10:1 Then he called together twelve of his disciples, and he gave them authority to throw out unclean spirits and heal all diseases and illnesses.

10:2 He designated them Ambassadors as follows: Simon (called Peter) and his brother Andrew, James son of Zebedee and his brother John,

10:3 Philip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew the tax contractor, James son of Alpheus, Thaddaios,

10:4 Simon the Zealot, and Judas from Kerioth, who would eventually betray Jesus.

10:5 Jesus commissioned these Twelve and gave them this mission: “Don’t go out to the non-Judeans or the Samaritans,

10:6 but only to the lost sheep of Israel.

10:7 And as you go, proclaim to them that the kingdom of the heavens has arrived.

10:8 Heal the feeble, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and throw out demons. Give freely, because you have received freely.

10:9 “Don’t take along any money, not even pocket change.

10:10 Don’t pack an extra shirt, shoes, or even a walking stick, because the worker deserves to be compensated.

10:11 When you enter a city, find out who the decent people are and stay with them until you move on.

10:12 And when you enter the house, be cordial to the people there.

10:13 If it is a worthy house, bless it with peace; but if not, take your blessing back.

10:14 “Now if the people there won’t accept you or listen to what you have to say, go out of that house or city and shake the dust from your feet.

10:15 I can assure you that on the day of judgment, it will be more tolerable for the lands of Sodom and Gomorrah than for that city!

10:16 “Take note of this: I am sending you out as sheep among wolves. So be as shrewd as serpents yet as pure as doves.

10:17 Beware of people; they will hand you over to stand before tribunals, and they will flog you in the synagogues.

10:18 On my account you will be taken to stand before governors and kings, as a testimony to them and to the non-Judeans.

10:19 But don’t worry about what to say, because it will be given to you just when you need it.

10:20 So it won’t be you talking but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.

10:21 “Siblings will hand each other over to death; likewise, parents will betray children and children will have their parents executed.

10:22 You will be despised by everybody on account of my name, but whoever endures to the end will be rescued.

10:23 And if they pursue you in one city, run away to the next. I can assure you that you will not finish with all the cities in Israel before the Human arrives.

10:24 “The student is not over the teacher, nor is the slave over their master—

10:25 though the student may become like their teacher and the slave may become like their master. So if the homeowner is being called Beelzeboul, what will they call the others in the house?!

10:26 “Don’t be afraid of them, because nothing is veiled that won’t be revealed, and nothing is concealed that won’t be made known.

10:27 What I tell you in the dark, you must tell in the light; what I whisper in your ear, you must proclaim from the housetops.

10:28 And don’t fear those who can kill the body but not the soul; instead, fear the one who can destroy both body and soul in Gehenna.

10:29 “Aren’t two sparrows sold for pocket change? Yet not one of them can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it.

10:30 Even the hairs on your head are numbered!

10:31 So don’t be afraid; you are worth far more than many sparrows.

10:32 And whoever acknowledges me in front of others is the one I will acknowledge in the presence of my father in the heavens.

10:33 But whoever renounces me in front of others is the one I will renounce in the presence of my father in the heavens.

10:34 “Don’t think that I came to establish peace on the earth; no, not at all. What I brought was a sword

10:35 that will cut between father and son, mother and daughter, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law.

10:36 A person’s enemies will be under their own roof!

10:37 So whoever favors their father or mother over me is unworthy of me; whoever favors their son or daughter over me is unworthy of me;

10:38 whoever will not pick up their cross and follow me is unworthy of me.

10:39 The one who finds their life will lose it, but the one who loses their life because of me will find it.

10:40 “Whoever accepts you is really accepting me, and whoever accepts me is really accepting the one who sent me.

10:41 Whoever accepts a prophet just for being a prophet will receive the same reward as a prophet. Likewise, whoever accepts a righteous person just for being righteous will get the same reward as the righteous.

10:42 And if you give one of my followers a cup of cold water to drink, just for being my disciple, I can assure you that you will not lose your reward.”