Knife

I did a search and could not find a related thread topic so...

Luke 14:26 says:
If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.

Doe this really mean to HATE your family? Is there really another reasonable way to interpret this verse? Such as stated here:http://www.tektonics.org/gk/jesussayshate.html

I found numerous websites making the same argument as the one provided above. Does the argument actually hold water?

DavidfromTexas

At first I was skeptical of the arguments given at the website... but upon closer examination, it appears that the arguments do hold water.

The Greek word for "hate" is the same one used in the Septuagint in Genesis 29:31-35 quoted below...

For a woman who was supposedly "hated" by her husband, she certainly did not have difficulty coaxing him to get her pregnant... Again and again.




The words of Jesus regarding the "hating" of family members seems to be a way of saying that He requires total devotion to Him in order to be one of His disciples... It seems that total devotion does not require abandoning family, because the apostle Peter apparently remained married...

Tigers!

It is a rabbinical technique of those days (I think) to compare one idea against another to highlight their differences - to use an Australian idiom "that's as bad as a wet weekend in Hobart".
It is saying that we should love God so much that our love for our family appears as hatred.

Chris Weimer

The Greek word μισεω means to hate, to detest, to despise, to think lesser of. It means the same thing in both the Genesis and the Luke - that is, both the family and Leah are despised. It is not inconceivable that Jacob did not care much for his wife, but to think that not caring much for her would amount to no sex is quite absurd.

Joan of Bark

If you look at how Jesus treated his family, and the many negative things he had to say about others families, it wouldn't surprise me in the least if he wanted his disciples to hate their families. Yes, He preached love, but he also said: "Do not think that I have come to bring peace on Earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to set a son against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.For whoever loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me. And whoever loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me." (Sorry, I don't have a bible in front of me to cite this passage; I'm pretty sure it's from Matthew.)

Notice how he DOESN'T say: "anyone who loves his mother or father more than God (or God's laws)".

Phlox Pyros

There are two words that describe many of Jesus' sayings quite well. One of those words is "parable" (think parabolic), where Jesus tells a story to get ethical or eschatalogical points across. The other word is "hyperbole" (think hyperbolic), where Jesus makes an exaggerated statement so that his ethical or eschatalogical point sticks in your mind because it is so strong.

I think that this is a relatively obvious case of "hyperbole".

Febble

And it makes sense in both the context of Matthew 25 (Sheep and Goats) and of the Good Samaritan. The point, I take it, being that loving Jesus is the same as loving your neighbour, and that your neighbour is anyone in need. No priority for families or even countrymen.

Not good for the selfish gene, but good for your soul (and people in need).

sorompio

Why don't call things by their name. Jesus pretend to follow Moses Law. Honor your parents. But Jesus shows contempt or hatred for their parents (check the wedding of Canaan). So, he does not honor his family. It is... yes, another contradiction. How can anybody feel any admiration for this confusing character, it's something I just can't figure out.

gstafleu

Whatever the exact meaning of miseo is, it is still difficult to rhyme this passage with family values!

The following is based on Robert Price's The Incredible Shrinking Son of Man. He talks about this passage in a section called "Big Ticket Discipleship." The passage also appears in Matthew:
Here the language is indeed softer, which indicates that the interpretation of miseo as hyperbole and meaning less-than-hate may be correct.

Because the text appears both on Matthew and Luke it is seen as part of Q. The meaning becomes more clear from the "take up his cross and follow me" part. This saying from Q was aimed at those who wanted to become not just ordinary everyday followers of Jesus, but rather what one could call "super disciples": itinerants who completely dedicated their life to Jesus and spreading the word. These people had to "leave their old lives behind" as the Moonies et al would no doubt say.

This is the type of person who is advised to "Do not take along any gold or silver or copper in your belts; take no bag for the journey, or extra tunic, or sandals or a staff;" (Matt 10:9-10). This is then immediately followed with a bit of very practical advise for the itinerant, regarding getting food and shelter:
"Someone doesn't want to put up with you, the deserving and hard-working itinerant? Screw the buggers!"

Whenever you see language aimed at giving up everything and going into voluntary poverty it is probably aimed at the itinerant crowd, not at the average John/Jane Doe. It wouldn't be a realy big seller for your average family person.

Chili

It means to hate the human condition and this includes those we love, to even our own life which is 'the human condition' of 'the man' here coming to be a disciple. It just cannot be any other way because our human condition 'is' the cross we must carry 'as' diciple . . . lest we become witches and crash at the foot of 'our' cross.