Worship God alone and do not put him to the test
Jesus answers two wilderness temptations with Moses' instructions about worship and testing God.
Historical context
Moses warns Israel not to forget the LORD after entering a prosperous land, not to pursue other gods, and not to repeat the testing at Massah.
Tradition note
Begin with each Old Testament passage in context, then examine the New Testament's wording and argument. Explicit fulfillment citations, apostolic applications, and typological comparisons carry different kinds of evidence; Protestant approaches to particular passages vary.
Avoid overclaiming
These are covenant instructions, not predictions of a future temptation. Matthew and Luke arrange the last two temptations differently; the tracker groups them without imposing one sequence on both Gospels.
Key points
- New Testament application
- Matthew 4:5–10 (New Testament application) — Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 6:16 against testing God and 6:13 against worshipping the tempter. His obedience is the connection, rather than a forecast in Moses' commands.
- Luke 4:5–12 (New Testament application) — Luke also records the two Deuteronomy answers, putting the kingdoms temptation before the temple temptation.
Doctrinal connections
- Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 6:16 against testing God and 6:13 against worshipping the tempter. His obedience is the connection, rather than a forecast in Moses' commands. Luke also records the two Deuteronomy answers, putting the kingdoms temptation before the temple temptation.
Scripture
- Deuteronomy 6:10–19 — Moses warns Israel not to forget the LORD after entering a prosperous land, not to pursue other gods, and not to repeat the testing at Massah.
- Matthew 4:5–10 — Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 6:16 against testing God and 6:13 against worshipping the tempter. His obedience is the connection, rather than a forecast in Moses' commands.
- Luke 4:5–12 — Luke also records the two Deuteronomy answers, putting the kingdoms temptation before the temple temptation.
Sources and further reading
- Deuteronomy 6 · WEB
- Deuteronomy 6:10–19 · World English Bible
- Luke 4 · WEB
- Luke 4:5–12 · World English Bible
- Matthew 4 · WEB
- Matthew 4:5–10 · World English Bible
- Reviewed biblical text and context · DEU06.htm
- Reviewed biblical text and context · LUK04.htm
- Reviewed biblical text and context · MAT04.htm