Some of the elaborations on the Salt and Light metaphors that Matthew recounts are also paralleled in Luke, but in completely different parts of the narrative, which leads scholars to suspect they originate in the Q document, which is essentially thought to be a collection of quotes with little narrative framework. That other metaphors in this part of Matthew appear in the Gospel of Thomas is generally viewed as supporting this, with the Gospel of Thomas normally hypothesised as deriving, more directly, from "Q". Essentially Matthew splits the metaphor of Salt and Light into two - the salt of the earth and the light of the world, the second being somewhat extended by further metaphors used to emphasise it - a city on a hill cannot be hid and you don't light a candle only to put it under a bowl, while the first is extended by the metaphor that salt which has lost its flavour is cast out. The Gospel of John also mentions the light of the world metaphor, but has Jesus claim that it is he who is the light of the world, rather than it being the people he is addressing. The Gospel of Luke (literally, according to Luke; Greek, Κατά Λουκαν, Kata Loukan) is a synoptic Gospel, and the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels of the New Testament. ... The Q document or Q (from the German Quelle, source) is a postulated lost textual source for the Gospel of Matthew and Gospel of Luke. ... The Gospel of Thomas is a New Testament-era apocryphon completely preserved in a papyrus Coptic manuscript discovered in 1945 at Nag Hammadi, Egypt. ... For other uses, see Gospel of John (disambiguation). ...

The exact meaning of the expression salt of the earth is disputed, in part because salt had a wide number of uses in the ancient world. There are several different possibilities for the originally intended meaning of the salt metaphor: For other uses, see Salt (disambiguation). ...

• Exodus, Ezekiel, and Kings present salt as a purifying agent
• Leviticus, Numbers, and Chronicles present it as a sign of God's covenant.
• The most important use of salt was as a preservative and hence the most common interpretation of the metaphor is as asserting the duty to preserve the purity of the world.
• In the Rabbinic literature of the period salt was a metaphor for wisdom.
• Salt was a minor but essential ingredient in fertilizer and so a few scholars such as Gundry believe that earth should be translated as soil (i.e. salt of the soil), and hence the metaphor asserts that the audience should help the world grow and prosper.
• One interpretation of salt of the earth is that it orders the audience to take part in the world rather than withdraw from it

Salt itself, sodium chloride, is extremely stable and cannot lose its flavour, so salt that has lost its flavour cannot ever literally refer to actual salt. The most common explanation for this is that salt in the era was quite impure, not only due to extraction methods, but also due to unscrupulous merchants mixing it with other substances. Hill has proposed that the metaphor is quite aware of salt not being able to lose its flavour and hence being salt of the earth implies that the audience, once having heard the message, will never lose their influence or importance. The words translated lost its flavour actually translate from the Greek as became foolish, but the Aramaic for both phrases is the same, and English language translators universally accept that the verse is talking about flavour rather than intelligence. Some scholars do however feel that this may be wordplay related to the Rabbinic use of salt as a metaphor for intelligence. Exodus is the second book of the Torah, the Tanakh, and the Old Testament. ... Book Of Ezekiel is rapper Freekey Zekeys debut album and debut on Diplomat Records/Asylum. ... Book of Kings may refer to: The Books of Kings in the Bible. ... Leviticus is the third book of the Hebrew Bible, also the third book in the Torah (five books of Moses). ... The Book of Numbers is the fourth of the books of the Pentateuch, called in the Hebrew ba-midbar במדבר, i. ... The Book of Chronicles is a book in the Hebrew Bible (also see Old Testament). ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Spreading manure, an organic fertilizer Fertilizers (also spelled fertilisers) are compounds given to plants to promote growth; they are usually applied either via the soil, for uptake by plant roots, or by foliar feeding, for uptake through leaves. ... Loess field in Germany Surface-water-gley developed in glacial till, Northern Ireland Technically, soil forms the pedosphere: the interface between the lithosphere (rocky part of the planet) and the biosphere, atmosphere, and hydrosphere. ... Jordanian and Israeli salt evaporation ponds at the south end of the Dead Sea Sodium chloride, also known as common salt, table salt, or halite, is a chemical compound with the formula NaCl. ... Aramaic is a Semitic language with a four-thousand year history. ...

