Alpheus (Alphaeus) as a tax collector whom Jesus called to follow him (Mark 2:14). Mark never again refers to Levi, who is not mentioned in the full list of the twelve disciples (verses 3:14-19), but introduces other disciples including Matthew, Thaddeus (Thaddaeus), and James, son of Alpheus. In this gospel, all we know is that Matthew was a disciple and Levi was the tax collector. .Disciples are not meant to change their minds when called by Jesus, yet this seems to happen when Mark omits Levi in the list of all the twelve apostles. Matthew's Gospel is known to have been based substantially on Mark and, when copying Mark, its anonymous author resolves Levi's unexplained absence simply by not mentioning Levi and by having Matthew as the disciple who was a tax collector, so that two thousand years of tradition have held that Levi and Matthew must be the same person.