Matthew 4:1
New International Version
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

New Living Translation
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted there by the devil.

English Standard Version
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

Berean Standard Bible
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

Berean Literal Bible
Then Jesus was led up into the wilderness by the Spirit to be tempted by the devil.

King James Bible
Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.

New King James Version
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

New American Standard Bible
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

NASB 1995
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

NASB 1977
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

Legacy Standard Bible
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

Amplified Bible
Then Jesus was led by the [Holy] Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

Christian Standard Bible
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil.

American Standard Version
Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.

Contemporary English Version
The Holy Spirit led Jesus into the desert, so that the devil could test him.

English Revised Version
Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Then the Spirit led Jesus into the desert to be tempted by the devil.

Good News Translation
Then the Spirit led Jesus into the desert to be tempted by the Devil.

International Standard Version
After this, Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

Majority Standard Bible
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

NET Bible
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

New Heart English Bible
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

Webster's Bible Translation
Then was Jesus led by the Spirit into the wilderness, to be tempted by the devil.

Weymouth New Testament
At that time Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the Desert in order to be tempted by the Devil.

World English Bible
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
Then Jesus was led up to the wilderness by the Spirit, to be tempted by the Devil,

Berean Literal Bible
Then Jesus was led up into the wilderness by the Spirit to be tempted by the devil.

Young's Literal Translation
Then Jesus was led up to the wilderness by the Spirit, to be tempted by the Devil,

Smith's Literal Translation
Then was Jesus led up by the Spirit into the desert to be tried by the devil.
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
THEN Jesus was led by the spirit into the desert, to be tempted by the devil.

Catholic Public Domain Version
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert, in order to be tempted by the devil.

New American Bible
Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.

New Revised Standard Version
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
THEN Jesus was carried away by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness, to be tempted by the adversary.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
Then Yeshua was led of The Spirit of Holiness to the wilderness to be tempted by The Devil.
NT Translations
Anderson New Testament
Then was Jesus led up by the Spirit into the wilderness, to be tempted by the devil.

Godbey New Testament
Then Jesus was led up into the wilderness by the Spirit, to be tempted by the devil.

Haweis New Testament
THEN was Jesus led away by the spirit into the wilderness, to be tempted by the devil.

Mace New Testament
Then was Jesus led up by the Spirit into the wilderness, to be tempted by the devil:

Weymouth New Testament
At that time Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the Desert in order to be tempted by the Devil.

Worrell New Testament
Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness, to he tempted by the Devil.

Worsley New Testament
Then was Jesus led by the spirit into the wilderness, to be tempted by the devil:

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
The Temptation of Jesus
1Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2After fasting forty days and forty nights, He was hungry.…

Cross References
Luke 4:1
Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,

Mark 1:12-13
At once the Spirit drove Jesus into the wilderness, / and He was there for forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and the angels ministered to Him.

Hebrews 2:18
Because He Himself suffered when He was tempted, He is able to help those who are being tempted.

Hebrews 4:15
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who was tempted in every way that we are, yet was without sin.

1 John 2:16
For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh, the desires of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not from the Father but from the world.

Genesis 3:1-6
Now the serpent was more crafty than any beast of the field that the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden?’” / The woman answered the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden, / but about the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You must not eat of it or touch it, or you will die.’” ...

1 Corinthians 10:13
No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, He will also provide an escape, so that you can stand up under it.

James 1:13-15
When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He tempt anyone. / But each one is tempted when by his own evil desires he is lured away and enticed. / Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

Deuteronomy 8:2-3
Remember that these forty years the LORD your God led you all the way in the wilderness, so that He might humble you and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep His commandments. / He humbled you, and in your hunger He gave you manna to eat, which neither you nor your fathers had known, so that you might understand that man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD.

Exodus 34:28
So Moses was there with the LORD forty days and forty nights without eating bread or drinking water. He wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant—the Ten Commandments.

1 Kings 19:8
So he got up and ate and drank. And strengthened by that food, he walked forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God.

Romans 5:12-19
Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, so also death was passed on to all men, because all sinned. / For sin was in the world before the law was given; but sin is not taken into account when there is no law. / Nevertheless, death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who did not sin in the way that Adam transgressed. He is a pattern of the One to come. ...

Philippians 2:7-8
but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in human likeness. / And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross.

Isaiah 53:3-4
He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. Like one from whom men hide their faces, He was despised, and we esteemed Him not. / Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows; yet we considered Him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted.

