In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus gives a message similar to the second half of Matthew's Sermon on the Mount. The following synopsis covers his main points:
do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow has enough worries; look at the lilies of the field how they grow neither toil nor spin, but even Solomon was not arrayed as one of these; consider the ravens of the sky who do not sow nor reap; don't worry about what you will eat, for your father knows what you need; only seek God's kingdom and all these things will be added unto you; make your treasure in the heavens, where no thief comes in and no moth destroys; where your treasure is there also will be your heart.This message is similar to what Jesus says in Matthew's Sermon on the Mount, indicating not to worry, and using pastoral and idyllic images to convey his point. One has a peaceful feeling after reading it.
After exhorting his Jesus to have their treasures in heaven, Jesus gives a parable. He says,
Let your loins be girded about and the lamps burning and be like people waiting for their master when he comes back from the wedding, so that when he comes and knocks they will open for him at once. Blessed are the slaves whom the lord on his return finds wide awake. Amain, I tell you, he will gird himself up and have them recline to eat and he will come near and he will serve them. And if he comes in the second watch or third watch and finds them alert, they will be blessed. But know this. If the master of the house knew what time the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. Be ready, for the earthly son [son of man] comes in the hour when you least expect him.(Luke 12:35-40, Willis Barnstone translation).
One gets an ominous sensation from reading this. No longer is Jesus discussing ravens and lilies and treasures, but slaves, thieves, and night. The slaves, meaning Jesus's disciples, must wait for the master (Jesus) to return from the wedding. They have to be alert so that the moment he comes, they can open the door to him. If he finds them awake, he will feed and serve them at table. The reference to the thief coming in the night indicates that Jesus might return at any time, but that his disciples also have to be ready at all and any times, because he will come
when you least expect him.
It is certainly confusing and ominous, and his disciple Simon Peter understandably asks,
Lord, is your parable for us or do you speak to everyone?
This is when things get weird. Instead of directly answering Peter, Jesus responds with an extension to the previous parable, mystifying (yet also clarifying) matters more. Jesus says that the blessed slave is the one whom the master finds working when he comes. The master will put that slave in charge of all his possession.
But,however,
if that slave says in his heart,(Luke 12:45-46).My master is long in coming,and he begins to beat the men servants and women servants, and to eat and to drink and to get drunk, the lord of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect and in an hour which he does not know, and cut him to pieces and cast him out with the unfaithful
Did you catch that? Jesus says he will cut his disciples to pieces if they shirk their duties. So much for the serene savior. Jesus means business and is not afraid to threaten people with death if they do not follow him.
He then furthers the parable with an explanation.
That slave who knows the master's will but who is not prepared or flaunts his own will will be flogged with many blows. But the one who knows nothing and does what merits a whipping will be flogged lightly. Everyone to whom much is given will have much to return. To whom much was entrusted, even more they will ask from him(Luke 12:47-48). The principle is one of reciprocity: if you have a lot of responsibility, it demands a lot of responsibility. Jesus gives his disciples much responsibility and demands accordingly much work from them. If the disciple knows what Jesus wants and does not do it, or decides to do his own thing, then Jesus will give him many lashes. If the disciple does not know what Jesus wants and wastes time, he will receive a few lashes. Hardly if ever is Jesus portrayed as an executioner or as a punisher, but that is how he portrays himself. Jesus the punisher — does not exactly roll off the tongue.
So far, we have seen Jesus cut his disciples to pieces and whip them. Surely it's over. But nope, Jesus continues. He says,
Fire I came to throw upon the earth, and how I wish it were already ablaze! (Luke 12:49).
Πῦρ ἦλθον βαλεῖν ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν, καὶ τί θέλω εἰ ἤδη ἀνήφθη.
This time, Jesus casts himself as the fire-bearer, puropheros in Greek, or the fire-thrower, puroballos. Although some commentators might argue that fire here refers to the power of the Holy Spirit; however, the context here is completely different. In the Old Testament, fire simply means fire, the substance that burns things up. In the prophetic books, fire often has the significance of destruction and the last days. Therefore, this fire Jesus references is the cleansing fire of God's wrath and judgment upon the earth, riding all evil in one fell swoop. So not only does Jesus cut and whip, he also brings fire. Surely, it's over.
