Linked?

[bmullins]

I’ve never linked these two verses before, but today during my devotions it seemed to glare at me. (Mind you this could very well be my own mind working overtime.)

Luke 14:26 *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.

Now I know this verse is not talking about literal hate, but about telling us that our love for our Father in heaven must be so zealous that when we compare our love for others, it pales in comparison. That God’s love must be first and foremost. Today my mind was recalled to the event in Exodus, immediately after the golden calf, when God chose the Levites to serve him.

Exodus 32:26-29 And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him: And he said to them: Thus saith the Lord God of Israel: Put every man his sword upon his thigh: go, and return from gate to gate through the midst of the camp, and let every man kill his brother, and friend, and neighbour. And the sons of Levi did according to the words of Moses, and there were slain that day about three and twenty thousand men. And Moses said: You have consecrated your hands this day to the Lord, every man in his son and in his brother, that a blessing may be given to you.

Now I am not trying to suggest that God is calling us to do this sort of thing. My mind seems to think that Jesus was referring to the very sort of zeal that was shown here though. These men did exactly what God commanded, and not out of hate. They likely cared a great deal for these people, their very families and friends. Yet they didn’t hesitate to do God’s will. Their love for God consumed them, they were zealous for him, they did His orders/will without question.

Do you think Jesus was saying the same to us? That we were to be consumed with his word? To love him so much that his will comes first? I guess what I am saying is, do you think Jesus audience would have called to mind this very incident?

 

[Crumpy]

No.

There are deranged people that claim to act out God’s justice on others, even their family members, to punish them for things they have done OR to dispatch them so that they would not sin further.

I don’t think these are good verses to link together.

the Israelites’ sin of apostasy is a different case altogether, I think.

 

[LiseTravis]

I’ve never linked these two verses before, but today during my devotions it seemed to glare at me. (Mind you this could very well be my own mind working overtime.)

Luke 14:26 *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.

Now I know this verse is not talking about literal hate, but about telling us that our love for our Father in heaven must be so zealous that when we compare our love for others, it pales in comparison. That God’s love must be first and foremost. Today my mind was recalled to the event in Exodus, immediately after the golden calf, when God chose the Levites to serve him.

Exodus 32:26-29 And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him: And he said to them: Thus saith the Lord God of Israel: Put every man his sword upon his thigh: go, and return from gate to gate through the midst of the camp, and let every man kill his brother, and friend, and neighbour. And the sons of Levi did according to the words of Moses, and there were slain that day about three and twenty thousand men. And Moses said: You have consecrated your hands this day to the Lord, every man in his son and in his brother, that a blessing may be given to you.

Now I am not trying to suggest that God is calling us to do this sort of thing. My mind seems to think that Jesus was referring to the very sort of zeal that was shown here though. These men did exactly what God commanded, and not out of hate. They likely cared a great deal for these people, their very families and friends. Yet they didn’t hesitate to do God’s will. Their love for God consumed them, they were zealous for him, they did His orders/will without question.

Do you think Jesus was saying the same to us? That we were to be consumed with his word? To love him so much that his will comes first? I guess what I am saying is, do you think Jesus audience would have called to mind this very incident?

I don't know if this occurred to Jesus' audience, but I think you're on to something here- not in a violent misapplication, but in the way you expressed it. How wonderful it would be to always do His will without any question, doubt or fear!

 

[WesleyF]

I guess what I am saying is, do you think Jesus audience would have called to mind this very incident?

I’m not sure whether they would have. “Hating” someone was a semitic expression.

Just today, in replying to a Calvinist, I said to him, “Sure, God is spoken of as “hating” people, but this is again a semitic expression which means “love to a lesser degree”. This is evident in Jesus’ words - “If any one comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 26:14). Of course, Jesus, who commanded us to “love one another; even as I have loved you” (John 13:34) cannot also say to hate our very own fathers or mothers or wives or children or brethren. What he means is we have to love them to a lesser degree than we love God.”

 

[thistle]

I’ve never linked these two verses before, but today during my devotions it seemed to glare at me. (Mind you this could very well be my own mind working overtime.)

Luke 14:26 *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.

Now I know this verse is not talking about literal hate, but about telling us that our love for our Father in heaven must be so zealous that when we compare our love for others, it pales in comparison. That God’s love must be first and foremost. Today my mind was recalled to the event in Exodus, immediately after the golden calf, when God chose the Levites to serve him.

Exodus 32:26-29 And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him: And he said to them: Thus saith the Lord God of Israel: Put every man his sword upon his thigh: go, and return from gate to gate through the midst of the camp, and let every man kill his brother, and friend, and neighbour. And the sons of Levi did according to the words of Moses, and there were slain that day about three and twenty thousand men. And Moses said: You have consecrated your hands this day to the Lord, every man in his son and in his brother, that a blessing may be given to you.

