Salt and Light An Exegesis of Matthew 5:13-16

Rachel Stacy

Earlham School of Religion

B-302

Fall 2010

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Table of Contents

1. Narrative Exploration of the Text a. Matthew 5:13 in 1st century Rome b. Matthew 5:14-16 in early Quakerism

2. Exegesis of Matthew 5:13-16

a. Source Analysis b. Literary Analysis c. Historical Analysis

3. Contemporary Conversation and Conclusion

4. Appendix

a. Synopsis of Kurt Aland, Synopsis of Four Gospels: Greek-English Edition of the Synopsis Quattuor Evaneliorum

b. Greek New Testament, Salt and Light Entry

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Narrative Exploration of the Text:

Systematic theology and exegetical analysis break down texts to examine the place of a

particular piece of writing within different contexts. This is a very intellectual process that

appeals to the workings of the mind. Narrative theology, formally recognized in the last century

but in existence since the beginning of civilization, is the study of how texts appeal to the heart.1

This paper attempts to pair the heart and the head in the exploration of Matthew 5:13-16:

You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and tramped under people’s feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 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.” (ESV) The first part of this paper weaves together stories of fictional people in history and how

they may have responded to this text in their historical contexts. Historical facts are cited and

many of the descriptions come from my own travels to these places. Please see the foot notes for

specific references. The second part of this paper is a formal exegetical analysis of the text

looking at the worlds within and behind Matthew 5:13-16. The last part of the paper examines

the use of the text in relation to contemporary understandings of empire

                                                                                                                         1 Bausch, William J. Storytelling: Imagination and Faith. Mystic, Conn: Twenty-Third Publications, 1984.  

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Matthew 5:13 in 1st Century Rome

I was not born in Rome but I’ve lived here all my life. No, I was born much farther east. Most of my family was born across the small sea too. We are all immigrants and refugees. The year and place of my birth, the Temple burned. It was the second year of the reign of Emperor Vespasian2 and the Jewish zealots had risen in rebellion against the Roman Empire.3 Fearing for our lives, my parents fled Jerusalem with me, only a babe in arms. I have never seen even the walls of the old city, but I know Jerusalem well from the stories of my family.

My parents had been the last of their families to leave the old city. My father’s parents had lived in Tyre4, by the sea when a strange and wonderful man came through the city speaking of a new life. This man, whom his followers called Jesus, spoke of a way of life that gave power and inspiration to the poor, the sick and the disadvantaged. My grandparents were poor Jews and upon hearing Jesus speak they left their families and followed this strange man. They traveled all over the land until Jesus’ death in Jerusalem. There, in the old city, they settled and raised my father. They were part of the first Christian communities and raised my father, not as a Jew, but as a Christian.

Once my father was grown and married to my mother, my grandparents chose to travel the land and visit old friends who had settled in Christian communities throughout the Empire. Their travels led them to Rome where they unfortunately arrived in time for the fires. It was the tenth year of the reign of Emperor Nero. Legend tells that Nero set the fires himself, but regardless of the source, the city of Rome burned and the Christians were blamed5. The fires consumed the city on the North East side of the Tiber River. The Christians were living with other refugees in the decrepit Trastevere. The river protected them from the fires and therefore they were blamed, even through the Emperor was also spared.6 All Christians were banned from inside the city walls. My grandparents settled in a small rural village South East of the city.7

                                                                                                                         2 Today’s dating system did not come into common use until the 800’s A.D. Before this time various dating systems were used. Most common during the time of the Roman Empire was the simple reference to the year of reign of the current empire.  3 González, Justo Luis. In The Story of Christianity, San Francisco, California: Harper & Row, 1990.  4 There is evidence in Matthew 15:21-28 that Jesus traveled through the land of Tyre.  5 González, Justo Luis. In The Story of Christianit , San Francisco, California: Harper & Row, 1990  6 During my travels through Rome I learned that the word Trastevere means “Across the river.” This historically Christian neighborhood is literary across the Tiber river from the rest of Rome. The Roman city walls extended to include this neighborhood but it was the only neighborhood within the Rome on the other side of the Tiber River. See http://nolli.uoregon.edu/wallsOfRome.html for details concerning wall constructions in various periods of Roman history  7 The Appian Way is a collection of small villages that reside on top of the largest maze of Christian catacombs in or near the city of Rome. These villages were not within the city limits of Rome but rather stretched straight east away from Rome’s center. The catacombs were not formally ‘managed’ until the end of the second century but Christians lived in the area before that time. The Vatican has more information about Italy’s catacombs at: http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_commissions/archeo/inglese/documents/rc_com_archeo _doc_20011010_cataccrist_en.html  

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When Nero killed himself and we had the year of four Emperors, Christians were gradually allowed back into Rome. My grandparents and many of their friends choose to stay in their village outside and make a living as farmers. They found that the dark volcanic earth was rich and produced great bounties of crops. The same earth, when dug deeply hardened as it was exposed to moisture.8 They buried their dead in mazes of catacombs beneath their fields. The damp moderate climate was also perfect for an extended growing season and the village was close enough to Rome to trade for what they needed and to send their children to school.

It was into this village that I came as an infant. Life was simple and hard. I grew up among other Christians hearing the stories of our grandparents and of our beloved Jesus through the eyes of our parents. We gathered often in each other’s houses to pray, sing, and tell the stories of our faith. Letters from other Christian communities circulated through our village9 and we in turn responded in greetings and with the occasional theological question. I was sent with my cousins to Rome to learn to read and write Greek and as I became more and more learned in my subjects, I took over reading the letters and collections of stories about Jesus.

I have my own family now with children of my own. It is my turn to pass on the stories and lessons of the faith. I have the duty to gather people together to pray and to study the stories. I have found from my studies that one collection of stories, written by a man named Matthew,10 captures my heart more than others. It is from this collection that I teach my community.

