The Center of Luke’s Temptation Narrative

The Matthean and Lucan versions of the devil’s temptations of Jesus are quite similar, but the difference in their order has often troubled interpreters. Most scholars argue that Luke rearranges the Matthean sequence in order to conclude the account in Jerusalem. In this article, I propose that the difference in order should instead be attributed to Luke’s chiastic structuring of the text, which places the second temptation at the center of the pericope and aligns Luke’s version with Matthew’s emphasis on the devil’s offer of dominion and authority to Jesus, thus encouraging the hearer to consider Jesus’s authority at the inception of his ministry.