According to the New Testament, Jesus appointed twelve apostles.
The Synoptic Gospels describe Jesus choosing twelve men to accompany him and to receive a special mission. The number is connected with the twelve tribes of Israel, giving the group symbolic importance within Jesus’ ministry.
The names vary slightly between the Gospel lists. They include Peter, Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Thaddaeus or Judas son of James, Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot.
After Judas Iscariot’s death, Acts describes the remaining disciples selecting Matthias to join the apostolic group. The New Testament also uses “apostle” more broadly for other missionaries, including Paul, so “the Twelve” is the specific designation for Jesus’ original symbolic group. The seventy or seventy-two disciples mentioned in Luke were a separate, larger group.