Luke 4:12

12 Jesus answered, “It is said: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’[a]

Luke 4:12 in Other Translations

KJV
12 And Jesus answering said unto him,It is said, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
ESV
12 And Jesus answered him, "It is said, 'You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.'"
NLT
12 Jesus responded, “The Scriptures also say, ‘You must not test the your God.’ ”
MSG
12 "Yes," said Jesus, "and it's also written, 'Don't you dare tempt the Lord your God.'"
CSB
12 And Jesus answered him, "It is said: Do not test the Lord your God. "

Luke 4:12 Meaning and Commentary

Luke 4:12

And Jesus answering said unto him, it is said
In ( Deuteronomy 6:16 )

Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God:
in the text in Deuteronomy the words are, "ye shall not tempt the Lord your God." The second person plural, is here changed into the second person singular, to accommodate the words to Satan; whom Christ singly addresses, and makes answer to, and who was under this same general law as other rational creatures: and Jehovah may be called the Lord his God, as he is his creator and governor; by whom he is upheld in his being, and to whom he is subject, whether he will or not; though not his covenant God: and even if our Lord Jesus Christ is intended by the Lord God, as some think; he is God over all; over all principalities and powers, good and bad, by whom all are created, and in whom all consist; and whose power and authority over Satan and his angels, have abundantly appeared, in dispossessing devils out of men, sending them where he pleased, and in spoiling the powers of darkness, and in destroying him that had the power of death, the devil; and great insolence and wickedness it must be in a creature, to tempt the Lord his God, in any way, or form whatever; (See Gill on Matthew 4:7)

Luke 4:12 In-Context

10 For it is written: “ ‘He will command his angels concerning you to guard you carefully;
11 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’ ”
12 Jesus answered, “It is said: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”
13 When the devil had finished all this tempting, he left him until an opportune time.
14 Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through the whole countryside.

Cross References 1

  • 1. Deuteronomy 6:16

Footnotes 1

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