Jerusalem from the north
Sending Out the Seventy
CHAPTER 58
AFTER LEAVING Jerusalem, at the time of the Feast of the Dedication, Jesus went across the Jordan, and followed the river upward to the place twelve or thirteen miles below the Sea of Galilee; the place where he had been baptized by John, and where soon after his baptism he found his earliest followers. This place was called by two names, "Bethabara," which means, "the town of the ford," that is where one could wade across the river; and "Bethany beyond Jordan," to keep it distinct from the other Bethany near Jerusalem, where Martha and Mary lived.
The twelve disciples were with Jesus at Bethabara, and some who came with him from Jerusalem and Judea. Also when the news went abroad in Galilee that Jesus was at this place, many more hastened to meet him; so that soon a large number of his followers gathered around him. Jesus was now near the border of the land on the east of the Jordan, known as Perea. This word means "beyond," and the land was so named because it was "beyond the Jordan" from Judea.
Jesus had never visited this land, although he had preached in every other part of the country; in Judea on the south; in Galilee on the north; in Decapolis on the northeast; and even in Samaria, where the people were not Jews but Samaritans. He made up his mind now to go through Perea preaching, as he had preached in all the other parts of the land. But in Perea, his time must be short, because now only three months remained before the Feast of the Passover, and at that time he must be in Jerusalem. In order to make the people of Perea ready for his coming, and to bring together as many as possible to hear him, he chose the places in that land to be visited. Then he called seventy men from among his followers, and sent them by two and two to these cities and the villages around them, to preach to the people and tell them that Jesus was soon to come among them.
To these seventy preachers, Jesus gave the same commands that he had given to the Twelve some months before, when he sent them out to preach in Galilee. He said:
"Do not take with you a purse of money, or a bag for food, or an extra pair of sandals. Do not stop to give greetings to any who meet you on the road. Wherever you go into a house, first say, 'May peace be to this house!' Then if one is there who is in the spirit of peace, your peace will rest upon him; otherwise it will come back to you. Stay at that same house while you are in that city, and eat and drink whatever they offer you, for the workman has a right to his wages. Do not move around from one house to another. Whatever town you visit, if the people give you welcome, eat what is given you; cure those that are sick; and be sure to say to the people everywhere, 'The kingdom of God is coming very soon.'