Blog:"and greet no one along the way"

The Mission of the Seventy-two.

After this the Lord appointed seventy[-two] others whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to every town and place he intended to visit. He said to them, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.

Go on your way; behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves.  Carry no money bag, no sack, no sandals; and greet no one along the way. Into whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace to this household.’ If a peaceful person lives there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you. 

Stay in the same house and eat and drink what is offered to you, for the laborer deserves his payment. Do not move about from one house to another. Whatever town you enter and they welcome you, eat what is set before you, cure the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God is at hand for you.’ 

Whatever town you enter and they do not receive you, go out into the streets and say, ‘The dust of your town that clings to our feet, even that we shake off against you.’ Yet know this: the kingdom of God is at hand. I tell you, it will be more tolerable for Sodom on that day than for that town.

An Ordination Mass

At our Arlington Diocese Ordination Mass, June 1, 2024, the Bishop repated the Lord's instructions to the disciples to "carry no" things, which is appropriate for the mission of a new priest: your job must not be burdened by the world, so leave it behind.

The rest of the passage is equally clear and powerful for the priestly mission,

"If a peaceful person lives there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you."

But what of this command --

and greet no one along the way.

Aren't they supposed to spread the Gospel? Why not yell out the Good News at every passerby?

The NAB on the USCCB site offers a brief footnote explanation that the instruction was so that "even customary greetings should not distract from the fulfillment of the task" (Mt 10:4 fn). NetBible, an awesome Biblical source, gives us a larger response from Constable's commentary (Luke 10 | Lumina (netbible.org)):

In ancient Near Eastern culture people often gave very long greetings that tied them up sometimes for days (cf. Judg. 19:4-9; 2 Kings 4:29). Jesus did not mean that His disciples should be unfriendly or unsociable but that they should not allow these greetings to divert them from their mission. They were to pursue their work and not waste their time on lesser things.

Extending the Mission from Jews to Gentiles

Through Luke Chapters 9 and 10, Jesus is preparing the disciples for their mission following him, teaching them in hints and broad statements, in baby steps and practice on their own. Prior to "The Mission of the Seventy-two," he similarly sent the Twelve (Lk 9:1-6; told in Mt 10:5-15 and Mk 6:7-13). He instructed the Twelve to pronounce "The kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Mt 10:7) across Jewish lands only, whereas the Seventy-Two also went into Samaria and "pagan territory." There is the thought that Luke's audience was Gentiles, and Matthew's Jews, thus the emphasis on the Seventy-Two in Luke, but it makes complete sense that Jesus would gradually extend the Good News, first within Jewish communities with the Apostles, then to Samaritans and pagans with a larger crew of disciples. It also follows the pattern of fulfilling the Old Covenant for the Jews, then bringing it and the New Covenant across the world.

"like lambs among wolves"

In the literal sense, bringing no money, bag, or sandals, and greeting no one, means just that. With the purpose to focus on the mission, our commentators tell us the why. But if we extend the directive allegorically, as did the Bishop at our Ordination Mass, there's a lot going on.

behold, I am sending you like lambs among wolves

Just as traveling light means not carrying the burdens of the world, not greeting strangers on the road means not carrying on with the ways of the world. I'd like to take it even further, especially for priests: on your way to saving souls do not yourself get distracted by or entangled in the world's enticements. Certainly the warning about "wolves" is about those in the towns and villages who will reject the Good News -- but alsy about those they may meet along the way. We'll focus on the latter.

In 2 Cor 11:25-27, Saint Paul recounts the dangers of apostleship,

Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, I passed a night and a day on the deep; on frequent journeys, in dangers from rivers, dangers from robbers, dangers from my own race, dangers from Gentiles, dangers in the city, dangers in the wilderness, dangers at sea, dangers among false brothers; in toil and hardship, through many sleepless nights, through hunger and thirst, through frequent fastings, through cold and exposure.

As did Paul, the Seventy-Two had the Lord's protection and the Holy Spirit to guide them (although Paul had a debt to pay: "and I will show him what he will have to suffer for my name", the Lord told Ananias (Acts 9:16)). Still, the whole point about Jesus, the name which means "God saves," is that we live in a fallen world. The disciples, and Paul, needed protection from it.

With his protection, Jesus tells them,

Behold, I have given you the power ‘to tread upon serpents’ and scorpions and upon the full force of the enemy and nothing will harm you. (Lk 10:19)

The serpents, of course, are those cast upon the unfaithful Israelites in Num 21:6, saved only by looking up at the "bronze seraph" (serpent) upon the pole (Num 21:8-9) The serpent, or snake, has its clear biblical implications. Scorpions, though, make an interesting reference. The Lord speaks in the Gospels of scorpions twice, and both in Luke, as here in Chapter 10 and again in Chapter 11 in a different metaphor to explain how the loving Father answers prayer:

What father among you would hand his son a snake when he asks for a fish? Or hand him a scorpion when he asks for an egg? (Lk 11:11-12)

Snakes and scorpions both hide beneath benign objects, and both can blend in with their environment. Extending the metaphor, then, if one reaches for what seems normal or unexpected, one may expose oneself to grave harm from the scorpion (or snake) lying in wait beneath or in it. Not every rock has a scorpion lying in wait, but those rocks that do may be deadly. That is, if we stop for a beer, are we subjecting ourselves to grave sin? Probably not. But we can imagine how it could be, depending on what dangers lie hidden within the place. The Lord is telling the disciples to avoid all occasion that might lead to trouble. Get on with your mission, don't risk the snare, even if unlikely.

The scoprion lurks beneath "occasions of sin", which the Lord tells us to avoid at the cost, even of an eye or a hand or a foot (Mk 9:43-47).

As did the Twelve, the Seventy-Two "returned rejoicing,

returned rejoicing, and said, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us because of your name.” (Lk 10:17)

"even the demons"?

And that was without talking to anyone along the way.

Travelers, wayfarers, and a fallen world

Thinking allegorically, a "way" or "path" is what lies between point A and B. The early Church -- and it's so amazing, was called, "The Way", as Jesus is "the way" to salvation.

The world of travelers can be rather savory.

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We recall from John 1,

He was in the world, 
and the world came to be through him, 
but the world did not know him. (Jn 1:10)