Matthew 4:5

King James Version

Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,

Parallel Translations

Easy-to-Read Version
Then the devil led Jesus to the holy city of Jerusalem and put him on a high place at the edge of the Temple area.

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
Then the devyll tooke hym vp into ye holy cite and set hym on a pynacle of the teple

International Standard Version
Then the devil took him to the Holy City[fn] and had him stand on the highest point of the temple.Nehemiah 11:1,18; Isaiah 48:2; 52:1; Matthew 27:53; Revelation 11:2;">[xr]

New American Standard Bible
Then the devil took Him along into the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple,

New Century Version
Then the devil led Jesus to the holy city of Jerusalem and put him on a high place of the Temple.

Update Bible Version
Then the devil takes him into the holy city; and he set him on the pinnacle of the temple,

Webster's Bible Translation
Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,

Amplified Bible
Then the devil took Him into the holy city [Jerusalem] and placed Him on the pinnacle (highest point) of the temple.

English Standard Version
Then the devil took him to the holy city and set him on the pinnacle of the temple

World English Bible
Then the devil took him into the holy city. He set him on the pinnacle of the temple,

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
Then the devil taketh him with him into the holy city, and setteth him on the battlement of the temple,

Weymouth's New Testament
Then the Devil took Him to the Holy City and caused Him to stand on the roof of the Temple,

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
Thanne the feend took hym in to the hooli citee, and settide hym on the pynacle of the temple,

English Revised Version
Then the devil taketh him into the holy city; and he set him on the pinnacle of the temple,

Berean Standard Bible
Then the devil took Him to the holy city and set Him on the pinnacle of the temple.

Contemporary English Version
Next, the devil took Jesus to the holy city and had him stand on the highest part of the temple.

American Standard Version
Then the devil taketh him into the holy city; and he set him on the pinnacle of the temple,

Bible in Basic English
Then the Evil One took him to the holy town; and he put him on the highest point of the Temple and said to him,

Complete Jewish Bible
Then the Adversary took him to the holy city and set him on the highest point of the Temple.

Darby Translation
Then the devil takes him to the holy city, and sets him upon the edge of the temple,

Etheridge Translation
Then the Accuser taketh him to the holy city, and caused him to stand on the pinnacle of the temple;

Murdock Translation
Then the Calumniator took him to the holy city, and set him on a pinnacle of the temple,

King James Version (1611)
Then the deuill taketh him vp into the holy Citie, and setteth him on a pinacle of the Temple,

New Living Translation
Then the devil took him to the holy city, Jerusalem, to the highest point of the Temple,

New Life Bible
Then the devil took Jesus up to Jerusalem, the holy city. He had Jesus stand on the highest part of the house of God.

New Revised Standard
Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple,

Geneva Bible (1587)
Then the deuil tooke him vp into the holy Citie, and set him on a pinacle of the temple,

George Lamsa Translation
Then the adversary took him to the holy city, and he made him to stand up on the pinnacle of the temple.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Then, the adversary taketh him with him, unto the holy city, - and he set him upon the pinnacle of the temple;

Douay-Rheims Bible
Then the devil took him up into the holy city, and set him upon the pinnacle of the temple,

Revised Standard Version
Then the devil took him to the holy city, and set him on the pinnacle of the temple,

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Then the deuyll taketh hym vp into the holy citie, and setteth hym on a pinacle of the temple,

Good News Translation
Then the Devil took Jesus to Jerusalem, the Holy City, set him on the highest point of the Temple,

Christian Standard Bible®
Then the devil took him to the holy city, had him stand on the pinnacle of the temple,

Hebrew Names Version
Then the devil took him into the holy city. He set him on the pinnacle of the temple,

Lexham English Bible
Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the highest point of the temple

Literal Translation
Then the Devil takes Him to the holy city, and he set Him on the wing of the temple.

Young's Literal Translation
Then doth the Devil take him to the [holy] city, and doth set him on the pinnacle of the temple,

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Then the deuyll toke hym vp into the holy cite, and set hym on a pynacle of the temple,

Mace New Testament (1729)
then the devil took Jesus with him to Jerusalem, and having set him on the wing of the temple, he said to him,

THE MESSAGE
For the second test the Devil took him to the Holy City. He sat him on top of the Temple and said, "Since you are God's Son, jump." The Devil goaded him by quoting Psalm 91: "He has placed you in the care of angels. They will catch you so that you won't so much as stub your toe on a stone."

New English Translation
Then the devil took him to the holy city, had him stand on the highest point of the temple,

New King James Version
Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple,

Simplified Cowboy Version
The devil snatched Jesus up and took him to the holy city and they stood at the highest point of the church.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
Then the devil took Him into the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple,

Legacy Standard Bible
Then the devil *took Him into the holy city and had Him stand on the pinnacle of the temple,

Contextual Overview

¹ Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. ² And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred. ³ And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. ⁴ But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. ⁵ Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, ⁶ And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. ⁷ Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. ⁸ Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; ⁹ And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. ¹⁰ 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.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

taketh: Luke 4:9, John 19:11

the holy: Matthew 27:53, Nehemiah 11:1, Isaiah 48:2, Isaiah 52:1, Daniel 9:16, Revelation 11:2

on: 2 Chronicles 3:4

Reciprocal: 1 Kings 6:3 - General Isaiah 26:10 - in the Matthew 4:8 - the devil Revelation 12:9 - the Devil

Cross-References

Genesis 4:10
And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground.

