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

14So what the prophet Isaiah had said came true: 15“Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, on the way to the sea, across the Jordan River, Galilee, where foreigners live! The people who lived in darkness have seen a bright light. A light has risen for those who live in a land overshadowed by death.” 17From then on, Jesus began to tell people, “Turn to God and change the way you think and act, because the kingdom of heaven is near!” 18As he was walking along the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (called Peter) and Andrew. They were throwing a net into the sea because they were fishermen.

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 107:10Those who lived in the dark, in death’s shadow were prisoners in misery. They were held in iron chains
• Isaiah 42:6I, the Lord, have called you to do what is right. I will take hold of your hand. I will protect you. I will appoint you as my promise to the people, as my light to the nations.
• Isaiah 60:1Arise! Shine! Your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has dawned.
• Micah 7:8Don’t laugh at me, my enemies. Although I’ve fallen, I will get up. Although I sit in the dark, the Lord is my light.
• Luke 1:78A new day will dawn on us from above because our God is loving and merciful.
• Luke 2:32He is a light that will reveal ⌞salvation⌟ to the nations and bring glory to your people Israel.”
• Job 3:5Let the darkness and long shadows claim it as their own. Let a dark cloud hang over it. Let the gloom terrify it.
• Job 10:22to a dismal land of long shadows and confusion where light is as bright as darkness. I’ll never return.’ ”
• Job 34:22There’s no darkness or deep shadow where troublemakers can hide.
• Psalms 44:19Yet, you crushed us in a place for jackals and covered us with the shadow of death.
• Jeremiah 13:16Honor the Lord your God before it gets dark, before your feet stumble on the mountains in the twilight. You will look for light, but the Lord will turn it into the shadow of death and change it into deep darkness.
• Amos 5:8God made the ⌞constellations⌟ Pleiades and Orion. He turns deep darkness into dawn. He turns day into night. He calls for water from the sea to pour it over the face of the earth. His name is the Lord.

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