‘And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.'
The city is founded on the twelve apostles, as was the Temple which comprised the church (Ephesians 2:20). The conjunction of the twelve tribes of Israel with the twelve apostles demonstrates that we have here the true people of God of all ages. ‘The twelve apostles' signifies the whole apostleship, it is not intended to discriminate who the twelfth apostle may be (whether Matthias or Paul).