Cleopas

Not to be confused with Clopas.

A depiction of Cleopas as one of the disciples who met Jesus during the Road to Emmaus appearance, by Joseph von Führich, 1837.

Cleopas (or Cleophas, Greek Κλεόπας) was a figure of early Christianity, one of the two disciples who encountered Jesus during the Road to Emmaus appearance in the Gospel of Luke 24:13-32.

Name

Cleopas' name is an abbreviated form of Cleopatros, a common Hellenistic name meaning "son of a renowned father". Cleopas is remembered on 25 September in the Martyrology of the Roman Catholic Church.

Account in the Gospel of Luke

Cleopas appears in Luke 24:13-27 as one of two disciples walking from Jerusalem to Emmaus. Cleopas is named in verse 18, while his companion remains unnamed.

This occurs three days after the crucifixion, on the day of Jesus' resurrection. The two have heard the tomb of Jesus was found empty earlier that day. They are discussing the events of the past few days when a stranger asks them what they are discussing. "Their eyes were kept from recognizing him." He soon rebukes them for their unbelief and gives them a Bible study on prophecies about the Messiah. They ask the stranger to join them for the evening meal. When he breaks the bread "their eyes were opened" and they recognize him as the resurrected Jesus. Jesus immediately vanishes.

Cleopas and his friend hasten back to Jerusalem to carry the news to the other disciples, and learn Jesus has also appeared to [one of] them. The same event is mentioned in Mark 16:12-16:13: the incident is without parallel in the gospels of Matthew and John.

Cleopas has no further occurrence in the New Testament, but in tradition he has often been identified with Clopas, another New Testament figure mentioned in John's Gospel.

External links

• Catholic Encyclopedia: Cleophas