Continuing a Bible study of the Gospels:
(Luke 10:1) After these things the Lord appointed another seventy also and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself would come.
At the end of the last chapter, Jesus had been discussing the cost of following Him. Some people said they wanted to follow Him, but seemed to have excuses why they couldn't do it immediately. It seems Jesus may have been winnowing the fair-weather followers away in order to appoint seventy faithful disciples, and He sent those seventy out in pairs into every city and place that He Himself would visit, to prepare the people to receive Him.
(2) Therefore, He said to them, "The harvest truly is great, but the laborers few; pray therefore, the Lord of the harvest, that He would send forth laborers into this harvest."
Jesus said to the seventy disciples upon sending them forth, that the harvest of souls was very great, but those willing to do the work of gathering souls to Christ were very few in comparison. He told them to pray to God, the Lord of the great harvest of souls, that He would raise up and send forth more laborers into that harvest. They should pray that the Lord send them to the people most likely to become those laborers who would rise up once they knew their mission.
(3) "Go your way; behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves."
Jesus told the seventy to go on their way, realizing there may be danger. He was sending them forth as harmless, innocent, defenseless creatures, into a spiteful, malicious, and cruel world.
(4) "Carry neither purse nor bag nor shoes, and salute no one on the way."
Jesus told them not to carry any provisions, money, or extra shoes, and told them they should not salute anyone on the way. Jewish salutations were more than just a wave or head nod, but would have entailed embracing, kissing, and much speech, so they were told not to engage in that, but to be about their business.
(5) "And into whatever house you enter, first say, "Peace to this house."
However, when they came into a city and into a private house, they then were to offer salutation and the blessing of peace to the house and its inhabitants.
(6) "And if a son of peace is there, your peace shall rest upon it; if not, it shall return to you again."
If a peaceable person, receptive to their message, was there in that house, then the blessing of peace would rest upon that house and those in it. However, if there was no son of peace receiving them, then there would be no blessing of peace on that household.
(7) "And remain in the same house, eating and drinking such things as they give, for the laborer is worthy of his hire. Go not from house to house."
As Jesus had told the twelve when He sent them out, He told these seventy they were to remain in one house, the first house that received them, for the entirety of their visit in that city or place. They were encouraged to eat and drink what was offered and not to think of it as charity, as they were deserving of it as payment for their labor in the salvation of souls. They were not to move from house to house.
(8) "And into whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you."
Wherever they went, if they were kindly received, they were to graciously eat whatever was set before them. They were not to consider whether it was clean or unclean, or to their liking or not, but to graciously accept what was offered. No man's law should come before politeness. Christ taught that the laws were made for man, not man made for laws. Although there was good and health in God's dietary laws, for a small amount of time it was more important to regard the feelings of their hosts. When those hosts came to accept Jesus, they would likely change and their desire to follow Him and His commands might cause them to make better dietary choices, but for the time being, that was not important. They also shouldn't feel anything was too good for them, but again, graciously accept what was offered.
(9) "And heal the sick who are there, and say to them, "The kingdom of God is near to you."
Jesus instructed them to heal the sick there and tell all the inhabitants that the kingdom of God was near to them, as they prepared the way for Christ to come to them.
(10) "But into whatever city you enter, and they do not receive you, go your way out into the streets of that city and say, (11) 'Even the very dust of your city which clings to us, we wipe off against you; nevertheless, be sure of this, that the kingdom of God has come near to you.'"
Jesus told them that if they entered a city that would not receive them, they were to go their way on their streets while telling the inhabitants of that city that they were wiping the very dust of that city off their feet as a testimony against them, for the kingdom of God had come near to them and they had rejected it.
(12) "But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable in that day for Sodom, than for that city."
Jesus went on to tell the seventy that it would be much worse for that city in the day of judgment than it would be for even Sodom. Sodom had rejected Lot's warning, but rejecting the gospel and Christ Himself was a much more heinous crime.
(13) "Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they would have a great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes."
Jesus then pronounced woe to two cities that had already rejected Him, Chorazin and Bethsaida, cities in Galilee. He declared that if the same message and miracles had been done in Tyre and Sidon, Gentile cities, as they had heard and seen done, Tyre and Sidon would have repented long ago, and displayed their repentance sitting in sackcloth and ashes.
(14) "But it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than for you."
Just as He had declared for Sodom, Jesus said that it would be easier on Tyre and Sidon in the judgment day than it would be for Chorazin and Bethsaida, because they had had the benefit of Christ and His message and had rejected Him; Tyre and Sidon had not been given that benefit. I believe this goes to show that God will have mercy on those who may not have had a chance to accept Jesus for their salvation. I've often heard that argument against salvation in Jesus only. What about those in third world or dictatorial countries who have not had the benefit of knowing Christ? Luke 12:48 states that the one who unknowingly did things worthy of punishment would be given very little punishment, but the one given much more understanding would have much more required of him. Also when you consider that God is always righteous and just, and that He knows what would have been, you can rest assured He will have mercy on such people who have not heard His word, or else He will put someone in their paths to give them His word.