As for the metaphors expanding on you are the light of the world. Schweizer considers that the city on a hill metaphor may be a reference to Mount Zion at the start of Isaiah 2, though scholars are divided on whether this is a specific reference to the idea of a New Jerusalem, or simply an obvious metaphor in relation to not hiding. According to Hill, the candle under a bowl metaphor could be a satirical swipe at the Jewish practice of hiding the Hanukkah lamp to protect it from desecration. Both Matthew and Luke resolve this metaphor by stating that the candle should be put on a stand, but while Matthew states that the lamp shines on all who are in the house, implying conversion from within the community, Luke has the lamp shining for those who come into the house, implying new people joining it. Isaiah talks about the light in verses 42:6, 49:6, and 60:3. Mount Zion (Hebrew: ‎ transliteration: Har Tziyyon - Height) is the ancient name of a mountain in jerusalem southe of the old city. ... The Book of Isaiah (Hebrew: Sefer Yshayah ספר ישעיה) is one of the books of Judaisms Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament, traditionally attributed to Isaiah. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Hanukkah (also spelled Chanukah) (‎), also known as the Festival of Lights, is an eight-day Jewish holiday beginning on the 25th day of the month of Kislev, which may fall anytime from late November to late December. ... The Book of Isaiah (Hebrew: Sefer Yshayah ספר ישעיה) is one of the books of Judaisms Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament, traditionally attributed to Isaiah. ...

Cultural references

"Salt of the earth" has become a common English expression, although the modern usage of the phrase is somewhat separate from its scriptural origins, and today it refers to someone who is humble and lacking pretension. Due to its fame it has occurred a number of times in art and popular culture, but as Siebald notes usually these are based on the secular understanding of the term. It has been the title of an important 1954 film, a John Godber play, a song on The Rolling Stones' Beggars Banquet, and a non-fiction work by Uys Krige. Both Algernon Swinburne and D.H. Lawrence wrote poems by this name. The phrase is featured in the 2004 Green Day song She's a Rebel from their album American Idiot. In Middle English literature the expression had a different meaning somewhat closer to the scripture, mostly being used to refer to the clergy, as for example appearing in "The Summoner's Tale" and Piers Plowman. For other uses, see Salt of the earth. ... John Godber (born 1956) is a British playwright, known mainly for his innovative theater and observational comedies with an edge. He was born in Upton, West Yorkshire, trained as a teacher of drama, and was artistic director of Hull Truck Theatre Company. ... The Rolling Stones are an English band whose blues, rhythm and blues and rock and roll-infused music became popular during the British Invasion in the early 1960s. ... Alternate cover Initially rejected cover of Beggars Banquet Beggars Banquet is an LP released in 1968 by The Rolling Stones. ... Uys Krige (christened Mattheus Uys Krige) (4 February 1910 - 10 August 1987) was a South African writer, poet, playwright, translator, rugby player, war correspondent and romantic. ... Algernon Swinburne, Portrait by Rossetti Algernon Charles Swinburne (April 5, 1837 – April 10, 1909) was a Victorian era English poet. ... D. H. Lawrence David Herbert Lawrence (11 September 1885 - 2 March 1930) was one of the most important, certainly one of the most controversial, English writers of the 20th century, who wrote novels, short stories, poems, plays, essays, travel books, and letters. ... This article is about the band Green Day. ... Shes A Rebel is the eighth song on Green Days 2005 rock opera album, American Idiot. ... American Idiot is Green Days ninth studio album and first rock opera, and was released in 2004. ... Middle English is the name given by historical linguistics to the diverse forms of the English language spoken between the Norman invasion of 1066 and the mid-to-late 15th century, when the Chancery Standard, a form of London-based English, began to become widespread, a process aided by the... Clergy is the generic term used to describe the formal religious leadership within a given religion. ... The Summoners Tale is one of The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer. ... Page from a 14th century Psalter, showing drolleries on the right margin and a plowman at the bottom. ...

The city on a hill metaphor is most famous for forming the basis of John Winthrop's City upon a Hill sermon outlining his vision of the new American colonies as a beacon to the rest of the world, in which sense the phrase was used by both Presidents John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan. However the candle under a bowl metaphor has become even more influential: John Winthrop (12 January 1587/8–26 March 1649) is a historical figure, famous for having led a group of Puritans to the New World, joining the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1629. ... City upon a hill is phrase often used to refer to John Winthrops famous sermon, A Model of Christian Charity,, of 1630, based on the one of the metaphors of Salt and Light in the Sermon on the Mount (You are the light of the world. ... For other uses, see President of the United States (disambiguation). ... John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), also referred to as John F. Kennedy, Kennedy, John Kennedy, Jack Kennedy, or JFK, was the thirty-fifth President of the United States. ... Ronald Wilson Reagan, GCB (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was the 40th President of the United States (1981–1989) and the 33rd Governor of California (1967–1975). ...

