The Twelve of Matthew and
the Seventy of Luke
by Steve Santini
November 2004
On two different occasions Jesus sent out followers to heal and announce his presence. In regards to the spiritual masculine and spiritual feminine comprising the body of Christ, a comparative study of these two records is most revealing.
One may learn much from the differences in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. John wrote in 21:25 that he supposed that the world could not contain all he books pertaining to what Jesus did. Therefore, each author of their gospel, as inspired, selected words and deeds of Jesus to highlight primary yet differing themes for various purposes. Both Matthew and Mark were written soon after the crucifixion of Jesus. Matthew seems to give a chronological overview of the ministry of Jesus from a Hebrew perspective while Mark seems to be later written and to be directed more towards the Gentiles. Some scholars have said that Matthew was derived from an somewhat earlier gospel entitled, The Gospel to the Hebrews, of which Jerome, compiler and translator of the Latin Vulgate, states that the Holy Spirit was considered feminine as the mother in law of the soul.
Both the gospels of Luke and John were written many years later, after the apostle Paul had fully made known the great mystery of Christ and the church. As such, both of these two contain profound records of the differences between the spiritually masculine saints and the spiritually feminine faithful in Christ Jesus.
John’s gospel begins with the Holy Spirit and the only man filled with such from his birth – John the Baptist. Then the gospel moves directly to Jesus’ prophetic words spoken specifically to and about the saint, Nathanael. This introductory section concludes and transits with the first of the eight miracles of Jesus recorded in John’s gospel. On the third day after John the Baptist baptized Jesus, and on the second day after Jesus’ revelation to Nathanael, one uniquely without guile, at a marriage feast in Cana of Galilee, Jesus turned water into wine. The remainder of John’s gospel is directed towards the purpose of bringing the feminine faithful in Christ Jesus unto maturity through understanding the Holy Spirit and its forthcoming gift, sealing their betrothal to and eventual “marriage” unto, or, in other words, spiritual union with the saints.
Luke, in Paul’s later ministry, had traveled extensively with Paul. He was with Paul in Ephesus as Paul fully made know the great mystery by preaching and teaching daily over the course of several years. Subsequently, there are unique records and usages in Luke’s gospel pertaining to the spiritually masculine saints that, when compared internally and externally with records pertaining to the faithful in Christ Jesus, reveal necessary differentiations. Luke records a different rendition of the parable of the sower spoken to a differing group at a different place, using the differing masculine Greek word spora for seed rather than the Greek word sperma for seed used in the other record in Matthew. (Luke 8:5) Luke attributes the conception of Jesus unto both the Holy Spirit and the power of the Highest while Matthew attributes the conception just to the Holy Spirit. (Luke 1:35) Luke is the only gospel that records Jesus’ “bar mitzvah” presentation of maturity during his twelfth year where, in the temple, now allowed to ask questions, the “sages” of Israel were amazed at his understanding and answers. It was from this point that he declared that he must now be about his father’s business as any recently dedicated male heir in Eastern culture would. (Luke 2:41-52) Luke’s gospel is the only one which records that Jesus told the apostles James and John that they were of a different spirit than that of Elijah. (Luke 9:54-56) It is only in the gospel of Luke that the sending out of the seventy is recorded. (Luke 10:1-24) Although the sending out of the twelve is recorded fully in Matthew and Mark, it is noticeably condensed in Luke’s gospel. (Luke 9:1-6)
In addition to this record’s absence in Matthew and Mark, what seems to draw questing attention is the Greek usage for the word other in verse one and the differences in Jesus’ instructions and responses to these two groups sent out during his ministry.
After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.
There are most often in the Greek texts of the New Testement two words translated as other. One is allos and the other is heteros. Basically, allos mean other of the same kind while heteros means other of a different kind. In the above verse the Greek word heteros, meaning other of a different kind, is used. In light of this, when one holds to the tradition that all in the body of Christ are the same spiritual gender or gender neutral, it would be reasonable to assume that these seventy were of a different kind because they were not discipled as apostles as the twelve were. Yet when one considers the record’s unique appearance in Luke, the timing of the event, the contrasts between instructions given the twelve and the seventy and the contrasts in Jesus’ responses to each event, the differences seem too great to assume the only dissimilarity was in type of discipleship.
In this regard, from the prior context of this event in Luke compared to the record of the twelve in Matthew, it is interesting, and possibly revealing, that the sending out of the seventy occurred shortly after Jesus had spoken with Elijah and Moses in the presence of Peter, John and James on the Mount of Transfiguration, while the sending of the twelve had occurred well before this transfiguration. It was God whom had told Moses, who appeared with Jesus on the mount, to select seventy elders of Israel upon whom he could transfer the spirit that was upon Moses in order to assist Moses in administering the children of Israel on their way to the promised land through the wilderness of Sinai. Once again, it was Jesus who appointed seventy as forerunners to assist him in his ultimate mission of sacrificial blessing.
