When we consider the reasoning among the Apostles in Luke 9:46 and John’s statement in Luke 9:49, we are forced to ask: which mission was more important: sending out the Twelve (Luke 9:1-6) or sending out the Seventy (Luke 10:1-16)? Nevertheless, we must conclude that neither is more important than the other (1Corinthains 3:4-6). Having said this, to what might we account for the greater detail we find in Luke 10:1-12 when it is compared to Luke 9:1-6?
Commissioning the Twelve |
Commissioning the Seventy |
| The harvest is great, but the laborers are few. Pray that the Lord of the harvest will send laborers into his harvest. | |
| Go! I send you as lambs among wolves. | |
| Take nothing for your journey | |
| 1. No staff2. No bag3. No bread
4. No money 5. No more than one cloak apiece |
Take no money beltNo bagNo shoes
Greet no one along the way
|
| Stay in one house until you leave the city. | Stay in one house until you leave the city |
| If a city won’t receive you, shake the dust of your feet as a testimony against them. | If a city won’t receive you, shake the dust of your feet as a testimony against them, and say to them: “Be sure of this, the Kingdom of God has come near to you. It will be more tolerable in that day (day of judgment) for Sodom than for that city.” |
| Whatever house you enter first say: “Peace be to this hours. If a man of peace dwells there your peace shall rest upon him, if not it will return to you.” | |
| Whatever city receives you, eat what is put before you and heal the sick. Say to them: “The Kingdom of God has come near to you.” | |
| He who listens to you listens to me, and he who rejects you rejects me and he who sent me. |
Although the office of Apostles has more authority than the Seventy, their mission (Luke 9:1-6) has no more importance than that of the Seventy in Luke 10. Nevertheless, Luke does offer much more detail in this account of sending out the Seventy (Luke 10:16). This interesting contrast might be better understood in the possibility that Luke was actually one of the Seventy and wrote out of his own experience. One is often more verbose when telling of one’s own experiences than when one is recording those of someone else. Therefore, in my opinion, Luke may have been one of the Seventy, which would mean he is not a gentile, as is normally assumed. Rather he is a Jew of some rank, given his apparent education. This also fits with my understanding that his Gospel was written specifically as an apology and a witness to other high ranking Jews, Theophilus, the high priest, in particular (Luke 1:3).
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2 responses to “Luke’s Apparent Eyewitness Testimony!”
Very Interesting. How do reconcile Luke and Acts where he said he is not an eye witness. But investigated.
Greetings Kevron, and welcome to my blog. Thank you for reading and for your comment and question. Actually Luke never says he wasn’t an eyewitness. I believe you are referring to Luke 1:3. There is considerable doubt among scholars that the word “investigated” (G3877) was properly translated. I discuss this idea in one of my early studies: “Was Luke an Eyewitness?” Perhaps you would like to read it and decide for yourself.
Lord bless you, Kevron.