Matthias in Smiths Bible Dictionary

(gift of God), the apostle elected to fill the place of the traitor Judas. Ac 1:26 All beyond this that we know of him for certainty is that he had been a constant attendant upon the Lord Jesus during the whole course of his ministry; for such was declared by St. Peter to be the necessary qualification of one who was to be a witness of the resurrection. It is said that he preached the gospel and suffered martyrdom in Ethiopia.