Generally an enticement to do evil, but the term is used in the Bible to convey two somewhat different ideas. The first is that of “testing” or “proving by testing,” to determine the depth and integrity of one’s commitment to God (see, e.g., God’s command to Abraham to offer his son Isaac as a sacrifice in (Gen 22:1-19; also the testing of Job in Job 1-2). In the NT, some of the writers thought of persecution as a “testing” in this manner (1Pet 1:3-9). The intent of this testing is ultimately to strengthen the person’s faith and devotion to God. By contrast, the second nuance of temptation, enticement toward sin, is not attributed to God (Jas 1:12-15). Thus, the petition in the Lord’s Prayer dealing with temptation (Matt 6:13; ) should probably be understood in the first of these two senses (“Do not put us to the test”). The Bible also speaks of human beings attempting to put God to a test, usually for the purpose of confirming God’s plans or purposes (Judg 6; Matt 12:39) or to determine whether they can manipulate God (Ps 95:8-11; Matt 4:5-7; Luke 4:9-12). This comes up in the temptation of Jesus by Satan (Matt 4:1-11; Mark 1:12-13; Luke 4:1-13).
