U. The mission of the Twelve (9:1–6)
U. The mission of the Twelve (9:1–6)
Some scholars (e.g. Bultmann) hold that this preaching tour is not historical. They see the early church as justifying its practices by reading them back into the time of Jesus. This, however, is highly subjective and others point out that there is not the slightest reason for thinking that Jesus did not send his disciples out in this way. There were signs that his ministry in Galilee would not last much longer and it was important both to spread the message of the kingdom and to give the disciples experience.
1. First Jesus called the twelve together. We should not think that the disciples were together all the time. Some of them had homes and families in Capernaum and we need not doubt that they spent some of the time at their homes. But on this solemn occasion Jesus called them all together. The other Synoptists tell us that Jesus gave them authority, but Luke strengthens this with a reference also to power and with the information that it was over all demons (‘unclean spirits’, Matthew and Mark, probably are much the same). With this is coupled power to cure diseases. They were thus adequately equipped with power and the authority to use it.
2. Equipped in this way they were sent forth (two by two, Mark tells us). Jesus sent them to do two things: to preach the kingdom of God and to heal. This is clearly an extension of his own ministry, for these were the things that he himself had been doing. They were to be concerned with people’s bodies as well as their souls.
3. The Twelve were to travel light. Jesus told them to take nothing with them, and he spelled this out with no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money. They are to concentrate on the task in hand, not on elaborate preparations. In fact they are to forgo even what would have been regarded as normal preparations for a journey. God will provide what they need and they are to trust him for it, a trust which they later agreed was vindicated (22:35). There is a problem in no staff, for in the first instance it is not easy to see how this would in any way hinder the effectiveness of their preaching and healing, and in the second in Mark’s account they were to take nothing ‘except a staff ’ (Mark 6:8). Various attempts have been made at harmonizing the two, such as the view that Luke means ‘no additional staff ’ (but why would they want a spare staff ?), or that we have variant translations of an Aramaic original (which was perhaps elliptical and might be filled out in more than one way). But so far no explanation seems really satisfactory. Perhaps both ways of putting it mean ‘Go as you are’. Jesus is instructing them to make no special preparation for this trip. The bag (pēra) was the ‘knapsack, traveller’s bag’ (BAGD). As they were to make no preparation such a bag was not needed. The need was urgent: they must simply go. Some, however, see the pēra as the beggar’s bag used, for example, by itinerant Cynic preachers. Some of these preachers seem to have made quite a good living by appealing to the public in this way. Jesus’ preachers were not to emulate such men. No second tunic fits in with the rest of the instructions. They were not to make even the simplest of preparations for their trip. Edersheim connects this with the rabbinic rule that one must not enter the temple precincts with staff, shoes and money-bag. ‘The symbolic reasons underlying this command would, in both cases, be probably the same: to avoid even the appearance of being engaged on other business, when the whole being should be absorbed in the service of the Lord.’17
4. Now we find how they were to be maintained. In each place they were to go into one home and stay there. Someone would be interested enough and hospitable enough to provide for them. They were not to go to other homes. When they left the town they were to depart from the house to which they came at the first. The limitation on the acceptance of hospitality to that of one householder limited the length of their stay.
5. Next Jesus told them what to do when they found no-one to welcome them. They must do no more than shake off the dust from their feet. There was a rabbinic idea that the dust of Gentile lands carried defilement,18 and strict Jews are said to have removed it from their shoes whenever they returned to Palestine from abroad. The disciples’ shaking of the dust from their feet was a testimony against them. It declared in symbol that Israelites who rejected the kingdom were no better than the Gentiles. They did not belong to the people of God. For the practice cf. Acts 13:51.
6. The apostles obeyed. They went through the villages, which points to a country tour. Luke does not go into detail, but says that they preached and that they healed. That they did it everywhere shows that between them they covered a lot of ground.
We should perhaps add that the instructions given here are not to be regarded as applying universally. At a later time Jesus commanded his followers to take purse, bag and sword (22:36). These instructions are for this one trip.