Luke 12:51 (KJV)

Passage

Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division:

Nearby Context

Luke 12:49 I am come to send fire on the earth; and what will I, if it be already kindled?

Luke 12:50 But I have a baptism to be baptized with; and how am I straitened till it be accomplished!

Luke 12:51 Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division:

Luke 12:52 For from henceforth there shall be five in one house divided, three against two, and two against three.

Luke 12:53 The father shall be divided against the son, and the son against the father; the mother against the daughter, and the daughter against the mother; the mother in law against her daughter in law, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "suppose", "come", "give", "peace", "earth", "tell", "rather", and "division". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "suppose" and "come", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 50's "But I have a baptism to be..." into verse 52's "For from henceforth there shall be five...", so "suppose" and "come" belong inside that flow. In Luke context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "suppose" and "come" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.