Temptations of Jesus
Life of Jesus · Draft · BSB
Content revision: feb6233e8db7c9fd · No editorial review date recorded
Date: Preparation and early ministry. A guided comparison of Gospel accounts, not a measured calendar or a claim that every parallel follows the same sequence.
After his baptism Jesus faces temptation in the wilderness. Matthew and Luke describe demands concerning food, power and testing God; Jesus responds with words from Deuteronomy.
Matthew and Luke arrange the final two temptations differently. Mark gives a brief account mentioning wild animals and angels. The high mountain and temple scene are not treated as a recoverable hiking itinerary.
Primary Scripture
4:1 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
4:2 After fasting forty days and forty nights, He was hungry.
4:3 The tempter came to Him and said, “If You are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”
4:4 But Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
4:5 Then the devil took Him to the holy city and set Him on the pinnacle of the temple.
4:6 “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.’”
4:7 Jesus replied, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”
4:8 Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.
4:9 “All this I will give You,” he said, “if You will fall down and worship me.”
4:10 “Away from Me, Satan!” Jesus told him. “For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’”
4:11 Then the devil left Him, and angels came and ministered to Him.
1:12 At once the Spirit drove Jesus into the wilderness,
1:13 and He was there for forty days, being tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals, and the angels ministered to Him.
4:1 Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness,
4:2 where for forty days He was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and when they had ended, He was hungry.
4:3 The devil said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.”
4:4 But Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone.’”
4:5 Then the devil led Him up to a high place and showed Him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world.
4:6 “I will give You authority over all these kingdoms and all their glory,” he said. “For it has been relinquished to me, and I can give it to anyone I wish.
4:7 So if You worship me, it will all be Yours.”
4:8 But Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’”
4:9 Then the devil led Him to Jerusalem and set Him on the pinnacle of the temple. “If You are the Son of God,” he said, “throw Yourself down from here.
4:10 For it is written: ‘He will command His angels concerning You to guard You carefully,
4:11 and they will lift You up in their hands, so that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.’”
4:12 But Jesus answered, “It also says, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”
4:13 When the devil had finished every temptation, he left Him until an opportune time.
Related Scripture
Read the command about bread in its wilderness setting of testing, dependence and obedience.
Deuteronomy 6:13–16 · teaching
The other temptation answers appeal to worshiping God alone and refusing to put God to the test.
Location evidence
The wilderness and mountain are unnamed. Jerusalem is one setting in Matthew and Luke’s testing sequence, but no single pin can locate the entire account or identify the high mountain.
No event map marker is assigned. Do not infer an exact venue from related places.
For the class
How do the Deuteronomy answers recall Israel’s wilderness experience?
Interpretation and reuse
Narrative order is a reading arrangement, not a proven chronology. Dates retain their stated uncertainty. An identified locality does not establish the exact venue or prove an event. Region extents and routes are illustrative, not surveyed boundaries or ancient roads. Draft material has not completed editorial review.
Record source: theographic (268)
Record source: editorial
Events and places adapted from Theographic Bible Metadata (github.com/robertrouse/theographic-bible-metadata), CC BY-SA 4.0. This adapted data is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Place coordinates from OpenBible.info Bible Geocoding Data, CC BY 4.0.
Teaching stops, summaries and regional extents are original editorial content of this atlas.
Berean Standard Bible (BSB), public domain. https://berean.bible/licensing.htm