Luke 12:51-59

12:51 Do you think I have come to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but rather division! ¹  12:52 For from now on ²  there will be five in one household divided, three against two and two against three. 12:53 They will be divided, ³  father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”

Reading the Signs

12:54 Jesus ⁴  also said to the crowds, “When you see a cloud rising in the west, ⁵  you say at once, ‘A rainstorm ⁶  is coming,’ and it does. 12:55 And when you see the south wind ⁷  blowing, you say, ‘There will be scorching heat,’ and there is. 12:56 You hypocrites! ⁸  You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky, but how can you not know how ⁹  to interpret the present time?

Clear the Debts

12:57 “And ¹⁰  why don’t you judge for yourselves what is right? 12:58 As you are going with your accuser before the magistrate, ¹¹  make an effort to settle with him on the way, so that he will not drag you before the judge, and the judge hand you over to the officer, ¹²  and the officer throw you into prison. 12:59 I tell you, you will never get out of there until you have paid the very last cent!” ¹³ 

¹ tn Or “hostility.” This term pictures dissension and hostility (BDAG 234 s.v. διαμερισμός).

² sn From now on is a popular phrase in Luke: 1:48; 5:10; 22:18, 69; see Mic 7:6.

³ tn There is dispute whether this phrase belongs to the end of v. 52 or begins v. 53. Given the shift of object, a connection to v. 53 is slightly preferred.

⁴ tn Grk “He”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Here καί (kai) has been translated as “also” and δέ (de) has not been translated.

⁵ sn A cloud rising in the west refers to moisture coming from the Mediterranean Sea.

⁶ tn The term ὄμβρος (ombro") refers to heavy rain, such as in a thunderstorm (L&N 14.12).

⁷ sn The south wind comes from the desert, and thus brings scorching heat.

⁸ sn In Luke, the term hypocrites occurs here, in 6:42, and in 13:15.

⁹ tc Most mss (Ì⁴⁵ A W Ψ Ë^1,13 Ï lat) have a syntax here that reflects a slightly different rhetorical question: “but how do you not interpret the present time?” The reading behind the translation, however, has overall superior support: Ì⁷⁵ א B L Θ 33 892 1241 pc.

¹⁰ tn Jesus calls for some personal reflection. However, this unit probably does connect to the previous one – thus the translation of δέ (de) here as “And” – to make a good spiritual assessment, thus calling for application to the spiritual, rather than personal, realm.

¹¹ sn The term magistrate (ἄρχων, arcwn) refers to an official who, under the authority of the government, serves as judge in legal cases (see L&N 56.29).

¹² sn The officer (πράκτωρ, praktwr) was a civil official who functioned like a bailiff and was in charge of debtor’s prison. The use of the term, however, does not automatically demand a Hellenistic setting (BDAG 859 s.v.; K. H. Rengstorf, TDNT 8:539; C. Maurer, TDNT 6:642).

¹³ tn Here the English word “cent” is used as opposed to the parallel in Matt 5:26 where “penny” appears, since the Greek word there is different and refers to a different but similar coin.