Language Studies

Difficult Sayings

A ''Good Eye'' or an ''Evil Eye''
Matthew 6:22, Luke 11:34

"The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" (Matthew 6:22-23, NKJV)

The literal Greek of Matthew 6:22 "if therefore your eye is single" (ιεαν͂ουν͂ῆο͂οφθαλμος͂σοῦαπλους̀ι) has been translated variously. The Greek word only occurs in the New Testament in this saying of Jesus and literally means 'single', but meaningfully, means little. Just what is it getting at? Are we all to be one-eyed Cyclopses, in order to be "full of light"? Or is the suggestion that we need singular rather than bifocal vision, setting our eyes upon just one goal?

Other translations have rendered it 'unclouded, sound, clear, healthy' or 'good':

• 'unclouded eye' (Westcott & Hort)
• 'sound eye' (Weymouth, Philipps, NEB, Williams, Amplified, GNB, NAB)
• 'clear/diseased eye' (Knox, Lamsa, Revised Webster, NASB [clear/bad])
• 'perfect' (Young's)
• 'single eye' (KJV, ASV, Darby, Bagsters, Tyndale, Douay-Rheims, Webster) - literally correct
• 'simple' (Luther used einfältig 'simpleminded, naive, gullible', Vulgate has oculus simplex)
• 'true' (Bible in Basic English, 1965)
• 'healthy eye' (Beck, NRSV, French and Spanish versions)
• 'good eye' (NKJV, NIV) - Hebraically correct

The modern, but often rough, earthy poetry of Eugene Peterson comes close but only in the second-half paraphrase of the 'evil eye', missing the point in the first-half about the 'good eye':

"Your eyes are windows into your body. If you open your eyes wide in wonder and belief, your body fills up with light. If you live squinty-eyed in greed and distrust, your body is a dank cellar." (Eugene Peterson, The Message; Italics added to emphasise 'good eye' and 'evil eye' paraphrases)

Only the Paraphrases of Moffatt and Barclay are correct with their idiomatic 'generous eye' or 'selfish eye'. For the phrase, 'good eye', is indeed a Hebrew idiom for generosity, just as 'evil eye' is for 'selfishness'. In modern English idiom one might use 'open handed' for a 'good eye' and 'tight fisted' for an 'evil eye'.

The Hebrew phrase 'good eye' (ןיע־בוּט) is used in Proverbs 22:9 where it is sometimes translated 'a generous man' (NIV) or 'generous eye' (NKJV), even the AV has 'bountiful' for the Hebrew 'good'. The Greek Septuagint translation of the Old Testament has various readings for this passage and translates idiomatically as "he that has pity on the poor" or "he who gives liberally".

Thus, A good eye 'sees' a need and meets it. In fact, the Hebrew verb 'to see' (האר, Strong's #7200) can also mean 'to provide' as the initial observation leads through to action and intervention to meet the observed need. This is beautifully evident in the story of Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac and God's provision of a ram (Genesis 22:8), which causes Abraham to worship God as Jehovah Jireh 'The LORD will provide' Genesis 22:14, (הריהוהי, Strong's #3070).

Other Hebrew sources such as the Jewish Mishnah and Talmud speak of 'good, middling and evil' eyes. For example, in the offerings of the first fruits:

"'a good eye' gave the fortieth, the house of Shammai say, the thirtieth part; a middling one, the fiftieth; and an evil one, the sixtieth part." (Mishnah, Trumot, 4.3)

Upon which the Jewish commentators say, a 'good eye' means one that is liberal, and an 'evil eye' the contrary. Elsewhere one reads of 'trading, dedicating' and 'giving with a good' or 'an evil eye', ^F1 i.e., either, generously, or in a selfish, niggardly and grudging manner.

"A good eye and a humble spirit and a lowly soul, those who have these are disciples of Abraham our Father" (Mishnah, Abôth, 5.19)

Thus Jesus' meaning is that if a man is not selfish and covetous but is generous he will be blessed and righteous in all areas of life ('your whole body' is simply a Hebrew metaphor for 'your whole person', 'you yourself').

FOOTNOTES:
F1: Babylonian Talmud, Bava Bathra, 37b, 71a & 72a

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