John, the apostle

Known as “the disciple whom Jesus loved.” He was involved in the writing of five New Testament books—the gospel of John, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, and Revelation. John was a fisherman when Jesus chose him to become a disciple. Jesus nicknamed him “Son of Thunder.” This probably meant that when John was young, he did things on the spur of the moment and had a hot temper. He is the only one of Jesus’s disciples known to have lived to an old age. When he was older, he was known for his gentleness and loving spirit.

He was one of the three disciples—

Peter, James, and John—who were closest to Jesus and saw Him do some miracles that no one else saw, such as raising the daughter of Jairus from the dead. Jesus took these three with Him into a garden to pray just before His trial and crucifixion. John was the only disciple who the Bible says watched the crucifixion. Jesus saw him and asked him to take care of His mother.

After Jesus returned to heaven, John became one of the leaders of the Christians in Jerusalem. He was exiled much later on the island of Patmos because of his faith. There God gave John visions. He wrote them in what we know as Revelation—the last book of the Bible. John was probably later released from Patmos and died in the city of Ephesus when he was an old man. We don’t know exactly when he wrote the parts of the New Testament that carry his name.