Mark 1:12 – The Temptation of Christ

Today, we continue in Mark chapter 1:12, where we look at the account of the temptation of Christ. Mark’s account of Jesus’ temptation is remarkably brief but powerful. We are going to compare these two verses to the detailed narratives in Matthew and Luke. This compressed telling doesn’t diminish its theological significance. In these few words, Mark presents Jesus as the second Adam or the last Adam, as described by Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:45, the faithful covenant mediator and sacrifice who succeeded where our first Adam failed monumentally, leading to the fall of humanity. Adam failed not because he was deceived (1 Timothy 2:14).

Why Did Adam Eat the Forbidden Fruit?

Before we pick up in Mark 1:12, the question had been asked for many years: why did Adam eat the forbidden fruit? One theory suggests it is due to love for Eve. The other is that he wanted to be like God.

[Mark 1:12 NKJV] 12 Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness.

Mark records that immediately (a word used frequently in the Gospel of Mark) after Jesus is baptized, the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness. Mark’s choice of the word “drove” (ekballo ek-bal’-lo) is startling—it’s the same word used for casting out demons and the word used for when Jesus drove the money changers out of the Temple. The word ekballo means to cast out or drive forcefully.

[Matthew 7:22 NKJV] 22 “Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?'”

[Matthew 8:16 NKJV] 16 When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick,

[Matthew 21:12 NKJV] 12 Then Jesus went into the temple of God and drove out all those who bought and sold in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves.

The Spirit doesn’t gently lead Jesus into temptation; He forcefully drives Him into the wilderness, suggesting the absolute necessity of this trial. This verse reveals and expresses the divine necessity of the trial of temptation. It wasn’t accidental or optional. The Westminster Catechism of 1643 teaches that Christ’s humbling included being “tempted, yet without sin”.

[Philippians 2:5-8 NKJV] 5 Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, 6 who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, 7 but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

[Hebrews 5:8-9 NKJV] 8 though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. 9 And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him,

Wilderness Testing and the Necessity of the Trial

This wilderness testing and living a sinless life were crucial and fundamental to Jesus’s messianic work, just as the virgin birth, death on the cross, and resurrection. The Spirit drives Him there because testing must occur. Like the scourging and being nailed to the cross, His whole life was part of the test.

[Isaiah 53:3 NKJV] He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.

Remember that Jesus was fully God and fully man, and sinless His entire life on earth. Remember, if you violate one commandment, you have violated the whole law. None of us can keep the entire law; if we could, Christ would not have had to come. He was able to be our replacement because He was without sin.

[Galatians 3:10-11 NKJV] 10 For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them.” 11 But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for “the just shall live by faith.”

[Deuteronomy 27:26 NKJV] 26 ‘Cursed is the one who does not confirm all the words of this law by observing them.’ “And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’

Adam vs. Jesus

The contrast between Adam and Jesus is in-your-face apparent. Adam was placed in paradise, the Garden of Eden, and faced temptation in comfort and was given dominion over all living things. Jesus was driven into the wilderness, a harsh, desolate, and dangerous place. The contrast is deliberate: the first Adam failed under ideal conditions, whereas the second Adam, or last Adam, faced the worst possible situation and the epitome of evil. Satan tempted Him, and in extreme temperatures and a forty-day fast, He was challenged, yet He emerged victorious.

Matthew and Luke’s Accounts

[Matthew 4:1-2 NKJV] 1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry.

[Luke 4:1-2 NKJV] 1 Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, 2 being tempted for forty days by the devil. And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry.

It is interesting that Mark, Matthew, and Luke all use different words. Mark uses ekballo (to drive out), Matthew uses anagō (to lead), and Luke uses ago (to guide or direct).

[Mark 1:13 NKJV] 13 And He was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to Him.

The Significance of the Forty Days

Mark is the only Gospel writer out of the others who mentions the wild beasts. Mark doesn’t clarify whether the wild beasts posed any danger to Jesus, causing Him to be tempted by them, or if the power of the Holy Spirit and Christ subdued them, so that their mouths were shut, like in the account of Daniel in the lion’s den.

One view is that the forty days are a similitude of Israel’s 40-year experience in the wilderness. The number 40 holds significant meaning in the Bible, often symbolizing a period of testing, preparation, or divine instruction. Here are some key instances where the number 40 appears:

Noah’s Flood: God sent rain for 40 days and nights to judge the earth’s wickedness (Genesis 7:12).
Moses on Mount Sinai: God instructed Moses for 40 days and nights, receiving the Ten Commandments (Exodus 24:18).
Israelite Spies: They spent 40 days and nights scouting Canaan (Numbers 13:25).

But where Israel repeatedly failed their covenant tests in 40-day spying out Canaan, they came back fearful and lacking trust in God. In the 40-year wandering, they grumbled against God, worshiped idols, and refused to trust divine provision. Jesus succeeds. He is faithful and victorious where the nation of Israel was not; we would have failed too.

Jesus Confronts Satan

[Matthew 4:3-11 NKJV] 3 Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.” 4 But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'” [Deuteronomy 8:3] 5 Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 and said to Him, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down. For it is written: ‘He shall give His angels charge over you,’ and, ‘In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.'” [Psalm 91:11–12] 7 Jesus said to him, “It is written again, ‘You shall not tempt the LORD your God.'” [Deuteronomy 6:16] 8 Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to Him, “All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me.” 10 Then Jesus said to him, “Away with you, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'” [Deuteronomy 6:13] 11 Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.

Four Key Points from the Temptation Account

Jesus does not dispute Satan regarding that all the kingdoms of the world belong to him.
Jesus did not love His flesh; therefore, He did not conform to the ways of the world. Satan has dominion over the kingdoms of the world now, but soon Jesus will return to establish His Kingdom, and all things will be subject to Him.
Jesus quotes the Book of Deuteronomy more than any other book of the Bible.
Jesus withstands temptation using only the Word of God. What a lesson and example for the Church: when temptation comes—and it will—defend yourselves from it, conquer the deeds of your flesh, and defeat the devil and temptation with the Word of God, not in your own strength.

[1 John 2:15-17 NKJV] 15 Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. 17 And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.

[Matthew 6:24 NKJV] 24 “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”

[John 17:14-17 NKJV] 14 “I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.”

When temptation comes, defend yourself with the Word of God—not in your own strength, but by the power of His truth.

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