Luke 4:6 is the devil’s claim that he controls all the kingdoms of the world and can hand their power and glory to whomever he chooses. The verse is part of a temptation, and the devil is offering Jesus a shortcut to the throne without the cross. The words are spoken by Satan, and they are addressed to Jesus, who has just been led up a high mountain to see every kingdom on earth in a single moment.
The devil said to him, “I will give you all this authority, and their glory, for it has been delivered to me; and I give it to whomever I want.
Luke 4:6 (WEB)
What Luke 4:6 Means
The devil begins with “I will give you all this authority,” which makes a bold offer of rule over human political power. He follows with “and their glory,” meaning the honor, wealth and splendor that come with being the one everyone bows to. The offer is meant to look like the thing Jesus was born to receive, which is why it is so tempting.
Then comes the phrase “for it has been delivered to me; and I give it to whomever I want.” Here the devil makes a claim about his own authority, saying that the kingdoms have been handed over to him and that he can decide who receives them. Scripture elsewhere calls him the ruler of this world, so the claim carries some truth in the way evil holds sway over human systems. But the verse does not promise that Satan’s gifts are good or that his control is unlimited. It only shows what he says about himself, and the rest of the passage shows that his claim comes with a price that Jesus refuses to pay.
The Context of Luke 4:6
Luke wrote this Gospel for a Gentile audience, probably a Greek-speaking reader in the first century, and he presents Jesus as the Son of God who came for all people. The temptation scene follows Jesus’s baptism and his forty days in the wilderness, and it sets up the public ministry that begins in Galilee. Luke places the temptations between the genealogy and the sermon in Nazareth, so the reader sees Jesus tested before he begins to speak with authority.
In the verses just before, the devil tests Jesus’s hunger and his identity as Son of God. The verse here comes after Jesus has answered with Scripture, and the devil turns from bread to power. Reading verse 6 in that sequence shows that the devil keeps trying different doors, and each time Jesus responds by holding to the word of God rather than to a shortcut.
Key Phrases in Luke 4:6
Matthew 4:8
Again, the devil took him to an exceedingly high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world, and their glory.
(WEB)
Matthew gives a parallel account of the same temptation on the mountain, and his version adds a clearer picture of the kingdoms being shown. Reading both accounts together strengthens the sense that the offer was real and that Jesus faced it squarely.
Matthew 4:10
Then Jesus said to him, “Get behind me, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and you shall serve him only.’”
(WEB)
This verse records Jesus’s reply that worship belongs to God alone. It answers the offer in Luke 4:6 directly, showing that authority from God is never bought by bowing to another power.
A Short Prayer From Luke 4:6
Lord, you know how strongly I want influence, approval and a place where my choices are respected. Some days those desires feel harmless, but I see now how quickly they can make me bend my knee to things that are not you. Keep my eyes on the kingdom that comes through your Son, and teach me to refuse every shortcut that asks me to trade my loyalty for a passing glory. Give me the courage to say no when the offer is tempting, and the wisdom to see the hidden price before I accept it. Amen.