Matthew 10 1:
And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power
against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness
and all manner of disease. 2:
Now the names of the twelve apostles are these; The first, Simon, who is
called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his
brother; 3:
Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican; James the son of
Alphaeus, and Lebbaeus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; 4:
Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him. 5:
These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the
way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: 6:
But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. 7:
And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand. 8:
Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye
have received, freely give. 9:
Provide neither gold, nor silver, nor brass in your purses, 10:
Nor scrip for your journey, neither two coats, neither shoes, nor yet staves:
for the workman is worthy of his meat. 11:
And into whatsoever city or town ye shall enter, enquire who in it is worthy;
and there abide till ye go thence. 12:
And when ye come into an house, salute it. 13:
And if the house be worthy, let your peace come upon it: but if it be not
worthy, let your peace return to you. 14:
And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out
of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet. 15:
Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and
Gomorrha in the day of judgment, than for that city. 16:
Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore
wise as serpents, and harmless as doves. 17:
But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they
will scourge you in their synagogues; 18:
And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony
against them and the Gentiles. 19:
But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for
it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. 20:
For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in
you. 21:
And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the
child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them
to be put to death. 22:
And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to
the end shall be saved. 23:
But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I
say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son
of man be come. 24:
The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord. 25:
It is enough for the disciple that he be as his master, and the servant as
his lord. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much
more shall they call them of his household? 26:
Fear them not therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be
revealed; and hid, that shall not be known. 27:
What I tell you in darkness, that speak ye in light: and what ye hear in the
ear, that preach ye upon the housetops. 28:
And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but
rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. 29:
Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing? And one of them shall not fall on
the ground without your Father. 30:
But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31:
Fear ye not therefore, ye are of more value than many sparrows. 32:
Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also
before my Father which is in heaven. 33:
But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father
which is in heaven. 34:
Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace,
but a sword. 35:
For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter
against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. 36:
And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household. 37:
He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that
loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38:
And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of
me. 39:
He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my
sake shall find it. 40:
He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him
that sent me. 41:
He that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a
prophet’s reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a
righteous man shall receive a righteous man’s reward. 42:
And whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones a cup of cold
water only in the name of a disciple, verily I say unto you, he shall in no
wise lose his reward. |
Luke 10:1-24 1:
After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two
and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would
come. 2:
Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers
are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth
labourers into his harvest. 3:
Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves. 4:
Carry neither purse, nor scrip, nor shoes: and salute no man by the way. 5:
And into whatsoever house ye enter, first say, Peace be to this house. 6:
And if the son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon it: if not, it
shall turn to you again. 7:
And in the same house remain, eating and drinking such things as they give:
for the labourer is worthy of his hire. Go not from house to house. 8:
And into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you, eat such things as
are set before you: 9:
And heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is
come nigh unto you. 10:
But into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you not, go your ways out
into the streets of the same, and say, 11:
Even the very dust of your city, which cleaveth on us, we do wipe off against
you: notwithstanding be ye sure of this, that the kingdom of God is come nigh
unto you. 12:
But I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable in that day for Sodom,
than for that city. 13:
Woe unto thee, Chorazin! Woe unto thee, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works
had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they had a
great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. 14:
But it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than for
you. 15:
And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted to heaven, shalt be thrust down to
hell. 16:
He that heareth you heareth me; and he that despiseth you despiseth me; and
he that despiseth me despiseth him that sent me. 17:
And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are
subject unto us through thy name. 18:
And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven. 19:
Behold, I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over
all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall by any means hurt you. 20:
Notwithstanding in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you;
but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven. 21:
In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord
of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and
prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed
good in thy sight. 22:
All things are delivered to me of my Father: and no man knoweth who the Son
is, but the Father; and who the Father is, but the Son, and he to whom the
Son will reveal him. 23:
And he turned him unto his disciples, and said privately, Blessed are the
eyes which see the things that ye see: 24:
For I tell you, that many prophets and kings have desired to see those things
which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear,
and have not heard them. |
In the first verse of each record, there is a differentiation in the meanings of selection. The twelve were “called” while the seventy were “appointed.” The Greek word for called is proskaleo and means literally to call someone towards oneself. Its form is used over one hundred and fifty times in scripture. The Greek word for appointed is anadeiknumi. It is used twice in scripture. Once, here in Luke and again in the first chapter of Acts where the disciples ask for God to show them which one was to replace Judas. It is a compound word prefixed by ana. Ana has the following meanings most often determined by context and the word prefixed by it: repetition, reversal or change, upon, upwards, continuity and completeness. Deiknou, the root of the base of the compound word, anadeiknumi , used 31 times in scripture, means to show and is used most often of spiritual realities. This word is used in the letter to the Hebrews when God told Moses to construct the tabernacle according to the pattern shown him in the heavens. It is used of Jesus’ temptation by the devil when the devil showed Jesus all the kingdoms of the world in a moment’s time.