One night, I gathered my children and the community in my small dark house. The floor is simple, hardened earth of the same volcano as our catacombs. The walls are cold field stone and the roof is framed with timber from the forest. This night was no different than any other night: damp and foggy. The fire in the hearth cast shadows across the walls and the heat from the flames cut through the chill as the children huddled together for warmth. I remembered nights like this one when was a child, the shadows of the fire dancing across my imagination, breathing life into the scriptures, and illuminating the lessons of our faith.

                                                                                                                         8 My description of the catacombs is extracted of my own experience during my travels in Rome. However, St. Jerome also visited the catacombs as a young adult and wrote about his visit. Consistent with my experience, Jerome describes that he found “himself in a vast labyrinth of narrow galleries, usually from 3 to 4 feet in width, interspersed with small chambers, excavated at successive levels, in the strata of volcanic rock subjacent to the city and its environs, constructed originally for the interment of the Christian dead.” http://www.1902encyclopedia.com/C/CAT/catacombs.html  9 The letters of Paul to various Christian communities across the Roman Empire are found in the present Christian canon and make reference to other leaders traveling and teaching. The letter to the Romans indicates that there was a flourishing community of Roman Christians who corresponded with various other Christian communities across the Empire.  

The book of Matthew is thought to have been written around 80 A.D. which would place its composition approximately 50-60 years after Jesus’ death. Barr, David L.. "The Book of the New Community: the Gospel According to Matthew." New Testament Story: An Introduction, 309-347. Belmont, California: Wadsworth Pub. Co.,1987.  

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The adults and elders of the community stood around the perimeter of the house, leaning on the stone walls or sitting on a hodgepodge of chairs and hay bales. From an expectant silence, I began my lesson:

“The great teacher of our faith, our salvation and the child of God, stood up on a high mount and spoke to his followers.11 He taught them who would be allowed to enter into the Kingdom of God and who would not be allowed to enter.12 He spoke to these followers, pointing to them, instructing them in their own nature: ‘You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet.’13 What my children, does it mean for us to be the salt of the earth?”

The children are always given the chance to respond first. Jesus had taught us to value the innocent wisdom of children. From their responses, the lesson continued. “Salt is used to season,” one child responded. “It is also used to preserve” another child added.

“Let us start with these two ideas. When salt is used to season, a little bit is used to bring out the true flavor of the food. Like salt, we are called to bring out the true faith in people. We are few, but we can make a large difference in this world. Jesus calls us into our role as salt that enhances the flavor of life.”

“When salt is used to preserve, it casts out that which will destroy the food over time. Salt allows us to keep food for a long time, which relieves us of hunger during times of great famine. In this same way, we are called to be the preservers of the faith. We must preserve our prayers and our stories for times of great need when the world is spiritually hungry.”

Another child responded “salt can be used to cleanse injuries.” “It is also valuable. My father was paid in salt the last time he was in Rome selling our goods at the Roman barracks,”14 piped another voice.

“Yes, salt is very valuable, and therefore we too are valuable. In the face of poverty and persecution we must not forget that Jesus has chosen us to make a difference in this world. Sometimes what we have to say or contribute can sting, as salt stings when cleaning a wound, but in the end we are called to clean the world of impurities so that humanity can heal to the true faith.”

                                                                                                                         11 Matthew 5:1  12 Beatitudes, Matthew 5:3-10  13 Matthew 5:13  14 Historians believe that salt was used as a kind of currency. Marco Polo repeatedly mentioned the use of salt as currency: see The Travels of Marco Polo the Venetian, Marsden-Wright ed. London 1901, p. 259- 336. At the turn of the 20th century, salt was still being used as currency in North Africa and in countries along the Silk Road. Casal, U.A. 1958. "Salt." Monumenta Nipponica 14, no. 1/2: 61-20.  

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At this point in the lesson, my son challenged my teachings. “You have taught us that in the Hebrew Scriptures, salt was used, not only to cleanse, but to kill.15 Salt was spread on the fields of losing side in battles in order to kill the land and punish the people. 16 How can Jesus say that we are the salt of the earth without implying that we too can harm people with our faith!”

From a dark corner of the house, a deep and wavering voice responded to my son’s question. “If you don’t mind, I have a story for the young boy.” One of the elders emerged from the shadows and continued, “Once there was young man who had found himself on the wrong side of a grueling battle. His land had been salted by the enemy in his defeat. Everything that had grown on that land died and as a farmer, this meant that his livelihood was all but forsaken. Luckily, there was a small grove of trees on his property that had been spared the poison. The young man cut down the trees and plowed the land, finding a small but viable parcel to farm. In the spring, the young man went down to his land and sowed the small plot. His heart grew heavy as he looked at the rest of his farm, dead and desolate, and a small still voice spoke to him, urging him to plow and sow the barren wasteland. Now this young man was a faithful man and he believed that God could do miracles. He plowed and sowed the rest of his farm. The small plot produced bountifully. The rest of the land remained dead.

The second year, the young man went out to his land and again plowed and sowed the small plot. He looked again out over the rest of his farm. Bending down, he scooped up a small bit of earth. He rubbed the earth between his fingers and tasted it. He could taste the salt that had killed his land but again his heart grew heavy and a still small voice inside him urged him to plow and sow the land. Being a faithful man, the farmer obliged the voice, but alas, for a second time, the land law fallow.

The third year, the young man went out to his land and plowed and sowed the small plot. The small still voice inside him prodded him to once again plow and sow the rest of his land. Being a faithful man, the farmer plowed and sowed the rest of his land. Once he was done, the man whispered a prayer under his breath ‘God, I have done what you have asked but I am losing my faith that you will provide, please God, heal my land from the violence bestowed upon it.”

