Why did the twelve apostles stay in Jerusalem instead of going to the ends of the world?
The twelve apostles stayed in Jerusalem because their ministry was to the Jew, and they knew they had no ministry to the ends of the world until the covenant program was fulfilled. Persecution could not drive them out, and they were not derelict in duty; they were remaining where their calling required them to be.
Les explains that after seven years, intense persecution under Saul scattered all the Jewish believers from Jerusalem except the twelve. He notes this seems contrary to the Great Commission, since they should have been gone around the then-known world. But they were not derelict; quite the opposite. They knew they had no ministry to the ends of the world until the covenant program was fulfilled, because their ministry was to the Jew. Therefore, even persecution could not drive them out of Jerusalem.