Job 1:6-12
One day the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came with them. / “Where have you come from?” said the LORD to Satan. “From roaming through the earth,” he replied, “and walking back and forth in it.” / Then the LORD said to Satan, “Have you considered My servant Job? For there is no one on earth like him, a man who is blameless and upright, who fears God and shuns evil.” ...


Treasury of Scripture

Then was Jesus led up of the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.

was.

Mark 1:12,13
And immediately the Spirit driveth him into the wilderness…

Luke 4:1
And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,

Romans 8:14
For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

of the spirit.

1 Kings 18:12
And it shall come to pass, as soon as I am gone from thee, that the Spirit of the LORD shall carry thee whither I know not; and so when I come and tell Ahab, and he cannot find thee, he shall slay me: but I thy servant fear the LORD from my youth.

2 Kings 2:16
And they said unto him, Behold now, there be with thy servants fifty strong men; let them go, we pray thee, and seek thy master: lest peradventure the Spirit of the LORD hath taken him up, and cast him upon some mountain, or into some valley. And he said, Ye shall not send.

Ezekiel 3:12,14
Then the spirit took me up, and I heard behind me a voice of a great rushing, saying, Blessed be the glory of the LORD from his place…

to.

Genesis 3:15
And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.

John 14:30
Hereafter I will not talk much with you: for the prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.

Hebrews 2:18
For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted.

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Carried Desert Devil Evil Jesus Led Order Spirit Tempted Tested Time Waste Wilderness
Matthew 4
1. Jesus, fasting forty days,
3. is tempted by the devil and ministered unto by angels.
12. He dwells in Capernaum;
17. begins to preach;
18. calls Peter and Andrew,
21. James and John;
23. teaches and heals all the diseased.














Then Jesus
The word "Then" indicates a sequence of events, connecting this passage to the preceding chapter where Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist. This baptism marked the beginning of His public ministry. "Jesus" is the Greek form of the Hebrew name Yeshua, meaning "The Lord is salvation." This name is significant as it encapsulates His mission on earth—to bring salvation to humanity. The use of "Jesus" here emphasizes His humanity and His role as the Messiah.

was led by the Spirit
The phrase "was led" comes from the Greek word "anago," which means to lead up or bring forth. This indicates that Jesus did not go into the wilderness by His own initiative but was guided by the Holy Spirit. "The Spirit" refers to the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, who plays a crucial role in the life and ministry of Jesus. This leading by the Spirit underscores the divine orchestration of events and Jesus' submission to the Father's will.

into the wilderness
The "wilderness" is a significant location in biblical narratives, often symbolizing a place of testing and preparation. In the Old Testament, the Israelites wandered in the wilderness for forty years, a period of testing and reliance on God. The Greek word "eremos" used here can mean a solitary, desolate place. This setting highlights the isolation and the harsh conditions Jesus faced, emphasizing His humanity and the reality of His temptations.

to be tempted
The Greek word for "tempted" is "peirazo," which can mean to test or to try. This indicates that the purpose of Jesus being in the wilderness was to undergo a period of testing. This testing was not to induce sin but to prove His righteousness and obedience. It reflects the trials that believers may face, serving as a reminder that temptation itself is not sin, but rather an opportunity to demonstrate faithfulness to God.

by the devil
"Devil" comes from the Greek word "diabolos," meaning accuser or slanderer. This title reveals the nature and intent of Satan, who seeks to oppose God's work and lead people astray. The presence of the devil in this narrative highlights the spiritual battle that Jesus was engaged in, a battle that would ultimately lead to His victory over sin and death. This encounter sets the stage for Jesus' ministry, demonstrating His authority over evil and His role as the Savior who overcomes the powers of darkness.

IV.

