Matthew 5:16

Matthew 5:16 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
• New International Version (NIV)In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
• English Standard Version (ESV)In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.

Context of Matthew 5:16

14“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; 15nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Your light must shine before people in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. 17“Do not presume that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill. 18For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter shall pass from the Law, until all is accomplished!

Matthew 5:16 word by word

οὕτως λαμψάτω τὸ φῶς ὑμῶν ἔμπροσθεν τῶν ἀνθρώπων ὅπως ἴδωσιν ὑμῶν τὰ καλὰ ἔργα καὶ δοξάσωσιν τὸν πατέρα ὑμῶν τὸν ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς.¶Read the interlinear

• Your lightφῶςphōs · lightG5457
• must shineλάμπωlampō · to shineG2989
• beforeἔμπροσθενemprosthen · beforeG1715
• peopleἄνθρωποςanthrōpos · a humanG444
• inοὕτωςhoutō · thus(-ly)G3779
• seeὁράωhoraō · to see: seeG3708
• your goodκαλόςkalos · goodG2570
• worksἔργονergon · workG2041
• glorifyδοξάζωdoxazō · to glorifyG1392
• your Fatherπατήρpatēr · fatherG3962
• who is in heavenοὐρανόςouranos · heavenG3772

Cross-references for Matthew 5:16

• Proverbs 4:18But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn That shines brighter and brighter until the full day.
• Isaiah 58:8Then your light will break out like the dawn, And your recovery will spring up quickly; And your righteousness will go before you; The glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.
• Isaiah 60:1“Arise, shine; for your light has come, And the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.
• Romans 13:11Do this, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we first believed.
• Ephesians 5:8for you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light
• Philippians 2:15so that you will prove yourselves to be blameless and innocent, children of God above reproach in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you appear as lights in the world,
• 1 Thessalonians 2:12so that you would walk in a manner worthy of the God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.
• 1 Thessalonians 5:6so then, let’s not sleep as others do, but let’s be alert and sober.
• 1 Peter 2:9But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
• 1 John 1:5This is the message we have heard from Him and announce to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all.
• Matthew 6:1“Take care not to practice your righteousness in the sight of people, to be noticed by them; otherwise you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven.
• Matthew 23:5And they do all their deeds to be noticed by other people; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments.
• Acts 9:36Now in Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (which when translated means Dorcas); this woman was excelling in acts of kindness and charity which she did habitually.
• Ephesians 2:10For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
• 1 Timothy 2:10but rather by means of good works, as is proper for women making a claim to godliness.
• 1 Timothy 5:10having a reputation for good works; and if she has brought up children, if she has shown hospitality to strangers, if she has washed the saints’ feet, if she has assisted those in distress, and if she has devoted herself to every good work.

Commentaries on Matthew 5:16

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16Let your light so shine - Or more literally, Thus let your light shine, . As the sun is lighted up in the firmament of heaven to diffuse its light and heat freely to every inhabitant of the earth; and as the lamp is not set under the bushel, but placed upon the lamp-stand that it may give light to all in the house; Thus let every follower of Christ, and especially every preacher of the Gospel, diffuse the light of heavenly knowledge, and the warmth of…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16Let your light so shine … - Let your holy life, your pure conversation, and your faithful instructions, be everywhere seen and known. Always, in all societies, in all business, at home and abroad, in prosperity and adversity, let it be seen that you are real Christians. That they may see your good works - The proper motive to influence us is not simply that we may be seen (compare Matthew 6:1), but it should be that our heavenly Father may be glorified…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 13-16Verses 13-16 Ye are the salt of the earth. Mankind, lying in ignorance and wickedness, were as a vast heap, ready to putrify; but Christ sent forth his disciples, by their lives and doctrines to season it with knowledge and grace. If they are not such as they should be, they are as salt that has lost its savour. If a man can take up the profession of Christ, and yet remain graceless, no other doctrine, no other means, can make him profitable. Our light…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16Glorify your Father in heaven: Those who pretend to be religious want people to praise them, but the disciples of Jesus should want people to praise God (see 1 Peter 2:12).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 13-1613-16. We have here the practical application of the foregoing principles to those disciples who sat listening to them, and to their successors in all time. Our Lord, though He began by pronouncing certain characters to be blessed--without express reference to any of His hearers--does not close the beatitudes without intimating that such characters were in existence, and that already they were before Him. Accordingly, from characters He comes to persons…Read the comment

Topics related to Matthew 5:16

• Agency
• Blindness
• Commandments
• Conscience
• Glorifying God
• Influence
• Instruction
• Light
• Readings, Select
• Religion
• Righteous
• Works
• Zeal, Religious

In the dictionaries

• Agree
• Communication
• Despitefully
• Enemy
• Fornication
• Forswear
• Gift
• Hunger
• Inherit
• Jot

Commentaries on Matthew 5

• 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