Apostle (Latter Day Saints) he chose and ordained (John 15:16) to be his closest disciples during his ministry on earth, and whom he sent forth to represent him after his ascension into heaven. The calling of an apostle is to be a special witness of the name of Jesus Christ in all the world, particularly of his divinity and of his bodily resurrection from the dead (; ). Twelve men with this high calling constitute an administrative council in the work of the ministry. When a vacancy occurred with the death of Judas Iscariot, Matthias was divinely appointed to that special office as a
Judas Iscariot in his Commentary on John's Gospel, reflected on Judas's interactions with the other apostles and Jesus' confidence in him prior to his betrayal. Other philosophical reflections on Judas include "The Problem of Natural Evil" by Bertrand Russell and "Three Versions of Judas," a short story by Jorge Luis Borges. They allege various problematic ideological contradictions with the discrepancy between Judas' actions and his eternal punishment. Bruce Reichenbach argues that if Jesus foresees Judas' betrayal, then the betrayal is not an act of free will, and therefore should not be punishable. Conversely, it is argued that just because the betrayal was