Matthew 4:5–7
The devil quotes Scripture too; Jesus will not put God to the test
Study it word by word5Then the devil takes him into the holy city and stood him on the pinnacle of the temple,
6and says 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 lift you up, so that you do not strike your foot against a stone.’”
7Jesus said to him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not test the Lord your God.’”
In its context
3And the one testing him came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become loaves of bread.”
4But he answered and said, “It is written, ‘A person will not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes out through the mouth of God.’”
…
8Again the devil takes him to a very high mountain and shows him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory,
9and he said to him, “All these things I will give you, if you fall down and bow down before me.”
Its words in the original
- ΤότεTote· then
Then, at that time.
- παραλαμβάνειparalambanei· take, receive
Receive, take along; take a wife into one's home.
- διάβολοςdiabolos· devil
Devil: "the slanderer", the one who accuses and divides; the enemy of God and of people.
- ἁγίανhagian· holy
Holy: set apart for God, pure, belonging to him.
- πόλινpolin· city, town
City, town.
- ἔστησενestēsen· stand, set
Stand, stand still, stop; also set, establish.
- πτερύγιονpterygion· pinnacle
Pinnacle: the highest point or edge of a building.
- ἱεροῦhierou· temple
Temple: the whole sacred precinct in Jerusalem, with its courts and porches.
- λέγειlegei· say
Say, speak; in the passive, "be called".
- υἱὸςhuios· son, Son
Son. Also descendant: "son of David" means one of King David's family, and is a title of the promised Messiah.
- εἶei· be
Be, exist.
- θεοῦtheou· God, god
God. In the plural or in another sense, "gods".
- βάλεbale· throw, put
Throw, cast; also put.
- σεαυτὸνseauton· yourself
Yourself.
- κάτωkatō· below
Below, down; "from below".
- γέγραπταιgegraptai· write
Write. "It is written": that is what the Scriptures say.
- ἀγγέλοιςangelois· messenger, angel
Messenger. When sent from heaven, an angel.
- ἐντελεῖταιenteleitai· command
Command, give orders.
- χειρῶνcheirōn· hand
Hand.
- ἀροῦσίνarousin· lift, take away
Lift up, carry; also take away.
- μήποτεmēpote· lest, perhaps
Lest, so that not; perhaps.
- προσκόψῃςproskopsēis· stumble
Stumble, strike against something.
- λίθονlithon· stone
Stone.
- πόδαpoda· foot
Foot.
- ἔφηephē· say
Say.
- ἸησοῦςIēsous· Jesus
Jesus, the Greek form of the Hebrew Yehoshua (Joshua), which means "YHWH saves". It is the name the angel told Joseph to give him (Matthew 1:21).
- ΠάλινPalin· again
Again, once more; also "in turn".
- ἐκπειράσειςekpeiraseis· test, tempt
Test, put to the test; tempt God by demanding that he prove something.
- κύριονkyrion· Lord, lord
Lord, master, owner. Said of God, the Lord; in Old Testament quotations it stands for the name YHWH.