Jesus instructed the twelve only to go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel and not unto the Gentiles or Samaritans, while no such instructions were given to the seventy. The records in Luke preceding and following show that Jesus and his entourage of disciples were traveling through Samaria. Samaritans were not considered of the house of Israel, yet it seems reasonable to say that the seventy went even unto them. The seventy were sent to every place where Jesus would be coming on his way, even unto his ultimate place suffering on the cross in Jerusalem.
The twelve were told that they would be as sheep in the midst of wolves while the seventy were told that they would be lambs in the midst of wolves. The Geek word for sheep used in the instructions to the twelve is probaton. It is a general word that can be used of herds or flocks of animal that travel on four feet. The Greek word for lambs used of the seventy in Like 10:3 is uniquely used this one time in all New Testament scripture. It is the word aner and means, according to Strong’s Analytical Concordance, young male lambs.
The twelve were told to be wise as serpents and harmless as doves. The seventy were not given this instruction. Wisdom is the primary attribute of the Holy Spirit and the dove is the primary New Testament symbol of the Holy Spirit.
In Matthew 10:17-39, Jesus delineates many things that the twelve are to fear. Kings, governors, family members and he that can go beyond the killing of the body unto the destroying the soul are all listed as things to fear. The twelve are also told that they must endure unto the end to be saved. With great difference in Luke 10:19, Jesus tells the seventy when they return, “nothing shall by any means hurt you.” He also tells the seventy not to rejoice in that the spirits are subject to them but to rejoice that their names are written in heaven. It is to those whose names are written in heaven that the feminine faithful will draw near during the transitory times into paradise.
Hebrews 12
18: For ye (faithful in Christ Jesus) are not come unto ( proserchomai – come near) the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest,
19: And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more:
20: (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart:
21: And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake
22: But ye are come unto ( proserchomai – come near) mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,
23: To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, (saints) and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,
24: And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel. (the first saint)
25: See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven:
26: Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.
27: And this word, Yet once more, signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.
28: Wherefore we receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:
29: For our God is a consuming fire.
After Jesus declared that the names of the seventy are written in heaven, he states:
In that hour Jesus rejoiced in spirit, and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes: even so, Father; for so it seemed good in thy sight.
Still speaking of the seventy, he terms them as babes. The Greek word here used for babes is nepios. It is masculine and means a male child up to the time of maturity.
Then, in conclusion to this record of the appointed seventy, Jesus turned to his disciples and stated:
And he turned him unto his disciples, and said privately, Blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see: For I tell you, that many prophets and kings have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.
The words
translated see are
the Greek word blepo which means to see and consider yet not to
perceive. The Greek word for see and seen is eidon and means to see and perceive. As those
who today understand the coming manifestation of the saints, Old Testament
prophets and rulers yearned for the day of the glorified saints leading unto
the glorified Messiah.
These seventy were the “appointed” ones, from the myriad, again shown to Israel in that moment in time as a foretaste of things then and now yet to come. According to Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, the number seventy represents God’s completed purpose. In Appendix Six of E. W. Bullinger’s Companion Bible, the number seven represents spiritual perfection while the number ten, the companion multiple of seven that equals seventy, represents ordinal perfection and a new first. It was not happenstance that God asked Moses to choose seventy elders to assist him, nor is it happenstance that Jesus had seventy appointed ones to send out before him as he traveled to Jerusalem to give up his life on the cross for all mankind’s salvation. In the completeness and reversal of this type, all saints will come yet again, first, before Jesus Christ will come to Jerusalem in the promise of glory rather than in his former shame and suffering on the cross.
At the time of Jesus presence with his disciples there were many things he could not fully reveal to them since they were unable to bear the magnitude of the great mystery with out the fullness of the gift from the Holy Spirit that was to fill them on the coming day of Pentecost. Later, from his completed position ascended at the right hand of the Father, Jesus Christ sent the apostle Paul to declare the fullness of the great mystery first to the Jews then to the Gentiles. Then, with their perspective of the revealed great mystery, both John and Luke, in retrospect, for posterity’s sake, highlighted elements of Jesus’ earthly ministry that were directed unto the eventual revelation given to the apostle Paul.
For one to say that Jesus did not know the great mystery of spiritual masculine and spiritual feminine until he was ascended bodily unto the right hand of the Father is to be diverted from the central mark. Jesus Christ was and is the great mystery incarnate. He became and is now the only summary perfection of soul and spirit, the essence of the collective union of spiritual feminine and spiritual masculine. This is his one body of which all who believe are members.
Copyright, Steve Santini, 2004