ONLY them?
Wouldn't THIS be more correct:
. . . common accepted mode of people in this period of history was, at one's personal pleasure, to carry a side-arm . . .
Oh, LC, you are always on the uptake, glad you're headed for the intake, and you always have a response on the outtake.
Again, I appreciate your broader vision, but in this case, so far he is giving the command to his disciples, not to the whole world of people, wouldn't you say?
The whole world wasn't invited to the Last Supper, AFIK. But you have a good point.