God & Savior

Matthew 5:14

You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.
Matthew 5:14
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Study notes

Jesus tells His followers that they are the light of the world, like a city on a hill that cannot be hidden.

Explanation

Right after calling His disciples "the salt of the earth" (5:13), Jesus calls them "the light of the world". A city built on a hill can be seen from far away. In the same way, the lives of His followers are meant to be seen.

Original language
  • Ὑμεῖς (Humeis): you
    Greek · Personal pronoun, 2nd person, nominative, plural · Strong's G4771 · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    You yourselves: the word is emphatic.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Matthew 5:14, word 1

  • φῶς (phōs): light
    Greek · Noun, nominative, singular, neuter · Strong's G5457 · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    Light.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Matthew 5:14, word 4

  • κόσμου· (kosmou): world
    Greek · Noun, genitive, singular, masculine · Strong's G2889 · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    World.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Matthew 5:14, word 6

  • πόλις (polis): city
    Greek · Noun, nominative, singular, feminine · Strong's G4172 · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    City.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Matthew 5:14, word 9

  • ὄρους (orous): mountain
    Greek · Noun, genitive, singular, neuter · Strong's G3735 · text: NA28 (as recorded in TAGNT)

    Hill, mountain.

    Source: STEP Bible (Tyndale House, Cambridge), TAGNT: Translators Amalgamated Greek New Testament, STEPBible-Data commit ed476a8, Matthew 5:14, word 12

Cross-references
  • Matthew 5:16 · Surrounding passage

    Let your light shine before men.

  • John 8:12 · Same theme

    Jesus says, I am the light of the world.

  • Philippians 2:15 · Same theme

    You shine as lights in the world.

Sources

Original language and places

Reference data from open datasets, shown as published by their sources. Word-by-word English is a literal guide, not a translation.

Original language (Greek)

Ὑμεῖς ἐστε τὸ φῶς τοῦ κόσμου· οὐ δύναται πόλις κρυβῆναι ἐπάνω ὄρους κειμένη·

  1. ὙμεῖςHumeis“You yourselves”
    Personal pronoun, 2nd person, nominative, plural · from σύ · “you” · Strong's G4771
  2. ἐστεeste“are”
    Verb, present, active, indicative, 2nd person plural · from εἰμί · “to be” · Strong's G1510
  3. τὸto“the”
    Article, nominative, singular, neuter · from ὁ · “the/this/who” · Strong's G3588
  4. φῶςphōs“light”
    Noun, nominative, singular, neuter · “light” · Strong's G5457
  5. τοῦtou“of the”
    Article, genitive, singular, masculine · from ὁ · “the/this/who” · Strong's G3588
  6. κόσμου·kosmou“world;”
    Noun, genitive, singular, masculine · from κόσμος · “world” · Strong's G2889
  7. οὐou“Not”
    Particle, negative · “no” · Strong's G3756
  8. δύναταιdunatai“is able”
    Verb, present, middle or passive (deponent), indicative, 3rd person singular · from δύναμαι · “be able” · Strong's G1410
  9. πόλιςpolis“a city”
    Noun, nominative, singular, feminine · “city” · Strong's G4172
  10. κρυβῆναιkrubēnai“to be hidden”
    Verb, 2nd aorist, passive, infinitive · from κρύπτω · “to hide” · Strong's G2928
  11. ἐπάνωepanō“on”
    Preposition · “above” · Strong's G1883
  12. ὄρουςorous“a hill”
    Noun, genitive, singular, neuter · from ὄρος · “mountain” · Strong's G3735
  13. κειμένη·keimenē“lying;”
    Verb, present, middle or passive (deponent), participle, nominative, singular, feminine · from κεῖμαι · “to lay/be appointed” · Strong's G2749
  • Prepared by the God & Savior team. Not yet reviewed by an editor.
  • Greek words: STEP Bible (STEPBible.org), based on work at Tyndale House, Cambridge. CC BY 4.0. Source (version ed476a8)