Matthew 4
J.B. Phillips New Testament
Jesus faces temptation alone in the desert
4 1-2 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit up into the desert, to be tempted by the devil. After a fast of forty days and nights he was very hungry.
3 “If you really are the Son of God,” said the tempter, coming to him, “tell these stones to turn into loaves.”
4 Jesus answered, “The scripture says ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God’.”
5-6 Then the devil took him to the holy city, and set him on the highest ledge of the Temple. “If you really are the Son of God,” he said, “Throw yourself down. For the scripture says—‘He shall give his angels charge concerning you,’ and ‘In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone’.”
7 “Yes,” retorted Jesus, “and the scripture also says ‘You shall not tempt the Lord your God’.”
8-9 Once again the devil took him to a very high mountain, and from there showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their magnificence. “Everything there I will give you,” he said to him, “if you will fall down and worship me.”
10 “Away with you, Satan!” replied Jesus, “the scripture says, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only you shall serve’.”
11 Then the devil let him alone, and the angels came to him and took care of him.
Jesus begins his ministry, in Galilee, and calls his first disciples
12-16 Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested he went back to Galilee. He left Nazareth and came to live in Capernaum, a lake-side town in the Zebulun-Naphtali territory. In this way Isaiah’s prophecy came true: ‘The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles: the people who sat in darkness saw a great light, and upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death, light has dawned’.
17 From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “You must change your hearts—for the kingdom of Heaven has arrived.”
18-19 While he was walking by the lake of Galilee he saw two brothers, Simon (Peter) and Andrew, casting their large net into the water. They were fishermen, so Jesus said to them, “Follow me and I will teach you to catch men!”
20 At once they left their nets and followed him.
21-22 Then he went further on and saw two more men, also brothers, James and John. They were aboard the boat with their father Zebedee repairing their nets, and he called them. At once they left the boat, and their father, and followed him.
Jesus teaches, preaches and heals
23-25 Jesus now moved about through the whole of Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the good news about the kingdom, and healing every disease and disability among the people. His reputation spread throughout Syria, and people brought to him all those who were ill, suffering from all kinds of diseases and pains—including the devil-possessed, the insane and the paralysed. He healed them, and was followed by enormous crowds from Galilee, The Ten Towns, Jerusalem, Judea and from beyond the river Jordan.
Matthew 4
New King James Version
Satan Tempts Jesus(A)
4 Then (B)Jesus was led up by (C)the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry. 3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”
4 But He answered and said, “It is written, (D)‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ”
5 Then the devil took Him up (E)into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written:
(F)‘He shall give His angels charge over you,’
and,
(G)‘In their hands they shall bear you up,
Lest you dash your foot against a stone.’ ”
7 Jesus said to him, “It is written again, (H)‘You shall not [a]tempt the Lord your God.’ ”
8 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and (I)showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.”
10 Then Jesus said to him, [b]“Away with you, Satan! For it is written, (J)‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ”
11 Then the devil (K)left Him, and behold, (L)angels came and ministered to Him.
Jesus Begins His Galilean Ministry(M)
12 (N)Now when Jesus heard that John had been put in prison, He departed to Galilee. 13 And leaving Nazareth, He came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea, in the regions of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:
15 “The(O) land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,
By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan,
Galilee of the Gentiles:
16 (P)The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light,
And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death
Light has dawned.”
17 (Q)From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, (R)“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven [c]is at hand.”
Four Fishermen Called as Disciples(S)
18 (T)And Jesus, walking by the Sea of Galilee, saw two brothers, Simon (U)called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen. 19 Then He said to them, “Follow Me, and (V)I will make you fishers of men.” 20 (W)They immediately left their nets and followed Him.
21 (X)Going on from there, He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. He called them, 22 and immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.
Jesus Heals a Great Multitude(Y)
23 And Jesus went about all Galilee, (Z)teaching in their synagogues, preaching (AA)the gospel of the kingdom, (AB)and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people. 24 Then [d]His fame went throughout all Syria; and they (AC)brought to Him all sick people who were afflicted with various diseases and torments, and those who were demon-possessed, epileptics, and paralytics; and He healed them. 25 (AD)Great multitudes followed Him—from Galilee, and from [e]Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea, and beyond the Jordan.
Footnotes
- Matthew 4:7 test
- Matthew 4:10 M Get behind Me
- Matthew 4:17 has drawn near
- Matthew 4:24 Lit. the report of Him
- Matthew 4:25 Lit. Ten Cities
Matthew 4
English Standard Version
The Temptation of Jesus
4 (A)Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness (B)to be tempted by the devil. 2 And after fasting (C)forty days and forty nights, he (D)was hungry. 3 And (E)the tempter came and said to him, “If you are (F)the Son of God, command (G)these stones to become loaves of bread.” 4 But he answered, (H)“It is written,
(I)“‘Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
5 (J)Then the devil took him to (K)the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple 6 and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written,
(L)“‘He will command his angels concerning you,’
and
“‘On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.’”
7 Jesus said to him, “Again (M)it is written, (N)‘You shall not (O)put the Lord your God to the test.’” 8 (P)Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 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, “Be gone, (Q)Satan! For (R)it is written,
11 Then the devil left him, and behold, (U)angels came and were ministering to him.
Jesus Begins His Ministry
12 Now when he heard that (V)John had been arrested, (W)he withdrew into Galilee. 13 And leaving (X)Nazareth he went and lived in (Y)Capernaum by (Z)the sea, in the territory of (AA)Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 (AB)so that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:
15 (AC)“The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,
the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles—
16 (AD)the people dwelling in darkness
have seen a great light,
and for those dwelling in the region and (AE)shadow of death,
on them a light has dawned.”
17 (AF)From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, (AG)“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”[a]
Jesus Calls the First Disciples
18 (AH)While walking by (AI)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 fishermen. 19 And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you (AJ)fishers of men.”[b] 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21 And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them. 22 Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
Jesus Ministers to Great Crowds
23 (AK)And he went throughout all Galilee, (AL)teaching in their synagogues and (AM)proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and (AN)healing every disease and every affliction among the people. 24 So his fame spread throughout all (AO)Syria, and (AP)they brought him all the sick, those afflicted with various diseases and (AQ)pains, (AR)those oppressed by demons, (AS)those having seizures, and (AT)paralytics, and he healed them. 25 (AU)And great crowds followed him from Galilee and the (AV)Decapolis, and from Jerusalem and Judea, and from beyond the Jordan.
Footnotes
- Matthew 4:17 Or the kingdom of heaven has come near
- Matthew 4:19 The Greek word anthropoi refers here to both men and women
The New Testament in Modern English by J.B Phillips copyright © 1960, 1972 J. B. Phillips. Administered by The Archbishops’ Council of the Church of England. Used by Permission.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
