Big Idea: The Son of God is tested in preparation for his mission, and he defeats the devil’s attempts to drive a wedge between him and his Father.

Understanding the Text

The devil’s proposals echo and depend on the declaration that Jesus is God’s Son, which has just been made in 3:22. This scene, still set in the wilderness where John has been baptizing, now completes Jesus’s preparation before his public ministry begins in 4:14. That ministry will take him back up north to his home province, among the ordinary population of Galilee. But first, in an area away from human population, he must face a crucial spiritual test as he confronts the “leader of the opposition.” This scene thus provides the unseen background to the struggles ahead; behind human opposition stands a more threatening …