(1) The narrative of the Temptation is confessedly one of the most mysterious in the Gospel records. In one respect it stands almost, if not altogether, alone. It could not have come, directly or indirectly, from an eye-witness. We are compelled to look on it either as a mythical after-growth; as a supernatural revelation of facts that could not otherwise be known; or, lastly, as having had its source in our Lord's own report of what He had passed through. The first of these views is natural enough with those who apply the same theory to all that is marvellous and supernatural in our Lord's life. As a theory generally applicable, however, to the interpretation of the Gospels, that view has not been adopted in this Commentary, and there are certainly no reasons why, rejecting it elsewhere, we should accept it here. Had it been based upon the narrative of the temptation of the first Adam, in Genesis 3, we should have expected the recurrence of the same symbolism, of the serpent and the trees. Nothing else in the Old Testament, nothing in the popular expectations of the Christ, could have suggested anything of the kind. The ideal Christ of those expectations would have been a great and mighty king, showing forth his wisdom and glory, as did the historical son of David; not a sufferer tried and tempted. The forms of the Temptation, still more the answers to them, have, it will be seen, a distinct individuality about them, just conceivable in the work of some consummate artist, but utterly unlike the imagery, beautiful or grand, which enters into most myths. Here, therefore, the narrative will be dealt with as the record of an actual experience. To assume that this record was miraculously revealed to St. Matthew and St. Luke is, however, to introduce an hypothesis which cannot be proved, and which is, at least, not in harmony with their general character as writers. They are, one by his own statement, the other by inference from the structure and contents of his Gospel, distinctly compilers from many different sources, with all the incidental variations to which such a process is liable. There is no reason to look on this narrative as an exception to the general rule. The very difference in the order of the temptations is, as far as it goes, against the idea of a supernatural revelation. There remains, then, the conclusion that we have here that which originated in some communication from our Lord's own lips to one of His disciples, His own record of the experience of those forty days. So taken, it will be seen that all is coherent, and in some sense (marvellous as the whole is), natural, throwing light on our Lord's past life, explaining much that followed in His teaching.

Led up of the spirit.--Each narrator expresses the same fact in slightly different language. St. Luke (Luke 4:1) "Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, was led in the wilderness." St. Mark (Mark 1:12), more vividly, "Immediately the Spirit driveth Him into the wilderness." What is meant by such language? The answer is found in the analogous instances of seers and prophets. St. John was "in the Spirit on the Lord's day" (Revelation 1:10). The Spirit "lifted up" Ezekiel that from his exile by the banks of Chebar he might see the secret sins of Jerusalem (Ezekiel 8:3). The "Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip" (Acts 8:39). Those who spake with tongues spake "by the Spirit" (1Corinthians 14:2). The result of this induction leads us to think of the state so described as one more or less of the nature of ecstasy, in which the ordinary phenomena of consciousness and animal life were in great measure suspended. That gift of the Spirit had on the human nature of the Son of Man something of the same overpowering mastery that it has had over others of the sons of men. A power mightier than His own human will was urging Him on, it might almost be said He knew not whither, bringing Him into conflict "not with flesh and blood," but with "principalities and powers in heavenly places." . . .

