Matthew 10 records Jesus calling the twelve unto him to give them authority over unclean spirits and the power to heal all diseases (10:1). He then sends them forth with the commission to preach to the Jews only that the kingdom is at hand. They were to heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons (10:5-8). This description defines the meaning of an apostle. They were sent on a commission with the authority to speak on behalf of their King. and charge them (cf. Greek, apostolos – one sent on a commission). Later, Jesus would commission them after the resurrection to make disciples of all nations, both Jew and Gentile (Matthew 28:18-20). Notice the common elements of the charge, and the gift of power granted to perform their task.
Included in their work was the expectation of persecution. This scenario is described in Matthew 10:17-23. It reads,
And But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to councils, and in their synagogues, they will scourge you; yea and before governors and kings shall ye be brought for my sake, for a testimony to them and the Gentiles. But when they deliver you up, be not anxious how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that hour what ye shall speak. For it is not ye that speaks, but the Spirit of your Father that speaketh in you. And brother shall deliver up brother to death, and the father his child: and children shall rise against parents, and cause them to be put to death. And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end, the same shall be saved. But when they persecute you in this city, flee into the next: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone through the cities of Israel, till the Son of man comes.
Notice that, for his sake, they would be brought before trials for a testimony to them (Jews) and the Gentiles (verse 18). In this setting of giving a defense for their actions, Jesus assured them that the Spirit of their Father, which–is the Holy Spirit, would give them the words to speak at that moment. There was too much at stake to leave the greatest message the world has ever known in the power of men to reveal. Jesus tells them, “It is not you that speak, but the Spirit of your Father that speaks in you (verse 20).
Again, it is also noteworthy to see the connection in time with this promise and the judgment. Jesus tells that that they will not have gone through the cities of Israel (Jewish residents) until Jesus returns. The impending judgment of the Son of man was to come against that generation of Jews who rejected Jesus as the Christ. Since they rejected that message of good news, all the blood of all the righteous prophets shed from the foundation of the world would be required of that generation (cf. Luke 11:50-52, Matthew 23:35).
This climactic time brings the fulfillment of several predictions together in one period. First, the disciples were commission to preach the gospel, but it was broadened to include the Gentiles also. The gospel must first be preached to the Jews (Romans 1:16) and the reward for doing good is given to the Jews first (Romans 2:10). Second, persecution would follow to the point of being brought before these Gentile kings and governors who would also hear their testimony. Third, the Holy Spirit would give them the words to speak. Jesus later commissions them to preach the gospel and teach, while God would be working with them, confirming the word by the miraculous signs and wonders (Mark 16:20). These powers testified to their identity and their message. Paul would later explain to the Corinthians that his “speech and preaching were not in persuasive words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: that your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God” (1 Cor. 2:4-5). In his second epistle, he writes, “Truly the signs of an apostle were wrought among you in all patience, by signs and wonders and mighty works.”