Luke 10

Luke 10:1

Luke: The Man Christ Jesus Jesus on his way from Galilee to Jerusalem An EasyEnglish Bible Version and Commentary (2800 word vocabulary) on Luke 9:51 to 19:44

www.easyenglish.info Ian Mackervoy This commentary has been through Advanced Checking.

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Chapter 10 Jesus sends 72 *disciples ahead of him – Luke 10:1-24 v1 After this, the *Lord chose another 72 *disciples and he sent them ahead of him. They went in teams of two to every town and place where Jesus intended to go. v2 He said to them, ‘There is a large harvest. But there are only a few workers to gather it. Therefore, ask the *Lord of the harvest to send workers that they may gather his harvest. v3 Go, I send you like young sheep among *wolves. v4 Do not take a purse, a bag or shoes with you. Do not stop to greet anyone on the way.

v5 When you enter a house, first say, ‘I pray that there will be *peace in this house.’ v6 If a *peaceful man lives there, your *peace will rest on him. If not, then your *peace will return to you. v7 Stay in that house. Eat the food that they give to you. And drink what they give to you. These are your wages and the worker deserves his wages. Do not move from house to house.

v8 You will go into towns where the people receive you. There eat the food that they give to you. v9 Cure the sick people who live there. Tell them, “The *kingdom of God is near to you.” v10 But you may go into a town where the people do not receive you. Go into the streets and say this to the people. v11 “Even the dust of your town that sticks to our feet we wipe off against you. But know this: that the *kingdom of God has come near.” v12 I tell you, on that day it will be easier for Sodom than for that town.

v13 How terrible it will be for you, Chorazin. How terrible it will be for you, Bethsaida. I have done many *miracles in you. If I had done them in Tyre and Sidon, those people would have *repented long ago. They would have put on rough clothes and they would have sat in ashes. v14 It will be easier for Tyre and Sidon than for you on the day when God is the judge. v15 And you Capernaum, you have been almost up to heaven. But you will go down to hell.

v16 Whoever listens to you (the 72 *disciples), listens to me. Whoever refuses to accept you, refuses to accept me. And whoever refuses to accept me, refuses to accept God. He is the one who sent me.’

v17 The 72 *disciples came back very happy. They said, ‘*Lord, even the *demons obey us in your name.’

v18 Jesus said to them, ‘I saw *Satan fall like lightning from heaven. v19 Listen, I have given to you authority to walk on snakes and *scorpions. I have given to you authority to overcome all the power of the enemy. So, nothing will hurt you. v20 However, do not be happy because evil spirits obey you. Rather be happy because God has written your names in heaven.’

v21 In that hour, the *Holy Spirit filled Jesus with joy. He said, ‘Father, you are the *Lord of heaven and earth. I praise you because you hid all this from wise and intelligent people. But you showed it to little children. Yes, Father, that is what pleased you.’

v22 ‘My Father has given all things to me. Nobody knows who the Son is, except the Father. Nobody knows who the Father is, except the Son. But those people to whom the Son shows the Father, they will know him.’

v23 Jesus turned to his *disciples and he spoke to them in private. ‘God has *blessed you to see the things that you see. v24 Many *prophets and kings desired to see what you now see. I tell you that they did not see it. They desired to hear what you now hear. But they did not hear it.’

Verses 1-4 The *Lord Jesus sent a number of *disciples ahead of him on his journey to Jerusalem. It is difficult to say how many there were. Many Bibles have 70 rather than 72. The word ‘another’ may mean that these were in addition to the 12 *apostles. So the total could be as many as 84. But it is more likely that the 12 *apostles stayed with Jesus.

People have tried to interpret the number 72. The *Jews thought that there were 72 nations in the world. So, the good news is for the entire world. Other people have tried to interpret the number 70. The Sanhedrin had 70 members. The Sanhedrin was the government of the *Jews. The 70 leaders of the people ought to be ready for the *Christ to come. They should have prepared the people for the *Christ. Another idea is that there is a reference to the 70 leaders of Israel in Numbers 11:24-30. After the *Holy Spirit came upon them, they shared Moses’ work (Numbers 11:16-17).

Jesus spoke of a large harvest. There was a lot of work to do. But there were only a few workers to gather it. Once the harvest is ready, there must not be any delay. A delay could spoil the harvest. The harvest here means the people who need to hear the good news about the *kingdom of God. This is true in every age. People need to hear the good news about Jesus.

