Matthew the Apostle (died 74 AD) was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus, one of the four evangelists, and the author of the Gospel of Matthew, written from the late 60s to early 70s AD. He was martyred in Ethiopia in 74.
Biography[]
Matthew was born in Galilee, the son of Alphaeus and the brother of James. He worked as a tax collector and was known to drink, and he worked in Capernaum. Jesus convinced James to love his brother, and, when Matthew asked Jesus if his father had anything to declare (meaning property), he said that his father had love for Matthew. Matthew jokingly said that the love would be hard to tax, and Jesus told Matthew to come along with him and his Twelve Apostles. Eventually, Matthew decided to go along with the Apostles, becoming one of them. He preached the Gospel to the Jewish community in Judea before going to other countries, converting the Ethiopian king Akaptah Tsenfa Ared (Egippus) and his daughter Ephigenia. However, King Horemtaku (Hirtacus), Egippus' successor, attempted to have Matthew persuade Ephigenia to marry him. After Matthew rebuked the king for lusting after her, the king had Matthew killed while he stood at the altar.