I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing! 50 There is a baptism with which I must be baptized, and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished! 51 Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. 52 From now on a household of five will be divided, three against two and two against three; 53 a father will be divided against his son and a son against his father, a mother against her daughter and a daughter against her mother, a mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.
Jesus continues to teach the disciples on the road to Jerusalem and speaks about the nature of His mission and the cost of responding to it.
“I have come to set the earth on fire” names the goal of His mission (v. 49). In Scripture, fire often signifies God’s active presence that purifies and judges—like a refiner’s fire that burns away dross (Mal. 3:2-3) and the word that shatters rock (Jer. 23:29). Luke has already linked Jesus with the Spirit and fire promised by John the Baptist (Lk. 3:16-17). Here the image is not random destruction but God’s searching holiness that reveals what is true, ignites faith, and exposes what resists Him. When Jesus says He wishes it were already blazing, He shows urgency: the world needs cleansing and renewal now.
“There is a baptism with which I must be baptized” explains how that fire will be kindled (v. 50). “Baptism” here means an overwhelming immersion that points to His Passion (cf. Mk. 10:38). His anguish “until it is accomplished” anticipates the hour when He offers Himself and, through the cross, draws all to Himself (Jn. 12:27-33). The blaze of divine life spreads from His suffering and explodes at Pentecost as tongues of fire (Acts 2:3). The cross is the match that lights the world. When that fire takes hold, what is hidden comes to light, hearts turn in repentance, and the Spirit forms a people who walk in God’s peace and carry His light to others (Jn. 16:8; 1 Jn. 1:7; 1 Pt. 2:9).
“Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? … No, but rather division” clarifies a paradox (v. 51). Jesus does bring peace—reconciliation with God (cf. Lk. 2:14)—but His truth forces decisions. Where hearts receive Him, there is peace; where He is resisted, conflict appears. The “division” is the moral outcome of conscience choosing for or against Him, not a taste for strife. God’s peace is not quiet tolerance of falsehood; it is communion in the truth, and that truth can uncover deep fault lines.
The example of a household split—“three against two and two against three,” with parents and children at odds—shows how close to home this can come (vv. 52-53). Luke echoes Mic. 7:6 and parallels Mt. 10:34-36 to make the point that allegiance to Jesus can upset even intimate bonds. The gospel does not celebrate family conflict; it predicts it when loyalty to Christ and loyalty to human expectations collide. Throughout Luke, the division appears around Jesus’ identity and word: some hear and do it; others oppose it (cf. Lk. 8:21; 11:28). The cause is not class or culture but the person of Christ Himself.
Together, these verses form one picture: Jesus will undergo His “baptism” of suffering; from it, the fire of the Spirit will spread; and as His word takes root, it will purify, judge, and sometimes divide. The aim is not destruction but holiness. God is not the destroyer of households; He is the Lord who purifies hearts for communion with Himself (Heb. 12:29).
Lord Jesus, You faced Your baptism so the world could receive Your life. Purify our minds with Your truth and steady our hearts in loyalty to You, even when it costs us. Let Your holy fire burn away what is false, and make us witnesses of Your peace. Amen.
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Sources and References:
- The Holy Bible, New American Bible, Revised Edition (2011).
- A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture, ed. Bernard Orchard et al. (1953).
- The Navarre Bible: Luke, Faculty of the University of Navarre (2008).
- The Paulist Biblical Commentary, ed. José Enrique Aguilar Chiu et al. (2018).
- Raymond E. Brown et al., The New Jerome Biblical Commentary (1990).
- Cross-references: Mal. 3:2-3; Jer. 23:29; Lk. 3:16-17; Mk. 10:38; Jn. 12:27-33; Acts 2:3; Mic. 7:6; Mt. 10:34-36; Heb. 12:29.
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