Luke 14:26 ESV
26 “If anyone 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.
An idiom of preference (Mt 6:24; 10:37; Rom 9:13; Mal 1:2-3; Gen 29:30-31; Dt 21:15-17). One must prefer God of love Him more than all else to be saved (Mt 22:37). God first is the motto of the Bible. [Dake]
The “hate” here is a comparative thing (Mt 10:37; Gen 29:31). In the OT it went so far as to killing one’s own kinfolk (Ex 32:26-28, Dt 13:6-9, 33:9). Muhammed copied this and applied it to his own religion, because he believed that disobedience to him was disobedience to God (Allah). (Sura 4:69, 80; 72:23). In the NT, it means that a Christian is going to have to put Jesus Christ’s will ahead of the will of his father, mother, spouse, children, and himself. [Ruckman]
If anyone comes to me. Cf. 9:23–24. Those who would be Christ’s disciples must (1) love their family less than they love Christ (14:26); (2) bear the cross and follow Christ (v. 27); and (3) relinquish everything (v. 33). These are complementary ways of describing complete commitment. The first condition for discipleship is to hate one’s father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, and life (cf. 18:29; see 6:20–22). “Hating” is a Semitic expression for loving less (cf. Gen. 29:30–31; Deut. 21:15–17; Matt. 10:37). [ESVSB]
14:26 hate. This means to love less (cf. Gen. 29:31, 33; Deut. 21:15–17, where “unloved” translates a word meaning “hated”). Discipleship means loving the Master so much that all other loves are hatred by comparison. [ESV Reformation Bible]
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