For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.
Parallel translations
- WEB For I came to set a man at odds against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.
- BSB For I have come to turn ‘a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.
- NKJV For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’;
- NASB For I came to turn a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;
- NLT ‘I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Allegiance to Christ can set family members against one another. Loyalty to Him may cost a person their closest earthly relationships.
Overview
Echoing Micah 7:6, Jesus describes how commitment to Him can divide parents and children. The gospel's claim is so total that it reorders even the dearest bonds. This sobering reality is not Jesus' aim but the effect of a fallen world's resistance to the King who demands first place.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Mic 7:5–6Trust ye not in a friend, put ye not confidence in a guide: keep the doors of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom.
- Matt 10:21And the brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child: and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death.
- Luke 21:16And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death.
- Matt 24:10And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.
- Mark 13:12Now the brother shall betray the brother to death, and the father the son; and children shall rise up against their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'
How Matthew 10:35 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.