Jesus commissions the twelve apostles - named individually - granting them authority over unclean spirits and diseases, and sending them specifically to the lost sheep of Israel with the message that the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Detailed instructions address their itinerant mission: taking no provisions, finding worthy hosts, shaking dust from their feet against rejecting towns, and exercising wisdom as serpents with innocence as doves. Jesus prepares them for persecution, family division, and suffering, while assuring them of the Father's providential care, the Spirit's assistance in testimony, and eschatological rewards for those who receive them.
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Read Matthew Chapter 10 Summary
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Characters in This Chapter
Jesus Christ
The promised Messiah and King
Matthew
Tax collector turned apostle and author
Peter
Leading apostle who confessed Christ
Andrew
Brother of Peter
James, Brother of Jesus
Leader of the Jerusalem Church
John the Baptist
Forerunner of the Messiah
Philip
Apostle from Bethsaida
Thomas
The Doubting Apostle
Judas Iscariot
The Betrayer of Jesus
Places in This Chapter
Sodom
View on MapA city of the Jordan plain that Lot chose for its well-watered land, destroyed with Gomorrah by fire from heaven. Abraham had pleaded for it, and the Lord agreed to spare it for ten righteous men who were never found. Its site is disputed: this marker follows the southern tradition, on the eastern escarpment of the Dead Sea.
Questions this chapter raises
Position in Book
Birth and PreparationChapters 1-4
Sermon on the MountChapters 5-7
Miracles and MissionChapters 8-10
Healing miracles, sending of the twelve apostles.
Opposition GrowsChapters 11-13
Training DisciplesChapters 14-18
Journey to JerusalemChapters 19-25
Death and ResurrectionChapters 26-28