Section 5:13–16

Jesus’ followers are like salt and light

In this section, Jesus used the metaphors of salt and light to describe the way his disciples should act in this world.

Here are some other possible headings for this section:

Jesus compared his disciples to salt and light
-or-
Salt and light

There are parallels to this section in Mark 9:50 and Luke 14:34–35.

Paragraph 5:13

Jesus continued speaking here. If your audience would not understand that Jesus was speaking here, you may want to indicate this. For example:

⌊Jesus continued⌋

5:13a

You are the salt of the earth: The clause You are the salt of the earth is a metaphor. In this metaphor, Jesus compared his disciples to salt. Here are some other ways that they are similar:

(a) they both improve the lives of people

(b) they both prevent deterioration

Salt improves the lives of people by making food taste better and by preventing food from spoiling. In the same way, believers improve the world and the people in it. They do this by living as God requires and by helping keep the people from being destroyed.

In some languages, a literal translation of this metaphor may be difficult to understand. Here are some other ways to translate it:

• Change the metaphor to a simile. For example:

You are like salt for everyone on earth. (Contemporary English Version)

• Change the metaphor to a simile and make explicit the way that they are similar. For example:

You are ⌊good⌋ for the people of the world ⌊like⌋ salt ⌊is good for food⌋.

• Translate it literally and put the meaning in a footnote. Here is a sample footnote:

Salt makes things better. It makes food taste better, and it prevents food from spoiling. In the same way, believers improve the world and the people in it by living as God requires. They also help keep people from being destroyed.

You: The pronoun You is plural in Greek.

of the earth: The word earth is used in a figurative way. It refers to the people who live on earth.

Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

for everyone on earth (Contemporary English Version)
-or-
for the whole human race (Good News Translation)

5:13b

But: There is a contrast between 5:13a and 5:13b. The contrast is between salt being salty in 5:13a and salt losing its saltiness in 5:13b. Most English versions indicate this contrast with the word “but.”

Here are some other ways to translate this contrast:

However
-or-
In contrast

if the salt loses its savor, how can it be made salty again?: This is a rhetorical question. Jesus used this rhetorical question to emphasize something. He emphasized that a person certainly cannot make salt salty again after it has lost its taste.

There are two ways to translate this emphasis:

• As a rhetorical question. For example:

if salt loses its taste, how will it be made salty again? (God’s Word)

• As a statement. For example:

if the salt loses its salty taste, it cannot be made salty again. (New Century Version)
-or-
if salt loses its saltiness, there is no way to make it salty again (Good News Translation)

Translate this emphasis in a way that is natural in your language.

5:13c

It is no longer good for anything: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as good for anything also means “useful.” So this statement means that if salt has lost its saltiness, then it is no longer useful.

Here are some other ways to translate this clause:

It is good for nothing (New Jerusalem Bible)
-or-
It is completely useless (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
-or-
It is worth nothing
-or-
People can no longer do anything with it

except: The Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as except is literally “if not.” This phrase connects the two clauses in 5:13c.

Here are some other ways to connect these clauses:

• Use another conjunction. For example:

It has become worthless, so it is thrown out and people trample on it (Good News Translation)
-or-
It is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot. (New Revised Standard Version)

• Connect them without a conjunction. For example:

It is no longer good for anything; it is thrown out, and people walk on it.

to be thrown out and trampled by men: The verb thrown out refers to removing the salt from the house by throwing it into the street or path.

The verb trampled refers to stepping on something while walking. It does not refer to deliberately stepping on something to smash it. Here it simply refers to people walking on the salt as they would walk on any other bits of trash that are thrown into the street.

Here is another way to translate trampled:

walked on (Contemporary English Version)

In Greek, both verbs are passive.

Here are some other ways to translate these two passive verbs:

• Keep both verbs passive. For example:

All it is good for is to be thrown out and walked on. (Contemporary English Version)

• Translate one verb as passive and the other as active. For example:

it is thrown out and people walk on it

• Translate both verbs as active. For example:

people throw it out and others walk on it

trampled by men: The word men is general and refers to people, both men and women.

Here are some other ways to translate this phrase:

trampled under people’s feet (English Standard Version)

-or-

people trample on it (Good News Translation)

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