Reference: Disciples
Hastings
In the ancient world every teacher had his company of disciples or learners. The Greek philosophers and the Jewish Rabbis had theirs, and John the Baptist had his (Mr 2:18 'the disciples of John and the disciples of the Pharisees'; cf. Joh 1:35; Mt 14:12). In like manner Jesus had His disciples. The term had two applications, a wider and a narrower. It denoted (1) all who believed in Him, though they remained where He had found them, pursuing their former avocations, yet rendering no small service to His cause by confessing their allegiance and testifying to His grace (cf. Lu 6:13; 19:37; Joh 4:1; 6:60,66-67). (2) The inner circle of the Twelve, whom He called 'Apostles,' and whom He required to forsake their old lives and follow Him whithersoever He went, not merely that they might strengthen Him by their sympathy (cf. Lu 22:28), but that they might aid Him in His ministry (Mt 9:37; 10:1,5), and, above all, that they might be trained by dally intercourse and discipline to carry forward the work after He was gone. These were 'the disciples' par excellence (Mt 10:1; 12:1,49; 15:23,32; Mr 8:27; Lu 8:9; Joh 11:7; 12:4; 16:17,29). See also Apostles.
David Smith.
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Then he told his disciples, "The harvest is vast, but the workers are few.
Then Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority over unclean spirits, so that they could drive them out and heal every disease and every illness.
Then Jesus called his twelve disciples to him and gave them authority over unclean spirits, so that they could drive them out and heal every disease and every illness.
These were the Twelve whom Jesus sent out after he had given them these instructions: "Don't turn on to the road that leads to the unbelievers, and don't enter Samaritan towns.
At that time, Jesus walked through the grain fields on a Sabbath. His disciples became hungry and began picking heads of grain to eat.
Then pointing with his hand at his disciples, he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers,
When John's disciples came, they carried off the body and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus.
But he didn't answer her at all. Then his disciples came up and kept urging him, "Send her away, because she keeps on screaming as she follows us."
Then Jesus called his disciples and said, "I have compassion for the crowd because they have already been with me for three days and have nothing to eat. I don't want to send them away without food, or they may faint on the road."
Now John's disciples and the Pharisees would fast regularly. Some people came and asked Jesus, "Why do John's disciples and the Pharisees' disciples fast, but your disciples don't fast?"
Then Jesus and his disciples set out for the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he was asking his disciples, "Who do people say I am?"
When daylight came, he called his disciples and chose twelve of them, whom he also called apostles:
He was now approaching the descent from the Mount of Olives. The whole crowd of disciples began to rejoice and to praise God with a loud voice because of all the miracles they had seen.
Now when Jesus realized that the Pharisees had heard he was making and baptizing more disciples than John
When many of his disciples heard this, they said, "This is a difficult statement. Who can accept it?"
As a result, many of his disciples turned back and no longer associated with him. So Jesus asked the Twelve, "You don't want to leave, too, do you?"
At this point, some of his disciples asked each other, "What does he mean by telling us, "In a little while you will no longer see me, then in a little while you will see me again,' and, "because I am going to the Father'?"