Jesus, having warned the seventy-two that He is sending out as sheep among wolves (v3), surprisingly tells them to bring no supplies (v4). This appears to be to cause them to rely totally on God for all their provision. God will supply these needs through the hospitality of the people they go to (v5-8).

This command is not to be taken as a universal one for all time. Jesus later would tell the apostles to bring supplies with them (Luke 22 v36).

The seventy-two are being asked to put into practice the teaching of seeking first God’s kingdom and these other things will be added to them also.

There is a lesson here for God’s people to be proactive in supplying the needs of those in Christian service. One very weak area in the church today is hospitality. Pray about how you can help those who serve.

For those faithful in helping these travelling preachers they will receive peace (v5-6), which is a state of blessedness and contentment.

Those who don’t receive these preachers would be cursed (v10-12). The shaking off of the dust was what Jews did when they came from a foreign land. Doing this practice when leaving a Jewish village, was the preacher saying that these people were like Gentiles rejecting God’s truth.