Jesus Sends Out the Twelve
10 Jesus called his twelve disciples to himself and gave them authority to drive out unclean spirits and to heal every disease and every sickness. 2 These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James the son of Zebedee and his brother John; 3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; 4 Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.
5 Jesus sent these twelve out and commanded them, “Do not go among the Gentiles, and do not enter any town of the Samaritans. 6 Go instead to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 7 As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near!’ 8 Heal the sick. Raise the dead. Cleanse lepers. Drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give. 9 Do not take gold, silver, or bronze in your money belts. 10 Do not take a bag for the journey, or two coats, sandals, or a staff, because the worker deserves his support. 11 Whenever you enter a town or village, find out who is worthy and stay there until you leave. 12 As you enter the household, give it your greeting. 13 If the household is worthy, let your peace rest on it. But if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. 14 If anyone does not receive you or listen to your words, shake the dust off your feet as you leave that house or that town. 15 Amen I tell you: It will be more bearable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.
16 “Look, I am sending you out as sheep among wolves. So be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. 17 Be on guard against people. They will hand you over to councils, and they will whip you in their synagogues. 18 You will be brought into the presence of governors and kings for my sake, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. 19 Whenever they hand you over, do not be worried about how you will respond or what you will say, because what you say will be given to you in that hour. 20 In fact you will not be the ones speaking, but the Spirit of your Father will be speaking through you.
21 “Brother will hand over his brother to death, and a father will do the same with his child. Children will rise up against parents and have them put to death. 22 You will be hated by all people because of my name, but whoever endures to the end will be saved. 23 And when they persecute you in one town, flee to the next. Amen I tell you: You will not finish going through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes.
24 “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor is a servant above his master. 25 It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher and the servant like his master. If the master of the house was called Beelzebul, how much more the members of his household!
26 “So do not be afraid of them, because there is nothing concealed that will not be revealed, and nothing hidden that will not be made known. 27 What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim from the housetops. 28 Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, fear the one who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
29 “Are not two sparrows sold for a small coin?[a] Yet not one of them will fall to the ground without the knowledge and consent of your Father. 30 And even the hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So do not be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows.
32 “Everyone who confesses me before others, I will also confess before my Father who is in heaven. 33 But whoever denies me before others, I will also deny before my Father who is in heaven.
34 “Do not think that I came to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. 35 For I came to turn a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. 36 A man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.[b]
37 “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 Whoever does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39 Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
40 “Whoever receives you receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me. 41 Whoever receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward. Whoever receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man’s reward. 42 Whoever gives one of these little ones even a cup of cold water to drink because he is my disciple—Amen I tell you—he will never lose his reward.”
Footnotes
- Matthew 10:29 Greek assarion, less than a half hour’s wage
- Matthew 10:36 Micah 7:6