‏ Matthew 10:2

The Twelve Disciples

This chapter connects directly to the last verse of the previous chapter. It shows the heart of the Lord, moved with compassion over His poor people. This leads Him to send out the twelve disciples.

The Lord calls “His” twelve disciples. They are His. There are twelve, in accordance with the twelve tribes of Israel to whom they are sent. The Lord not only has the power to perform miracles Himself, but can also give that power to others (cf. Acts 8:18-19). He gives them power in the spiritual and the physical realm. In this way they will present a powerful testimony of Him Who has come.

These are the powers of the age to come (Heb 6:5) that is the millennial kingdom of peace. Then satan will be bound and man set free by Christ. What He and His disciples do, are partial deliverances: for the kingdom of peace is not come. These exorcisms and healings prove that He Who came to establish this kingdom is present.

The disciples are called “apostles” in Mt 10:2, which means “sent ones”. In the previous chapters they go with the Lord as followers and pupils, now they go before Him as ambassadors. They are heralds of the King, they announce His coming.

The names of the disciples are mentioned. We already know something about some disciples and we will hear more about them. We sometimes hear something about other disciples and from a few we hear nothing else and we only know the name. The Lord knows what each one of His does. He determines whether a service has more recognition or not. Everything that He has commissioned that is done, He will reward according to the faithfulness with which the task is carried out and not to the fame that someone has had.

Brothers are also sent out. The natural ties are not denied. It is a special joy to serve the Lord with a brother or sister. Matthew calls himself in this list “the tax collector”. He doesn’t dress it up in any way, but openly discloses what he was. Judas is also mentioned. He will not sit on any of the twelve thrones, but he is sent out. It is not yet the time of the kingdom of peace. It is still possible that false servants are in the company of the real servants. If the disciples are listed, his name is always mentioned last with the addition of “the one who betrayed Him”.

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