Mark 6:7-13

⁷ And He called the twelve to Himself, and began to send them out two by two, and gave them power over unclean spirits.

⁸ He commanded them to take nothing for the journey except a staff—no bag, no bread, no copper in their money belts—

⁹ but to wear sandals, and not to put on two tunics.

¹⁰ Also He said to them, “In whatever place you enter a house, stay there till you depart from that place.

¹¹ And whoever will not receive you nor hear you, when you depart from there, shake off the dust under your feet as a testimony against them. Assuredly, I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city!”

¹² So they went out and preached that people should repent.

¹³ And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.

Also found in Matthew 10:1, 9-15 and Luke 9:1-5.

send (v.7) = send as an ambassador to represent one and to perform some task

gave them power (v.7) — tense is “kept on giving them power” all through their journeys

He sent the apostles as His ambassadors with the task, among other things, to demand unclean spirits to leave, and He continued to give them His power to enforce their demand so that it would be obeyed.

bag (v.8) — Some commentators think this is a traveling bag (like a suitcase) or a bread bag (although they were also told not to take bread). It’s possible that this is a reference to the beggar’s collecting bag, which means that the apostles were not to collect money for any reason.

Money belt (v.8) = a belt to hold the long, flowing tunics in place. It was hollow, and was often used to hold money.

tunic (v.9) = undergarment

Matthew and Luke state that the Lord forbade the apostles to take a staff, and Matthew states that shoes were forbidden. Mark says the Lord told them to take both. All three, however, mention the number “two,” so the injunction was probably about excess. They were not to take two staffs or two pairs of shoes.

place (v.10) = inhabited place, such as a district, city, or village

receive (v.11) — “to take with the hand, grant access to a visitor, not to refuse intercourse or friendship.” The idea of a welcoming or appropriating reception is inherent in this word. The act of shaking off the travel dust that has accumulated on one’s sandals is symbolic of extreme contempt for another, and the refusal to have any further intercourse with him. The injunction to remain in the home where one has been welcomed and to stay there until he leaves the village [may mean that it was important] to avoid a restless and satisfied manner and to take pains in choosing a home. — Wuest, page 124.

The statement about Sodom and Gomorrha is not in the original manuscripts of Mark, although it does appear in Matthew 10:15.

preached (v.12) = made a public proclamation with such gravity, formality, and authority that it must be heeded. Luke used the Greek word for “announced glad tidings.”

The word [repent means] to change one’s mind about one’s previous life and course of action. Since one’s previous life could only be sinful, the only change of attitude would be in the direction of the good. The New Testament meaning of the word therefore is “a change of mind regarding one’s previous sinful life and the determination to be done with it.” This proclamation would not be good news to the sinner, unless it were accompanied with the announcement of a salvation from sin provided by God. This was included in the message of John the Baptist, our Lord, and the disciples, as show by the word Luke used. — Wuest, page 125.