Would the heavenly Father really lead us into temptation if we neglected to ask him not to? Is it necessary to request that he refrain from doing what he would never do? Is there something we might be missing about what Jesus expects his disciples to pray for?
Defining Terms
The verbal πειράζω in the Greek NT can simply mean to “try,” as in making an attempt,3 but usually means to “test,” whether for teaching or confirming,4 or to trap with sinister motives,5 including luring into sin,6 or to challenge God.7 In some instances a double nuance might be inferred, i.e., testing by trials and tempting.8 The noun form πειρασμός essentially refers to a difficult “trial” that may serve as a “test,” particularly in assessing one’s commitment to the Lord. It can apply to adversity or physical suffering,9 or to any type of challenge to one’s faith,10 including enticement to sin.11 Again, in some instances a double nuance might be inferred, i.e., trials and temptations.12 This study mainly concerns the latter, although clear distinctions are not always discernable.13
The Process of Temptation
When it comes to allurements to sin, the devil has a role, we have a role, and God has a role.
· The devil is recognized as ὁ πειράζων, “the tempting [one]” or simply “the tempter” (Matt. 4:3; 1 Thess. 3:5; cf. Matt. 5:37; 13:19; 1 Cor. 7:5).
· With free-will moral capacity, each accountable human being is personally responsible for how the devil’s temptations are handled in his or her own life (Matt. 13:20-23; 1 Tim. 6:9; Jas. 1:14; 4:1-4). While everyone is the tempter’s target, those who persistently capitulate also become his agents (cf. Matt. 5:39; 13:38; John 8:44; 2 Cor. 11:15).
· God provides the necessary tools for warning against, resisting, escaping, and overcoming the devil’s ploys (1 Cor. 10:13; Eph. 6:10-18; Jas. 1:12; 4:7-10; 1 Pet. 5:6-11).
According to James 1:13-15, God actively “tempts” [πειράζει] no one “of evils” [κακῶν]. Enticement to sin, therefore, does not come “from” [ἀπό] God but from one’s own desires and self-deception when the devil is not resisted and the divine will is ignored or rejected (cf. vv. 21-27; 2:19-26; 3:13-18; 4:1-10).
Does God Have an Active Role in Temptation?
In Matthew 6:13a and Luke 11:4b, when Jesus instructs his disciples to ask the Father, “lead us not into temptation” (ESV, NASB, NET, NIV, N/KJV, RSV), in both passages the verbal εἰσφέρω is employed, a combination of φέρω (to “bring” or “carry”) + εἰς (“in,” “unto,” “into”). Elsewhere in the NT the sense is always to “bring” or “carry,”14 thus the petition should read, if translated consistently, “bring us not into temptation” (ASV, ISV, CSB, NRSV, WEB).15 This more readily implies the heavenly Father’s presence and involvement. He not only leads, he accompanies.16
But in what sense would the heavenly Father ever bring or carry us into temptation that would occasion a prayer like this? In the vein of Hebrew parallelism, the contrast is between “bring [εἰσφέρω] not into temptation” and “deliver [ῥῦσαι] from the evil [one].”17 The entreaty does not ask God to abstain from tempting, which would be nonsensical, but to guide us away (deliver, rescue) from the evil one’s allurements. Even so, it follows that if God explicitly delivers or rescues from (cf. 2 Pet. 2:9), he also implicitly brings into – not temptation itself but situations where temptations (and trials) are possible, likely, or inevitable.
The Jewish Context
The prayers of the Hebrew psalter repeatedly petition God for guidance in the right direction18 and affirm that he acts accordingly.19 Although the concepts of “leading” and “bringing” could be viewed interchangeably,20 the latter involves a more personal and intimate description of God’s abiding presence, elsewhere stated more explicitly.21 While he can and does lead instrumentally, Hebrew verbs like yatsa [יָצָא] more clearly convey an active and direct “bringing” or “carrying.”22
The psalmist duly prayed, “Incline my heart to your testimonies and not to unjust gain” (Psa. 119:36); “Do not incline my heart to practice anything evil with wicked men who work iniquity, and do not let me eat of their delicacies” (Psa. 141:4).23 At the same time, personal accountability is understood: “Your word I have hidden in my heart that I might not sin against you” (Psa. 119:11); “I have inclined my heart to do your statutes indefinitely to the end” (Psa. 119:112).
