4:2a
where: The word where refers again to the desert.” This word does not occur in Greek. The Berean Standard Bible uses it to connect 4:1 and 4:2. Connect these verses in a natural way in your language.
for forty days: There are several ways to interpret the Greek phrase that the Berean Standard Bible translates as for forty days:
(1) It refers to the length of time that the devil tempted Jesus. For example:
and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil (New Revised Standard Version)
(Berean Standard Bible New International Version, Good News Translation, New Revised Standard Version, NET Bible, God’s Word, New Living Translation (2004), Contemporary English Version, New Century Version)
(2) It refers to the length of time that the Spirit led Jesus and that the devil tempted him. For example:
for forty days he wandered in the wilderness, led by the Spirit and tempted by the devil (Revised English Bible)
(Revised English Bible, Revised Standard Version, New American Standard Bible, English Standard Version)
(3) It refers to the length of time that the Spirit led Jesus.
It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1).
forty days: The phrase forty days means “forty days and nights.” It does not refer only to the daylight hours.
He was tempted by the devil: This is a passive clause. Some ways to translate this clause are:
• As a passive clause. For example:
Jesus was tested by the devil (Contemporary English Version)
• As an active clause. For example:
the devil tempted Jesus (New Century Version)
tempted: The word tempted means to try to cause/entice someone to sin. The devil encouraged Jesus to sin by telling him to do what was wrong. The devil told him that he would obtain some benefit by doing certain things that were wrong. The devil lied to Jesus in order to trap him to sin. Another way to translate this is:
tested (Contemporary English Version)
the devil: The phrase the devil refers to the chief of all evil spirits. His name is Satan. In Hebrew this name means “enemy.” He is the enemy of God and God’s people. Here are some ways to translate the devil:
• Use a local name or idiom that refers to the chief of all demons.
• Use a descriptive phrase such as
the leader of the evil spirits
-or-
the spirit enemy of God
• Transliterate the name “Satan.” If this word is not already known in your area, you may also want to add a descriptive phrase. For example:
Satanas, the ruler of demons
-or-
Shaitan
If you transliterate “Satan” or borrow a word from another language, be sure that it communicates the biblical meaning to people in your culture. It is important to check this in each biblical context.
Try to use a term that will be acceptable to churches in the area. It is suggested that you also add a footnote or glossary entry that further explains who the devil is. For example:
The devil is the leader of all evil spirits or demons. Once he was an angel in heaven, but he rebelled against God. God expelled him from heaven, and now he tempts people on earth. Here are other names for Satan that are used in the Bible: “Beelzebul,” “Satan,” “the Evil One,” “the Enemy,” and “the Tempter.”
4:2b
He ate nothing during those days: The clause He ate nothing during those days indicates that Jesus chose not to eat any food during the forty days that he was in the wilderness. Some other ways to translate this are:
Jesus ate nothing during that time (New Century Version)
-or-
during that time he did not eat any food
Luke does not say whether Jesus drank anything during this time. In your translation, you should avoid saying that Jesus did not drink anything during the forty days.
4:2c
when they had ended: The phrase when they had ended means “when/after the forty days were over.”
He was hungry: Jesus did not eat for forty days, so he was hungrier than someone who had not eaten one or two meals. In some languages, it may be more natural to translate this as:
very hungry (New Century Version)
-or-
famished (NET Bible)
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