Genesis 4:11
And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand;

Genesis 31:2
And Jacob beheld the countenance of Laban, and, behold, it was not toward him as before.

Genesis 31:5
And said unto them, I see your father's countenance, that it is not toward me as before; but the God of my father hath been with me.

Numbers 16:15
And Moses was very wroth, and said unto the Lord , Respect not thou their offering: I have not taken one ass from them, neither have I hurt one of them.

Job 5:2
For wrath killeth the foolish man, and envy slayeth the silly one.

Psalms 20:3
Remember all thy offerings, and accept thy burnt sacrifice; Selah.

Matthew 20:15
Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own? Is thine eye evil, because I am good?

Acts 13:45
But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy, and spake against those things which were spoken by Paul, contradicting and blaspheming.

Hebrews 11:4
By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Then the devil taketh him up,.... This was done, not in a visionary way, but really and truly: Satan, by divine permission, and with the consent of Christ, which shows his great humiliation and condescension, had power over his body, to move it from place to place; in some such like manner as the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, Acts 8:39 he took him up, raised him above ground, and carried him through the air, "into, the holy city": this was Jerusalem; for Luke expressly says,

he brought him to Jerusalem, Luke 4:9 called so, because of the presence, worship, and service of God, which had been in it, though then in a great measure gone; and according to the common notions of the Jews, who say b Jerusalem was more holy than any other cities in the land, and that because of the Shekinah. The inscription on one side of their shekels was ירושלם עיר הקדש, "Jerusalem, the holy city" c. Satan frequents all sorts of places; men are no where free from his temptations; Christ himself was not in the holy city, no nor in the holy temple; hither also he had him,

and setteth him upon a pinnacle, or "wing of the temple". In this place d the Jews set James, the brother of Christ, and from it cast him down headlong: this was the ακρον "the summit", or "top" of it; and intends either the roof encompassed with battlements, to keep persons from falling off; or the top of the porch before the temple, which was 120 cubits high; or the top of the royal gallery, built by Herod, which was of such an height, that if a man looked down from it, he soon became dizzy e. The view Satan had in setting him here appears in the next verse.

b Bemidbar Rabba, fol. 183. 4. & Maimon. Hilch. Beth. Habechirah, c. 7. sect. 14. & 6. 16. c Waserus de Antiq. Numm. Heb. l. 2. c. 5. d Euseb. Eccl. Hist. l. 2. c. 23. e Joseph. Antiq. Jud. l. 15. c. 14.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Then the devil taketh him up - This does not mean that he bore him through the air; or that he compelled him to go against his will, or that he performed a miracle in any way to place him there. There is no evidence that Satan had power to do any of these things, and the word translated taketh him Up does not imply any such thing. It means to conduct one; to lead one; to attend or accompany one; or to induce one to go. It is used in the following places in the same sense: Numbers 23:14; “And he (Balak) brought him (Balaam) into the field of Zophim,” etc. That is, he led him, or induced him to go there. Matthew 17:1; “and after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James,” etc.; that is, led or conducted them - not by any means implying that he bore them by force. Matthew 20:17; “Jesus, going to Jerusalem, took the twelve disciples apart,” etc. See also Matthew 26:37; Matthew 27:27; Mark 5:40. From these passages, and many more, it appears that all that is meant here is, that Satan conducted Jesus, or accompanied him; but not that this was done against the will of Jesus.

The holy city - Jerusalem, called holy because the temple was there, and because it was the place of religious solemnities.

Setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple - It is not perfectly certain to what part of the temple the sacred writer here refers. It has been supposed by some that he means the roof. But Josephus says that the roof was covered by spikes of gold, to prevent its being polluted by birds; and such a place would have been very inconvenient to stand upon. Others suppose that it was the top of the porch or entrance to the temple. But it is more than probable that the porch leading to the temple was not as high as the main building. It is more probable that he refers to that part of the sacred edifice which was called Solomon’s Porch. The temple was built on the top of Mount Moriah. The temple itself, together with the courts and porches, occupied a large space of ground. See the notes at Matthew 21:12. To secure a level spot sufficiently large, it was necessary to put up a high wall on the east. The temple was surrounded with porches or piazzas 50 feet broad and 75 feet high. The porch on the south side was, however, 67 feet broad and 150 high. From the top of this to the bottom of the valley below was more than 700 feet, and Josephus says that one could scarcely look down without dizziness. The word “pinnacle” does not quite express the force of the original. It is a word given usually to birds, and denotes wings, or anything in the form of wings, and was given to the roof of this porch because it resembled a bird dropping its wings. It was on this place, doubtless, that Christ was placed.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Matthew 4:5. Pinnacle of the temple — It is very likely that this was what was called the στοα βασιλικη, the king's gallery; which, as Josephus says, "deserves to be mentioned among the most magnificent things under the sun: for upon a stupendous depth of a valley, scarcely to be fathomed by the eye of him that stands above, Herod erected a gallery of a vast height, from the top of which if any looked down, he would grow dizzy, his eyes not being able to reach so vast a depth." - Ant. l. xv. c. 14. See Dr. Lightfoot on this place.