Jesus sent these teams ahead of him. But the need was for many more workers. So, Jesus told them to pray that God would send more workers to work for the *kingdom of God. This should be the prayer of Christians in all ages.

The work of the *kingdom of God is often dangerous. Jesus told these *disciples that they were like young sheep among *wolves. *Wolves are wild animals. They look like large dogs. *Wolves are natural enemies of sheep. *Wolves will scatter the sheep. And they kill those sheep that they catch. The people who follow Jesus will have many enemies. Many Christians have died because they belong to Jesus. The Bible tells us that we should expect to suffer on behalf of Jesus (Philippians 1:29).

These *disciples had to depend on God and the kindness of people for all that they needed. They did not take money, food or spare clothes for the journey.

It was the custom to stop and to talk with anyone whom you met on the way. This was not just to say hello. It could be a long conversation. These *disciples must not spend the time in unnecessary conversation. They had urgent work to do.

Verses 5-7 When the *disciples came to a town or village, they would find a place to stay. Then they would ask the *Lord to *bless that house and the people who live there. If their hosts have the right attitude, the *Lord will *bless them. He would show them kindness as they had shown kindness to his servants. But the *Lord will not *bless those people who refused to receive them.

While the *disciples were in that place, they should not move from house to house. They should stay in the house that they entered first. As the *Lord’s workers, they deserve the food and drink that the hosts give to them. These things are their wages.

Here is a right principle. Those people who work for the *Lord deserve their wages (1 Timothy 5:18).

Verses 8-12 The *disciples would go into towns or villages where people would receive them. There the *disciples should accept the kindness of the people. In a wealthy home, the food may be very good; elsewhere the food may be poor. But the *disciples should eat whatever the people give to them. In these places, the *disciples would have the power to cure sick people. And they should *preach the good news of the *kingdom of God.

The people in other towns and villages would not receive the *disciples. The *disciples should tell the people about the *kingdom of God. But the people in these places would not believe the *gospel. The *disciples must warn these people that God will punish them. To show this, the *disciples must wipe the dust of that place from their feet.

You can read about Sodom in Genesis 18:16 to 19:29. At the last day, God will punish Sodom. But these towns will receive worse punishment. There is no hope for anyone that refuses to accept the *Lord Jesus.

Verses 13-15 Then Jesus spoke about some towns where he had done many *miracles. These towns were at the north end of the Sea of Galilee.

This is the only reference to Chorazin (or Korazin) in the Bible. Bethsaida was the home of Peter, Andrew and Philip (John 1:44; John 12:21). It was on the north west side of the sea. Jesus made Capernaum his home while he was in Galilee (Matthew 4:13).

The people from these towns will suffer because they did not *repent. They opposed God as they refused to accept Jesus.

Jesus did many *miracles in all of these places. We read about only a few of them at Capernaum. He did many more powerful works in addition to the ones that the *New Testament mentions (John 21:25).

Tyre and Sidon were towns on the coast to the north of *Israel. Ezekiel chapters 26 to 28 describe how God would punish Tyre. If Jesus had done these *miracles there, the people would have *repented. Rough clothes and ashes were a sign of *repentance. The punishment for these people will be less severe than for the inhabitants of the towns in Galilee.

Verse 16 The *disciples must speak as from the *Lord Jesus. Jesus gave to them authority to speak on his behalf. So, people who listen to the words of the *disciples in effect listen to the words of Jesus. To refuse the *disciples is to refuse Jesus who sent them. To refuse Jesus is to refuse God. As God sent Jesus, so Jesus sent his *disciples.

Verses 17-20 The *disciples came back to Jesus. They gave to him an account of their experiences. They had done many things by the authority that Jesus had given to them. Even *demons had to obey them because of the power of the *Lord Jesus. Without that power, they could not have done these things.

Jesus saw *Satan fall like lightning from heaven. This seems to mean the defeat of *Satan. And that defeat was sudden, like lightning from the skies. The power of Jesus in his *disciples broke the power of *demons.

Jesus had given to the *disciples authority over the enemy. The enemy is *Satan and his power is like that of snakes and *scorpions. The bites of snakes and the sting of *scorpions could be poisonous. But even these could not hurt the *disciples. So, nothing that the enemy would do could hurt them. As they carried out this special task for Jesus, the *disciples had authority over the enemy.

A *scorpion has 8 feet, 8 eyes and a long tail. It is up to 4 inches (10 centimetres) in length. At the end of the tail is its sting. Its sting is extremely poisonous, and sometimes it can kill a person.

