The Twelve Disciples; Instructions for Service

10 Jesus ^(A)summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to ^(B)heal every disease and every sickness.

^2 (C)Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: The first, ^(D)Simon, who is called Peter, and his brother ^(E)Andrew; and ^[a](F)James the son of Zebedee, and his brother ^[b]John; ^3 (G)Philip and ^[c]Bartholomew; ^(H)Thomas and ^(I)Matthew the tax collector; ^[d](J)James the son of Alphaeus, and ^(K)Thaddaeus; ⁴ Simon the ^[e]Zealot, and ^(L)Judas Iscariot, the one who also betrayed Him.

^5 (M)These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them, saying, “Do not go on a road ^[f]to Gentiles, and do not enter a city of ^(N)Samaritans; ⁶ but rather go to ^(O)the lost sheep of the house of Israel. ⁷ And as you go, ^[g]preach, saying, ‘^(P)The kingdom of heaven ^[h]has come near.’ ⁸ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those with leprosy, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give. ^9 (Q)Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts, ¹⁰ or a ^[i]bag for your journey, or even two ^[j]tunics, or sandals, or a staff; for ^(R)the worker is deserving of his ^[k]support. ¹¹ And whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it, and stay ^[l]at his house until you leave that city. ¹² As you enter the ^[m]house, ^(S)give it your ^[n]greeting. ¹³ If the house is worthy, see that your blessing of peace comes upon it. But if it is not worthy, ^[o]take back your blessing of peace. ¹⁴ And whoever does not receive you nor listen to your words, as you leave that house or city, ^(T)shake the dust off your feet. ¹⁵ Truly I say to you, ^(U)it will be more tolerable for the land of ^(V)Sodom and Gomorrah on ^(W)the day of judgment, than for that city.

A Hard Road Ahead of Them

¹⁶ “^(X)Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be as ^(Y)wary as serpents, and as ^(Z)innocent as doves. ¹⁷ But be on guard against people, for they will hand you over to the ^(AA)courts and flog you ^(AB)in their synagogues; ¹⁸ and you will even be brought before governors and kings on My account, as a testimony to them and to the Gentiles. ^19 (AC)But when they hand you over, ^(AD)do not worry about how or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given you in that hour. ²⁰ For ^(AE)it is not you who are speaking, but it is the Spirit of your Father who is speaking ^[p]in you.

²¹ “Now ^(AF)brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and ^(AG)children will rise up against parents and ^[q]cause them to be put to death. ²² And ^(AH)you will be hated by all because of My name, but ^(AI)it is the one who has endured to the end who will be saved.

²³ “But whenever they ^(AJ)persecute you in ^[r]one city, flee to the ^[s]next; for truly I say to you, you will not finish going through the cities of Israel ^(AK)until the Son of Man comes.

The Meaning of Discipleship

²⁴ “^(AL)A ^[t]disciple is not above his teacher, nor a slave above his master. ²⁵ It is enough for the disciple that he may become like his teacher, and the slave like his master. ^(AM)If they have called the head of the house ^[u](AN)Beelzebul, how much more will they insult the members of his household!

²⁶ “So do not ^(AO)fear them, ^(AP)for there is nothing concealed that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. ^27 (AQ)What I tell you in the darkness, tell in the light; and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim ^(AR)on the housetops. ²⁸ And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather ^(AS)fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in ^[v](AT)hell. ^29 (AU)Are two sparrows not sold for an ^[w]assarion? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. ³⁰ But ^(AV)even the hairs of your head are all counted. ³¹ So do not fear; ^(AW)you are more valuable than a great number of sparrows.

³² “Therefore, ^(AX)everyone who ^[x]confesses Me before people, I will also confess ^[y]him before My Father who is in heaven. ³³ But ^(AY)whoever denies Me before people, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven.

³⁴ “^(AZ)Do not think that I came to ^[z]bring peace on the earth; I did not come to ^[aa]bring peace, but a sword. ³⁵ For I came to ^(BA)turn a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; ³⁶ and ^(BB)a person’s enemies will be the members of his household.

³⁷ “^(BC)The one who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and the one who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. ³⁸ And ^(BD)the one who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. ^39 (BE)The one who has found his ^[ab]life will lose it, and the one who has lost his ^[ac]life on My account will find it.

The Reward for Service

⁴⁰ “^(BF)The one who ^[ad]receives you ^[ae]receives Me, and ^(BG)the one who ^[af]receives Me ^[ag]receives Him who sent Me. ^41 (BH)The one who ^[ah]receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet’s reward; and the one who ^[ai]receives a righteous person in the name of a righteous person shall receive a righteous person’s reward. ⁴² And ^(BI)whoever gives one of these ^[aj]little ones just a cup of cold water to drink in the name of a disciple, truly I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward.”