Matthew 10
10
Jesus Sends Out the 12 Disciples
1Jesus called for his 12 disciples and gave them authority to drive out demons and heal every kind of disease and sickness.
2Here are the names of the 12 apostles.
First, Simon (also called Peter) and his brother Andrew;
then James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John;
3Philip and Bartholomew;
Thomas and Matthew the tax collector;
James, the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus;
4Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus.
5Jesus sent these 12 out with the following orders. “Don’t go among the Gentiles and don’t enter any town where the Samaritans live. 6Instead, go to the lost sheep of Israel. 7As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ 8Heal the sick, bring the dead back to life, make those who have skin diseases clean again, and drive out demons. You have received freely, so give freely.
9“Don’t take any gold, silver, or copper coins with you in your belts. 10Don’t bring a bag for the journey, or any extra clothes or sandals or a walking stick. A worker deserves to be given what’s needed. 11When you enter a town or village, look for a person who’s willing to welcome you, and stay at their house until you leave. 12As you enter their home, give it your blessing of peace. 13If the home deserves it, your peace will rest upon it; if it doesn’t deserve it, your peace will return to you. 14Some people may not welcome you or listen to your words. If they don’t, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet. 15Truly I tell you, on judgment day it will be easier for Sodom and Gomorrah than for that town.
16“I’m sending you out like sheep among wolves. So be as wise as snakes and as harmless as doves. 17Be careful who you trust! You’ll be turned over to the local courts and whipped in the synagogues. 18You’ll be put on trial before governors and kings because of me, as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles. 19But when they arrest you, don’t worry about what you’ll say or how to say it. You’ll be given the right words at the time. 20It won’t even be you speaking. The Spirit of your Father will be speaking through you.
21“Brothers will betray brothers to those who want to kill them, and fathers will betray their children. Children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death. 22Everyone will hate you because of me. But anyone who stands firm to the end will be saved. 23If people attack you in one place, escape to another. Truly I tell you, you won’t finish going through the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.
24“The student isn’t greater than the teacher, and the slave isn’t greater than the master. 25It’s enough for students to be like their teachers and for slaves to be like their masters. If the head of the household has been called Beelzebul, the prince of demons, what should the others who live in the house expect to be called?
26“Don’t be afraid of your enemies. Everything that’s now secret will be brought out into the open and everything that’s hidden will be revealed. 27Repeat in the daylight what I tell you in the dark, and shout from the rooftops what is whispered in your ear. 28Don’t be afraid of those who kill the body but can’t kill the soul. Instead, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29Aren’t two sparrows sold for only a penny? But not one of them falls to the ground without your Father being aware of it. 30He even knows every hair on your head! 31So don’t be afraid; you’re worth more than many sparrows.
32“If anyone tells others that they know me, I’ll tell my Father in heaven that I know them. 33But if anyone denies that they know me, I’ll tell my Father in heaven that I don’t know them.
34“Don’t think that I’ve come to bring peace to the earth. I haven’t come to bring peace, but a sword. 35I’ve come to turn
“ ‘sons against their fathers,
daughters against their mothers,
and daughters-in-law against their mothers-in-law.
36A man’s enemies will be the members of his own family.’
37“Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me. Anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38Whoever doesn’t pick up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. 39Whoever finds their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life because of me will find it.
40“Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. 41If someone welcomes a prophet because they’re a prophet, that person will receive a prophet’s reward. If someone welcomes a godly person because they’re godly, that person will receive a godly person’s reward. 42And if someone even gives a cup of cold water to a little one who follows me, truly I tell you, that person will be rewarded.”
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Matthew 10
10
The Twelve Harvest Hands
1-4The prayer was no sooner prayed than it was answered. Jesus called twelve of his followers and sent them into the ripe fields. He gave them power to kick out the evil spirits and to tenderly care for the bruised and hurt lives. This is the list of the twelve he sent:
Simon (they called him Peter, or “Rock”),
Andrew, his brother,
James, Zebedee’s son,
John, his brother,
Philip,
Bartholomew,
Thomas,
Matthew, the tax man,
James, son of Alphaeus,
Thaddaeus,
Simon, the Canaanite,
Judas Iscariot (who later turned on him).
