33"No one, after lighting a lamp, puts it in a cellar or under a basket, but on a stand, so that those who enter see the light. [11:34] The lamp of your body is your eye. When your eye is sound, your whole body is full of light; but when it is evil, your body is also full of darkness. [11:35] See to it then that the light in you is not darkness. [11:36] If therefore your whole body is full of light, with no dark part in it, it will be all light — as when a lamp with its beam illuminates you."
LUK 11:33-36
The Lamp of the Body
In the world it was spoken into
In the 1st-century Mediterranean world, lamps were essential for daily life, especially in homes without windows or in the evening. A lamp placed in a (cellar) or under a (basket) would be useless, as its light would be hidden. The metaphor of the lamp on a stand reflects a common domestic practice, emphasizing visibility and utility. The eye, described as the 'lamp of the body,' carries cultural weight; in Jewish thought, the eye symbolized moral perception and spiritual insight. A (sound) eye suggests integrity and focus, while a (evil) eye implies greed, envy, or moral corruption, concepts familiar in both Jewish and Greco-Roman ethical discourse. The warning about darkness within the body reflects a broader concern with inner purity and moral clarity, resonating with Jewish teachings on the heart's condition and Stoic ideas of self-examination. The imagery of light and darkness would evoke Isaiah’s prophecies and Hellenistic philosophical contrasts between enlightenment and ignorance.
›See the receipts
How other translations render this
LUK 11:33
- KJV
- No man, when he hath lighted a candle, putteth it in a secret place, neither under a bushel, but on a candlestick, that they which come in may see the light.
- BSB
- No one lights a lamp and puts it in a cellar or under a basket. Instead, he sets it on a stand, so those who enter can see the light.
- Koinōnos
- No one, after lighting a lamp, puts it in a cellar or under a basket, but on a stand, so that those who enter see the light.
LUK 11:34
- KJV
- The light of the body is the eye: therefore when thine eye is single, thy whole body also is full of light; but when thine eye is evil, thy body also is full of darkness.
- BSB
- Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are good, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are bad, your body is full of darkness.
- Koinōnos
- The lamp of your body is your eye. When your eye is sound, your whole body is full of light; but when it is evil, your body is also full of darkness.
LUK 11:35
- KJV
- Take heed therefore that the light which is in thee be not darkness.
- BSB
- Be careful, then, that the light within you is not darkness.
- Koinōnos
- See to it then that the light in you is not darkness.
LUK 11:36
- KJV
- If thy whole body therefore be full of light, having no part dark, the whole shall be full of light, as when the bright shining of a candle doth give thee light.
- BSB
- So if your whole body is full of light, with no part of it in darkness, you will be radiant, as though a lamp were shining on you.”
- Koinōnos
- If therefore your whole body is full of light, with no dark part in it, it will be all light — as when a lamp with its beam illuminates you.
Only verses where the wording diverges meaningfully are shown. Identical phrasings are suppressed.
Translator's notes
LUK 11:33
- in:The word translated 'in' here refers to a hidden or secret place, specifically a cellar or crypt, suggesting something intentionally concealed from view.
- the:The term used here for 'the' refers to a 'modius,' which was a common household container used for measuring grain, often like a bucket or basket.
LUK 11:34
- of you:The word translated 'of you' here carries the sense of being single, simple, or sound, implying integrity and lack of duplicity, as opposed to being double-minded.
- however:The word translated 'however' here describes something as bad, evil, or diseased, often implying a harmful or malicious quality, not just a simple contrast.