Who was Thomas in the Bible?

One of the twelve apostles, called also DIDYMUS, a twin. He comes prominently before us on two significant occasions: once when he said to the Lord, "We know not whither thou goest, and how can we know the way?" The Lord replied, "I am the way, the truth, and the life." John 14:5-6. Also when he said that he would not believe that the Lord had risen until he had ocular demonstration as to His wounds; but when he saw the Lord, he at once confessed Him as "My Lord and my God." John 20:19-29. He was not with the other disciples when the Lord breathed into them, and said, "Receive ye the Holy Ghost;" and thus he may be taken as a type of the future remnant of the Jews, who will not believe till they see their Messiah. In contrast to which the Lord added a beautiful sentence respecting those of the present time: "Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed."

Thomas. The apostle Thomas was duly called by our Lord to the apostleship, and he is duly mentioned in the various apostolic lists. Of his birthplace or parents we are not informed in scripture; but tradition says he was born at Antioch. All that we know of him with certainty is related by John. But though our knowledge of Thomas be thus limited, there is no character among the apostles more distinctly marked than his. In fact, his name has become, both in the church and in the world, a synonym for doubting and unbelieving. It is said of a famous artist, when asked to produce a portrait of the apostle Thomas, that he placed a rule in his hand for the due measuring of evidence and argument. His mind was thoughtful, meditative, slow to believe. He looked at all the difficulties of a question and inclined to take the dark side of things. But we will glance for a moment at the portrait which the pen of inspiration has drawn of him in the three following passages.

In John 11 his true character distinctly appears. He evidently viewed the proposed journey of our Lord into Judaea with the darkest forebodings. "Then said Thomas, which is called Didymus, unto his fellow-disciples, Let us also go that we may die with Him." In place of believing that Lazarus would be raised from the dead, he feared that both the Lord and His disciples would meet their own death in Judaea. He could see nothing arising from such a journey but complete disaster. Nevertheless, he does not seek to hinder the Lord from going, like the other disciples. This too is characteristic. He had deep affection for the Lord, and such was his devotedness that, though the journey should cost all of them their lives, he was willing to go.

The second time referred to was after the Last Supper. [John 14.] Our Lord had been speaking of going away, and of the home He would prepare for them in heaven, and that He would come again and receive them unto Himself, so that where He was they should be also. "And whither I GO YE KNOW," He added, "and the way ye know." But to our apostle's mind these beautiful promises only awaken dark thoughts of the unseen, unknown, future. "Thomas saith unto Him, Lord, we know not whither thou goest, and how can we know the way?" Evidently he was eager to go, and earnest in his inquiries, but he wanted to be sure of the way before taking the first step. "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by Me." So long as the eye is fixed on Christ, we cannot make a false step. It is the single eye that receives the light of heaven, which sheds its radiance over the whole path.

(8) Thomas. The name Thomas, like that of Didymus, which is used three times by John, means "a twin." Nothing is said of him after his call and appointment except by John. When the Lord spoke of going to Bethany, Thomas said to the other disciples, "Let us also go with him, that we may die with him" (John 11:16). When the Lord was instructing the apostles as to His immediate departure and their knowledge of the way, Thomas broke in with, "Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?" (John 14:5). His incredulity at the tidings of the resurrection has passed into a proverb (John 20:24-31).

Thomas. — Here Thomas comes forward. In this Gospel only have we any indication of his thoughts. Coupled with Matthew on the mission of the Twelve to Israel (Matt. 10:3), he here (John 11:16) opens his mouth and addresses the Twelve: "Let us also go, that we may die with Him." The Lord was precious to Thomas. He would cast in his lot with Him, share His danger, and, if it were to be, die with Him. Thomas had a heart for Christ, though he subsequently doubted the correctness of the testimony of others as to the Lord's resurrection. But of this later.

Thomas was not present on the occasion we have already considered, when Jesus came first into the midst of His disciples. He missed a great deal, it seems to me, by not being there. To miss a meeting may be a small thing in our minds, but Thomas missed a great deal that night. God often gives us great instruction in the history of a man, and that of Thomas is no exception. Did you ever trace out Thomas's history? It strikes me as being downward in tone. The first time he is mentioned we only get the fact that he was called by the Lord to be an apostle (Matt. 10:3). John mentions him four times. First where we read, "Then said Thomas, which is called Didymus (he was a twin), to his fellow-disciples, Let us also go, that we may die with him" (John 11:16). He was a devoted man there. Only a zealous man, whose heart is devoted, would say, "Let us go with the Lord though it cost us our lives."

"But Thomas one of the twelve, which was called Didymus" was not with his brethren on that memorable first day of the week, and as the Lord looked upon His disciples He must have missed him. Why was he not there? and where was he? This Thomas was a peculiar character, he was not a voluble and excitable man like his friend Simon Peter, nor trustful and companionable like John; he was a man by himself, his words were few and he was apparently of a dull, determined and materialistic turn of mind, he would take nothing on trust. Yet when he did speak it was to the point and there was no mistaking his meaning. Only John records his sayings and the Holy Ghost who inspired him to write had a purpose in that.