5-8Jesus sent his twelve harvest hands out with this charge:
“Don’t begin by traveling to some far-off place to convert unbelievers. And don’t try to be dramatic by tackling some public enemy. Go to the lost, confused people right here in the neighborhood. Tell them that the kingdom is here. Bring health to the sick. Raise the dead. Touch the untouchables. Kick out the demons. You have been treated generously, so live generously.
9-10“Don’t think you have to put on a fund-raising campaign before you start. You don’t need a lot of equipment. You are the equipment, and all you need to keep that going is three meals a day. Travel light.
11“When you enter a town or village, don’t insist on staying in a luxury inn. Get a modest place with some modest people, and be content there until you leave.
12-15“When you knock on a door, be courteous in your greeting. If they welcome you, be gentle in your conversation. If they don’t welcome you, quietly withdraw. Don’t make a scene. Shrug your shoulders and be on your way. You can be sure that on Judgment Day they’ll be mighty sorry—but it’s no concern of yours now.
16“Stay alert. This is hazardous work I’m assigning you. You’re going to be like sheep running through a wolf pack, so don’t call attention to yourselves. Be as shrewd as a snake, inoffensive as a dove.
17-20“Don’t be naive. Some people will question your motives, others will smear your reputation—just because you believe in me. Don’t be upset when they haul you before the civil authorities. Without knowing it, they’ve done you—and me—a favor, given you a platform for preaching the kingdom news! And don’t worry about what you’ll say or how you’ll say it. The right words will be there; the Spirit of your Father will supply the words.
21-23“When people realize it is the living God you are presenting and not some idol that makes them feel good, they are going to turn on you, even people in your own family. There is a great irony here: proclaiming so much love, experiencing so much hate! But don’t quit. Don’t cave in. It is all well worth it in the end. It is not success you are after in such times but survival. Be survivors! Before you’ve run out of options, the Son of Man will have arrived.
24-25“A student doesn’t get a better desk than her teacher. A laborer doesn’t make more money than his boss. Be content—pleased, even—when you, my students, my harvest hands, get the same treatment I get. If they call me, the Master, ‘Dungface,’ what can the workers expect?
26-27“Don’t be intimidated. Eventually everything is going to be out in the open, and everyone will know how things really are. So don’t hesitate to go public now.
28“Don’t be bluffed into silence by the threats of bullies. There’s nothing they can do to your soul, your core being. Save your fear for God, who holds your entire life—body and soul—in his hands.
Forget About Yourself
29-31“What’s the price of a pet canary? Some loose change, right? And God cares what happens to it even more than you do. He pays even greater attention to you, down to the last detail—even numbering the hairs on your head! So don’t be intimidated by all this bully talk. You’re worth more than a million canaries.
32-33“Stand up for me against world opinion and I’ll stand up for you before my Father in heaven. If you turn tail and run, do you think I’ll cover for you?
34-37“Don’t think I’ve come to make life cozy. I’ve come to cut—make a sharp knife-cut between son and father, daughter and mother, bride and mother-in-law—cut through these cozy domestic arrangements and free you for God. Well-meaning family members can be your worst enemies. If you prefer father or mother over me, you don’t deserve me. If you prefer son or daughter over me, you don’t deserve me.
38-39“If you don’t go all the way with me, through thick and thin, you don’t deserve me. If your first concern is to look after yourself, you’ll never find yourself. But if you forget about yourself and look to me, you’ll find both yourself and me.
40-42“We are intimately linked in this harvest work. Anyone who accepts what you do, accepts me, the One who sent you. Anyone who accepts what I do accepts my Father, who sent me. Accepting a messenger of God is as good as being God’s messenger. Accepting someone’s help is as good as giving someone help. This is a large work I’ve called you into, but don’t be overwhelmed by it. It’s best to start small. Give a cool cup of water to someone who is thirsty, for instance. The smallest act of giving or receiving makes you a true apprentice. You won’t lose out on a thing.”
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.