The Twelve Apostles

1And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction.  2The names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother;  3Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus;  4Simon the Cananaean, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

Jesus Sends Out the Twelve Apostles

5These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, “Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans,  6but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.  7And proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’  8Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying; give without pay.  9Acquire no gold nor silver nor copper for your belts,  10no bag for your journey, nor two tunics nor sandals nor a staff, for the laborer deserves his food.  11And whatever town or village you enter, find out who is worthy in it and stay there until you depart.  12As you enter the house, greet it.  13And if the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it, but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you.  14And if anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town.  15Truly, I say to you, it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah than for that town.

Persecution Will Come

16“Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves.  17Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues,  18and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles.  19When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour.  20For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.  21Brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death,  22and you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.  23When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next, for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

24“A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master.  25It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household.

Have No Fear

26“So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known.  27What I tell you in the dark, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops.  28And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.  29Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.  30But even the hairs of your head are all numbered.  31Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.  32So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven,  33but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.

Not Peace, but a Sword

34“Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.  35For I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.  36And a person's enemies will be those of his own household.  37Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.  38And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.  39Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

Rewards

40“Whoever receives you receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me.  41The one who receives a prophet because he is a prophet will receive a prophet's reward, and the one who receives a righteous person because he is a righteous person will receive a righteous person's reward.  42And whoever gives one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.”