John omits the wilderness temptation account because his Gospel presents Jesus primarily as God, not as the human Son who could be tested.
Les Feldick teaches that Matthew, Mark, and Luke are the Synoptic Gospels and deal primarily with Christ's humanity, while John's Gospel deals with His deity. The temptations involved real human experiences like hunger and testing, so the three Synoptic Gospels record them, but John does not.
Matthew 4:1 — This is the account of Jesus being led into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil—an event Matthew records but John never mentions.
Mark 1:13 — Mark also records the wilderness temptation, placing it clearly within the Synoptic Gospels that emphasize Christ's humanity.
Luke 4:2 — Luke likewise includes the forty days of temptation, showing that this human experience is a Synoptic theme, not a Johannine one.
The Gospel of John does not include the account of Jesus being led into the wilderness to be tempted by Satan. The same event is recorded in all three Synoptic Gospels. Matthew writes, "Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil" (Matthew 4:1). Mark says, "And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered unto him" (Mark 1:13). Luke records that Jesus was "led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being forty days tempted of the devil" (Luke 4:1-2). John simply never mentions the wilderness temptation.
Les explains that Matthew, Mark, and Luke are called the Synoptic Gospels because they deal primarily with Christ's humanity, while John's Gospel deals with His deity. The wilderness temptations were a human experience—Jesus was hungry after fasting forty days, and Satan tested Him. Because the temptation narratives belong to Christ's human side, all three Synoptics record them, but John does not.
Les calls Matthew, Mark, and Luke the Synoptic Gospels and says they present Christ primarily from His human side. The temptations, the agony in the Garden, and Jesus praying to the Father are all human-side events. John's Gospel is set apart; it presents Christ as God. This is why the wilderness temptations appear in the three Synoptics but not in John.
Les points to the same reason for John's omission of the Garden of Gethsemane. All three Synoptic Gospels record Jesus' agony and how He sweat drops of blood, but John does not include it. That physical and emotional agony belonged to His humanity, while John emphasizes the divine side of Christ.
Les emphasizes that Jesus was totally human and totally God at the same time. From His human side, He was genuinely hungry after fasting forty days and forty nights. The temptation was a real human experience, which helps explain why it belongs in the human-side Gospels rather than in John's deity-focused account.
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Synoptic Gospels vs. John's Gospel
Les states that Matthew, Mark, and Luke are the Synoptic Gospels focused on Christ's humanity, while John focuses on His deity; he specifically names the temptations and Gethsemane as events John omits.
John's Deity-Focused Omission
Les repeats that all three Synoptic Gospels record the temptations and the sweat drops of blood, but John omits them because John is looking only at Christ as God.
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Jesus' Real Humanity in the Temptation
Les shows that Jesus was totally human and totally God, and His hunger after forty days of fasting was real—an experience that belongs to His human side.
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John's Divine Perspective
Les says John's Gospel is set apart from the Synoptics because it presents Christ as God; in John, Jesus did not need to pray to the Father—He spoke to Him.
Luke's Son of Man vs. John's Son of God
Les contrasts Luke's depiction of Christ as the Son of Man with John's depiction of Him as the Son of God, reinforcing John's deity emphasis.
Matthew 4:1: Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
This is the wilderness temptation event that John's Gospel does not record.
Matthew 4:2: And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.
This shows the real human hunger involved in the temptation.
Mark 1:13: And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered unto him.
Mark, a Synoptic Gospel, records the same wilderness temptation that John leaves out.
Luke 4:2: Being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days he did eat nothing: and when they were ended, he afterward hungered.
Luke also includes the temptation event, showing it belongs to the Synoptic emphasis on Christ's humanity.
No. Les explicitly points out that John does not deal with the temptations and never mentions them, while Matthew, Mark, and Luke all record them.
Because Matthew, Mark, and Luke focus on Christ's humanity. The temptation account involves hunger, testing, and human weakness, so it fits their human-side portrait of Jesus. John's Gospel instead presents Him as God.
The agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, including the sweat drops of blood. The Synoptics record it, but John leaves it out because it belonged to His humanity rather than His deity.
Watch the Teaching: Why Adam's Sin Condemned You — Romans 5 Explained