What Jesus Said
“It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God... It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God... Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.”
Where It Comes From
“And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna... that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD... Ye shall not tempt the LORD your God... Thou shalt fear the LORD thy God, and serve him.”
Original Language Note
All three of Jesus' responses come from Deuteronomy, specifically from chapters 6-8 where Moses summarizes Israel's wilderness lessons. The Greek "gegraptai" (γέγραπται, "it is written") is perfect passive — indicating something written in the past with continuing authority.
The Context
After His baptism and before beginning His public ministry, Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness where He fasted forty days. Satan came to tempt Him with three tests: turning stones to bread (provision), throwing Himself from the temple (spectacle), and worshiping Satan for all kingdoms (power). Jesus responded to each with Scripture.
Seeing Christ
Where Israel failed in their forty years of wilderness testing, Jesus succeeded in His forty days. Israel grumbled for bread; Jesus trusted the Father's word. Israel tested God at Massah; Jesus refused to manipulate God into proving Himself. Israel made a golden calf; Jesus worshiped the Father alone. Christ is the True Israel who succeeds where the nation failed. His victory in the wilderness qualifies Him as our representative — He was "in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin" (Hebrews 4:15). The sword of the Spirit — the Word of God — is the weapon He modeled for us.
Answering the Skeptic
This passage demonstrates Jesus' view of Scripture: it is authoritative ("It is written"), sufficient (three temptations, three scripture citations), and effective against the enemy. Jesus did not appeal to signs, personal authority alone, or philosophical argument — He appealed to the Hebrew Scriptures as the final word. This is a rebuke to any theology that diminishes Scripture's authority.