Now I am not trying to suggest that God is calling us to do this sort of thing. My mind seems to think that Jesus was referring to the very sort of zeal that was shown here though. These men did exactly what God commanded, and not out of hate. They likely cared a great deal for these people, their very families and friends. Yet they didn’t hesitate to do God’s will. Their love for God consumed them, they were zealous for him, they did His orders/will without question.

Do you think Jesus was saying the same to us? That we were to be consumed with his word? To love him so much that his will comes first? I guess what I am saying is, do you think Jesus audience would have called to mind this very incident?

D-R Bible, Haydock Commentary:

Luke 14:26

Ver. 26. Hate not, &c. The law of Christ does not allow us to hate even our enemies, much less our parents: but the meaning of the text is, that we must be in that disposition of soul so as to be willing to renounce and part with every thing, how near or dear soever it may be to us, that would keep us from following Christ. (Challoner) — The word hate is not to be taken in its proper sense, but to be expounded by the words of Christ, (Matthew x. 37.) that no man must love his father more than God, &c. (Witham) — Christ wishes to shew us what dispositions are necessary in him who desires to become his disciple; (Theophylactus) and to teach us that we must not be discouraged, if we meet with many hardships and labours in our journey to our heavenly country. (St. Gregory) — And if for our sakes, Christ even renounced his own mother, saying, Who is my mother, and who are my brethren? why do you wish to be treated more delicately than your Lord? (St. Ambrose) — He wished also to demonstrate to us, that the hatred he here inculcates, is not to proceed from any disaffection towards our parents, but from charity for ourselves; for immediately he adds, and his own life also. From which words it is evident, that in our love we must hate our brethren as we do ourselves.

Exodus 32:26-29

Ver. 26. All the sons; that is, the great majority of them; for some were probably slain, ver. 29.

Ver. 28. About, &c. The Hebrew letter c means about, and stands also for twenty. All the versions, and some copies of the Vulgate, retain the first signification; but our edition gives also the second. Sixtus V. and the Louvain Bible have about 33,000. (Haydock) — St. Paul (1 Corinthians x. 7, 8,) mentions, that three and twenty thousand perished, in punishment of their fornication (with the Moabites), which some explain of the adoration of the calf, and say that Moses only specifies those slain by the Levites; while St. Paul gives the number of all those who perished by the hand of God on this occasion, ver. 35. (Calmet) — St. Cyril, Alex. glap. 2, Sulpitius, and many other fathers, agree with the Vulgate. The fornication with the Moabites, was followed by the death of 24,000, Numbers xxv. 9. So that St. Paul cannot refer to it, unless he only mention those who perished in one day; and Moses expresses the total amount of the slain during the whole affair. (Haydock)

Ver. 29. To you. Thus they merited the priesthood, and a blessing; (Deuteronomy xxxiii. 9.; Menochius) having been the ministers of God’s just indignation, without sparing any of the most guilty. With these they could not be unacquainted. No external signs on their bodies were requisite to make the delinquents known. They had appeared too publicly. (Haydock) — The Levites acted with due authority and order, which their father, Levi, had neglected, Genesis xxxiv. (Worthington)

 

[bmullins]

No.

There are deranged people that claim to act out God’s justice on others, even their family members, to punish them for things they have done OR to dispatch them so that they would not sin further.

I don’t think these are good verses to link together.

the Israelites’ sin of apostasy is a different case altogether, I think.

These were not deranged members simply acting out violence. These were men chosen by God to enact retribution on those who had made the golden calf, worshiped it and had an orgy around it. They became the priesthood. These ‘deranged men’ were called by Moses to be the new priesthood, these were the Levites.

The only reason I see them as linked at all is that many see Jesus as the new Moses, the better than Moses is here. I saw it almost as a call to the new priesthood. Just as the Levites replaced the first born children who were currently serving, so do the new priests replace the first born of God (Israel.) I could be stretching, it just seemed like an interesting tie.

 

[pablope]

I’ve never linked these two verses before, but today during my devotions it seemed to glare at me. (Mind you this could very well be my own mind working overtime.)

Luke 14:26 *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.

Now I know this verse is not talking about literal hate, but about telling us that our love for our Father in heaven must be so zealous that when we compare our love for others, it pales in comparison. That God’s love must be first and foremost. Today my mind was recalled to the event in Exodus, immediately after the golden calf, when God chose the Levites to serve him.

?

Hi, B…

From what I understand of this verse in Luke(from what I was told years ago)…it applies to priests…meaning to be in persona Christi…one must give up his family…father, mother…brothes and sisters. And indeed a priest, in choosing to be ordained…turns his back on his family…and instead, inherits a new family…the parish family…the Body of Christ.