Matthew 5:14,16 English Standard Version (ESV) “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.

These are not all the words for these verses and 15 is missing altogether. When writers are trying to make a point we often leave out parts that do not convey the message we intend to relay. We are not being evasive of misleading. Readers are encouraged to look at the whole message.

Readers should not try to read into truncation as manipulation. Brevity can be useful but it does not offer up a full range of discussion. This was the daily verse from BibleGateway.com and not part of a discussion group. Writers who do blogs would appreciate questions and exchange of ideas. Brevity can sometimes encourage that effort.

If verse 15 is missing, why is it missing? That is the first thing that comes to mind for me. Is it worthy of a discussion? Probably but placing that one verse without context could be misleading. We lose the tenor of placement in the whole chapter. It is part of the Sermon on the Mount and comes after the beatitudes. Jesus used the beatitudes to set up the verses that follow, setting the stage as it were.

Blogs and daily devotionals cannot treat a subject in its context and if a point is going to be made or discussed truncating can be a valuable tool to deliver a concise subject. Jesus is the ultimate motivational speaker. He stirs listeners like no one else. He does so by the Spirit of God.

When reading a daily devotional or blog the spirit may possibly stir the reader to investigate further and that is our hope, that God stirs. What interests us and the points we make may not be what God wants to say to the individual. No devotional or blog writer wants our messages to be the only communication the reader has with God.

Respond to His stirring.