Bible Problem: Luke 14:26. How Could Jesus Say That a Man Cannot Be His Disciple If He Doesn’t Hate His Family?
Problem:
In Luke 14:26 Jesus says:
If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.
But the Fifth Commandment in Exodus 20:12 says:
Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.
And Jesus Himself says to love people. In Mark 12:31 Jesus says:
Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Do we have to hate our families to be Jesus’ disciples? Isn’t hating people a violation of God’s commandments?
Solution:
The following verses use the words “hate” and “love.”
Matthew 6:24
No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
Genesis 29:30-31
30 And he went in also unto Rachel, and he loved also Rachel more than Leah, and served with him yet seven other years.
31 And when the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb: but Rachel was barren.
When the words love and hate are used together they are comparative. In these instances the word “hate” is not to be taken literally.
To be a disciple of Jesus Christ you must love him so much that your other important duties, like taking care of your family, come second place. Your focus must primarily be on Christ.