The ceremony upon entering the land

26 Once you have entered the land the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, and you take possession of it and are settled there, ² take some of the early produce of the fertile ground that you have harvested from the land the Lord your God is giving you, and put it in a basket. Then go to the location the Lord your God selects for his name to reside. ³ Go to the priest who is in office at that time and say to him: “I am declaring right now before the Lord my^[a] God that I have indeed arrived in the land the Lord swore to our ancestors to give us.”

⁴ The priest will then take the basket from you and place it before the Lord your God’s altar. ⁵ Then you should solemnly state before the Lord your God:

“My father was a starving Aramean. He went down to Egypt, living as an immigrant there with few family members, but that is where he became a great nation, mighty and numerous. ⁶ The Egyptians treated us terribly, oppressing us and forcing hard labor on us. ⁷ So we cried out for help to the Lord, our ancestors’ God. The Lord heard our call. God saw our misery, our trouble, and our oppression. ⁸ The Lord brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand and an outstretched arm, with awesome power, and with signs and wonders. ⁹ He brought us to this place and gave us this land—a land full of milk and honey. ¹⁰ So now I am bringing the early produce of the fertile ground that you, Lord, have given me.”

Set the produce before the Lord your God, bowing down before the Lord your God. ¹¹ Then celebrate all the good things the Lord your God has done for you and your family—each one of you along with the Levites and the immigrants who are among you.

Psalm 91

⁸ But what does it say? The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart^[a] (that is, the message of faith that we preach). ⁹ Because if you confess with your mouth “Jesus is Lord” and in your heart you have faith that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ Trusting with the heart leads to righteousness, and confessing with the mouth leads to salvation. ¹¹ The scripture says, All who have faith in him won’t be put to shame.^{[b] 12} There is no distinction between Jew and Greek, because the same Lord is Lord of all, who gives richly to all who call on him. ¹³ All who call on the Lord’s name will be saved.^[c]

Jesus’ temptation

4 Jesus returned from the Jordan River full of the Holy Spirit, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness. ² There he was tempted for forty days by the devil. He ate nothing during those days and afterward Jesus was starving. ³ The devil said to him, “Since you are God’s Son, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.”

⁴ Jesus replied, “It’s written, People won’t live only by bread.”^[a]

⁵ Next the devil led him to a high place and showed him in a single instant all the kingdoms of the world. ⁶ The devil said, “I will give you this whole domain and the glory of all these kingdoms. It’s been entrusted to me and I can give it to anyone I want. ⁷ Therefore, if you will worship me, it will all be yours.”

⁸ Jesus answered, “It’s written, You will worship the Lord your God and serve only him.”^[b]

⁹ The devil brought him into Jerusalem and stood him at the highest point of the temple. He said to him, “Since you are God’s Son, throw yourself down from here; ¹⁰ for it’s written: He will command his angels concerning you, to protect you ¹¹ and they will take you up in their hands so that you won’t hit your foot on a stone.^[c]”

¹² Jesus answered, “It’s been said, Don’t test the Lord your God.”^{[d] 13} After finishing every temptation, the devil departed from him until the next opportunity.