No one who lights a lamp hides it away or places it [under a bushel basket], but on a lampstand so that those who enter might see the light. 34 The lamp of the body is your eye. When your eye is sound, then your whole body is filled with light, but when it is bad, then your body is in darkness. 35 Take care, then, that the light in you not become darkness. 36 If your whole body is full of light, and no part of it is in darkness, then it will be as full of light as a lamp illuminating you with its brightness.
Jesus continues teaching after addressing those who asked for a sign (vv. 29-32). He now explains responsibility for receiving light and letting it be seen. Similar sayings appear elsewhere, which shows this was a repeated teaching (cf. Mt. 5:15; 6:22-23; Mk. 4:21-23).
Jesus begins with a household image. A lamp is lit to help people see, not to be hidden. God’s revelation in Jesus is light. It is meant to be visible and practical, like a lamp that guides people entering a room. Concealing it defeats its purpose.
“The lamp of the body is your eye.” In this context, “eye” means the way a person looks at reality—perception, intention, and moral focus. When the “eye is sound,” the person receives truth without distortion and responds to it. The result is inner brightness: clarity of conscience and a path that aligns with God’s will. When the eye is “bad,” the person admits confusion and error, and the whole inner life becomes dark. Darkness here is moral blindness and the loss of direction.
“Take care, then, that the light in you not become darkness.” Jesus warns that light can be lost if the heart turns away from truth. The danger is not only ignorance but the corruption of what one once knew. To “take care” means to guard what you have received, keep your focus straight, and reject what clouds judgment—habitual sin, deceit, and divided motives.
“If your whole body is full of light… it will be as full of light as a lamp illuminating you.” When the eye is clear, truth enters without obstruction and renews the whole person. The image points to integrity. The inside and outside match. A person formed by truth becomes stable, steady, and able to help others see. Jesus’ point is simple: receive the light He gives, keep your inner gaze undivided, and let that light do its work in you and through you.
Lord Jesus, Light of the world, steady my gaze upon You. Purify my eye so Your truth may enter without distortion. Fill my whole life with Your light so that others may be led to You. Amen.
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Sources and References
- The Holy Bible, New American Bible, Revised Edition (2011).
- The Paulist Biblical Commentary, ed. Chiu et al. (Paulist Press, 2018), on Lk 11.
- The Navarre Bible: New Testament Expanded Edition (Four Courts/Scepter, 2008), notes on Lk 11.
- The New Jerome Biblical Commentary, ed. Brown et al. (Prentice Hall, 1990), §43: Luke.
- St. John Chrysostom (c. 349–407), Homilies on Matthew (on Mt 6:22-23), on the “sound eye” as an undivided intention.
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