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Matthew 4:3–9

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4:3The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become bread.”3 4:4But he answered,4 “It is written, ‘Man5 does not live6 by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ”74:5Then the devil took him to the holy city,8 had him stand9 on the highest point10 of the temple, 4:6and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you’11 and ‘with their hands they will lift you up, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’ ”124:7Jesus said to him, “Once again it is written: ‘You are not to put the Lord your God to the test.’ ”134:8Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their grandeur.144:9And he said to him, “I will give you all these things if you throw yourself to the ground and worship15 me.”

Read in Logos
Matthew 4:2–3: And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.”

Footnotes

  1. 3 Grk “say that these stones should become bread.”
  2. 4 Grk “answering, he said.” The participle ἀποκριθείς (apokritheis) is redundant, but the syntax of the phrase has been changed for clarity.
  3. 5 Or “a person.” Greek ὁ ἄνθρωπος (ho anthrōpos) is used generically for humanity. The translation “man” is used because the emphasis in Jesus’ response seems to be on his dependence on God as a man.
  4. 6 Grk “will not live.” The verb in Greek is a future tense, but it is unclear whether it is meant to be taken as a command (also known as an imperatival future) or as a statement of reality (predictive future).
  5. 7 A quotation from Deut 8:3.
  6. 8 The order of the second and third temptations differs in Luke’s account (4:5–12) from the order given in Matthew.
  7. 9 Grk “and he stood him.”
  8. 10 The highest point of the temple probably refers to the point on the temple’s southeast corner where it looms directly over a cliff some 450 ft (135 m) high. However, some have suggested the reference could be to the temple’s high gate.
  9. 11 A quotation from Ps 91:11. This was not so much an incorrect citation as a use in a wrong context (a misapplication of the passage).
  10. 12 A quotation from Ps 91:12.
  11. 13 A quotation from Deut 6:16.
  12. 14 Grk “glory.”
  13. 15 Grk “if, falling down, you will worship.” πίπτω 1.b.α.ב has “fall down, throw oneself to the ground as a sign of devotion, before high-ranking persons or divine beings.”

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” But he answered, “It is written,

“ ‘Man shall not live by bread alone,

but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ”

Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written,

“ ‘He will command his angels concerning you,’

and

“ ‘On their hands they will bear you up,

lest you strike your foot against a stone.’ ”

Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’ ” Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.”

NIVNew International Version (2011)

The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”

Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Then the devil took him to the holy city and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down. For it is written:

“ ‘He will command his angels concerning you,

and they will lift you up in their hands,

so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’”

Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”

CSBChristian Standard Bible

Then the tempter approached him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”

He answered, “It is written: Man must not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

Then the devil took him to the holy city, had him stand on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written:

He will give his angels orders concerning you,

and they will support you with their hands

so that you will not strike

your foot against a stone.”

Jesus told him, “It is also written: Do not test the Lord your God.”

Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. And he said to him, “I will give you all these things if you will fall down and worship me.”

NLTNew Living Translation

During that time the devil came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread.”

But Jesus told him, “No! The Scriptures say,

‘People do not live by bread alone,

but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

Then the devil took him to the holy city, Jerusalem, to the highest point of the Temple, and said, “If you are the Son of God, jump off! For the Scriptures say,

‘He will order his angels to protect you.

And they will hold you up with their hands

so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.’ ”

Jesus responded, “The Scriptures also say, ‘You must not test the Lord your God.’”

Next the devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. “I will give it all to you,” he said, “if you will kneel down and worship me.”

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And the tempter approached and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, order that these stones become bread.” But he answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man will not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes out of the mouth of God.’ ”

Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the highest point of the temple and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down! For it is written,

‘He will command his angels concerning you,’

and

‘On their hands they will lift you up,

lest you strike your foot against a stone.’ ”

Jesus said to him, “On the other hand it is written, ‘You are not to put the Lord your God to the test.’ ”

Again the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory, and he said to him, “I will give to you all these things, if you will fall down and worship me.”

KJV 1900King James Version

And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.