Matthew 5:15 (DBY)

Passage

Nor do [men] light a lamp and put it under the bushel, but upon the lamp-stand, and it shines for all who are in the house.

Nearby Context

Matthew 5:13 *Ye* are the salt of the earth; but if the salt have become insipid, wherewith shall it be salted? It is no longer fit for anything but to be cast out and to be trodden under foot by men.

Matthew 5:14 *Ye* are the light of the world: a city situated on the top of a mountain cannot be hid.

Matthew 5:15 Nor do [men] light a lamp and put it under the bushel, but upon the lamp-stand, and it shines for all who are in the house.

Matthew 5:16 Let your light thus shine before men, so that they may see your upright works, and glorify your Father who is in the heavens.

Matthew 5:17 Think not that I am come to make void the law or the prophets; I am not come to make void, but to fulfil.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "light", "lamp", "under", "bushel", "upon", "lamp-stand", "shines", and "house". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "light" and "lamp", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 14's "Ye are the light of the world..." into verse 16's "Let your light thus shine before men...", so "light" and "lamp" belong inside that flow. In Matthew context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "light" and "lamp" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.