Next, Jesus states:
I have a baptism to be baptized, and how I am afflicted until it is finished! (Luke 12:50).
βάπτισμα δὲ ἔχω βαπτισθῆναι, καὶ πῶς συνέχομαι ἕως ὅτου τελεσθῇ.This baptism, or dipping or immersion, seems out of place in the context, but it must refer to Christ's crucifixion, metaphorically. The contrast of fire and water is striking—surely, fire is more triumphant and destructive, but water puts out fire. Does this mean that Jesus's mercy, by undergoing crucifixion on behalf of all humanity, outweighs his fire-throwing judgment? Just when we think that Jesus might be peaceful, he tells us the opposite.
Do you think that I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, I came to bring division! From now on there will be five in one house dissenting against two and two against three. Father will be divided against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.(Luke 12:51-53).
δοκεῖτε ὅτι εἰρήνην παρεγενόμην δοῦναι ἐν τῇ γῇ; οὐχί, λέγω ὑμῖν, ἀλλ᾽ ἢ διαμερισμόν. ἔσονται γὰρ ἀπὸ τοῦ νῦν πέντε ἐν οἴκῳ ἑνὶ διαμεμερισμένοι τρεῖς ἐπὶ δυσὶν καὶ δύο ἐπὶ τρισίν, διαμερισθήσεται πατὴρ ἐφ᾽ υἱῷ καὶ υἱὸς ἐπὶ πατρί, μήτηρ ἐπὶ θυγατρί καὶ θυγάτηρ ἐπὶ μητρί, πενθερὰ ἐπὶ τὴν νύμφην αὐτῆς καὶ νύμφη ἐπὶ τὴν πενθεράν αὐτῆς.
Jesus himself says he did not come to bring peace, but division. His purpose was not peace, but the breakdown of families. Previously, he said he brings fire. His purpose was to kindle a fire upon the earth and destroy families. Not quite the PC and PG-rated Jesus that we have in our minds.
Some commentators take this statement about family to mean that believing in him will cause families to dissent. While that may be a secondary meaning of Jesus's words, the primary meaning is that he himself brings division. Also, few readers (myself included) recognized Jesus is quoting from the prophetic books of the Bible. As I stated before, the prophetic books often discuss destruction and the last days, although not exclusively. The quote in question, from Micah, discusses this theme.
In the book of Micah, the prophet addresses the people of Israel and Judah as to why God exiled them from the land of Israel. He says it is for their transgressions. In chapter 7, Micah demonstrates the social disintegration that comes presumably near the last days. Jesus quotes from this context of social disintegration.
Micah says,
The pious are vanished from the land, none upright are left among men; all lie in wait to commit crimes, one traps the other in his net. They are eager to do evil: the magistrate makes demands, and the judge [judges] for a fee; the rich man makes his crooked plea, and they grant it. The best of them is like a prickly shrub; the [most] upright, worse than a barrier of thorns. On the day you waited for, your doom has come&emdash;now their confusion shall come to pass. Trust no friend, rely on no intimate; be guarded in speech with her who lies in your bosom. For son spurns father, daughter rises up against mother, daughter-in-law against mother-in-law&emdash;a man's own household are his enemies. Yet I will look to the LORD, I will wait for the God who saves me, my God will hear me.(Micah 7:2-7, Jewish Publication Society Translation).
Jesus brings division to the earth, not peace, and this division is best illustrated by the picture of familial and societal disintegration that Micah describes. Jesus quotes from a section that describes how evil humans are to each other. Jesus says that his arrival heralds this sort of division and dissension. Jesus brings societal disintegration to the world. It is unclear whether Jesus encourages this behavior—when other times he says to turn your cheek and think of others more highly than oneself—or he simply describes what humans are like to each other. He knows humanity and he knows his arrival will cause this dissension. Perhaps the fire he wishes to cast over the earth is the fire that destroys the evil ways of humanity so that this behavior is obliviated. But still, we have to wrestle with what Jesus meant when he said he came in order to bring division and fire, not peace.
