Luke 10:1-12
Chapter 10
1
The Lord appointed seventy-two other disciples and sent them, two by two, ahead of him to every town and place where he was to go himself.
2
He said to them:
“The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. So you must ask the Lord of the harvest to send workers to his harvest.
3
Be courageous! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves.
4
Set off without a purse, a bag, or sandals, and do not stop at the homes of those you know.
5
Wherever you enter a house, first bless it by saying, ‘Peace to this house!’
6
If a person of peace resides there, the peace will rest on that person. If not, the peace will return to you.
7
Stay there, eating and drinking at their table, because the worker deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house.
8
When they welcome you to any town, eat what they offer you.
9
Heal the sick there and tell them, ‘The kingdom of God is near to you.’
10
If you are not welcomed in any town, go to the marketplace and proclaim:
11
Even the dust of your town that sticks to our feet, we wipe off and leave with you. But know for certain that the kingdom of God is near to you.’
12
I tell you, on the Day of Judgment, it will be better for Sodom than for this town.
Commentaries
Mission of the Seventy-Two.
Already in 9:1-6, Jesus had sent out the Twelve for the first time, symbolizing the people of Israel made up of twelve tribes. Now, he appoints another seventy (or seventy-two) to send them out to preach the kingdom of God. The number ‘seventy’ could symbolize ‘the whole world’ here, according to the tradition that the entire world was divided into ‘seventy nations’ (Gn 10); in any case, there is a reference in Luke’s perspective to the universality of the message and the universal call and urgency of the proclamation.