A few weeks later, the young man went out to his fields. The small plot was growing well, green sprouts had shot up and the young farmer predicted it would be a fine harvest. He walked over the rest of his land and bending down to look closely, he yelped in surprise. For across the rest of his once barren land, small green sprouts dotted the landscape. Over the next weeks and months

                                                                                                                         15 Too much salt can cause heart attacks in humans. It can also kill organisms such as slugs or fish that depend on fresh water. Cells attempt to balance the salinity inside and outside their cell membranes. When the concentration of salt outside a cell is higher than the concentration of salt inside the cell, the water in the cell diffuses through the membrane in an attempt to dilute the higher salinity level and achieve equilibrium. The result is cell dehydration and death. In reverse, water diffuses into the cell and the cell swells, bursts and also dies.  16 In the Hebrew Scriptures salt was often used by the victors of a battle to lay waste to the loser’s fields. Judges 9:45 is one example.  

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the plants grew steadily until the land produced the most bountiful harvest that the man had ever seen.

For you see, the salt that had once been poison had been broken down by the water and the wind and mixed with the dark rich earth. What had once killed everything in its potency now fertilized the soil and produced greatness.17 In concentration, we too can cause much damage, but God works with us, mixes us with the world and transforms us into fertilizers for his faith to grow. We must trust in God to use us as salt of the earth.”

After thanking our elder for his wise story, I turned the lesson back to the text. “What happens though, when salt loses its saltiness? Is it possible for salt to lose its saltiness?”

My oldest daughter responded to this question. “Mother places salt in a cool dry place because the dampness of the air can wash away the salt, all that is left is grit and stone.”18

“Very good. Yes, salt can lose its saltiness. Salt comes from a far off place, closer to where I was born than where we are here.19 Since it comes from so far away, it is very valuable and very peculiar in its nature. Salt will lose its saltiness if it is exposed to our damp environment, leaving us grit and stone.20 We too, as people of faith, can lose our saltiness. We can lose our ability to season, to preserve, and to cleanse. Once we stray from our faith, we cannot gain our role back. As salt cannot regain its saltiness once it has lost it, we cannot regain our place as teachers of the gospel once we have denounced Jesus and his teachings. Be careful my children. Stay true to the faith. You are the salt of the earth.”

                                                                                                                         17 Eugene Deatrick claims in his article “Salt, Soil, Savior” Biblical Archaeologist 25, no. 2: 41-48, that agricultural literature supports the use of salt as fertilizer and such usage was known in ancient times. “We do not as yet fully understand the stimulating effect of sodium chloride, but we surmise it is linked to the liberation of ‘certain plant nutrients, such as potassium’”  18 Salt can be extracted from the earth in several forms. The term “salt” refers to an ionic compound that completely disassociates in water. Salt is most likely found as a chloride compound and can be extracted from salt water, soil, and rock formations. Magnesium and Calcium chlorides are less stable than the common Sodium Chloride. After dissociation the residual Magnesium and Calcium compounds can be mistaken as grit or stone.  19 The Dead Sea was a common source of salt during the historical period of the Christian Scriptures. The salt from the Dead Sea is a mixture of Magnesium, Sodium and Calcium chlorides. Edward Robinson in his book Biblical Researches in Palestine and Adjacent Regions, vol 1, 2nd ed, London, claims that Magnesium would introduce a bitterness into the taste of the salt thus masking the expected saltiness. Modern scientists would agree with this claim.  20 Gypsum was also often found among salt. Gypsum is a calcium sulfate hydrate which could mask the taste of saltiness and could also contribute to the decomposition of calcium chloride.  

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Matthew 5:14-16 in early Quakerism

“Elizabeth! Would you please hurry up! We need to leave now to arrive on time!”

“One minute mum!”

This is the state of my life. I am sixteen years of age and too smart for my own good. My parents would put me in a convent if the family was still Catholic but that has not been the case for many generations. Most of my friends have been married off but I remain, without even a suitor to pursue me. My parents are hoping that today may change things for me. Our whole family has been invited to attend worship at Swarthmoor Hall, the home of the great Judge Fell.21 Many families will be in attendance. Perhaps there is hope for me yet!

The year is 1656 and England is a mess. It has been seven years since King Charles was beheaded and Cromwell is in control of the country.22 Well, control is relative. Father says I should not be as knowledgeable as I am of country politics; apparently it is unseemly for a young woman. How can I not be aware of what is happening?! My country is in civil war!

In the last hundred years, since the Protestant Reformation began with Martin Luther nailing his thesis to the church door, hundreds of religious groups have emerged seeking the “one true faith.”23 When Cromwell took over in 1649, he tried to unite the splintered Protestant groups, but now he is only making trouble for himself.24 The very wealthy and the very poor despise him and his is at odds with Parliament. Trouble is just around the corner!

My parents grew up in the Church of England but have strayed from the state church and found a home in the community based movements of the Puritans. Our family is supportive of Cromwell, but father says I am not to mention that at the Fell’s residence. Judge Fell works closely with Parliament and would not look favorably on our family if he knew.

Our carriage bumps up and down the rocky road. We live only a short distance from Swarthmoor Hall and I have often seen all sorts of interesting people traveling on their way to visit the Fells. The gossip of the town tells of the Fells hosting the notorious George Fox. Mr. Fox is known

                                                                                                                         21 Swarthmoor Hall was the home of Judge and Margaret Fell: “Swarthmoor Hall was built about 1586 by George Fell, a local landowner. His son, Thomas, inherited the Hall and here in 1652 George Fox, the founder of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), gained the support and encouragement of Margaret, Thomas’ wife. For several years Swarthmoor Hall was the “powerhouse” behind the movement, which spread all over the country, to the Americas and continental Europe before the end of the century.”The estate still stands today and can be visited quiet easily. More information about the estate and its history can be found at http://www.swarthmoorhall.co.uk/history.htm  22 González, Justo L. The Story of Christianity. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1984.  23 Ibid.  24 Ibid.  

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throughout these parts as a trouble maker. He stood up in one of the churches south of here and challenged the minister during the service!25 Oh, how I would love to meet him!

