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The Twelve Disciples; Instructions for Service

¹ Jesus ^(C1)summoned His twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to ^(C2)heal every disease and every sickness.

^2 (C1)Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: The first, ^(C2)Simon, who is called Peter, and his brother ^(C2)Andrew; and ^(F1)(C3)James the son of Zebedee, and his brother ^(F2)John;^3 (C1)Philip and ^(F1)Bartholomew; ^(C2)Thomas and ^(C3)Matthew the tax collector; ^(F2)(C4)James the son of Alphaeus, and ^(C5)Thaddaeus;⁴ Simon the ^(F1)Zealot, and ^(C1)Judas Iscariot, the one who also betrayed Him.

^5 (C1)These twelve Jesus sent out after instructing them, saying, "Do not go on a road ^(F1)to Gentiles, and do not enter a city of ^(C2)Samaritans;⁶ but rather go to ^(C1)the lost sheep of the house of Israel.⁷ "And as you go, ^(F1)preach, saying, '^(C1)The kingdom of heaven has come near.'⁸ "Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those with leprosy, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give.⁹ "^(C1)Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts,¹⁰ or a ^(F1)bag for your journey, or even two ^(F2)tunics, or sandals, or a staff; for ^(C1)the worker is deserving of his ^(F3)support.¹¹ "And whatever city or village you enter, inquire who is worthy in it, and stay ^(F1)at his house until you leave that city.¹² "As you enter the ^(F1)house, ^(C1)give it your ^(F2)greeting.¹³ "If the house is worthy, see that your blessing of peace comes upon it. But if it is not worthy, ^(F1)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, ^(C1)shake the dust off your feet.¹⁵ "Truly I say to you, ^(C1)it will be more tolerable for the land of ^(C2)Sodom and Gomorrah on ^(C3)the day of judgment, than for that city.

A Hard Road Ahead of Them

¹⁶ "^(C1)Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be as ^(C2)wary as serpents, and as ^(C3)innocent as doves.¹⁷ "But be on guard against people, for they will hand you over to the ^(C1)courts and flog you ^(C2)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 "^(C1)But when they hand you over, ^(C2)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 ^(C1)it is not you who are speaking, but it is the Spirit of your Father who is speaking ^(F1)in you.

²¹ "Now ^(C1)brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and ^(C2)children will rise up against parents and ^(F1)cause them to be put to death.²² "And ^(C1)you will be hated by all because of My name, but ^(C2)it is the one who has endured to the end who will be saved.

²³ "But whenever they ^(C1)persecute you in ^(F1)one city, flee to the ^(F2)next; for truly I say to you, you will not finish going through the cities of Israel ^(C2)until the Son of Man comes.

The Meaning of Discipleship

²⁴ "^(C1)A ^(F1)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. ^(C1)If they have called the head of the house ^(F1)(C2)Beelzebul, how much more will they insult the members of his household!

²⁶ "So do not ^(C1)fear them, ^(C2)for there is nothing concealed that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known.²⁷ "^(C1)What I tell you in the darkness, tell in the light; and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim ^(C2)on the housetops.²⁸ "And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather ^(C1)fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in ^(F1)(C2)hell.²⁹ "^(C1)Are two sparrows not sold for an ^(F1)assarion? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.³⁰ "But ^(C1)even the hairs of your head are all counted.³¹ "So do not fear; ^(C1)you are more valuable than a great number of sparrows.

³² "Therefore, ^(C1)everyone who ^(F1)confesses Me before people, I will also confess ^(F2)him before My Father who is in heaven.³³ "But ^(C1)whoever denies Me before people, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven.

³⁴ "^(C1)Do not think that I came to ^(F1)bring peace on the earth; I did not come to ^(F1)bring peace, but a sword.³⁵ "For I came to ^(C1)TURN A MAN AGAINST HIS FATHER, AND A DAUGHTER AGAINST HER MOTHER, AND A DAUGHTER-IN-LAW AGAINST HER MOTHER-IN-LAW;³⁶ and ^(C1)A PERSON'S ENEMIES WILL BE THE MEMBERS OF HIS HOUSEHOLD.

³⁷ "^(C1)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 ^(C1)the one who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me.³⁹ "^(C1)The one who has found his ^(F1)life will lose it, and the one who has lost his ^(F1)life on My account will find it.

The Reward for Service

⁴⁰ "^(C1)The one who ^(F1)receives you ^(F1)receives Me, and ^(C2)the one who ^(F1)receives Me ^(F1)receives Him who sent Me.⁴¹ "^(C1)The one who ^(F1)receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward; and the one who ^(F1)receives a righteous person in the name of a righteous person shall receive a righteous person's reward.⁴² "And ^(C1)whoever gives one of these ^(F1)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."