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The Testing of Jesus

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tested by the devil. He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterward he was famished.(A) The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.”(B) But he answered, “It is written,

‘One does not live by bread alone,
    but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ”(C)

Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple,(D) saying 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,
so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’ ”(E)

Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’ ”(F)

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.” 10 Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! for it is written,

‘Worship the Lord your God,
    and serve only him.’ ”(G)

11 Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.(H)

Jesus Begins His Ministry in Galilee

12 Now when Jesus[a] heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. 13 He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

15 “Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali,
    on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the gentiles—(I)
16 the people who sat in darkness
    have seen a great light,
and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death
    light has dawned.”(J)

17 From that time Jesus began to proclaim, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.”[b](K)

Jesus Calls the First Disciples

18 As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishers.(L) 19 And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of people.” 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed him.(M) 21 As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. 22 Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.

Jesus Ministers to Crowds of People

23 Jesus[c] went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news[d] of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.(N) 24 So his fame spread throughout all Syria, and they brought to him all the sick, those who were afflicted with various diseases and pains, people possessed by demons or having epilepsy or afflicted with paralysis, and he cured them.(O) 25 And great crowds followed him from Galilee, the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.(P)

Footnotes

  1. 4.12 Gk he
  2. 4.17 Or is at hand
  3. 4.23 Gk He
  4. 4.23 Gk gospel

Jesus is Tempted by Satan(A)

After this, Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the Devil. After fasting for 40 days and 40 nights, he finally became hungry.

Then the tempter came. “Since[a] you are the Son of God,” he said, “tell these stones to become loaves of bread.”

But he answered, “It is written,

‘One must not live on bread alone,
    but on every word coming
        out of the mouth of God.’”[b]

Then the Devil took him to the Holy City[c] and had him stand on the highest point of the Temple. He told Jesus,[d] “Since[e] you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, because it is written,

‘God[f] will put his angels in charge of you,’

and,

‘With their hands they will hold you up,
    so that you will never hit your foot against a rock.’”[g]

Jesus responded to him, “It is also written, ‘You must not tempt the Lord[h] your God.’”[i]

Once more the Devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world, along with their splendor. He told Jesus,[j] “I will give you all these things if you will bow down and worship me!”

10 Then Jesus told him, “Go away,[k] Satan! Because it is written,

‘You must worship the Lord your God
    and serve only him.’”[l]

11 So the Devil left him, and angels came and began ministering to him.

Jesus Begins His Ministry in Galilee(B)

12 Now when Jesus[m] heard that John had been arrested, he went back to Galilee. 13 He left Nazareth and settled in Capernaum by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 in order to fulfill what was declared by the prophet Isaiah when he said,

15 “O Land of Zebulun and Land of Naphtali,
    on the road to the sea, across the Jordan,
        Galilee of the unbelievers![n]
16 The people living[o] in darkness have seen a great light,
    and for those living[p] in the land and shadow of death,
        a light has risen.”[q]

17 From then on, Jesus began to announce, “Repent, because the kingdom from[r] heaven is near!”

Jesus Calls Four Fishermen(C)

18 While Jesus[s] was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers—Simon (also[t] called Peter) and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the sea, because they were fishermen. 19 “Follow me,” he told them, “and I will make you fishers of people!” 20 So at once they left their nets and followed him. 21 Going on from there he saw two other brothers—James, son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee repairing their nets. When he called them, 22 they immediately left the boat and their father and followed him.

Jesus Ministers to Many People(D)

23 Then he went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every illness among the people. 24 His fame spread throughout Syria, and people[u] brought to him everyone who was sick—those afflicted with various diseases and pains, the demon-possessed, the epileptics, and the paralyzed—and he healed them. 25 Large crowds from Galilee, the Decapolis,[v] Jerusalem, Judea, and from across the Jordan followed him.

Footnotes

  1. Matthew 4:3 Or “If, as is the case,
  2. Matthew 4:4 Deut 8:3; MT source citation reads Lord
  3. Matthew 4:5 I.e. Jerusalem
  4. Matthew 4:6 Lit. him
  5. Matthew 4:6 Or “If, as is the case,
  6. Matthew 4:6 Lit. He
  7. Matthew 4:6 Cf. Ps 91:11-12
  8. Matthew 4:7 MT source citation reads Lord
  9. Matthew 4:7 Cf. Deut 6:16
  10. Matthew 4:9 Lit. him
  11. Matthew 4:10 Other mss. read Get behind me
  12. Matthew 4:10 Deut 6:13
  13. Matthew 4:12 Lit. he
  14. Matthew 4:15 Lit. gentiles; i.e. unbelieving non-Jews
  15. Matthew 4:16 Lit. sitting
  16. Matthew 4:16 Lit. sitting
  17. Matthew 4:16 Cf. Isa 9:1-2
  18. Matthew 4:17 Lit. of
  19. Matthew 4:18 Lit. he
  20. Matthew 4:18 The Gk. lacks also
  21. Matthew 4:24 Lit. they
  22. Matthew 4:25 Lit. the Ten Cities, a loose federation of ten cities strongly influenced by Greek culture