The Twelve sent out
Life of Jesus · Draft · BSB
Content revision: 3b09169ed31902a5 · No editorial review date recorded
Date: Ministry in Galilee. A guided comparison of Gospel accounts, not a measured calendar or a claim that every parallel follows the same sequence.
Jesus sends the Twelve to proclaim the kingdom and heal. Matthew’s extended instructions address hospitality, rejection, persecution, costly allegiance and receiving his messengers, while Mark and Luke describe their departure and work.
Matthew initially limits this mission to Israel and then looks ahead to witness before rulers. Mark permits a staff and sandals, while Matthew and Luke word their equipment instructions differently; a composite packing list would hide those differences.
Primary Scripture
9:35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness.
9:36 When He saw the crowds, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
9:37 Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.
9:38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest.”
10:1 And calling His twelve disciples to Him, Jesus gave them authority over unclean spirits, so that they could drive them out and heal every disease and sickness.
10:2 These are the names of the twelve apostles: first Simon, called Peter, and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John;
10:3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus;
10:4 Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus.
10:5 These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go onto the road of the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans.
10:6 Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel.
10:7 As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’
10:8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.
10:9 Do not take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts.
10:10 Take no bag for the road, or second tunic, or sandals, or staff; for the worker is worthy of his provisions.
10:11 Whatever town or village you enter, find out who is worthy there and stay at his house until you move on.
10:12 As you enter the home, greet its occupants.
10:13 If the home is worthy, let your peace rest on it, but if it is not, let your peace return to you.
10:14 And if anyone will not welcome you or heed your words, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that home or town.
10:15 Truly I tell you, it will be more bearable for Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.
10:16 Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.
10:17 But beware of men, for they will hand you over to their councils and flog you in their synagogues.
10:18 On My account you will be brought before governors and kings as witnesses to them and to the Gentiles.
10:19 But when they hand you over, do not worry about how to respond or what to say. In that hour you will be given what to say.
10:20 For it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.
10:21 Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; children will rise against their parents and have them put to death.
10:22 You will be hated by everyone because of My name, but the one who perseveres to the end will be saved.
10:23 When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next. Truly I tell you, you will not reach all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.
10:24 A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master.
10:25 It is enough for a disciple to be like his teacher, and a servant like his master. If the head of the house has been called Beelzebul, how much more the members of his household!
10:26 So do not be afraid of them. For there is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, and nothing hidden that will not be made known.
10:27 What I tell you in the dark, speak in the daylight; what is whispered in your ear, proclaim from the housetops.
10:28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Instead, fear the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
10:29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father.
10:30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered.
10:31 So do not be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
10:32 Therefore everyone who confesses Me before men, I will also confess him before My Father in heaven.
10:33 But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father in heaven.
10:34 Do not assume that I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.
10:35 For I have come to turn ‘a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.
10:36 A man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.’
10:37 Anyone who loves his father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me;
10:38 and anyone who does not take up his cross and follow Me is not worthy of Me.
10:39 Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.
10:40 He who receives you receives Me, and he who receives Me receives the One who sent Me.
10:41 Whoever receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet’s reward, and whoever receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man will receive a righteous man’s reward.
10:42 And if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones because he is My disciple, truly I tell you, he will never lose his reward.”
11:1 After Jesus had finished instructing His twelve disciples, He went on from there to teach and preach in their cities.
6:7 Then Jesus called the Twelve to Him and began to send them out two by two, giving them authority over unclean spirits.
6:8 He instructed them to take nothing but a staff for the journey—no bread, no bag, no money in their belts—
6:9 and to wear sandals, but not a second tunic.
6:10 And He told them, “When you enter a house, stay there until you leave that area.
6:11 If anyone will not welcome you or listen to you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that place, as a testimony against them.”
6:12 So they set out and preached that the people should repent.
6:13 They also drove out many demons and healed many of the sick, anointing them with oil.
9:1 Then Jesus called the Twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons, and power to cure diseases.
9:2 And He sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick.
9:3 “Take nothing for the journey,” He told them, “no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no second tunic.
9:4 Whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave that area.
9:5 If anyone does not welcome you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave that town, as a testimony against them.”
9:6 So they set out and went from village to village, preaching the gospel and healing people everywhere.
Related Scripture
The later commission to all nations expands the scope beyond Matthew 10’s initial mission.
Location evidence
The mission covers towns and villages without a recoverable full itinerary. The Galilean region gives orientation, not exact routes for the Twelve.
Event map marker: Approximate region; [longitude, latitude] = [35.35, 32.85]. This is a teaching marker, not an exact event venue.
Galilee: Approximate region. Coordinates [longitude, latitude]: [35.35, 32.85]. Classification source: editorial.
Illustrative regional extent: [[35.1,32.55],[35.68,33.15]]; not a measured confidence interval.
Gospel setting; extent is an editorial illustration, not a boundary
Gospel setting; extent is an editorial illustration, not a boundary
For the class
What do dependence on hospitality and readiness for rejection teach the disciples?
Interpretation and reuse
Narrative order is a reading arrangement, not a proven chronology. Dates retain their stated uncertainty. An identified locality does not establish the exact venue or prove an event. Region extents and routes are illustrative, not surveyed boundaries or ancient roads. Draft material has not completed editorial review.
Record source: theographic (390)
Record source: editorial
Events and places adapted from Theographic Bible Metadata (github.com/robertrouse/theographic-bible-metadata), CC BY-SA 4.0. This adapted data is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Place coordinates from OpenBible.info Bible Geocoding Data, CC BY 4.0.
Teaching stops, summaries and regional extents are original editorial content of this atlas.
Berean Standard Bible (BSB), public domain. https://berean.bible/licensing.htm