These verses of instruction to the disciples close a discourse of Jesus that began in 15:1. It would probably be best to include 17:1-4 as part of this week's assigned text so as not to truncate this brief section of teaching on Jesus' part.
Four sets of isolated sayings of Jesus now bring the second part of the travel account to a close: 17:1-3a, on scandals and stumbling blocks; 17:3b-4, on the duty of Christian forgiveness; 17:5-6, on the power of Christian faith; and 17:7-10, on the inadequacy of Christian service.1