(15) "And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, shall be thrust down to hell."
Jesus then called out Capernaum, calling it exalted to heaven, probably because it was situated on a high hill and enjoyed good weather and good water and was a famous port. Its inhabitants were probably prideful and high and mighty in their opinions of themselves, but Jesus said they would be cast down into hell for rejecting His message of salvation.
(16) "He who hears you hears Me, and he who despises you despises Me, and he who despises Me despises Him who sent Me."
Jesus told the seventy, that as they were His ambassadors, people who received them and their message, received Him. On the other hand, those who despised His ambassadors, despised Him, as well. Furthermore, those who despised Jesus despised Father God in heaven who had sent Jesus.
(17) And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, "Lord, even the devils are subject to us through Your name."
The seventy disciples went forth and then later returned very joyous as they had witnessed the fruits of their labors. They discovered that not only could they heal the sick as Jesus had instructed them to do, but they were also able to cast out demons in Jesus's name, something they probably did not expect, but were joyful to discover.
(18) And He said to them, "I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven."
Jesus told the seventy that He had seen Satan fall as quickly as lightning falling from heaven, meaning He had seen Satan's demons falling quickly at their commands, as He had sent them forth to do.
(19) "Behold, I give to you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you."
Jesus told them that He had given them that power that would even allow them to tread on serpents and scorpions and any other powerful instrument the enemy might use, and nothing would be able to hurt them.
(20) "Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you; but rather rejoice because your names are written in heaven."
Jesus told them not to rejoice in the fact that demon spirits were subject to them. Although it was an honor to be given talents and influence and the ability to work miracles, that was only because they were first believers and followers of Jesus, and they should instead rejoice in the fact that their names were written in the book of life in heaven.
(21) In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, "I thank you, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent, and have revealed them to babes; even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight."
Jesus rejoiced in His soul at the success of His disciples in bringing His word and miracles, and He thanked Father God in heaven for revealing the mysteries of the kingdom of God to these lowly people, thus giving them eternal life. It's not that He was rejoicing that those mysteries were hidden from the wise and prudent, but that even though God had not yet revealed those mysteries to the wise and prudent, He saw fit to reveal them to the simplest humble people, and in that, He rejoiced.
(22) "All things are delivered to Me by My Father, and no man knows who the Son is but the Father, and who the Father is but the Son and anyone to whom the Son will reveal."
Jesus went on to say that all things had been given to Him by His Father, meaning all power in God the Father in heaven had been given to Jesus on earth. Matthew 11:27 stated much the same thing, "All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father; neither does any man know the Father except the Son and to whomever the Son will reveal Him." However, I couldn't help but notice Luke stated something slightly differently, "...no man knows who the Son is..." Who exactly is the Son? He's more than what we would call the "Son" of God. He was God on earth. He is literally almighty God in heaven who came down to the earth to save His children. He is the Word of God who has been a part of God from the beginning of time. Our puny human minds can't understand the complexity of God, so I believe God came to earth through the womb of an earthly woman and called Him the Son of God so that we could comprehend. God can be in all places at all times, and will be, unless He has turned His back on us because we have rejected Him. Yes, in a way, it appears Jesus prayed to Himself in heaven. As a man, He was subject to human temptations and worldly distractions, and He desired that heavenly power to strengthen His human soul. Additionally, I believe His actions were to teach us how we ought to pray in difficult situations. The Father in heaven was the only One who knew who the Son truly was, and Jesus the Son was the only one who knew who the Father was, except for anyone to whom He chose to reveal Him.
(23) And He turned to His disciples and said privately, "Blessed are the eyes which see the things that you see."
It was if Jesus was saying that His disciples were those which He the Son had chosen to reveal His Father and the mysteries of heaven to, and they were very blessed to have been given that gift of being able to see the things that they saw.
(24) "For I tell you that many prophets and kings have desired to see those things which you see and have not seen them; and to hear those things which you hear and have not heard them."
In detailing how blessed they were, He told them that there had been many prophets and kings before them who had desired to see what they saw. People including Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, and Solomon, and many other prophets and kings looked forward to the day when the Messiah would come, and would have loved to see all that they looked and worked toward come to fruition; they would have loved to hear the teachings of the Messiah firsthand. Jesus's twelve disciples were blessed among all men to be able to be in their place and time as the chosen apostles of Jesus.
(25) And behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested Him, saying, "What shall I do to inherit eternal life?"
It is not told to us at what point people other than His seventy disciples joined with Jesus, but at some point, a lawyer among other people stood up and asked Jesus a question. It is said he "tested" Jesus. I suppose that the fact that He was a lawyer and knew the law very well, he was testing what sort of answer Jesus would give to his question about what he should do to inherit eternal life.
