Matthew 4:16

Matthew 4:16 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.
• New International Version (NIV)the people living in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned."
• New King James Version (NKJV)The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned.”

Context of Matthew 4:16

14This caused God's message to become true. Long ago God had said through his prophet Isaiah: 15‘I am speaking to you people who live in Zebulun and Naphtali. Your part of this country is on the way to Lake Galilee. It is across the Jordan River in the part of the country called Galilee. Some people who are not Jews live there. They are like people who are living in the dark. They live in the shadow which death brings. God will send a light to shine on them.’ 17Then Jesus began to speak God's message to people. He said, ‘You have done many wrong things. You must turn away from them and change how you live. Do this now, because the kingdom of heaven has come very near.’ 18One day, Jesus was walking along the shore of Lake Galilee. He saw two men who were brothers. One man was called Simon, and he was also called Peter. His brother's name was Andrew. Their job was to catch fish. They were throwing their nets into the lake to catch fish.

Matthew 4:16 word by word

ὁ λαὸς ὁ καθήμενος ἐν σκότει φῶς εἶδεν μέγα, καὶ τοῖς καθημένοις ἐν χώρᾳ καὶ σκιᾷ θανάτου φῶς ἀνέτειλεν αὐτοῖς.¶Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• The peopleὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• The peopleλαόςlaos · a peopleG2992
• satκάθημαιkathēmai · to sitG2521
• inἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• darknessσκότοςskotos · darknessG4655
• sawὁράωhoraō · to see: seeG3708
• greatμέγαςmegas · greatG3173
• lightφῶςphōs · lightG5457
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• to themαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• the regionχώραchōra · countryG5561
• shadowσκιάskia · shadowG4639
• of deathθάνατοςthanatos · deathG2288
• is sprung upἀνατέλλωanatellō · to riseG393

Cross-references for Matthew 4:16

• Psalms 107:10Some people sat in a completely dark place. Iron chains held them as prisoners, and they were very sad.
• Isaiah 42:6‘I have chosen you to bring righteousness. I will take hold of your hand, and I will keep you safe. Through you, I will make a covenant with my people, and you will bring light to the other nations.
• Isaiah 60:1Stand up! Shine brightly! Now your light has come! The Lord's glory has risen to shine on you.
• Micah 7:8My enemy, do not be happy because I am in trouble. I have fallen down, but I will get up. I am in the dark, but the Lord will be a light to me.
• Luke 1:78Our God will forgive us because he is very kind. He will send someone from the highest place. When this person comes, it will be like the sunrise for us.
• Luke 2:32He will bring light to people so that they can know you. He will show you to those people who are not Jews. He will also show that your people of Israel are very special.’
• Job 3:5That day should remain in a dark shadow. Clouds should cover it so that everywhere is black.
• Job 10:22I will go to that very dark place where there are only shadows. In that place, it is still dark when the light shines. ” ’
• Job 34:22People who do wicked things cannot hide themselves. There is no place dark enough for them to hide from God.
• Psalms 44:19But you have broken us in pieces. You have left us for wild dogs to eat. You have covered us with the darkness of death.
• Jeremiah 13:16Give honour to the Lord your God, before it is too late. Do it before he makes everywhere become dark. Then you will fall down, like someone who walks on the mountains at night. You may hope for light to come, but God will make it completely dark.
• Amos 5:8The Lord made the groups of stars called Pleiades and Orion. The Lord changes the night into dawn, and he changes the day back to night again. He takes the water in the sea, and he pours it out as rain on the earth. The Lord is his name!

Commentaries on Matthew 4:16

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16The people which sat in darkness - This is quoted from Isaiah 9:2, where, instead of sitting, the prophet used the word walked. The evangelist might on purpose change the term, to point out the increased misery of the state of these persons. Sitting in darkness expresses a greater degree of intellectual blindness, than walking in darkness does. In the time of Christ's appearing, the people were in a much worse state than in the time of the prophet, which…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 14-16Verses 14-16 That it might be fulfilled … - This place is recorded in Isaiah 9:1-2. Matthew has given the sense, but not the very words of the prophet. For the meaning of the passage as employed by Isaiah, see the notes at Isaiah 9:1-2. By the way of the sea - Which is near to the sea, or in the vicinity of the sea. Beyond Jordan - This does not mean to the east of Jordan, as the phrase sometimes denotes, but rather in the vicinity of the Jordan, or…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-17Verses 12-17 It is just with God to take the gospel and the means of grace, from those that slight them and thrust them away. Christ will not stay long where he is not welcome. Those who are without Christ, are in the dark. They were sitting in this condition, a contented posture; they chose it rather than light; they were willingly ignorant. When the gospel comes, light comes; when it comes to any place, when it comes to any soul, it makes day there…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 12-17John the Baptist and the Father announced Jesus as the Messiah (3:13–17). He then endured testing in the wilderness with obedience (4:1–11). After this, the Messiah was ready to begin his work. He first preached the message of the kingdom of God to the people of Galilee.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1616. The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up--The prophetic strain to which these words belong commences with the seventh chapter of Isaiah, to which the sixth chapter is introductory, and goes down to the end of the twelfth chapter, which hymns the spirit of that whole strain of prophecy. It belongs to the reign of Ahaz and turns upon the combined efforts of the two…Read the comment

Topics related to Matthew 4:16

• Darkness
• Jesus, the Christ
• Light
• Prophecy
• Quotations and Allusions
• Wicked (People)

In the dictionaries

• Shadow of Death
• Capernaum
• Dash
• Fame
• Light
• Naphtali, Tribe of
• Quotations
• Tempter
• Torment
• Zebulun, Lot of

Commentaries on Matthew 4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Catena Aurea
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• John Lightfoot Commentary
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings