TEXT [Commentary]

B. Mission and Suffering (10:5-42)

1. The apostles’ commission (10:5-15; cf. Mark 6:8-11; Luke 9:3-5)

5 Jesus sent out the twelve apostles with these instructions: “Don’t go to the Gentiles or the Samaritans, 6 but only to the people of Israel—God’s lost sheep. 7 Go and announce to them that the Kingdom of Heaven is near.[*] 8 Heal the sick, raise the dead, cure those with leprosy, and cast out demons. Give as freely as you have received!

9 “Don’t take any money in your money belts—no gold, silver, or even copper coins. 10 Don’t carry a traveler’s bag with a change of clothes and sandals or even a walking stick. Don’t hesitate to accept hospitality, because those who work deserve to be fed.

11 “Whenever you enter a city or village, search for a worthy person and stay in his home until you leave town. 12 When you enter the home, give it your blessing. 13 If it turns out to be a worthy home, let your blessing stand; if it is not, take back the blessing. 14 If any household or town refuses to welcome you or listen to your message, shake its dust from your feet as you leave. 15 I tell you the truth, the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah will be better off than such a town on the judgment day.”

NOTES

10:5-6 After listing the twelve apostles, Matthew narrated the instructions Jesus gave them just before he sent them out.

Don’t go to the Gentiles or the Samaritans, but only to the people of Israel. The discourse begins abruptly with a striking prohibition: the disciples must not go to Gentiles or Samaritans (cf. 15:24). Thus, the destination of the mission is to be limited to the people of Israel, who are again likened to lost sheep needing a shepherd (cf. 9:36; 10:16; 12:11-12; 15:24; 18:12; 25:32-33; 26:31; Jer 50:6; Ezek 34:11, 16, 30). Gentiles and Samaritans are to be excluded at this point, yet before his death Jesus anticipated the mission to all nations (8:11; 10:18; 21:43; 22:9; 24:14), and after his resurrection he commanded it (28:19). Despite this, mission to Gentiles was controversial in the early church, as noted in the book of Acts (e.g., Acts 11:1-18). The priority of Israel in redemptive history is underlined by this stress in Jesus’ ministry (Levine 1988). This is the only time the Samaritans, who occupied territory between Judah and Galilee, are mentioned in Matthew.

10:7-8 the Kingdom of Heaven is near. The central message of the disciples is to be that which John and Jesus have already preached: “the Kingdom of Heaven is near” (cf. 3:2; 4:17; 9:35; 13:19). The anticipated church, which will be built by Jesus, is also to preach this message of the rule of God (24:14). The authority of the ministry of word is to be demonstrated by the ministry of deed: the disciples are to heal, cast out demons, and even raise the dead. They have already seen Jesus do each of these deeds. Since they have freely received the gracious blessings of the Kingdom, they are to extend those blessings freely to others.

10:9 Don’t take any money. The Twelve are told not to take money or extra clothes with them on the mission. Rather, their needs are to be met by the anticipated hospitality and support of those who receive their message (cf. 10:11-13, 40-42). The message of the Kingdom is not for sale (cf. Acts 8:20), but those who receive it should also receive its messengers.

10:10 or even a walking stick. The instructions of 10:9-10, especially regarding the walking stick, are difficult to reconcile with Mark 6:8-9 (cf. Luke 9:3), but see Blomberg (1987:145-146) for suggestions.

Don’t hesitate to accept hospitality. Though not based on the Gr. text, this phrase was evidently added in view of the implications of the following context and to help explain the proverbial words “those who work deserve to be fed.” This saying probably distills OT principles regarding day laborers and priests (Num 18:31; Deut 24:15; cf. Luke 10:7; 1 Cor 9:9-10, 14). In this culture, hospitality to God’s messengers was viewed as a sacred duty (cf. Didache 11–13).

