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Luke 10 · a question people ask

The Lord "appointed seventy others" (10:1). Who were they, and why seventy?

In the text

Luke names none of them and gives no reason for the number. He says that "the Lord also appointed seventy others, and sent them two by two ahead of him into every city and place where he was about to come" (10:1), and that "The seventy returned with joy" (10:17). The WEB's Luke names the seventy only in these two verses. Luke gives what Jesus said to them (10:2-16, 10:18-20), and doesn't tell who they were or what became of them. These notes don't either, and they give the number no meaning beyond the words.

The verses

“Now after these things, the Lord also appointed seventy others, and sent them two by two ahead of him into every city and place where he was about to come.”
Luke 10:1 · World English Bible
“The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” He said to them, “I saw Satan having fallen like lightning from heaven. Behold, 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. Nevertheless, don’t rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.””
Luke 10:17-20 · World English Bible

From Favor's study of Luke 10

Luke 10: Go and do likewise

The lawyer asked, "Who is my neighbor?" Jesus answered with a story and asked him which of the three "seemed to be a neighbor to him who fell among the robbers". From "what shall I do" to "Do this", "He who showed mercy" and "Go and do likewise", the Greek has one verb behind do and showed.

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Last reviewed October 2, 2026. Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Every answer cites the verses it rests on. What we believe · All Bible questions