Summary
Summary of The Acts of Andrew and Matthias
The Acts of Andrew and Matthias at a glance
Summary: 8 min to read
- Reading time
- About 35 min30 min fast, 40 min slow
- Length
- 8,420 words
- Pages
- 38 pages60 in large print
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
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Key ideas
Key idea 1
A rescue begins among strangers
Matthias enters a city where strangers are seized, blinded and given a drug that takes away their minds. Andrew will set out to rescue him, traveling in a small boat whose pilot is not what he seems. Their journey belongs to the early Christian writings called the apocryphal acts of the apostles.
The tale brings danger together with wonder. A voyage, a speaking sphinx and bitter water become part of a story about faith in a place that treats every outsider as prey.
Key idea 2
Matthias keeps his mind through prayer
When the apostles cast lots to divide the world among themselves, Matthias receives the country of the man-eaters.
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Key idea 3
Restored sight does not mean escape
In the prison, Matthias asks the Lord to see his suffering and restore his eyes.
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Key idea 4
Andrew follows before he understands
The Lord tells Andrew to rescue Matthias before the city kills him.
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Key idea 5
Wonders do not guarantee belief
During the voyage, the pilot questions Andrew about why people refused to believe in Jesus despite his miracles.
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Key idea 6
Freedom restores body and mind
After waking outside the city, Andrew realizes who guided the boat.
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Key idea 7
Andrew stays beside those in danger
Andrew remains in the city after the prisoners are freed.
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Key idea 8
Recognition reaches beyond outward appearances
The Lord speaks from a light, guides a boat as an unknown pilot and appears as a child.
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Key idea 9
Vivid pictures hold the story together
The story follows a rescue, but its meaning gathers around vivid pictures: a voice in a dark prison, a boat moving as if on dry land, and a stone creature speaking.
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The full book, start to finish.Open the bookStart freeWho it’s for
This tale suits readers who love early Christian storytelling, miracle adventures, sea voyages and rescues, and anyone curious about the apocryphal acts.
What this book is
Picture walking up to the gate of a city where every stranger is seized, blinded and made to drink a drug that drives out his mind. That is where Matthias, the apostle chosen by lot to replace Judas, finds himself in this ancient tale. His rescuer, Andrew, will later sail in a small boat steered by a pilot who is not what he seems.
The Acts of Andrew and Matthias in the City of the Man-Eaters belongs to the early Christian writings called the apocryphal acts of the apostles. The author is unknown, and scholars usually place it in the third or fourth century. You get a rescue, a voyage full of talk, a speaking sphinx and a flood of bitter water.
In this summary
- 1A rescue begins among strangersFree
- 2Matthias keeps his mind through prayer
- 3Restored sight does not mean escape
- 4Andrew follows before he understands
- 5Wonders do not guarantee belief
- 6Freedom restores body and mind
- 7Andrew stays beside those in danger
- 8Recognition reaches beyond outward appearances
- 9Vivid pictures hold the story together
Key point 1 of 9
A lot sends Matthias to the man-eaters
The apostles divide the lands of the world among themselves by casting lots. Matthias draws the country of the man-eaters.
The people of that city eat no bread and drink no wine. They live on human flesh and human blood. Every stranger who enters is seized, and his eyes are gouged out. Then he is made to drink a drug prepared by sorcery. It drives the mind out of its right state, so that the victim forgets he is a man and eats grass like an animal.
Matthias walks up to the gate and the city treats him as it treats everyone. The men put out his eyes, give him the drug and lead him to the prison. They set a bundle of grass beside him.
The drug does not work on him. His mind stays whole. He refuses the grass and keeps praying, weeping as he speaks to Jesus. Faith can hold even when the senses are taken away.
The lot gives Matthias the hardest country, and his steadiness comes from prayer and not from strength of arm.
That’s 1 of 9 key points.
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Check yourself
How does Matthias respond when the drug fails to take his mind?
Right. “He refuses the grass and keeps praying, weeping as he speaks to Jesus.”Not quite. “He refuses the grass and keeps praying, weeping as he speaks to Jesus.”
Who is the pilot guiding Andrew toward the man-eaters?
Right. “The Lord himself sits there as the pilot, with two angels made to look like men.”Not quite. “The Lord himself sits there as the pilot, with two angels made to look like men.”
What does Andrew's story about the unbelieving priests suggest?
Right. “Miracles alone do not change a heart, and the city ahead will need more than wonders.”Not quite. “Miracles alone do not change a heart, and the city ahead will need more than wonders.”
Go deeper: the whole of The Acts of Andrew and Matthias
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About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 8,420 words
- Reading timeAbout 35 min
Questions about The Acts of Andrew and Matthias
What is the Acts of Andrew and Matthias about?
It tells how the apostle Matthias is blinded and imprisoned in a city of man-eaters, and how Andrew sails there with Jesus disguised as a pilot, frees the prisoners and faces the city until its people cry out for mercy.
Why is the Acts of Andrew and Matthias not in the Bible?
The New Testament canon formed around other books over several centuries. This tale was read by some early Christians but was never seriously considered for inclusion. Scholars see this as a matter of history and not a judgment against its worth.
Who was Matthias in the Bible?
Matthias is the follower chosen by lot in the canonical Acts of the Apostles to take the place of Judas among the twelve. After that the New Testament says little about him, and this tale fills in a later mission.
Is the Acts of Andrew and Matthias a true story?
Scholars read it as a theological narrative and not as a chronicle. It is an early Christian tale in the style of ancient adventure stories, written some centuries after the apostles, and it uses vivid scenes to teach about faith and mercy.
Is the Acts of Andrew and Matthias easy to read?
It is built from short, vivid scenes, such as a prison, a boat, a speaking statue and a flood. The dialogue is plain, and the story moves clearly from rescue to confrontation, so a listener can follow it easily.
Cite this edition
The Acts of Andrew and Matthias. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/loa-acts-of-matthias.
The acts of Andrew and Matthias. (2026). Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/loa-acts-of-matthias
The Acts of Andrew and Matthias. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/loa-acts-of-matthias.
@book{anonymous2026acts,
title = {The Acts of Andrew and Matthias},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/loa-acts-of-matthias}
}
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