Study Desk

Jesus Is Tested in the Wilderness^(a)

Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit,^(b) left the Jordan^(c) and was led by the Spirit^(d) into the wilderness,

where for forty days^(e) he was tempted^[a] by the devil.^(f) He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry.

The devil said to him, "If you are the Son of God,^(g) tell this stone to become bread."

Jesus answered, "It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone.'^[b]"^(h)

The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world.⁽ⁱ⁾

And he said to him, "I will give you all their authority and splendor; it has been given to me,^(j) and I can give it to anyone I want to.

If you worship me, it will all be yours."

Jesus answered, "It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.'^[c]"^(k)

The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. "If you are the Son of God," he said, "throw yourself down from here.

For it is written: "‘He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully;

they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.'^[d]"^(l)

Jesus answered, "It is said: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'^[e]"^(m)

When the devil had finished all this tempting,⁽ⁿ⁾ he left him^(o) until an opportune time.

Jesus returned to Galilee^(p) in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside.^(q)

He was teaching in their synagogues,^(r) and everyone praised him.

He went to Nazareth,^(s) where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue,^(t) as was his custom. He stood up to read,^(u)

and the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him. Unrolling it, he found the place where it is written:

"The Spirit of the Lord is on me,^(v) because he has anointed me to proclaim good news^(w) to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free,

to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."^[f](x)

Then he rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant and sat down.^(y) The eyes of everyone in the synagogue were fastened on him.

He began by saying to them, "Today this scripture is fulfilled^(z) in your hearing."

All spoke well of him and were amazed at the gracious words that came from his lips. "Isn't this Joseph's son?" they asked.^(aa)

Jesus said to them, "Surely you will quote this proverb to me: ‘Physician, heal yourself!' And you will tell me, ‘Do here in your hometown^(ab) what we have heard that you did in Capernaum.'"^(ac)

"Truly I tell you," he continued, "no prophet is accepted in his hometown.^(ad)

I assure you that there were many widows in Israel in Elijah's time, when the sky was shut for three and a half years and there was a severe famine throughout the land.^(ae)

Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them, but to a widow in Zarephath in the region of Sidon.^(af)

And there were many in Israel with leprosy^[g] in the time of Elisha the prophet, yet not one of them was cleansed—only Naaman the Syrian."^(ag)

All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this.

They got up, drove him out of the town,^(ah) and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him off the cliff.

But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way.^(ai)