Verses 1-11. - THE TEMPTATION. (Parallel passages: Luke 4:1-13; a summary in Mark 1:12, 13.) The Father's acceptance of the Lord's consecration of himself for the work of the kingdom does not exclude temptation, but rather necessitates it. Psychologically, the reaction from the ecstasy of joy in hearing the announcement of Matthew 3:17 was certain; ethically, such testing as would accompany the reaction was desirable. Even the Baptist was, as it seems, not without a special temptation during this period (cf. John 1:19; and Bishop Westcott's note). At the very commencement of his official life the Lord is led consciously to realize that he has entered on a path of complete trust (even as his brethren in the flesh, Hebrews 2:13) for all personal needs, a path which required great calmness and common sense, and along which he must take his orders for final victory, not from worldly principles, but direct from God. In Luke the order of the second and third temptations is reversed. Against the supposition of Godet and Ellicott, that St. Luke is historically correct, the "Get thee hence Satan!" (ver. 10) seems conclusive. At any rate, for St. Matthew's aim in this Gospel the temptation that he places third is the crucial one; the true King will not take an irregular method of acquiring sovereignty. Verse 1. - Then; temporal. Mark, "and straightway." Immediately after the descent of the Holy Ghost upon him. Was led up ... into the wilderness. Up (Matthew only); from the Jordan valley into the higher country round (cf. Joshua 16:1), in this case into the desert (Matthew 3:1). There is nothing told us by which we may identify the place, but as the scene of the temptation must have been near the scene of the baptism, namely, on the west side of Jordan (Matthew 3:1, note), it may be presumed that the temptation was on the west side also. The sharp limestone peak (Godet) known since the Crusades as Quarantana, "from the quarantain, or forty days of fasting" (Trench, Studies,' p. 6), may, perhaps, have been the actual spot. The only important objection to this is that directly after the temptation (as seems most probable) he comes to John in "Bethany beyond Jordan," John 1:28 (not necessarily to be identified with "Bethabara" of the Received Text; its locality is quite unknown). If he went east of Jordan after the temptation, he would still be on one of the great roads to Galilee (Luke 9:52, etc.). The conjecture that the fasting and temptation took place on Sinai is suggested by the analogy of Moses and Elijah, but by absolutely nothing in the Gospels. Led up of the Spirit into the wilderness; Mark, "the Spirit driveth him forth;" Luke, "Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan, and was led in the Spirit in the wilderness" (with a leading that lasted throughout the temptation, ἤετο... ἐν... ἐν...πειραζόμενος). He was no doubt himself inclined to go apart into the desert that he might meditate uninterruptedly upon the assurance just given, and the momentous issues involved in his baptism; but the Holy Spirit had also his own purposes with him. The Holy Spirit cannot, indeed, tempt, but he can and does lead us into circumstances where temptation is permitted, that we may thereby be proved and disciplined for future work. In Christ's case the temptation was an important part of that moral suffering by which he learned full obedience (Hebrews 5:8). Notice that even if the expression in Matthew 3:16, "the Spirit of God descending," does not in itself go beyond the expressions of Jewish teachers who deny his Personality, it would be hard to find so personal an action as is implied by the words, "Jesus was led up of the Spirit," attributed to the Spirit in non-Christian writings. For Isaiah 63:10, 11, 14 is much less definite, and passages, e.g. in Ezekiel 3:12-14, interpret themselves by Ezekiel 1:21. To St. Matthew himself the Personality of the Holy Ghost must, in the light of Matthew 28:19, have been an assured fact. To be tempted of the devil. So Luke; i.e. the great calumniator, him whose characteristic is false accusation; e.g. against men (Revelation 12:10-12); against God (Genesis 3:1-5). Here chiefly in the latter aspect. Each of the three temptations, and they are typical of all temptations; is primarily a calumniation of God and his methods. Mark has "of Satan," a Hebrew word equivalent to "adversary," which the LXX. nearly always renders by διαβάλλω, (compare also Numbers 22:22, 32). Probably by the time of the LXX. the idea of the evil spirit accusing as in a law-court, was more prominent than the earlier thought of him as an adversary. Spiritual resistance by the evil spirit to all good is a less-developed thought than his traducing God to man, and, after some success obtained, traducing man to God. Evil may resist good; it may also accuse both God and those made after the likeness of God.

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
Then
Τότε (Tote)
Adverb
Strong's 5119: Then, at that time. From ho and hote; the when, i.e. At the time that.

Jesus
Ἰησοῦς (Iēsous)
Noun - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 2424: Of Hebrew origin; Jesus, the name of our Lord and two other Israelites.

was led
ἀνήχθη (anēchthē)
Verb - Aorist Indicative Passive - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 321: From ana and ago; to lead up; by extension to bring out; specially, to sail away.

by
ὑπὸ (hypo)
Preposition
Strong's 5259: A primary preposition; under, i.e. of place, or with verbs; of place (underneath) or where (below) or time (when).

the
τοῦ (tou)
Article - Genitive Neuter Singular
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

Spirit
Πνεύματος (Pneumatos)
Noun - Genitive Neuter Singular
Strong's 4151: Wind, breath, spirit.

into
εἰς (eis)
Preposition
Strong's 1519: A primary preposition; to or into, of place, time, or purpose; also in adverbial phrases.

the
τὴν (tēn)
Article - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

wilderness
ἔρημον (erēmon)
Adjective - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 2048: Lonesome, i.e. waste.

to be tempted
πειρασθῆναι (peirasthēnai)
Verb - Aorist Infinitive Passive
Strong's 3985: To try, tempt, test. From peira; to test, i.e. Endeavor, scrutinize, entice, discipline.

by
ὑπὸ (hypo)
Preposition
Strong's 5259: A primary preposition; under, i.e. of place, or with verbs; of place (underneath) or where (below) or time (when).

the
τοῦ (tou)
Article - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

devil.
διαβόλου (diabolou)
Adjective - Genitive Masculine Singular
Strong's 1228: From diaballo; a traducer; specially, Satan.


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NT Gospels: Matthew 4:1 Then Jesus was led up by (Matt. Mat Mt)
Matthew 3:17
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