Luke 10 · WEB
The Seventy-Two, the Good Samaritan, and Mary and Martha
Listen — WEB narration 0:00 / 0:00 Narration: World English Bible (David Williams), public domain — AudioTreasure.
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Now after these things, the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them two by two ahead of him into every city and place where he was about to come.
2Then he said to them, "The harvest is indeed plentiful, but the laborers are few. Pray therefore to the Lord of the harvest, that he may send out laborers into his harvest.
3Go your ways. Behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves.
4Carry no purse, nor wallet, nor sandals. Greet no one on the way.
5Into whatever house you enter, first say, 'Peace be to this house.'
6If a son of peace is there, your peace will rest on him; but if not, it will return to you.
7Remain in that same house, eating and drinking the things they give, for the laborer is worthy of his wages. Don't go from house to house.
8Into whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat the things that are set before you.
9Heal the sick who are there, and tell them, 'God's Kingdom has come near to you.'
10But into whatever city you enter, and they don't receive you, go out into its streets and say,
11'Even the dust from your city that clings to us, we wipe off against you. Nevertheless know this, that God's Kingdom has come near to you.'
12I tell you, it will be more tolerable in that day for Sodom than for that city.
13"Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon which were done in you, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.
14But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the judgment than for you.
15You, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades.
16Whoever listens to you listens to me, and whoever rejects you rejects me. Whoever rejects me rejects him who sent me."
17The seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!"
18He said to them, "I saw Satan having fallen like lightning from heaven.
19Behold, I give you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy. Nothing will in any way hurt you.
20Nevertheless, don't rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven."
21In that same hour Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit, and said, "I thank you, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for so it was well-pleasing in your sight."
22Turning to the disciples, he said, "All things have been delivered to me by my Father. No one knows who the Son is, except the Father, and who the Father is, except the Son, and he to whomever the Son desires to reveal him."
23Turning to the disciples, he said privately, "Blessed are the eyes which see the things that you see,
24for I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see the things which you see, and didn't see them, and to hear the things which you hear, and didn't hear them."
25Behold, a certain lawyer stood up and tested him, saying, "Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?"
26He said to him, "What is written in the law? How do you read it?"
27He answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself."
28He said to him, "You have answered correctly. Do this, and you will live."
29But he, desiring to justify himself, asked Jesus, "Who is my neighbor?"
30Jesus answered, "A certain man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who both stripped him and beat him, and departed, leaving him half dead.
31By chance a certain priest was going down that way. When he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
32In the same way a Levite also, when he came to the place, and saw him, passed by on the other side.
33But a certain Samaritan, as he traveled, came where he was. When he saw him, he was moved with compassion,
34came to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. He set him on his own animal, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
35On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii, and gave them to the host, and said to him, 'Take care of him. Whatever you spend beyond that, I will repay you when I return.'
36Now which of these three do you think seemed to be a neighbor to him who fell among the robbers?"
37He said, "He who showed mercy on him." Then Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."
38As they went on their way, he entered into a certain village, and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house.
39She had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word.
40But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she came up to him, and said, "Lord, don't you care that my sister left me to serve alone? Ask her therefore to help me."
41Jesus answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things,
42but one thing is needed. Mary has chosen the good part, which will not be taken away from her."
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Summary
Jesus commissions seventy-two disciples to go ahead of him in pairs, preaching the kingdom and healing the sick, and they return rejoicing that even demons submit to his name. He pronounces woes on unrepentant Galilean cities, thanks the Father for revealing truth to the humble, and commends a lawyer's love-of-God-and-neighbor answer before redefining "neighbor" through the parable of the Good Samaritan. The chapter closes in Bethany, where Martha's anxious serving is contrasted with Mary's chosen "good part" of sitting at Jesus' feet.
Themes
- Mission and the harvest of the kingdom
- Mercy across ethnic and religious boundaries
- True identity rooted in God, not in spiritual achievements
- Hearing Jesus' word as the "one thing needed"
- Hidden wisdom revealed to the humble
Key verses
- Luke 10:2 — “The harvest is indeed plentiful, but the laborers are few. Pray therefore to the Lord of the harvest, that he may send out laborers into his harvest.”
- Luke 10:20 — “Don't rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”
- Luke 10:27 — “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.”
- Luke 10:42 — “One thing is needed. Mary has chosen the good part, which will not be taken away from her.”
Context & background
This chapter sits inside Luke's "travel narrative" (9:51-19:27), as Jesus moves from Galilee toward Jerusalem (modern Israel). The road from Jerusalem to Jericho descends roughly 3,300 feet through the rugged Judean wilderness in the modern West Bank — a notoriously dangerous route haunted by bandits, which makes the parable's setting concrete and frightening. Samaritans were despised neighbors of Judea who lived in central Samaria (today's central West Bank/northern Israel); Jews and Samaritans avoided each other, so making a Samaritan the hero was scandalous. Bethany, where Martha hosted Jesus, was a small village on the eastern slope of the Mount of Olives just east of Jerusalem (today's al-Eizariya in the West Bank/East Jerusalem area).
Cross-references
- Deuteronomy 6:5 / Leviticus 19:18 — The two commands the lawyer quotes about loving God and neighbor.
- Isaiah 14:12 — "How you have fallen from heaven, morning star" — background imagery for "Satan fallen like lightning."
- John 11:1; 12:1-3 — Mary and Martha appear again at Bethany when Lazarus is raised and at the anointing.
- Matthew 11:25-27 — Parallel prayer of Jesus thanking the Father for hiding truth from the wise.
- Matthew 9:37-38 — Parallel "harvest is plentiful, laborers are few" saying earlier in Jesus' ministry.