Phillip the Disciple

Phillip’s name means “Warrior” or “Lover of Horses”.

Phillip was from Bethsaida.¹ Phillip seems to have rapidly believed Jesus because he immediately called another person to join Jesus: Nathaniel (beleived to be identified as Bartholomew in the other gospels) and declared to Nathaniel that Jesus was he “whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, wrote”². This immediate identification suggest that Phillip had studied and was earnestly seeking for the Messiah.

Phillip and Nathaniel (Bartholomew) are always mentioned together in the various lists of the disciples which has been suggested that the two were close.

Phillip appears at the incident of the feeding of five thousand where Jesus challenged Phillip by asking him where they would source the bread to feed the multitude. Phillip responded that not even 200 denarii³ would be enough to feed a small amount to each.

When certain Greeks came to visit Jesus, they approach Phillip, who instead of bringing them directly to Jesus, first approached Andrew⁴ and only together did they bring them to Jesus. This event suggests that Phillip was a more timid or uncertain personality, especially in comparison to some of the bolder personalities among the disciples like Peter, James and John.

Im John 14:8, Phillip requests of Jesus: “Lord, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us”. Jesus responds to Phillip “He who has seen me has seen the Father. How do you say, ‘Show us the Father?’⁵ Phillip was clearly expecting some other revelation, perhaps in the manner of God’s revelation to Moses in the Old Testament that would educate them on the nature of God. Jesus corrected him by pointing out that God has sent His son as a personal example of what God was like⁶.

1. John 1:44 ↩︎
2. John 1:45 ↩︎
3. A denarii was considered to be about a day’s wage for an average worker ↩︎
4. John 12:21-22 ↩︎
5. John 14:9 ↩︎
6. John 6:38 ↩︎