Verse 2
Jesus’ first instruction to the Seventy was that they pray (cf. 1 Timothy 2:1-8). Jesus gave His disciples the same instructions on another occasion (cf. Matthew 9:37-38). The harvest figure is common in Scripture, and it pictures God gathering His elect (cf. Matthew 13:37-43; et al.). In this context it referred to gathering believers in Jesus out from the mass of unbelievers to whom the Seventy would go. When He said that the harvest was plentiful, Jesus meant that there was much work to do to bring the gospel of the kingdom to everyone. His disciple messengers were few in proportion to the large task. Therefore the disciples needed to pray God to send every qualified messenger out into the "field" and that none would fail to participate in this mission. Thus this verse expresses Jesus’ desire for more workers and for full participation by the workers who were available.
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