Key Words of Matthew 5:13-16

Key Words of Matthew 5:13-16

Because my passage is rather short, there were not too many words that stood out or had a significant, deeper meaning. The words that I thought were the most important were: light, salt, deeds, glorify, and good. When consulting the Anchor and Harper Bible dictionaries, I could only find definitions for a few of the selected words.

The word "salt" was not in the dictionary, but the term "Salt Sea" was. This referred to "one of the designations of the Dead Sea, due to its high content of salt". Although this is not the direct definition of the word salt in my passage, I feel that it still has importance. This sea is mentioned because it is more salty than any other body of water on the planet. When Jesus refers to salt in my selected scripture, he is using it as a metaphor to explain to the people that they need to stand out, using their lives to make an memorable impact on the world. Much like the Salt Sea, Jesus wants his followers to be immensely salty.

The word "good" also appeared in my selected passage. "Good appears in multiple translations of the New Testament and has multiple nuances." The word "good" shows up 228 times in the New Testament. Agathos, "αγαθός", appears 107 times. Kalos, "καλός", appears 104 times. Chrestos, "Χρηστοσ ", is written 7 times. In the NOAB, Jesus says that 'If salt loses its saltiness, it is no longer good for anything', which means it has lost all worth.

The other words that I thought were the most significant were: light, deeds, glorify, and trampled. These words were not defined in the Bible dictionaries that I consulted. But when it comes to interpreting what I think they mean, I know that Jesus uses the word "light" to help create an image that sets a clear example for how people should live. In the New Testament God is sometimes referred to as "light", therefor Jesus' followers must learn to be more Christ like. "Glorify", in my opinion, is just used to tell the people how they should worship; because all things are given unto them by God, all thanks and glory should be given to God.

Works Cited

The Anchor Bible Dictionary. New York [u.a.: Doubleday, 1992. Print.