Matthew 5:14 (KJV)

Passage

Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.

Nearby Context

Matthew 5:12 Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

Matthew 5:13 Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.

Matthew 5:14 Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.

Matthew 5:15 Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.

Matthew 5:16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "world", "light", "city", and "hill". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "world" and "light", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 13's "Ye are the salt of the earth..." into verse 15's "Neither do men light a candle and...", so "world" and "light" 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 "world" and "light" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.