The *disciples were excited that they had sent *demons away. But they should be happier that God had accepted them. Their future was in heaven. It was the custom in each city to keep a register of all the citizens. So, the *disciples were citizens of heaven.

Verses 21-23 What Jesus had done by means of the *disciples excited him. The *Holy Spirit filled him with this joy. So, Jesus praised God his Father who is the *Lord of heaven and earth.

Jesus does not say what ‘all this’ is. It probably refers to what the *disciples learnt. God had shown the truth to these ordinary people. Without God’s help, even intelligent people with their wisdom and education cannot find the truth about God. But God can show it even to little children.

God the Father has given to Jesus power and authority over all things. Jesus is the Son of God. Nobody can really know who Jesus is. Only God the Father has a full knowledge of Jesus the Son. Nobody can know God the Father. But Jesus shows us who God is. It is by means of Jesus and only by means of Jesus that we can know God the Father.

Jesus told the *disciples how God had *blessed them. They had seen that Jesus is the *Christ. They had heard what he said. They had seen his *miracles. The *prophets and many of the kings in the *Old Testament wanted to see the *Christ. But they did not see him. They wanted to hear him but they did not hear him. The good *Samaritan – Luke 10:25-37 v25 An expert in the *Jewish Law came to test Jesus. ‘Teacher’, he asked, ‘what must I do to receive *eternal life?’

v26 Jesus answered him, ‘What does the law say? What do you read in the law?’

v27 The man answered, ‘You must love the *Lord your God with all your heart. You must love him with all your *soul, with all your strength and with your entire mind. And you must love your neighbour as yourself.’

v28 Jesus said to him, ‘Your answer is right. Do this and you will live.’

v29 However, the man wanted to defend himself. So, he asked Jesus, ‘Who is my neighbour?’

v30 Jesus replied, ‘A man was going from Jerusalem to Jericho. On the way, thieves attacked him. They stripped him of his clothes and they hit him many times. Then they left him almost dead. v31 By chance, a priest came down that road. He saw the man but he went by on the other side of the road. v32 Then a *Levite came to that place. He saw the man.

But he too went by on the other side of the road. v33 Then a *Samaritan came to the man as he travelled down that road. He saw the man and he pitied him. v34 He went over to the man and he cleaned his injuries with oil and wine. He covered those injuries with bandages. Then he put the man on his own animal. He took the man to a hotel where he took care of him. v35 The next day, the *Samaritan took out two silver coins and he gave them to the hotel manager. He said to the manager, “Take care of this man.

I will come back. Then I will pay you any extra that you spend on his behalf.” ’

v36 Jesus then asked, ‘What do you think? Which of these three men was a neighbour to the man that the thieves had attacked?’

v37 The expert in the law replied, ‘The one who showed kindness to the man.’ Jesus told him, ‘Go. Do what he did.’

Verses 25-29 This man was an expert in the *Jewish religion. He came to test Jesus. This does not mean that he was against Jesus. He asked Jesus how he could earn *eternal life. Probably he wanted to find out what Jesus would say to this question. He did not ask it because he needed the answer for himself. But Jesus turned the question back to him.

Jesus asked the expert what the law said on this subject. He asked him what he understood from the law. The answer from the law is that a person must love the *Lord. That love must be with the whole person. And a person must love his neighbour as much as he loves himself. Jesus agreed with this answer. If a person could obey the whole law, he would have *eternal life. Jesus told the man to do it. But such a standard is not possible for us to achieve. We cannot save ourselves. We cannot obey the whole law (Romans 3:20).

The law expert tried to obey the law. He wanted people to think that he had succeeded in it. So, he asked Jesus, ‘Who is my neighbour?’ That was an important question. The *Jewish law clearly taught that *Jews had a duty to look after other *Jews (Leviticus 19:18). But people argued about whether they also had a duty to look after foreigners. Especially people would not want to consider the *Samaritans, who were often the enemies of the *Jews, as neighbours.

Verses 30-37 Jesus told the man a story to show him what a neighbour would do. Jesus made the expert decide who was the neighbour. The expert had to say that a *Samaritan was the true neighbour.

From Jerusalem to Jericho is a distance of about 17 miles (about 27 kilometres). Jericho is on a plain near the Jordan River. It is a few miles north of the Dead Sea. The road in those days was very steep. It went down about 3000 feet (900 metres) through rocks in which thieves could easily hide. It was dangerous to travel that road alone.

A man went from Jerusalem to go to Jericho. Jesus expected the expert to understand that the man was a *Jew. Thieves attacked the man and they almost killed him. They took all that he had, even his clothes. And they left the man there at the side of the road.