• Charlemagne cited it as the reason for building a series of schools and universities across his empire
• It inspired the popular Victorian era hymn Jesus Bids us Shine
• It inspired the still popular song This Little Light of Mine.
• The verse appears in James Fenimore Cooper's The Pioneers
• The verse appears in Thomas Hardy's Far from the Madding Crowd
• In James Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man a character is described as shining quietly under a bushel of Wicklow bran.

Charlemagne and Pippin the Hunchback. ... Queen Victoria (shown here on the morning of her accession to the Throne, 20 June 1837) gave her name to the historic era The Victorian era of the United Kingdom marked the height of the British Industrial Revolution and the apex of the British Empire. ... A hymn is a type of song, usually religious, specifically written for the purpose of praise, adoration or prayer, and typically addressed to a god or other religiously significant figure. ... This Little Light of Mine is a Negro spiritual, themed on the importance of unity in the face of struggle. ... Cooper portrait by John Wesley Jarvis, 1822 James Fenimore Cooper (September 15, 1789 – September 14, 1851) was a prolific and popular American writer of the early 19th century. ... The Pioneers: The Sources of the Susquehanna is one of the Leatherstocking Tales, a series of five novels by American writer James Fenimore Cooper. ... Thomas Hardy Thomas Hardy, OM (2 June 1840 – 11 January 1928) — an English novelist, short story writer, and poet of the naturalist movement — delineated characters struggling against their passions and circumstances. ... For other uses of the name, see Far from the Madding Crowd (disambiguation). ... James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (Irish Séamus Seoighe; 2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish expatriate writer, widely considered to be one of the most influential writers of the 20th century. ... A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is a semi-autobiographical novel by James Joyce, first serialized in The Egoist from 1914 to 1915 and published in book form in 1916. ...

References

• Albright, W.F. and C.S. Mann. "Matthew." The Anchor Bible Series. New York: Doubleday & Company, 1971. ISBN 0-385-08658-X.
• Clarke, Howard W. The Gospel of Matthew and its Readers: A Historical Introduction to the First Gospel. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2003. ISBN 0-253-34235-X.
• France, R.T. The Gospel According to Matthew: an Introduction and Commentary. Leicester: Inter-Varsity, 1985. ISBN 0-8028-0063-7.
• Gundry, Robert H. Matthew a Commentary on his Literary and Theological Art. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1982. ISBN 0-8028-3549-X.
• Hill, David. The Gospel of Matthew. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1981. ISBN 0-8028-1886-2.
• "Light Under a Bushel." A Dictionary of Biblical Tradition in English Literature. David Lyle Jeffrey, general editor. Grand Rapids: W.B. Eerdmans, 1992. ISBN 0-8028-3634-8.
• Schweizer, Eduard. The Good News According to Matthew. Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1975. ISBN 0-8042-0251-6.
• Siebald, Manfred. "Salt of the Earth." A Dictionary of Biblical Tradition in English Literature. David Lyle Jeffrey, general editor. Grand Rapids: W.B. Eerdmans, 1992. ISBN 0-8028-3634-8.

William Foxwell Albright (May 24, 1891 - September 19/20, 1971) was an evangelical Methodist archaelogist, biblical authority, linguist and expert on ceramics. ... The Anchor Bible Series is a scholarly and commercial co-venture that has been setting a high standard since the early 1960s, when individual volumes of the series began publication. ... Robert Horton Gundry is a noted Biblical scholar. ... Eduard Schweizer was a Swiss New Testament scholar who taught at the University of Zurich for an extended period. ... Manfred Siebald (* 26th October 1948 at Alheim-Baumbach) is a German singer-songwriter and Lecturer in American Studies in Mainz. ...

External links

• Jewish Encyclopedia: Salt
• Jewish Encyclopedia: Light
• Catholic Encyclopedia: Salt
• Catholic Encyclopedia: Light