Greek word - (peirazo G3985)
Quiz - Choose the answer that is closest to what you think TEMPT is.
A - induce
B - entice
C - test
D - try to cause trouble
Problem - Incorrect, Misleading
KJV Example - "But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites?" (Matthew 22:18)
Explanation
Everyone knows that tempt means to entice to sin. But there are many places in the Bible where that definition does not fit.
For example, the Bible says, "Thou shalt not tempt the Lord, thy God (Deuteronomy 6:16; Matthew 4:7; Luke 4:12 KJV). Is that demanding that no one entice God to sin? That doesn't make sense.
Often Pharisees and Sadducess came to Jesus tempting Him. Were they trying to get him to sin? No.
Look at Matthew 22:35-36. "Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law?" (KJV)
That question does not sound like something that would entice Jesus to sin.
As you can see, in the Bible, sometimes tempt does not mean entice to sin. Why? How can tempt not mean tempt?
Obviously, tempt is one of those words that has changed in meaning over the years. It meant something different when it was put in the Bible.
What did it mean back then, hundreds of years ago? That is hard to say. Some say it meant to entice to sin. Some say it meant to test. I think it was something in between those.
If we had a time machine we could go back in time and find out for certain. But without a time machine, any answer is just a guess.
The King James Version translates peirazo, the Greek word for tempt, six different ways: tempt (31 times), try (4 times), assay (once), examine (once), go about (once), and prove (once).
Many Bible versions use test instead of tempt. But test does not always fit either.
The Greek dictionaries list many meanings.
The only way to figure out what peirazo means is to look at all of the times it appears in the New Testament and come up with a translation that fits all of them.
I put much thought and experimentation into this and came up with the following definition. In the active voice, it means to try to cause trouble, and in the passive voice it means to experience trouble. This fits nicely.
In the Bible, tempt is try to cause trouble.
Modern Synonym - try to cause trouble (active voice), experience trouble (passive voice)
Bible Version Tally (how other versions translate this word) - tempt (11 of 50); test (24 of 50); trap (12 of 50)
Breakthrough Version - "But when Jesus knew their evilness, He said, 'Why are you trying to cause trouble with Me, fakers?'" (Matthew 22:18)