St. Matthew the Apostle was born in Bethlehem, descended from the tribe of Judah; from early childhood he studied the Law of God from the holy books under the guidance of St. Simeon the God-receiver. When the Lord Jesus Christ revealed Himself to the world, Saint Matthew believed in Him as the Messiah, followed Him relentlessly, and was chosen among the 70 disciples whom the Lord "sent two by two before His face" (Luke 10:1). After the Ascension of the Savior, the apostle Matthew was chosen by lot to be one of the 12 apostles instead of the apostate Judas Iscariot (Acts 1:15-26). 
After the Descent of the Holy Spirit, the apostle Matthew preached the gospel in Jerusalem and Judea along with the other apostles (Acts 1:16).6:2,8:14). From Jerusalem, with the apostles Peter and Andrew, he went to Antioch in Syria, was in the Cappadocian city of Tian and in Sinope. Here the Apostle Matthew was imprisoned, from which he was miraculously freed by the Apostle Andrew the First-Called. After that, the Apostle Matthew traveled to Amazonia, a city on the shores of Pontus. During the 3rd journey of the Apostle Andrew, St. Matthew was with him in Edessa and Sebaste. According to church tradition, he was preaching in Pontic Ethiopia (present-day Western Georgia), Macedonia, being in mortal danger many times, but the Lord kept him alive for further preaching of the Gospel. 
One day, the pagans forced the apostle to drink a poisoned drink. The apostle drank it and not only remained unharmed himself, but also healed other prisoners who were blinded by this drink. When Saint Matthias came out of prison, the pagans searched in vain for him, as he had become invisible to them. Another time, when the pagans rushed in rage to kill the apostle, the earth opened up and swallowed them up. The Apostle Matthew returned to Judea and did not cease to enlighten his compatriots with the light of Christ's teaching. 
He performed great miracles in the Name of the Lord Jesus and converted many to faith in Christ. The Jewish high priest Anan, who hated Christ and had previously ordered the apostle James, the Lord's brother, to be thrown from the height of the temple, ordered the apostle Matthias to be taken and brought to trial by the Sanhedrin in Jerusalem. The wicked Anan made a speech in which he blasphemously blasphemed the Lord. In response, the apostle Matthew showed in the prophecies of the Old Testament that Jesus Christ is the True God, the Messiah promised by God to Israel, the Son of God, Consubstantial and Co–eternal with God the Father. After these words, the Apostle Matthew was condemned to death by the Sanhedrin and stoned. 
When Saint Matthias was already dead, the Jews, hiding the crime, cut off his head as an opponent of Caesar. (According to some sources, the Apostle Matthew was crucified on the cross. Some point out that he died in Colchis). The Apostle Matthias accepted death for Christ and the crown of martyrdom around the age of 63.