35Jesus traveled through
all the cities and villages of that area, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And wherever
he went, he healed people of every sort of disease and illness. 36He felt great pity for the crowds that came, because their problems were
so great and they didn’t know where to go for help. They were like sheep without a shepherd. 37He said to his disciples, “The harvest is so great, but the
workers are so few. 38So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send out
more workers for his fields
Matthew 10
1Jesus called his twelve
disciples to him and gave them authority to cast out evil spirits and to heal every kind of disease and illness. 2Here are the names of the twelve apostles:
first Simon
(also called Peter),
then Andrew
(Peter’s brother),
James (son
of Zebedee),
John (James’s
brother),
3 Philip,
Bartholomew,
Thomas,
Matthew (the
tax collector),
James (son
of Alphaeus),
Thaddaeus,
4 Simon (the Zealot£),
Judas Iscariot
(who later betrayed him).
5Jesus sent the twelve disciples
out with these instructions: “Don’t go to the Gentiles or the Samaritans, 6but only to the people of Israel—God’s
lost sheep. 7Go and announce to them that the Kingdom of Heaven is near.£ 8Heal 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 with you. 10Don’t carry a traveler’s bag with an extra coat and sandals or even a walking stick. Don’t
hesitate to accept hospitality, because those who work deserve to be fed.£ 11Whenever you enter a city or village, search for a worthy man and stay in his home until you leave for the next
town. 12When you are invited into someone’s home, give it your blessing. 13If it turns out to be a worthy home, let your blessing stand; if it is
not, take back the blessing. 14If a village doesn’t welcome you or listen to you, shake off the dust of that place from your feet as you
leave. 15I assure you, the wicked cities of Sodom and Gomorrah will be better off on the judgment day than that place will be.
