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¹ And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every infirmity.² The names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zeb'edee, and John his brother;³ Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus;⁴ Simon the Cananaean, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

⁵ These twelve Jesus sent out, charging them, "Go nowhere among the Gentiles, and enter no town of the Samaritans,⁶ but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.⁷ And preach as you go, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.'⁸ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying, give without pay.⁹ Take no gold, nor silver, nor copper in your belts,¹⁰ no bag for your journey, nor two tunics, nor sandals, nor a staff; for the laborer deserves his food.¹¹ And whatever town or village you enter, find out who is worthy in it, and stay with him until you depart.¹² As you enter the house, salute it.¹³ And if the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it; but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you.¹⁴ And if any one will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet as you leave that house or town.¹⁵ Truly, I say to you, it shall be more tolerable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom and Gomor'rah than for that town.

¹⁶ "Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.¹⁷ Beware of men; for they will deliver you up to councils, and flog you in their synagogues,¹⁸ and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear testimony before them and the Gentiles.¹⁹ When they deliver you up, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour;²⁰ for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.²¹ Brother will deliver up brother to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death;²² and you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.²³ When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next; for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel, before the Son of man comes.²⁴ "A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master;²⁵ it is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Be-el'zebul, how much more will they malign those of his household.²⁶ "So have no fear of them; for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known.²⁷ What I tell you in the dark, utter in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim upon the housetops.²⁸ And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.²⁹ Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground without your Father's will.³⁰ But even the hairs of your head are all numbered.³¹ Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.³² So every one who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven;³³ but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.³⁴ "Do not think that I have come to bring peace on earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.³⁵ For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;³⁶ and a man's foes will be those of his own household.³⁷ He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me;³⁸ and he who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.³⁹ He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for my sake will find it.⁴⁰ "He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives him who sent me.⁴¹ He who receives a prophet because he is a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward, and he who receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man shall receive a righteous man's reward.⁴² And whoever gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he shall not lose his reward."