Concluding Thoughts
In the Lord’s model prayer, the “bring us not into temptation” appeal is preceded by a recognition that the heavenly Father already knows our needs, along with a desire for his will to be done and a request for forgiveness (Matt. 5:8-12). Beyond the immediate context, to get the clearest sense of what Jesus teaches about prayer, what better commentary than his own experience? To be continued …
--Kevin L. Moore
Endnotes:
1 Fabio Frustaci, “Lead us not into temptation,” The Conversation (8 Dec. 2017), <Link>.
2 Harriet Sherwood, “Lead us not into temptation: pope wants the Lord’s prayer changed,” The Guardian (8 Dec. 2017), <Link>. Note also CEV, ERV, God’s Word®, The Message, J. B. Phillips, NLT, NLV. Calls to change the wording of this prayer also include the reference to “our Father”: see Harriet Sherwood, “Lord's Prayer opening may be 'problematic,'” The Guardian (7 July 2023), <Link>.
3 Acts 9:26; 16:7; 24:6. Unless otherwise noted, scripture quotations are the author’s own translation.
4 John 6:6; 2 Cor. 13:5; Heb. 11:17, [37]; Rev. 2:2, 10; 3:10.
5 Matt. 16:1; 19:3; 22:18, 35; Mark 8:11; 10:2; 12:15; Luke 11:16; John 8:6.
6 Matt. 4:1, 3; Mark 1:13; Luke 4:2; 1 Cor. 7:5; Gal. 6:1; 1 Thess. 3:5; Jas. 1:13-14.
7 Acts 5:9; 15:10; 1 Cor. 10:9; Heb. 3:9.
8 1 Cor. 10:13b; Heb. 2:18; 4:15.
9 Luke 22:28; Acts 20:19; 1 Pet. 1:6-7; 4:12-13.
10 Luke 8:13; 1 Cor. 10:13; Gal. 4:14; Heb. 3:8; Jas. 1:2-3, 12; Rev. 3:10.
11 Matt. 26:41; Mark 14:38; Luke 4:13; 22:40, 46; 1 Tim. 6:9. This appears to be the sense in Matt. 6:13a; Luke 11:4b, somewhat parallel to Matt. 26:41; Luke 22:40, 46.
12 Luke 8:13; 1 Cor. 10:13a; 2 Pet. 2:9.
13 “But it would be a mistake to distinguish the connotations sharply; for every enticement to sin tests faith, and every test of faith holds an enticement to sin” (Robert H. Gundry, Matthew: A Commentary [2nd ed.] 109).
14 Luke 5:18, 19; 12:11; Acts 17:20; 1 Tim. 6:7; Heb. 13:11. Notwithstanding the prepositional prefix, the compound verb εἰσφέρω parallels 2 Pet. 1:21, wherein men are said to have spoken from God, being “brought” or “carried” [φέρω] by [ὑπό] the Holy Spirit. In Heb. 12:7 the verbal προσφέρω is a combination of φέρω + πρός (“to,” “towards”); note also 11:17. Throughout Hebrews this compound word is used in the sense of “offer” (5:1, 3, 7; 8:3-4; 9:7, 9, 14, 25, 28; 10:1-2, 8, 11-12; 11:4, 17).
15 Young’s Literal Translation inconsistently renders the verb “lead” (Matt. 6:13) and “bring” (Luke 11:4b).
16 In Luke’s writings, with greater literary precision, when the idea of “leading” or “guiding” is conveyed, the verbal εἰσάγω is more commonly used (Luke 2:27; 14:21; 22:54; Acts 7:45; 9:8; 21:28, 29, 37; 22:24; outside of Luke only in John 18:16; Heb. 1:6). God not only “led” Israel from Egypt (Ex. 13:17-18, 21; 15:13), he “brought” them (Ex. 3:8, 17; 6:6, 7; 7:4, 5; 12:17, 42, 51; 13:3, 9, 14, 16; 29:46; Psa. 105:37, 43; 107:14; 136:11), and not merely by command (Ex. 6:13; 7:6) but with his very presence (Ex. 3:12; 18:19; 20:24; 29:42-46; 33:14; 34:5, 9).
17 With textual variation, the Byzantine Majority Text includes this contrasting clause in both passages, whereas in Luke’s account it is omitted in the NA27 and UBS5 Greek texts with an abridged version.
18 Psa. 5:8; 27:11; 31:3; 43:3a; 61:2; 139:24; 143:10.
19 Psa. 23:3; 67:4; 73:24; 77:20; 107:30; 139:10.
20 Psa. 31:3-4; 43:3; 60:9; 108:10.
21 Psa. 14:5; 16:8-11; 21:6; 23:4; 46:7, 11; 51:11; 54:4; 68:7-8; 73:23-24; 91:15; 139:7-10, 18, 24; 140:13.
22 Psa. 25:15, 17; 31:4; 37:6; 142:7; 143:11; 107:28; 136:11.
23 The active voice is sometimes substituted for the passive for emphasis. “Active verbs were used by the Hebrews to express, not the doing, but the permission of the thing which the agent is said to do” (James MacKnight, A New Literal Translation: Apostolical Epistles, with Commentary and Notes 29).
Related Posts: Lead Us Not Into Temptation Part 2, Part 3
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