10:11-13 In this passage contrasting responses to the Kingdom message are anticipated (cf. Mark 6:10-12; Luke 10:5-6).

search for a worthy person. The disciples were to seek out those purported to be “worthy” people and to stay with them. Their acceptance of the Kingdom message would show their genuine worthiness. Jesus’ disciples were to accept offers of hospitality and give their blessing to worthy households who received the message of the Kingdom. But those who rejected the message of God’s reign were unworthy of his messengers.

let your blessing stand . . . take back the blessing. If the disciples were staying in an unworthy home, they were to retract their blessing, evidently as they departed from the home. The word “blessing” is more lit. a “greeting” (cf. 5:47), which wishes peace for the house (cf. Luke 10:5). In 10:13 the words “let your blessing stand” and “take back the blessing” can be respectively translated “let your [greeting of] peace come upon it” and “let your [greeting of] peace return to you.”

10:14 Reception of the disciples was linked to the response to their message (cf. Mark 6:11; Luke 9:5; 10:10-11). Refusal to heed the message was tantamount to rejection of the messenger. The disciples were to demonstrate the gravity of such rejection by a symbolic act of renunciation, shaking the dust of such houses or towns off their feet as they left. Some commentators understand this as shaking from one’s outer garment the dust stirred up by one’s feet (Gundry 1994:190; cf. Neh 5:13; Acts 13:51; 18:6), but it seems more naturally taken to be the dust on one’s feet (cf. Luke 10:11). Either way, the action symbolizes the severance of fellowship—the disciples are to reject those who have rejected the Kingdom message and leave them to their inevitable judgment.

10:15 the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah will be better off. Jesus assured the disciples that those who reject them make a mistake even more serious than Sodom and Gomorrah’s outrageously shameful treatment of God’s angels (Gen 18–19). Rejection of God’s rule in Christ renders one liable to a judgment more severe than the judgment of notorious Sodom and Gomorrah, which had attained proverbial status (11:24; 2 Pet 2:6; Jude 1:7; cf. Gen 18:20–19:26; Deut 29:22-23; Isa 1:9-10; 3:9; 13:19; Jer 23:14; 50:40; Lam 4:6; and esp. Ezek 16:46-56).

COMMENTARY [Text]

The instructions in this section deal with the destination (10:5-6), message (10:7), miracles (10:8), outfit (10:9-10), and reception (10:11-15) of the disciples’ mission. The reader is impressed by the continuity of the disciples’ mission with that of Jesus and John, as well as by the relative lack of funds and equipment the disciples are to take. This last feature reminds believers today that their ultimate resource in ministry is the Lord’s power and promises, not their own provisions. Similarly, the simplicity of the disciples’ provisions tends to reflect negatively upon the fund-raising techniques and lavish accoutrements that are in vogue with certain ministries today.

The prohibition of ministry to non-Jews (10:5) is perhaps the most noteworthy aspect of 10:5-15. This prohibition is obviously quite different from the concluding commission of this Gospel, which mandates mission to all the nations (28:18). How should this major difference be understood? The priority of Israel in God’s covenant plan cannot be minimized. Matthew presents Jesus as the son of Abraham, through whom all the nations will be blessed (1:1; cf. Gen 12:2-3). Although mere physical descent from Abraham does not merit God’s favor (3:9; 8:12), the Jews remain the foundational covenant people of God, and eschatological blessing amounts to sharing in the promises made to the patriarchs (8:11; 19:28). Thus, the Gentile world mission does not replace the foundational mission to Israel but supplements and broadens it. Christianity must not be separated from its roots in the Hebrew Bible. It is not a religion primarily, let alone exclusively, for Gentiles. The particularism of 10:5 is necessary for Jesus to be the fulfillment of Israel’s history and prophetic hope. His disciples would become the nucleus and foundational leaders of the nascent church (cf. 16:28; 19:28; 21:43). In God’s mysterious plan, most Jews—then and now—do not accept Jesus as their promised Messiah, but a messianic remnant of Christian Jews remains to this day. Therefore, Gentile Christians must always acknowledge the priority of Israel in redemptive history. This was taught by Jesus and Paul alike (John 4:22; 10:16; Rom 11:16-24; 15:7-12; Eph 2:11-13). Thus, there is a sense even today in which “to the Jew first” still rings true (Rom 1:16).