Then Jesus *said to him, “Go away, Satan! For it is written: ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’ ”
Parallel translations
- WEB Then Jesus said to him, “Get behind me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and you shall serve him only.’”
- KJV Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
- BSB “Away from Me, Satan!” Jesus declared. “For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve Him only.’”
- NKJV Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and Him only you shall serve.’ ”
- NLT “Get out of here, Satan,” Jesus told him. “For the Scriptures say, ‘You must worship the Lord your God and serve only him.’”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Jesus dismisses Satan, quoting Deuteronomy that God alone is to be worshiped and served. It is the decisive victory of obedience over the tempter.
Overview
With a final word of Scripture (Deuteronomy 6:13), Jesus commands Satan to depart and affirms that worship and service belong to the Lord alone. Where Israel repeatedly fell into idolatry, Jesus stands firm, perfectly keeping the command. This triumph in the wilderness marks Him as the faithful Son and Savior who resists sin on our behalf.
Cross-references & the web
Quotation
- Deut 6:13You shall fear Yahweh your God; and you shall serve him, and shall swear by his name.
Cross-references · 14
- Deut 6:13–14You shall fear Yahweh your God; and you shall serve him, and shall swear by his name.
- Deut 10:20You shall fear Yahweh your God; you shall serve him; and you shall cling to him, and you shall swear by his name.
- Josh 24:14“Now therefore fear Yahweh, and serve him in sincerity and in truth. Put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River, in Egypt; and serve Yahweh.
- Luke 4:8Jesus answered him, “Get behind me Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and you shall serve him only.’”
- 1 Sam 7:3Samuel spoke to all the house of Israel, saying, “If you are returning to Yahweh with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you, and direct your hearts to Yahweh, and serve him only; and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.”
- Jas 4:7Be subject therefore to God. But resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
- Matt 16:23But he turned, and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me, for you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of men.”
- 1 Pet 5:9Withstand him steadfast in your faith, knowing that your brothers who are in the world are undergoing the same sufferings.
- Zech 3:1–2He showed me Joshua the high priest standing before Yahweh’s angel, and Satan standing at his right hand to be his adversary.
- Job 2:1Again, on the day when the God’s sons came to present themselves before Yahweh, Satan came also among them to present himself before Yahweh.
- Job 1:12Yahweh said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your power. Only on himself don’t stretch out your hand.” So Satan went out from the presence of Yahweh.
- 1 Chr 21:1Satan stood up against Israel, and moved David to take a census of Israel.
- Job 1:6Now on the day when God’s sons came to present themselves before Yahweh, Satan also came among them.
- Ps 109:6Set a wicked man over him. Let an adversary stand at his right hand.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Matthew presents Jesus as the promised King — son of David, son of Abraham — the new Moses and true Israel in whom every prophecy reaches 'that it might be fulfilled.'
How Matthew 4:10 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.