There are all sorts of new religious movements. The Diggers and the Seekers26 are two that come by often with their preachers. Mr. Fox is starting one called the Religious Society of Friends. He believes that Christ has already come again and is living among us. I hear that Margaret Fell, Judge Fell’s wife is one of Mr. Fox’s followers and that their movement allows women to preach and teach! Perhaps this invitation to the Fells will be more interesting that I thought!

We arrive at Swarthmoor Hall with plenty of time before the service begins. The courtyard is beautiful! This time of year the weather is still damp and grey but the plants love the moisture and the pinks and purples of the spring flowers are bursting with joy. There ivy creeping up the wall of Swarthmoor’s stone buildings expresses a vivid green and an orange cat sits in one of the upstairs windows, framed by the diamond shaped window panes.27

As we walk into the grand house, my parents abandon me to give their greetings to the Fells. The wood floor beneath my feet glistens with its recently applied polish and the hallways leads me to a small, quaint library. There are shelves of books from the floor to the ceiling; each book is leather bound and good leafed. I’ve never seen so many books! Gingerly, I caress the spines of the many volumes, pausing ever so often to tilt a book back to read its cover. I am in heaven!

Beside a simple padded armchair, a stand displays a volume larger than the others on the shelves. The book is also leathered bound and gold leafed. A satin ribbon runs down its open middle marking the page for future use. This beautiful book is a copy of the Holy Scriptures and simple elegant letters flow up and down the page. It is open to the book of Matthew, chapter 5. Using my index finger as a guide, I read out loud with only the books on the shelves as my witness:

“You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your hood works and give glory to your father who is in heaven.”28

The words seep in to my heart as I stand there before the Scriptures in silence. I faintly hear my parents calling me from another part of the house. I breath in deeply, exhale, and turn to join them.

                                                                                                                         25 Margaret Fell wrote of her convincement to Fox’s movement. George Fox stood up during a service at the Ulverston steeple house and confronted the preacher "Then what had any to do with the scriptures, but as they came to the Spirit that gave them forth? You will say, 'Christ saith this, and the apostles say this;' but what canst thou say? Art thou a child of the Light, and hast thou walked in the Light, and what thou speakest, is it inwardly from God?" from "The testimony of Margaret Fox concerning her late husband," from The Journal of George Fox, 1694.  26 González, Justo L. The Story of Christianity. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1984.  27 This description of Swarthmoor Hall comes from my own travels in 2005.  28 Matthew 5:14-16  

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The worship service is on the second floor the house. A tight spiral staircase leads me to the room. Before entering I glance down the hall opposite the doorway and see a small study. The door is propped open and a distinguished man in his middle age sits writing diligently at his desk. My father had told me in preparation to this visit that Judge Fell never attends the worship at his house. He listens in from down the hall, but finds it a conflict of interest with his government work to engage in such a subversive worship.29

I enter place of worship to find a simple room. There are rows of benches positioned towards a single wall with a line of benches facing back from it. On these facing bench sits a proper young woman who could only be Mrs. Fell and disheveled young man with shaggy hair and leather britches.30 Could it be? George Fox? My heart beats fast with excitement!

The room is filled with people. Some people I know and many people I do not know. I find a seat beside my parents and settle into the expectant silence that is characteristic of worship among the Friends. We are all here to hear the great preachers speak. Father told me that if the Holy Spirit speaks to me I have the responsibility to share such a message with the meeting.31 I couldn’t imagine speaking in front of all these people. The very thought of it makes me tremble.

As the silence deepens, I find that I am not the only one trembling. Mr. Fox appears to be shaking up and down his body. His hands are the most visible, trembling as if he had seen a ghost. The rest of his body, slow at first and then much more apparently begins to quake until it seems like he will leap out of his seat and begin to dance.32

The silence continues. We all are waiting.

In a blink of an eye, Mr. Fox is standing and begins to speak:

“And so Christ, who is the light, who enlightens every man that comes into the world with his divine light, which is called, the life in the word, which was in the beginning, who is the light of the world; which is not a natural light, or a created light, but a spiritual, heavenly, and a divine light, which enlightens every man’s spirit that comes into the world, his candle; for, the spirit of man, is the candle of the Lord, and the candlestick is everyman’s body, mind, soul, and conscience, that with this spirit their candle being lighted, and set up in its candlestick, they may see all that is in the house; and with this light they may see Christ that died for them, and is risen for them…So this light of Christ, which enlightens every man that comes into the world, is not

                                                                                                                         29 I heard this explanation of Judge Fell’s absence from Quaker worship during my tour of Swarthmoor Hall in 2005. In sharing of this paper with colleagues who are Quaker scholars, they confirmed that Judge Fell listen in on worship from down the hall in his study.  30 “In my old leather britches and my shaggy, shaggy locks” is a line from an English folk song describing the physical appearance of George Fox. Fox was known for his devotion to simplicity.  31 Friends believe that the Holy Spirit fills the vessel of the individual with a message. Faithfulness is in part measured discernment of this message of the Spirit and the sharing of it with the community.  32 Members of the Religious Society of Friends were called Quakers because of the physical trembling they exhibited when speaking in worship.  

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natural, but enlightens every man’s natural spirit, which is the candle; and they that love the light, love that which lights their candle, their spirit.”33

His words bring be back to the moment in the library where I read the words of the Holy Scriptures out loud. Am I the light of the world? Is there the light of Christ inside of me? Is there the light of Christ inside each person here? I look deep inside myself and feel the flickering flame of Christ begging to shine out. All my life, I ponder, I have felt hidden; a basket covering my life and my light. The words of spoken by Mr. Fox pierce through the basket and speak to my very soul. Shine forth Elizabeth! Speak truth!

In those moments I am convinced of the truth that Mr. Fox speaks. Tears fill my eyes and I find that I too am quaking with the beauty of the light. I am the light of the world! I am a city on a hill that cannot be hid. All my worries of marriage and future escape me and I find myself basking in the arms of God. The silence envelops me.

