How "light" is used in the Bible

	A	B	C	D	E	F
1	See the verses at:	https://www.biblegateway.com/quicksearch/?quicksearch=light&qs_version=ESV
2
3	Verse	The role of "light"	Literal or figurative?	Comment	Key:	Summary:
4
5	Genesis 1:3	central	ambiguous	All the verses in the creation story are marked "ambiguous", as it is to interpret this passage that I'm doing this study.	central: the concept of light is one of the central topics in this verse, and it is a crucial element in interpreting the text.	central + literal:
6	Genesis 1:4	central	ambiguous			5
7	Genesis 1:5	central	ambiguous			central + figurative:
8	Genesis 1:15	central	ambiguous		peripheral: light is mentioned, but it's not the main topic. The text could easily be understood with 'light" left out, or substituted with something else.	49
9	Genesis 1:16	central	ambiguous			central + both:
10	Genesis 1:17	central	ambiguous			10
11	Genesis 1:18	central	ambiguous			central + ambiguous:
12	Genesis 44:3	peripheral	literal			12
13	Exodus 10:23	central	literal		n/a: "light" doesn't appear in this verse in the sense that we're interested in. Either it only appears in the section heading and not in the text itself, or a homonym appears instead, such as "light" in the sense of weight, or to "light upon" something.	peripheral + literal:
14	Exodus 13:21	central	both	Pillar of cloud and fire, which is referenced often elsewhere		21
15	Exodus 25:37	central	literal			peripheral + figurative:
16	Exodus 27:20	central	both			98
17	Exodus 35:8	peripheral	literal			peripheral + both:
18	Exodus 35:14	peripheral	literal			4
19	Exodus 35:28	peripheral	literal		literal: "light" is used in the literal sense in this verse: a physical light that actually shines and actually exists, in the real world or in the narrative of the passage.	peripheral + ambiguous:
20	Exodus 39:37	peripheral	literal			9
21	Leviticus 24:2	central	both			n/a:
22	Numbers 4:9	peripheral	literal			11
23	Numbers 4:16	peripheral	literal		figurative: "light" is used in a figurative sense in this verse: as representing perception, truth, awareness, etc.
24	Numbers 8:2	central	literal
25	Judges 16:2	peripheral	literal
26	Judges 19:26	peripheral	literal		both: there is a literal light in this verse, but it also represents something else as well, so "light" here can be interpreted in both literally and figuratively.
27	1 Samuel 14:36	peripheral	literal
28	1 Samuel 25:36	peripheral	literal
29	1 Samuel 29:10	peripheral	literal
30					ambiguous: I could not determine the sense in which "light" is used in this verse.
31	2 Samuel 17:12	n/a
32	2 Samuel 23:4	central	figurative
33	1 Kings 16:31	n/a
34	2 Kings 3:18	n/a
35	2 Kings 7:9	peripheral	literal
36	Nehemiah 9:12	peripheral	both	Note that the same "pillar of fire" of Exodus 13:21 is labeled "peripheral" here, since its light is only mentioned in passing.
37	Nehemiah 9:19	peripheral	both
38	Esther 8:16	peripheral	figurative
39	Job 3:4	central	figurative
40	Job 3:9	peripheral	figurative
41	Job 3:16	peripheral	both
42	Job 3:20	peripheral	figurative
43	Job 3:23	peripheral	figurative
44	Job 10:22	peripheral	figurative
45	Job 12:22	peripheral	figurative
46	Job 12:25	peripheral	figurative
47	Job 17:12	peripheral	figurative
48	Job 18:5	peripheral	figurative
49	Job 18:6	peripheral	figurative
50	Job 18:18	peripheral	figurative
51	Job 22:28	peripheral	figurative
52	Job 24:13	central	figurative
53	Job 24:14	central	both
54	Job 24:16	central	figurative
55	Job 25:3	peripheral	figurative
56
57	Job 26:10	peripheral	ambiguous
58	Job 28:11	peripheral	figurative
59	Job 29:3	peripheral	figurative
60	Job 29:24	peripheral	figurative
61	Job 30:26	peripheral	figurative
62	Job 33:28	peripheral	figurative
63	Job 33:30	peripheral	figurative
64	Job 37:21	peripheral	figurative
65	Job 38:15	peripheral	ambiguous
66	Job 38:19	central	literal
67	Job 38:24	central	literal
68	Job 41:18	peripheral	figurative
69	Psalm 4:6	peripheral	figurative
70	Psalm 13:3	peripheral	figurative
71	Psalm 18:28	peripheral	figurative
72	Psalm 27:1	peripheral	figurative
73	Psalm 36:9	peripheral	figurative
74	Psalm 37:6	peripheral	figurative
75	Psalm 38:10	peripheral	figurative
76	Psalm 43:1	n/a
77	Psalm 43:3	peripheral	figurative
78	Psalm 44:3	peripheral	figurative
79	Psalm 49:19	peripheral	figurative
80	Psalm 56:13	peripheral	figurative
81	Psalm 78:14	peripheral	literal	the same phenomena - the pillar of fire - can be labeled "literal" or "both", depending on how the verse is phrased.
82
83	Psalm 89:15	peripheral	figurative
84	Psalm 90:8	peripheral	figurative
85	Psalm 97:4	peripheral	figurative
86	Psalm 97:11	peripheral	figurative
87	Psalm 104:2	peripheral	figurative
88	Psalm 105:39	peripheral	literal
89	Psalm 112:4	peripheral	figurative
90	Psalm 118:27	peripheral	figurative
91	Psalm 119:105	peripheral	figurative
92	Psalm 119:130	peripheral	figurative
93	Psalm 139:11	central	figurative	A good illustration of a "central" role that light could have in a metaphor. Here, only "light" could be the appropriate metaphor, whereas in many of the other verses in Psalms you can just as easily use "life" or "goodness" or other such words.
94	Psalm 139:12	central	figurative
95	Proverbs 4:18	central	figurative
96	Proverbs 6:23	peripheral	figurative
97	Proverbs 13:9	peripheral	figurative
98	Proverbs 15:30	peripheral	ambiguous
99	Proverbs 16:15	peripheral	figurative
100	Proverbs 23:5	n/a