Is Matthew 10:1 (and other references to expelling unclean spirits) an allusion to Zechariah 13:2?

Question

[Mat 10:1 KJV] 1 And when he had called unto [him] his twelve disciples, he gave them power [against] unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease.

[Zec 13:1-2 KJV] 1 In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness. 2 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD of hosts, [that] I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, and they shall no more be remembered: and also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land.

And did Jesus say that Jerusalem would be plagued with demonic possession much more so than they were apparently experiencing when he arrived because of their rejection of him?:

[Matthew 12:43-45 NET] 43 "When an unclean spirit goes out of a person, it passes through waterless places looking for rest but does not find it. 44 Then it says, 'I will return to the home I left.' When it returns, it finds the house empty, swept clean, and put in order. 45 Then it goes and brings with it seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they go in and live there, so the last state of that person is worse than the first. It will be that way for this evil generation as well!"

Answer 1

I think there may be a general allusion here. The same two words are used, "pneuma" and "akatharton"; however, the instances of these two words in the NT are varied.

Specifically, Zech 13:2 (from the LXX) has "τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἀκάθαρτον ἐξαρῶ" = drive out/expel the spirit of uncleanness, or, expel the unclean spirit, or, spirit of impurity (NIV), etc.

Many of the NT references simply have "πνεῦμα ἀκάθαρτον" (Matt 10:1, Mark 3:30, 5:2, etc) but some have "τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἀκάθαρτον" (Mark 1:26, 5:8, 7:25, etc)

Further, I could not find (perhaps I missed one) where the phrase τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἀκάθαρτον ἐξαρῶ" occurs in the NT. This is not to suggest that Matt 10:2 does not allude to it (it probably does) but it is only a general allusion and certainly not a quote.