Of all the requests to the Father in Jesus’ Model Prayer (Matthew 6:9-13), the opening couplet of verse 13 has stirred the most controversy. The traditional wording, “And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil” (King James Version [KJV]), has come under fire by some modern translators, who argue that not only is this wording imprecise, but it also creates a biblical contradiction.

In James 1:13, the apostle, Jesus’ half-brother James, writes, “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am tempted by God’; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.” In the next verse, James plainly states that our desires entice us into temptation. If we retain the traditional wording of the Model Prayer’s final request, it forces us to choose between opposing claims: Jesus’ intimation that God can lead a person into temptation versus James’ assertion that God does not tempt anyone.

Here, the scholarly debates over the last request’s translation reveal an easy solution to this apparent contradiction. Evidently, the KJV translators sacrificed precision for poetic rhythm and easy memorization when rendering the Greek of Matthew 6:13 into early modern English. In fact, of the four primary words in the couplet—“lead,” “temptation,” “deliver,” and “evil”—only one of them, “deliver,” fits the context without causing theological complications. However, better word choices easily resolve these difficulties.

1. Does God sometimes lead us into temptation? Exodus 16:4; 20:20; Deuteronomy 8:2.

Comment: The Greek verb translated as “lead” in Matthew 6:13 is eispherō, which literally means “to bring or carry into.” Many translators claim that “lead” is an acceptable rendering of this word in English, and many Greek lexicons list this definition. However, “bring” and “lead” differ in terms of intent: “Bring” tends to be neutral about motive, whereas “lead” implies the leader has a reason or intention for doing so. The basic Greek word for “lead” is agō and its various forms, which this context does not contain. (However, see Luke 4:9, which records that Satan “brought” [agō] Christ to the pinnacle of the Temple in Jerusalem to be tempted.) The use of “lead” suggests that God sometimes willfully directs us into temptations, and a believer must implore Him not to.

The more egregious mistranslation is using the word “temptation” with “lead.” James 1:13 asserts that God never tempts anyone, a role the Devil gleefully fills to undermine believers’ faith (see Luke 4:13; Ephesians 6:16). The underlying Greek term, peirasmos, can indicate a temptation but more broadly implies a test or examination. God tests and examines His people “to know what [is] in [their] heart, whether [they] will keep His commandments or not” (Deuteronomy 8:2). Godly “testing” or a “test” that leads to stronger faith would seem to be Jesus’ intent in using peirasmos in Matthew 6:13. Thus, His words suggest, “Do not bring us to hard testing” (The Good News Translation), or more idiomatically, “. . . do not put us to the test” (The Revised English Bible).

In this way, the request asks God to be merciful in testing and evaluating us. As David writes in Psalm 103:13-14, 17-18:

As a father pities his children, so the LORD pities those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He remembers that we are dust. . . . But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him, and His righteousness to children’s children, to such as keep His covenant, and to those who remember His commandments to do them.

2. From what or whom does God deliver us? John 17:15; II Thessalonians 3:3; Hebrews 2:14; I John 5:18.

Comment: The second half of the couplet, “but deliver us from the evil one,” begins with alla, a word commentators call a “strong adversative” or a “logical contrastive.” It indicates that what follows is rationally opposed to what has been previously stated. Like many such sayings in the Old Testament’s wisdom literature, the couplet is proverbial, expressing related ideas with contrasting clauses (see, for instance, Proverbs 10:1; 12:2; 14:4; etc.).

The deliverance (ryomai) that dominates this half of the couplet has the common sense of “rescue,” “save from harm,” or “deliver out of peril.” It pictures a vulnerable, even helpless person being dragged out of severe danger. Spiritually, it suggests rescue from a powerful opponent who overmatches the one under threat.

The final word, usually translated as “evil” or “the evil one,” is Greek ho ponēros, meaning “that which harms.” Most modern translations render this phrase to indicate Satan the Devil, the Adversary of God and humanity (see also Matthew 5:37; 13:19, 38). In a first-century context, when the idea of a universal spiritual adversary was commonly held, referring to the personal source of evil would have given Jesus’ statement added force.

The complete request, then, has the sense of, “Do not bring upon us sore testing, but rather rescue us from our mighty Adversary.”

3. How does God rescue us from Satan’s temptations? Job 1:6-12; 2:1-7; 42:1-6; Matthew 4:1-11; Luke 4:1-13.

Comment: The story of Job is instructive in showing God’s people how He allows Satan to afflict them in various ways to test their faith. The narrative depicts the Adversary as impertinent toward God and eager to cause Job loss, heartache, and harm. However, he cannot touch him without God’s express permission, and He places boundaries on how much he could afflict the man. In contrast to Satan’s attitude, God defends Job’s righteousness and faithfulness, confident in his strength to withstand the Devil’s attacks. Job ultimately proves God right, not only refusing to “curse God and die” but also growing in understanding, faith, and appreciation for his God in the end.

The narratives of Christ’s temptation in Matthew 4 and Luke 4 teach how the very Son of God overcame Satan’s enticements to sin. Most obviously, Jesus meets every potential trap with a quotation from God’s Word, providing Him with the knowledge and authority to counter Satan’s challenges. With such weapons and commitment to doing His Father’s will, He resists the Devil in faith, and he flees from Him (James 4:7; I Peter 5:8-9). Even with our comparatively weak faith, we can follow His example of resisting Satan’s temptations, and God will add His help to “deliver us from the evil one.”