(26) He said to him, "What is written in the law? How do you read it?"
Jesus, knowing that the lawyer was testing Him against the law, asked him what was written in the law and how he interpreted it.
(27) And he answering, said, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself."
The lawyer answered with what he had learned from Deuteronomy 6:5 and Leviticus 19:18, that he was to love His Lord God with all his heart, soul, mind, and strength, and that he was to love his neighbor as himself.
(28) And He said to him, "You have answered right; do this and you shall live."
Jesus told the lawyer that he had answered correctly; those were the very things he needed to do to have eternal life.
(29) But he, willing to justify himself, said to Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?"
The lawyer, seeking to justify why he had asked a question he already knew the answer to, asked Jesus who it was that was considered his neighbor whom he should love as himself.
(30) And Jesus answering, said, "A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves who stripped him of his clothing and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead."
Jesus answered the lawyer's question by telling him a parable. He told of a man who journeyed from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves who stole his clothing, beat him, and left him on the road half dead.
(31) "And by chance there came down that way a certain priest, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side."
It just so happened that a priest was going the same way from Jerusalem to Jericho and saw the half dead man, but instead of helping him, passed by on the other side of the road to avoid him.
(32) "And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked and passed by on the other side."
Then a Levite, another supposedly pious person, of the tribe of those who served and assisted the priests, came to that same place, took the time to approach and see the condition of the man, yet also passed on the other side of the road.
(33) "But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion."
Then a Samaritan, of a group that the Jews most detested and with whom they would have no dealings, journeyed by the same place. When he saw the man half dead on the road, he had compassion for him. He had compassion for him as a human being, a child of God, and didn't see him as an enemy.
(34) "And went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him."
The Samaritan went to the injured man and doctored his wounds with a balm of oil and wine. He set him up on his own animal and led him to an inn, where he took care of him.
(35) "And on the next day when he departed, he took out two pence and gave them to the host, and said to him, 'Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.'"
The next day, when the Samaritan left the wounded man, he gave the innkeeper two pence to pay the expenses of the man, and asked him to take care of him, and if he had to spend any more money than that to help him, the Samaritan would repay him when he passed by that way again.
(36) "Now which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?"
Having finished His parable, Jesus asked the lawyer who among the three men Jesus had described was a neighbor to the man who had fallen among the thieves.
(37) And he said, "He who showed mercy on him." Then Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."
The lawyer admitted that it was the Samaritan who had shown mercy to the man who would be considered neighbor to him. Jesus told him that he should go and do the same sort of thing, meaning he should also regard every man as his neighbor, renouncing any bigotry he might have for a certain type of person. We all have something within us that could be rejected by someone else, and if we could all see each other as human beings like ourselves and treat each one as we would like to be treated in such an instance, we would have peace in this world!
(38) Now it came to pass, as they went, that He entered into a certain village, and a certain woman named Martha received Him into her house.
According to other passages in the Bible, this certain village Jesus came to was Bethany. A woman named Martha received Him into her house. It is deduced by Biblical scholars that Martha was a widow and her brother Lazarus and her sister Mary lived with her.
(39) And she had a sister called Mary who also sat at Jesus's feet and heard His word.
Martha's sister Mary was also in the house, and she sat at Jesus's feet listening to His word.
(40) But Martha was incumbered with much serving, and came to Him, and said, "Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her therefore to help me."
Martha was busy preparing food, possibly a feast, for her guest and very likely others who accompanied Him into her home. It is plausible that Martha had urged Mary to help her, and when she wouldn't leave Jesus's feet, then she asked Jesus to tell her to help her. I can relate to Martha. I can hear myself asking Mary to come help me so we can hurry up and get this done so that I might be able to hear Jesus, too.
(41) And Jesus answered and said to her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. (42) But one thing is needful, and Mary has chosen that good part which shall not be taken away from her."
However, Jesus answered her by saying that she worried too much about little things that didn't really matter in the scheme of things. Jesus didn't require as much preparation as she was making. However, what was actually needed in that scheme of things was Jesus's word of life, and Mary had chosen that as the most important thing, and Jesus commended her for that and declared He would not pull her away from that to help Martha. I can actually relate to that, as well. I have often said, "Let's just grab a sandwich, so we'll have more time for visiting." I believe Jesus would have felt that was enough in order that all could participate in listening to His word. More than that, He was teaching us a lesson about what really matters in life, and how we should devote more time to that, and not worry so much about the little things that don't really matter in the big picture.
It occurs to me that this was the same type of message that Jesus gave the seventy when they were received into a city or house. He told them to graciously accept anything that was set before them. In that too, Jesus was telling us not to fret over the little things. Whether or not the food we are served is within our dietary rules is certainly not the most important thing in the big picture. In this case, it was the bringing of the Word and the saving of souls.
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