Before I know it worship is over. Others have spoken but I have not heard them. Leaving my parents to their socializing and match making, I walk confidently up to Mr. Fox and thank him deeply for his faithfulness. His eyes seem to dance in the fading light of the evening as he responds “We do not use formal titles my sister, please call me George, your brother in Christ.”34

                                                                                                                         33 Spirit of Man The Candle Of The Lord Works of George Fox (Volume 5): Digital Quaker Collection Electronic Edition Fox, George. Fox, George.  34 Quakers believed in radical equality and dismissed class titles.  

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Exegesis of Matthew 5:13-16

Matthew 5:13-16 describes the followers of Jesus as ‘salt’ and ‘light’:

You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and tramped under people’s feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 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. (ESV)

These verses are traditionally grouped together because of their metaphorical similarities.

However, some scholars claim that the previous verses, Matthew 5:11-12 are part of this

pericope. While Matthew 5:11-12 follows the structure of the previous Beatitudes “Blessed

are… for...” this ninth Beatitude addresses its subject in the second person plural. “Blessed are

you when they revile you and persecute you and say all kinds of evil against you on my account.

Be overjoyed, for your reward is great in the heavens.” The same subject is addressed in the

second person plural in Matthew 5:13-16. Paul Minear, in his article “The Salt of the Earth”

suggests that for these grammatical reasons, Matthew 5:11-12 belongs with Matthew 5:13-16

rather than with the other Beatitudes.35 For the purpose of this exegesis, the traditional grouping

due to metaphorical similarities will be used but the alternative pericope suggestion will be taken

in consideration of the relationship of Matthew 5:13-16 with the rest of the sermon

There is little difference between modern translations. This passage has evaded any

specific controversies due to accidental changes or text critical analysis. The English Standard

Version (ESV) will be used throughout this paper because of its use of the word ‘basket’ which

is consistent with the Greek word µοδιον which means a dry measure of grain, usually measured

                                                                                                                         35 Minear, Paul Sevier. 1997. "The Salt of the Earth." Interpretation 51, no. 1: 31-41.  

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out in a standard basket.36 The ESV also uses gender neutral language which it can be argued is

an appropriate translation of the Greek since Jesus was most likely at the time speaking to both

men and women.

The book of Matthew was written after the book of Mark and after the writing of many of

the apostolic letters. Although there are many opinions, the gospels of Matthew and Luke may

have been written around the same time. Both Matthew and Luke appear to use some of the

material of the book of Mark and some of the material of another common source that scholars

term “Q”. This Q source was most likely a common oral tradition, similar to other oral traditions

that influenced the gospels independently.

Similar material is found in the books of Mark and Luke but in different places. Kurt

Aland, in his Synopsis of the Four Gospels: Greek-English Edition of the Synopsis Quattuor

Evaneliorum, demonstrates that there is little difference between Matthew 5:13, Mark 9:49-50

and Luke 14:34-35.37 Each passage speaks of salt and asks the question concerning what will

happen when the salt loses its saltiness. The passage “It is no longer good for anything except to

be thrown out and trodden underfoot by men” is shared between Matthew and Luke but does not

appear in Mark. This supports that Matthew and Luke share a common oral tradition apart from

the writings of Mark.

The differences between the three books emerge in their context to the wider work. Mark

and Luke do not locate their passages in the context of the Sermon of the Mount. Mark inserts

his words after an admonishment of sin; Luke warns the disciples while giving careful

                                                                                                                         36 Bushell, Michael S. and Michael D. Tan. BibleWorks 6.0.009i BibleWorks, 2003.  37 Aland, Kurt. Synopsis of the Four Gospels: Greek-English Edition of the Synopsis Quattuor Evangeliorum ; on the Basis of the Greek Text of Nestle-Aland 26th Edition and Greek New Testament 3rd Edition ; Stuttgart: German Bible Society, 1987.  

Stacy 15  

instructions for discipleship. While Matthew uses 5:13 as a statement of inspiration and

empowerment, stating that the disciples are the salt, Mark and Luke use the metaphor of salt as a

direct warning.

Matthew 5:14-15 reflects the same similarities and differences with Mark (4:21) and

Luke (8:16) as Matthew 5:13. While the choice of words is similar among the three books, the

context of the passages is different. Mark and Luke use the example of a light being hid under a

basket to demonstrate that neither the gospel nor the sins of humanity can be hidden. Rather the

light of the word of God will cast light to revel the unfaithful. Matthew 5:14-15 uses the imagery

of the light and the basket to identify Jesus’ followers as the light that will shine through the

darkness of the world. Rather than a warning that God will catch the sinners, Matthew 5:14-15

urges followers of Jesus to act as light reveling injustice and demonstrating faithfulness.

Matthew 5:16 is unique among the synoptic gospels. W.J. Dumbrell in his article “The

Logic of the Role of the Law in Matthew V 1-20” claims that the addition of Matthew 16 to the

salt and light metaphors represents the author’s familiarity with Jewish law. Drumbrell writes

that “it was a rabbinical commonplace that good deeds sanctified the Holy Name while bad

deeds profaned it, discrediting both Israel and God.”38 The rest of Matthew 5:13-16 support this

claim of influence from rabbinic sources. The symbols of salt and light are used extensively in

the Hebrew Scriptures and contemporary Jewish writings.

In the Hebrew Scriptures salt is most often used in reference to covenants. 2 Chronicles

13:5 describes a covenant of salt made between the kingdom of David and God. Numbers 18:19

mentions a covenant of salt established eternally between the God and the Israelites. Leviticus

                                                                                                                         38 Dumbrell, William J. 1981. "The logic of the role of the law in Matthew 5:1-20." Novum testamentum 23, no. 1: 16.  

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2:13 explicitly instructs followers to salt all of their offerings that are meant to symbolize their

covenant with God. From the evidence of these passages, W.J. Dumbrell suggests that

“durability and fidelity to an established arrangement lies behind the use of the salt figure in

covenant contexts in the Old Testament.”39

Light carried a variety of meanings within the Hebrew Scriptures; it symbolized the Holy

Spirit, freedom from oppression, and wisdom in the presence of chaos. The writings of the

prophet Isaiah references light often in contrast to the darkness of war and injustice:

Then your light will break forth like the dawn, and your healing will quickly appear;

then your righteousness[a] will go before you, and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.

Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.

If you do away with the yoke of oppression, with the pointing finger and malicious talk,

and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness,

and your night will become like the noonday.

(Isaiah 58:8-10)

Daniel 12:3 depicts those of wisdom shining like stars in the sky. The symbolic use of

light as wisdom is also used in other Jewish writings that are contemporary to the Hebrew and

Christian Scriptures. Baruch 4:2 depicts wisdom as a woman who is shining brightly of light..

The Gospel of Thomas also makes reference to light and is more similar to Matthew 14-16 than

what is found in the Synoptic Gospels.40

                                                                                                                         39 Ibid. 12  40 The Nag Hammadi Library, revised edition. HarperCollins,. "Gospel of Thomas (Lambdin Translation) -- The Nag Hammadi Library." The Gnosis Archive. http://www.gnosis.org/naghamm/gthlamb.html (accessed December 7, 2010).  

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Literary Analysis

Jesus had traveled all across the region before heading up to the mountain to speak.

Matthew 4:25 writes the Jesus went up to the mountain to get away from crowds that followed

him “from Galilee and the Decapolis and Jerusalem and Judea and from beyond Jordon.” Some

may interpret this action of climbing the mountains as an act of finding some solitude to teach

his disciples in peace, while other may interpret this action as an act of finding higher ground so

that he could speak to a greater number of people.

Matthew 5:13-16 is part of the larger sermon, the Sermon on the Mount. This section

represents the genre of monologue, where there is a single voice narrating. The narrator, who is

Jesus, serves the role as teacher to a group of listeners. The sermon begins with the beatitudes

which outline who can enter the kingdom of God. Then in Matthew 5:13-16, Jesus states that the

disciples may be among those who are blessed. However, following this passage Jesus warns the

disciples what will happen if they digress. Dale Allison, in his article “The Structure of the

Sermon on the Mount” suggests that Matthew 5:13-16 is used as a transition from an

eschatological description, Matthew 5:1-12, to a missiological description, Matthew 5:17-7:28.41

The distinction between salt and light may also represent the distinction between

eschatology and missiology. While the two statements of salt and light appear in parallel because

of their similar metaphorical structures, salt could refer to the nature of the disciples and light to

their intended function.42 This two-fold literary structure is consistent with the supporting

explanations of salt and light. If the disciples lose their saltiness, also translated as to become

                                                                                                                         41 Allison, Dale C, Jr. 1987. "The structure of the Sermon on the Mount." Journal of Biblical Literature 106, no. 3: 423-445.  42 Olley, John W. 2003. "You are light of the world": a missiological focus for the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew." Mission Studies 20, no. 1: 12  

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foolish,43 then they reject their eschatological destiny. The function as light is the disciples’

mission to the world. They are instructed to let their light shine which is the glory of God.

The structural development from an eschatological focus to a missiological focus is

characteristic to the Gospel of Matthew as a whole. Matthew can be broken up into five different

sections that are separated by “When Jesus had finished saying these things…” (7:28; 11:1;

13:53; 19:1; 26:1).44 Each of these sections consists of a sermon and a series of parables that

appear to demonstrate how individuals should live out the content of the sermons.45John Olley,

in his article “’You are the Light of the World’: A Missiological Focus for the Sermon on the

Mount in Matthew” claims that within the total structure of the gospel of Matthew:

There is a missiological thrust to all, living the ways of the kingdom, making it known to others, despite opposition. There is also the eschatological dimension, living now in anticipating of the future. Thus in the commissioning of the twelve, the message to be proclaimed (along with actions) is: “the kingdom of heaven has come near” (10:7_ The petition of the Lord’s Prayer, in the middle of the sermon of the mount, “your kingdom come, your will be done…” is to be lived out now in words and actions that anticipate the future.46

                                                                                                                         43 Allen, Loyd. 1992. "The Sermon on the Mount in the history of the church." Review & Expositor 89, no. 2: 245-262.  44 Olley, John W. 2003. "You are light of the world": a missiological focus for the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew." Mission Studies 20, no. 1: 21  45 Barr, David L.. "The Book of the New Community: the Gospel According to Matthew." New Testament Story: An Introduction, 309-347. Belmont, California: Wadsworth Pub. Co., 1987.  46 Olley, John W. 2003. "You are light of the world": a missiological focus for the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew." Mission Studies 20, no. 1: 21  

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Historical Analysis

Over the course of Jesus’ life and beyond, the political status of Rome was tumultuous.

During the first 80 years of the Common Era, Rome had nine different rulers. Each of these

rulers persecuted Christians with variegated persistence. Hellenized Jews who had converted to

Christianity experienced the brunt of this persecution. Under Emperor Claudius, Jews and

Christians (who at that point were still part of the Jewish community) were expelled from Rome

in 51 C.E. Over the next fifteen years, Jewish nationalism increased in response to the Roman

persecution. Christian communities gained more and more Gentile converts. Jews and Christians

began to divide into clear groups but their communities were still somewhat intertwined. In 64

C.E. the Christians were blamed for the great fire of Rome and were again expelled from Rome.

In 66 C.E. the Jewish community revolted against Emperor Nero. The rebellion lasted seven

years and spread from Rome to Jerusalem and beyond. In 70 C.E. the Jewish Temple in

Jerusalem was destroyed for the second time.47

The destruction of the Temple marked a possible fulfillment of prophecy and a turning

point in history. Christianity was in its second generation and children were being brought up

without knowledge of the practices of their Jewish or Pagan religious heritage. Christians had

separate burial places and unique burial practices. They believed that they lived during the last

days where the prophecies of the Hebrew Scriptures had been fulfilled and continued to be

fulfilled. During this period, Judaism and Christianity continued to separate.

