Episode 2.61
You’ve probably heard that all the apostles were martyred—except John.
But how much of that is actually true?
Capping off their series on Paul, Michael and Zach take a historical look at the final days of the apostles and those “apostle-adjacent” figures—asking what we know for sure, what we strongly suspect, and what we can only propose.
Starting with Paul’s well-attested martyrdom in Rome, the conversation moves through the most certain cases—like James the son of Zebedee and James the brother of Jesus—before exploring the middle tier (Peter, John, Thomas, Andrew, Jude, and others) and ending with the most uncertain, legendary, or entirely lost traditions.
Drawing on New Testament data, early church writers, and historical analysis (including Sean McDowell’s research), this episode separates sober evidence from later legend—showing that some stories stand on rock-solid ground while others rest on centuries-later imagination.
Takeaway:
The diversity of evidence—clear for some apostles, foggy for others—doesn’t weaken the faith story; it strengthens it. The earliest witnesses lived and died with conviction, and history still echoes their testimony.
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