Priests and *Levites served in the *temple in Jerusalem. There were 24 groups of priests. Each group was on duty for a week. A large number of these priests and *Levites lived in Jericho. So there would often be priests and *Levites on the road between Jerusalem and Jericho.

In the story, a priest came down that road. He had finished his duties in the *temple. He was on his way home. He saw the man but he went by on the other side of the road. That was a terrible thing to do. A priest should be a holy man; he certainly should not neglect such an important duty. If the priest was going up to Jerusalem, he would have a special reason to be careful. If he touched a dead person, he could not serve in the *temple with his group. He would be unclean for 7 days (Numbers 19:16). However, that would not be a proper excuse. The duty to help someone in a desperate situation was more important even than the work in the *temple.

Then a *Levite came by. He came and he looked at the man. Then he passed by on the other side of the road. The same was true of the *Levite as with the priest. He had no proper excuse.

Jesus now says that a *Samaritan came down that road. The *Jews and the *Samaritans were often enemies. The *Samaritan came to the man and he pitied him. Jesus contrasted the attitude of the *Samaritan with that of the priest and the *Levite. They would not help another *Jew; but the *Samaritan helped an enemy.

The *Samaritan did what he could on behalf of the man. He cleaned the injuries with oil and wine. In those days, they used oil and wine as medicine to heal injuries. Then he covered the injuries with bandages. He put the man on his own animal and he took the man to a hotel. The *Samaritan took care of the man for the night. Then in the morning, he paid the hotel manager the money to take care of the man. Maybe the hotel would have to spend more. The *Samaritan promised to pay to them what they had spent.

The *Samaritan gave to the hotel manager two silver coins. These coins were probably enough to keep the man for perhaps a month in the hotel.

Jesus asked the expert in the *Jewish law which of the three persons was a neighbour to the man. The expert had to answer, ‘The one who helped the man.’ Perhaps his prejudice would not allow him to say, ‘The *Samaritan.’

The original question that the expert in the *Jewish law asked, was, ‘Who is my neighbour?’ The *Samaritan showed himself to be the neighbour to the man. Jesus did not say who was a neighbour to the expert. But the expert should be a neighbour. Now Jesus told the expert to do the same kind of thing. Show kindness to all whether they are friends or enemies. Martha and Mary – Luke 10:38-42 v38 Jesus and his *disciples travelled to a certain village. There a woman called Martha took him into her home. v39 Martha had a sister. Her name was Mary. Mary. Mary sat by Jesus’ feet. She listened to what Jesus said. v40 Martha worried about all the work that she needed to do in order to serve her guests. Then she went to Jesus and she spoke to him. ‘*Lord, does it not bother you that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her to come and to help me.’

v41 The *Lord replied to her. ‘Martha, Martha, you worry and you bother about many things. v42 Only one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen what is good. And nobody will take it away from her.’

Verses 38-42 Jesus and his *disciples went to Bethany village where Martha and Mary lived. Bethany was about two miles from Jerusalem. Martha invited them into her home. Martha lived there with her sister Mary.

With such a large group of guests, Martha was very busy. To provide for them all, there was a lot of work to do. And Martha was anxious about it. Probably she would rather have listened to Jesus but she was too busy. But Mary did not help her in her work. Mary just sat at the feet of Jesus to listen to what he said. It seems that she was eager to learn from Jesus. And Jesus encouraged her to learn from him. This was not usual in those times. Not many *Jewish teachers would teach a woman.

It upset Martha that Mary did not help her in the work. It upset her that Jesus did not seem to care about it. She asked Jesus to tell Mary that she should come to help her. Jesus understood what Martha felt. He was gentle in his reply to her. Martha was anxious because she was so busy in her work for Jesus. Mary had not joined in that work, but she was still doing something good. Only one thing is really necessary for us: to receive a right relationship with God. Mary had done that and Jesus would not stop her. Our work for God should be the result of that relationship.

We can be so busy that we fail to hear the *Lord. It is better to hear the *Lord first. Then we can do what is necessary.

© 2013, Wycliffe Associates (UK)

This publication is in EasyEnglish Level B (2800 words).

November 2013

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var w5 = new Array;w5[0]=’<b%3Edisciple</b%3E ~ a person who follows a leader, especially the 12 men that Jesus chose to be with him.’;w5[1]=’<b%3ELord</b%3E ~ a title for God, or Jesus, to show that he is over all people and things. In the Old Testament, LORD was a special name for God.