Some scholars place the writing of the book of Matthew around 80 C.E. This places the

authorship just out of the reasonable range for apostolic claim. The author is anonymous but not

                                                                                                                         47 Historical events and dates are extracted from González, Justo Luis. "Chapters 1-5." In The Story of Christianity , 7-38. San Francisco, California: Harper & Row, 1990.  

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unknown; the author was a Matthew among many Matthews. There is evidence, by means of the

extensive references to the Hebrew Scriptures, that the author was influenced by the Oral Torah;

which leads to a general assumption that the author of Matthew was Jewish. However, because

the gospel was written in Greek and places emphasis on ethics and purity, the author was most

likely a Hellenized Jew, belonging to the first generation of Christians, perhaps having converted

as a small child.48

The Jesus Seminar, a group of biblical scholars founded in 1985, extensively questioned

the accuracy of the Sermon of the Mount as Jesus’ words. Parts of the Sermon were thought to

be Jesus’ words, parts were thought to be complete redactions and other pieces were thought to

be heavily edited versions of what Jesus’ taught. Warren Carter, in his article “Some

Contemporary Scholarship on the Sermon on the Mount” relays that the Jesus Seminar believed

that most of Matthew 5:13-16 was likely similar to what Jesus’ said but “the declaration in 5.13

‘You are the salt of the earth’, evidences Matthaean redaction.”49 This addition by the author of

the Gospel of Matthew most likely was intended to speak directly to the experience of his late

first century audience.

Matthew’s first century Christian audience would have understood the many uses of salt;

some of which include: stimulation, food enhancing, purification, and preservation.50 Salt is

essential for human life; it plays a part in the life of cells; salt regulates the movement of fluids

throughout the body. The Dead Sea was a common source of salt during the historical period of

the Christian Scriptures, but salt could also have been extracted from rock deposits, marshes and

                                                                                                                         48 Barr, David L.. "The Book of the New Community: the Gospel According to Matthew." New Testament Story: An Introduction, 309-347. Belmont, California: Wadsworth Pub. Co., 1987.  49 Carter, Warren. 1996. "Some Contemporary Scholarship on the Sermon on the Mount." Currents in Research 4, 183-215.  50 Davies, WD and Dale Allison. A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Gospel According to Saint Matthew, 1. Edinburg T&T Clark, 1998. 472  

Stacy 21  

other bodies of salt water. Modern scientists generally define salt as an ionic compound that

completely disassociates in water. Salt is most commonly found as a chloride compound and

Sodium Chloride is used most frequently as table salt. Magnesium and Calcium chlorides are

less stable than the Sodium Chloride because of the molecular size and effective nuclear

charge.51 After dissociation the residual Magnesium and Calcium compounds, often oxides, can

be mistaken as grit or stone. The salt from the Dead Sea is a mixture of Magnesium, Sodium and

Calcium chlorides. Edward Robinson in his book Biblical Researches in Palestine and Adjacent

Regions, claims that Magnesium would introduce a bitterness into the taste of the salt thus

masking the expected saltiness.52 Gypsum was also often found among salt. Gypsum is a calcium

sulfate hydrate which could also mask the taste of saltiness and could contribute to the

decomposition of calcium chloride.

Matthew’s first century Christian audience would have also been familiar with the use of

salt in the Hebrew Scriptures to destroy fields. Eugene Deatrick counters this use of salt in his

article “Salt, Soil, Savior”, arguing that agricultural literature describes the use of salt as fertilizer

since ancient times. “We do not as yet fully understand the stimulating effect of sodium chloride,

but we surmise it is linked to the liberation of ‘certain plant nutrients, such as potassium’”53

Therefore Matthew’s audience would have known both the negative and positive effects that salt

could have on the earth and perhaps complexifying the meaning of the metaphor. Drumbrell

works with this complexity in his theory that Matthew 5:13 suggests that “like the Servant

community before them [the disciples], the fulfillment of their mission to the world will involve

                                                                                                                         51 Basic knowledge of the periodic table and its properties explain the behavior of these different salts.  52 Robinson, Edward. Biblical Researches in Palestine and Adjacent Regions, vol 1, 2nd ed, London,  53 Deatrick, Eugene“Salt, Soil, Savior” Biblical Archaeologist 25, no. 2: 45  

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suffering yet the very fact of suffering will confirm their covenantal role as the salt of the

earth.”54

They symbol of light would also have had many meanings to the first century audience

and is perhaps more universal in nature than the symbol of salt. However, the equation of the

light of the world to a city on the hill alludes to references of Jerusalem and Zion. The writings

of the prophet Isaiah use many references to light and darkness:

Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you.

For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples;

but the LORD will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you. And nations shall come to your light,

and kings to the brightness of your rising.

(Isaiah 60:1-3)

These verses refer to New Jerusalem and an eschatological hope for world without all

that could be metaphorically referred to as darkness: poverty, oppression, violence, greed, etc.

The audience of Matthew 5:14-16 are instructed to be the light that illuminates these aspects of

darkness and thus live into the new kingdom of God. This eschatological construction is

supported by the pervious verses of the Beatitudes and its missiological implications are

explored in detail in Matthew 5:17-7:28. For Christians living during the time of the destruction

of the Jewish Temple, such an eschatological hope may have felt like an impending reality.

