Matthew 9:36–10:8

³⁶ When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. ³⁷ Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; ³⁸ therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

¹⁰ And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction. ² The names of the twelve apostles are these: 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 tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; ⁴ Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.

⁵ These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, “Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans, ⁶ but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. ⁷ And proclaim as you go, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ ⁸ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demons. You received without paying; give without pay.

Matthew 9:36–10:8 ESV – Bible Gateway

This passage appears in a section of Matthew that detailed nine miracle stories involving physical healings. When Jesus saw the crowd, he felt compassion for them before the feeding of the 5,000. He sees us in both are physical and spiritual suffering and when there are physical healings; they are often joined with the more important spiritual ones. God can use us in his plan to affect these healings on others. Usually, by healing us to some degree, we look beyond self to see those around us. Here, Jesus is calling us to pray for an increase in those entering the mission field.

Peter Kreeft, in his commentary, on the start of this passage:

Jesus looks on the crowds, in today’s Gospel, as sheep without a shepherd: confused, alone, and troubled. Sheep are very stupid. Without help, without a shepherd, they will always wander away and get lost and die and be the easy prey for wolves or other wild animals. Who are these sheep? Look in the mirror.

But Jesus doesn’t scorn or sneer at these stupid sheep, this ship of fools. But neither is he satisfied with them. Instead, his heart is moved with pity toward them, a pity that doesn’t just passively feel something but that actively does something for them. And what he does about it is to make his disciples into the shepherds that the sheep need. He turns twelve of his sheep into shepherds.[1]

Brant Pitre amplifies the image of the need for workers:

A second image is this image of the harvest being plentiful, but the laborers being few. So here the image shifts. Now it’s not a flock of sheep in need of shepherds. It’s a harvest in need of laborers, in need of harvesters, in need of reapers to go out and harvest the fruits of the field, harvest the grain of the wheat. And so in that context, the need for the harvest to take place, Jesus calls the Twelve to him and he sets them apart from his other followers and gives them authority. The Greek word here is exousia, and it can also be translated as power. It’s the same word that is used to describe Jesus’ teaching earlier in the Gospel of Matthew at the end of the Sermon on the Mount, when the people say, “He taught as one having authority.” Or he taught with power, there was a power in his words, an authority in his words. Well, the very authority that Jesus himself possesses when he speaks the Sermon on the Mount, he then gives to Matthew and Thomas and Andrew and James and John and Judas, the Twelve, who are chosen to be his emissaries, chosen to act as shepherds on behalf of him as the messianic shepherd of God in leading the people into the kingdom of God. So the Twelve Apostles are not just Jesus’s closest friends, they’re not just the followers that were particularly intimate with him and close to him amongst the multitudes. No, no, no. He gives them exousia. They have a share in his own authority and it’s through that exousia, through that authority that they are able not just to proclaim the kingdom of God, but to shepherd people into it, to go out and harvest, so to speak, to participate in the harvest of souls that Jesus is calling for with the coming of the kingdom.[2]

There are so many familiar Old Testament images being invoked here regarding shepherds and the selecting of 12 leaders. Jesus is the Good Shepherd and all true authority flows from him.

From the Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture for Matthew:[3]

Those needing spiritual and physical healing lie close to Jesus’ heart (14:14; 15:32; 20:34). like sheep without a shepherd: A familiar OT simile.
– Sheep often represent the people of Israel (1 Kings 22:17; Jud 11:19; Jer 23:1–3; Zech 10:2). Shepherd imagery is used for Israel’s spiritual leaders.
– (1) Joshua was Moses’ successor and the “shepherd” of Israel (Num 27:17).
– (2) David was elected to “shepherd” Israel as its king (2 Sam 5:2–3).
– (3) In Ezek 34, God himself promised to set “one shepherd” (Ezek 34:23) over his people to feed and protect them as a new Davidic king (Ezek 34:23–24; cf. Jer 23:1–6). Jesus draws on these to illustrate his own role as the Shepherd and King of the restored Israel, the Church (25:31–34; Jn 10:16; 1 Pet 2:25).

Jesus invests the 12 disciples with his authority to heal both physical and spiritual afflictions. To spread the good news that the kingdom of heaven is at hand. This is also a reminder to them and to use that we can do nothing on our own without him. None of the tasks that Jesus gives them is anything they could do of their own talent or merit. They are all in submission to him “so that no man can boost.” Any good in the world where we have been used as an instrument for God’s will should place it on our knees in gratitude. To do the “mightier works” that Jesus prophesied is to be met with a commiserate humility. The free gift of grace given to us, we should rejoice when we see the same for others. “You received without paying; give without pay.”

Jesus initially focuses their mission field on their fellow Israelites. While the true scope of the mission field is the entire world, we also have to start with those around us. Starting with our own conversions, our scope should fan out to our family members, co-workers, and those we interact with. St. Paul would start in the synagogues and then move on to the gentiles everywhere he went. We can either be a witness or a counter-witness to the faith that is within us. Most of all, let God direct us where we are. This might mean a call to a wider missionary field. I think of St. Therese of Lisieux’s wanting to be a missionary and God granting this desire despite being cloistered. I also think of the missionary zeal of St. Francis Xavier, SJ and all the countries he travelled to and all those he baptized.

Sources

• Peter Kreeft, Food for the Soul: Reflections on the Mass Readings Cycle A
• Catholic Productions, Commentaries by Brant Pitre
• The Gospel of Matthew (Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture)
• Photo by Ben White on Unsplash