These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, “Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans,
English Standard Version (ESV)
Jesus' command to "Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans" wasn't a permanent exclusion, but a strategic first step. This limited mission prioritized reaching the "lost sheep of the house of Israel" first, according to God's established order, before the Gospel would later expand to all nations.
These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, “Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans,
English Standard Version (ESV)
Jesus has just called his twelve disciples and is now sending them out on their first official mission. He gives them specific instructions, limiting their initial outreach to only the Jewish people, referred to here as the "lost sheep of the house of Israel," due to long-standing historical and religious animosity toward Gentiles and Samaritans.
Why did Jesus restrict his disciples' first mission? It wasn't because the Gentiles and Samaritans didn't need the message.
Jesus gave his disciples a very specific mission order: "Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans." This wasn't a permanent exclusion, but a strategic first step.
A Time for Israel
The primary reason for this focus was to fulfill God's covenant promises. Israel, though often unfaithful, was God's chosen people, the lineage through which the Messiah came. The initial proclamation of the Kingdom of Heaven needed to be made to the 'lost sheep of the house of Israel' first, as the prophet Isaiah foretold and Paul later affirmed: 'to the Jew first, and also to the Gentile.'
Avoiding Stumbling Blocks
Furthermore, the relationship between Jews and Samaritans was deeply strained. The Samaritans were a mixed people, partly descended from foreign colonists and partly from Israelites, with a corrupted form of worship. Introducing the disciples to them, or to Gentiles, at this early stage, could have created unnecessary conflict and confusion for the Jewish people who were just beginning to understand Jesus' mission. Jesus was wisely paving the way, ensuring the core message reached its intended initial audience without premature complications.
Jesus called his own people 'lost sheep.' What does that reveal about their spiritual condition and his heart for them?
Jesus explicitly told his disciples to 'go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.' This wasn't just a geographical directive; it was a profound spiritual diagnosis.
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Lost, Yet Chosen
Calling the people of Israel 'lost sheep' highlights their desperate spiritual state. Despite their heritage and covenant relationship with God, they were wandering, scattered, and vulnerable, like sheep without a shepherd. They were lost in their traditions, their understanding of God's law, and their relationship with Him.
A Shepherd's Compassion
But the term 'lost sheep' also reveals Jesus' immense compassion. He saw their brokenness and their need for a true Shepherd. His heart ached for them, and he commissioned his disciples to minister to them with that same compassionate urgency. This mission was about bringing healing and restoration to those who were spiritually adrift, even within the covenant nation.
Understand the original words
ethnos · Greek Noun
All non-Jewish people; biblically, it refers to the nations of the world who were outside the covenant promises given to Israel prior to the gospel's expansion.
Samareitēs · Greek Noun
A people group living in the region between Galilee and Judea who were viewed with hostility by many Jews due to their mixed ethnic heritage and divergent religious practices.
This restricted mission highlights the strategic, phased approach of Jesus' ministry: first to the Jewish people, the 'lost sheep,' to prepare them for the broader inclusion of Gentiles and Samaritans that would come later.
c. 722 BC
Fall of Samaria and Assyrian Deportation
The Northern Kingdom of Israel falls to the Assyrian Empire. Many Israelites are deported, and foreigners are brought in to repopulate the land, leading to a mixed population and religious practices.
Post-Exilic Period
Samaritan Temple on Mount Gerizim Built
A rival temple to the Jerusalem Temple is built on Mount Gerizim, further deepening the animosity between Jews and Samaritans. This event solidifies their religious and national separation.
c. 129 BC
Destruction of Samaritan Temple
Jewish ruler John Hyrcanus destroys the Samaritan temple on Mount Gerizim. This act escalates the long-standing hatred and hostility between the two groups.
c. 30 AD
Jesus' Ministry in Samaria
Jesus himself travels through Samaria and preaches, even speaking with a Samaritan woman at the well. This demonstrates a willingness to cross the cultural and religious divide, though his disciples' mission is restricted.
c. 30 AD— this verse
First Limited Mission to Israel
Jesus sends out his twelve apostles with specific instructions to focus solely on the 'lost sheep of the house of Israel,' prohibiting them from ministering to Gentiles or Samaritans.
This passage describes Jesus sending out the seventy disciples with similar instructions, but it also includes a broader commission to go into every city 'where you are about to go.'
Acts 8:14-25This shows the apostles later ministering to the Samaritans, demonstrating how Jesus' initial restriction was for a specific, temporary phase of the Gospel's proclamation.
Romans 1:16Paul declares his eagerness to preach the gospel 'to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek,' echoing the principle of the gospel reaching Israel first before the Gentiles.
Matthew 28:18-20This is the 'Great Commission' where Jesus gives the apostles a vastly expanded mission to go to 'all nations,' showing the contrast with the limited scope of the mission in Matthew 10.
John 4:1-42This account of Jesus encountering the Samaritan woman and ministering in a Samaritan town highlights Jesus' own willingness to engage with Samaritans, setting a precedent for future ministry.
barnesMatthew 10:5: "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:"
Into the way of the Gentiles - That is, among the Gentiles, or nowhere but among the Jews. The full time for preaching the gospel to the Gentiles was not come. It was proper that it should be first preached to the Jews, the ancient covenant people of God, and the people among whom the Messiah was born. Afterward he gave them a charge t…
vincentMatthew 10:5: "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:"
Judas Iscariot (ὁ Ἰσκαριώτης)The article distinguishes him from others of the name of Judas (compare John 14:22). Iscariot is usually explained as a compound, meaning the man of Kerioth, with reference to his native town, which is given in Joshua (Joshua 15:25) as one of the uttermost cities of Judah toward the coast of Edom southwa…
Jesus' command to "Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans" wasn't a permanent exclusion, but a strategic first step. This limited mission prioritized reaching the "lost sheep of the house of Israel" first, according to God's established order, before the Gospel would later expand to all nations.
Jesus has just called his twelve disciples and is now sending them out on their first official mission. He gives them specific instructions, limiting their initial outreach to only the Jewish people, referred to here as the "lost sheep of the house of Israel," due to long-standing historical and religious animosity toward Gentiles and Samaritans.
Jesus has just called his twelve disciples and is now sending them out on their first official mission. He gives them specific instructions, limiting their initial outreach to only the Jewish people, referred to here as the "lost sheep of the house of Israel," due to long-standing historical and religious animosity toward Gentiles and Samaritans.
"These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, “Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans," — Jesus' command to "Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans" wasn't a permanent exclusion, but a strategic first step. This limited mission prioritized reaching the "lost she…
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Last reviewed October 2026