                                                                                                                         54 Dumbrell, William J. 1981. "The logic of the role of the law in Matthew 5:1-20." Novum testamentum 23, no. 1: 13  

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Contemporary Conversation and Conclusion

Jesus’ message through the writings of the Gospel of Matthew was not only intended for

a Christian audience but it was also intended to be a challenge to imperial political, social and

economic conventions. Warren Carter explores Jesus’ relationship with the Roman Empire in his

book, Matthew and Empire. Carter proposes that Jesus called for his movement to be in direct

conflict with imperialism:

He calls the community of disciples to form an alternative society in which the quest for power and wealth as the goal of human existence and makers of a person’s status is renounced. Instead, the only value status is to be a marginal slave, an outsider, on the edge, at the bottom, one who lives to secure the well-being of others. He calls his followers to for a community that is antithetical to everything the Empire’s resulting elite or aristocracy holds to be important.55

Jesus’ political, social and economic subversion is present in Matthew 5:13-16. In being

salt and light, Jesus called out his disciples to bring about the kingdom of God. The Gospel of

Matthew, in general, depicts Jesus as a political revolutionary who was killed on the cross for the

political danger he posed to the Jews and the Romans in power.

This idea of the kingdom of God, the New Jerusalem, or Zion threatened the Roman

Empire and has continued to threaten the power of empires of the world throughout history.

Once Christianity became legal during the reign of Constantine,56 the Christian church developed

into the empire that it once resisted. In turn, the Protestant Reformation challenged the empire of

the Roman Catholic Church. The Protestants swiftly gained political power and within 100 years

of Martin Luther nailing his theses on the church door, Protestant nation states were carving out

                                                                                                                         55 Carter, Warren. Matthew and Empire: Initial Explorations. Harrisburg, PA: Trinity Press International, 2001. 10  56 González, Justo Luis. The Story of Christianity , 7-38. San Francisco, California: Harper & Row, 1990.  

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pieces of the New World and warring among themselves. In 1630, John Winthrop warned the

Puritans of the New World of the dangers of their conquest:

For we must consider that we shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us. So that if we shall deal falsely with our God in the work we have undertaken… we shall shame the faces of many of God’s worthy servants, and cause their prayers to be turned into curses upon us till we be consumed out of the good land whither we are going.57 Unfortunately this warning went unheeded and the Puritans who settled in the New

World acted towards the American natives, imported slaves, and minority religious groups in the

same fashion the prior imperialists had acted towards the Puritans.

At the same time, the Anglican monarchy was overthrown and Oliver Cromwell was

leading the government as the Lord Protector of England by1653. The Religious Society of

Friends was founded during this political turmoil and struggled to serve as salt and light to a

changing world. Six years after the Religious Society of Friends was founded, Cromwell died

from illness and England returned a state of chaos until Charles II was invited to return to the

English throne in 1660.58 Friends advocated for the end of war and for the end of economic

disparities. They worked to abolish slavery and establish religious freedom in England. Fair,

equal, and human rights for the insane, the incarcerated and the oppressed were also campaigns

of the early Friends.59

                                                                                                                         57 John Winthrop, "A Model of Christian Charity," http://religiousfreedom.lib.virginia.edu/sacred/charity.html, (December 7, 2010). 58 González, Justo L. The Story of Christianity. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1984.  59 Vipont, Elfrida, and Anne E. G. Nydam. George Fox and the Valiant Sixty. Philadelphia, Pa: Friends General Conference, 1997.  

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Quakers, as members of the Religious Society of Friends came to be known, believed that

there was the light of God in each person.60 Quakers thought that Matthew 5:14-16 identified a

part of human nature which the individual had responsibility to nurture and tend. Like a

lighthouse showing the way home to shore, Jesus called each of his followers to led the way for

others, but the lighthouse must be kept clean and the light bright.

Regardless of the work and witness of the Quakers, Britain developed in to the British

Empire and colonized not only the New World but much of Africa, Asia, and the Pacific. British

colonialists believed that they were bringing light to the darkness of the world in that they were

bringing civilization to the savage. Missionary quests confused service with conquest and the

reign of the British Empire was a long and bloody one. Colonization did not come to an end until

the 20th century when the World Wars strained Britain’s economic and political capabilities and

revolutions by British ‘subjects’ claimed individual national independence. 61

Dietrich Bonhoeffer also wrote about being salt and light during a time of Empire. The

Empire he experienced was the Empire of Nazi Germany before and during WWII. Similar to the

early Friends, Bonhoeffer believed that being salt and light was part of human nature. However,

Bonhoeffer makes this point not as part of a core discipline of faith but as a response to the

wavering strength of the Protestant Churches against Hitler:

It is not that they should be salt and light. They are, and if they do not do what salt and light are supposed to do they are thrown out…Now they have to be what they are, or they are not following Jesus.62

                                                                                                                         60 The description of Quaker faith comes from my own experience growing up within the Religious Society of Friends.  61 González, Justo L. The Story of Christianity. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1984.  62 Martin Kuske and Ilse Tödt, Disäpleship, vol 4, Dietrich Bonhoeffer Works, Eng. eds., Geffrey B. Kelly and John D. Godsey, trans. Barbara Green and Reinhard Krauss (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2001),1. (112-113)

Stacy 26  

Bonhoeffer believed that the Church has a duty to stand up against the injustices and

violence of the Nazis. By not living into the role of salt and light, Bonhoeffer believed that the

Church as it existed during WWII had lost its saltiness and should be abandoned.

The dominance of the United States in military, political, economic and cultural arenas

for the past century suggest that the United States has developed into another world empire. The

United States is not free from its own history of slave trade, colonization, and oppression. Social

movements such as the Civil Rights movement and the Women’s suffrage movement are

examples of how small groups of people have acted like salt and light in the face of empire.

The technological revolution has, however, changed the face of the world in the last sixty

years. While the United States continues to function like an empire, as evidenced by its role in

international politics, web-based technologies have globalized news, culture, and the capitalistic

market. A new globalized empire of trade and information is emerging without the presence of a

centralized imperial elite or ruling power. How might his new form of empire challenge

followers of Jesus to be salt and light; how might this new imperialism prevent us from living

into the Kingdom of God?

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Allen, Loyd. 1992. "The Sermon on the Mount in the history of the church." Review & Expositor

89, no. 2: 245-262. Allison, Dale C, Jr. 1987. "The structure of the Sermon on the Mount." Journal of Biblical

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