An easy answer is that Jesus sees himself as a prophet and herald of the eschaton, the end times or last days. He heralds the end times, and that is why he quotes this destructive imagery from the prophets. His arrival brings the end of the world, including the mayhem and destruction surrounding him. Then, we have an image of Jesus as in Robert Oppenheimer's words,
I am become death, the destroyer of worlds.Jesus the destroyer and destruction-bringer. Again, not a common perception of the suffering savior. However, since he says it, we must accept it.
After this disturbing discourse, Jesus addresses the crowds this time. He says that when you see a cloud, you know that rain is coming; and when a south wind blows you say it will be will hot.
You hypocrites!he exclaims.
The face of the earth and the sky you know how to read. But why don't you know how to read these times? Why don't you judge on your own what is right? As you go with your opponent to the magistrate, try on the way there to reconcile with him, or you may be dragged before the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the bailiff and the bailiff throw you in jail. I tell you, you will never get out of there until you pay back the last penny(Luke 12:55-59). In this completely obscure passage, Jesus discusses how the people can assess the weather, but they cannot assess these times. These times must be a reference to the eschaton, the end times. In these times, families are divided, magistrates draw people into jail, and no one can trust each other. In another passage, Jesus says to be as gentle as doves and as cunning as serpents. I think the idea here is that one ought to do whatever they can to escape trouble. Desperate times call for desperate measures. Just as in Micah, the magistrate makes demands and charges a fee for justice, so Jesus here tells the crowds to settle with their accuser so that they don't have to pay a hefty legal fee. Do whatever you need to do to avoid jail, apparently in a time when people are thrown into jail for a pittance.
In the next chapter, some crowds tell Jesus how the ruling governor Pilate mixed the blood of Galileans with their sacrifices, a very gruesome end indeed. Jesus's response is callous at best:
Do you think these Galileans, because they suffered this way, were the worst sinners of all the Galileans? No, I tell you, but unless you repent you will all perish like them, or like those eighteen when the tower of Shiloach fell on them and killed them. Do you think they were more guilty than the people living in Yerushalayim? No, I tell you, but unless you repent you will all likewise perish too just as they all did(Luke 13:2-5). Jesus turns the fateful end of fellow Israelites into a proselytizing moment condemning all the crowd. They weren't worse sinners that it happened to them; it just happened, and it will happen to you if you don't repent.
Jesus is capable of incredible tenderness, such as with the woman who used her hair to wash his feet and the woman found in adultery whom he refused to condemn. But at other times he is capable of and promises violence. The kingdom of God suffers violence and violent men take it by force. While in his final moments, Jesus did not use violence against his captors and crucifiers, he expected nonviolence from his followers, but himself exemplified violent acts and imagery. He brought violence upon the earth or at least did not minimize it. He promises to cut down his servants, whip them, throw fire on the earth, bring division to families and the world, and that people will perish randomly. Some of these occurrences are endemic to what it means to be human in this world (e.g., a freak tower falling on you and crushing you; rivalry and strife between humans), but others like Jesus bringing division and fire is completely his doing. At times, Jesus expresses nonviolence, but especially in Luke chapters 12 and 13, Jesus exemplifies violence. Jesus is both violent and non-violent. Like any human, who is more complex than any one categorization, Jesus transcends simple labels. Jesus is not some prosaic, serene sage floating on a cloud whose feet never touched the ground. Jesus had the full range of emotions, from anger and outrage to happiness, joy, sadness, and tears, and everything in between. Jesus is way more complex than our cardboards cut-outs of him and our serene images of him. In fact, if he saw them he would certainly cast fire upon them. If Jesus returns and finds us wasting our time and doing our own thing, he will certainly punish.
Sources:
The Jewish Study Bible, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Jewish Publication Society TANAKH Translation. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004.
Barnstone, Willis. The Restored New Testament: A New Translation with Commentary. W. W. Norton: London, 2009.
KATA LOUKAN (Luke) 12:49 (TR) -.
Blue Letter Bible. Accessed 25 Jun, 2018. https://www.blueletterbible.org/tr/luk/12/49/t_conc_985053
Nestle-Aland 28. Bibelwissenschaft http://www.bibelwissenschaft.de/online-bibeln/novum-testamentum-graece-na-28/lesen-im-bibeltext/bibel/text/lesen/stelle/52/120001/129999/ch/21a6a2579fc242e2f916bfc762013b4d/
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