There was a time before the great tragedy when the disciples seemed thoroughly bewildered in their association with the Lord, they could not understand Him, He never seemed to do the thing that they expected. He could command the tempest when it threatened them; demons whom other men feared fled before His word, even death obeyed Him, yet when the Jews attempted to murder Him, He simply withdrew from Judea and went beyond Jordan and so escaped out of their hands. It was most perplexing. And then He proposed to return thither again. It seemed a foolish thing to do, and the disciples in evident surprise said to Him, "Master, the Jews of late sought to stone Thee, and goest Thou thither again?" When it was evident that He would not be turned from His purpose and some of them were undecided what to do, Thomas spoke out bravely and well. Said he "Let us also go that we may die with Him." He had pledged his allegiance to his Lord, and done it with his whole heart, and in life or death he would be true to his pledge. He meant it, though when the fury of hell began to rage he fled like the rest of them, for which cowardice he would never forgive himself. That was the sort of man he was.

Thomas Didymus was not a voluble man like his friend Simon Peter, he was a man of few words, but when he did speak it was to the point, revealing the sort of man he was. Only John records his words, and we may be sure that the Holy Spirit who inspired him to write his Gospel had a purpose in that.

Verse 16. "Then said Thomas" — poor Thomas, unbelieving Thomas — "which is called Didymus, unto his fellow disciples, Let us also go, that we may die with him." However he might have been stumbled, we see how attached his heart was to Christ. He says, "Let us go up in order that we may die with him." There was a fine devoted heart! But he ought to have known better, he ought to have counted on it that Christ could not die unless He gave Himself up. In chapter 14:5, he says, "Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?" He is all darkness there, as well as here, where he thinks that man can take away Christ's life; but he is devoted to the One he believes in. How interesting the history of each individual saint, when given by the Spirit; and what will it be when the results come out in the day of Christ? The disciples leave us far behind in some things. They have a great deal more of what the Lord commends in Mary, personal devotedness to Himself.

Second Manifestation. — Thomas, whose name in Hebrew means a twin, the Greek equivalent of which is Didymus, was not with the rest on the first occasion. Why he was absent is not stated. Told by the rest that they too had seen the Lord, he refused to accredit the fact of the Resurrection, unless he was furnished with ocular and tangible proof of it. He must see the Lord, he must touch Him, he must put his hand into His side, else he could not believe. That people had been brought back to life from death he of course was aware. He had seen that in the case of Lazarus. But resurrection, never to die any more, was quite a new thought for the time present, seeing that the resurrection morning for saints in general had not then, nor has it yet, dawned. But how could Thomas's requirements be provided? No one knew where to find the Lord. He had disappeared from their midst as suddenly as He had appeared among them. What, however, none of them could have furthered — viz. a meeting between Thomas and Christ — was, and that unexpectedly, brought about.

A week after the disciples were again within, and Thomas this time with them. No one, that we are aware of, was expecting a fresh appearance of Christ. They were gathered there, a company apart from their countrymen, but not on the Sabbath, with objects and interests widely different from them and, conscious of the world's enmity, they met again with closed doors. A second time the Lord came, and stood in their midst. Saluting them afresh with "Peace be to you," He addressed Himself directly to Thomas: "Reach hither thy finger, and behold My hands and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into My side: and be not faithless, but believing" (27). Why such a pointed address to Thomas? No one had seen the Lord as visibly present, when Thomas gave utterance to his unbelief. No one of the rest had told the Lord about it. Of that we may be sure. But He knew it. He had heard the words of His disciple, and now made Thomas aware of it. Unperceived by human vision, He sees, He hears, He knows all that goes on. He walks, so we read (Rev. 2:1), in the midst of the golden candlesticks. Thomas now needed nothing more. He did not, it would seem, touch the Lord, nor probe the wound which the spear had made. It was, indeed, the crucified One that He beheld. What could he say? But few words escaped his lips, just two in Aramaic, "My Lord and my God." He was his Lord whom he had known before the cross. He was his God, for He had heard the unbelieving remarks of His Apostle. After that Thomas must have relapsed into silence. But the Lord again spoke: "Because thou hast seen Me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed."

This section gives a picture, not of the assembly, but of the later bringing of Israel from their doubting unbelief to a living faith in the Son of God. Thomas had not been present the day of the Lord's resurrection. How much he missed through simply being absent! We too shall greatly lose if we willingly absent ourselves from the gathering of the saints of God. His surname, Didymus, is inserted here. Didymus means “twin” so that its inclusion appears to be a reminder to us that Thomas is not alone in his lack of diligent faith. Perhaps many believers are virtual twins of Thomas!