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.
• 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.”
• New Living Translation (NLT)the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light. And for those who lived in the land where death casts its shadow, a light has shined.”

Context of Matthew 4:16

14to fulfill what was said through the prophet Isaiah: 15“Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles— 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.” 17From that time on Jesus began to preach, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” 18As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for 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 107:10Some sat in darkness, in utter darkness, prisoners suffering in iron chains,
• Isaiah 42:6“I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles,
• Isaiah 60:1“Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you.
• Micah 7:8Do not gloat over me, my enemy! Though I have fallen, I will rise. Though I sit in darkness, the Lord will be my light.
• Luke 1:78because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven
• Luke 2:32a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel.”
• Job 3:5May gloom and utter darkness claim it once more; may a cloud settle over it; may blackness overwhelm it.
• Job 10:22to the land of deepest night, of utter darkness and disorder, where even the light is like darkness.”
• Job 34:22There is no deep shadow, no utter darkness, where evildoers can hide.
• Psalms 44:19But you crushed us and made us a haunt for jackals; you covered us over with deep darkness.
• Jeremiah 13:16Give glory to the Lord your God before he brings the darkness, before your feet stumble on the darkening hills. You hope for light, but he will turn it to utter darkness and change it to deep gloom.
• Amos 5:8He who made the Pleiades and Orion, who turns midnight into dawn and darkens day into night, who calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out over the face of the land— 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