Luke 12:51 (YLT)

Passage

`Think ye that peace I came to give in the earth? no, I say to you, but rather division;

Nearby Context

Luke 12:49 `Fire I came to cast to the earth, and what will I if already it was kindled?

Luke 12:50 but I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how am I pressed till it may be completed!

Luke 12:51 `Think ye that peace I came to give in the earth? no, I say to you, but rather division;

Luke 12:52 for there shall be henceforth five in one house divided--three against two, and two against three;

Luke 12:53 a father shall be divided against a son, and a son against a father, a mother against a daughter, and a daughter against a mother, a mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.'

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "think", "peace", "came", "give", "earth", "rather", and "division". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "think" and "peace", 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 there shall be henceforth five in...", so "think" and "peace" 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 "think" and "peace" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.