Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The verse emphasizes that God Himself tempts no one, meaning He doesn't initiate or instigate anyone towards sin, even though He allows trials. This is crucial because it separates God's perfect nature from the source of our sinful desires.
Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one.
English Standard Version (ESV)
James is addressing believers who are facing trials, and he wants to make sure they don't misinterpret the source of their struggles. He's clarifying that while God allows difficult circumstances to test and strengthen them, He is never the one prompting them to do evil or sin.
Ever felt like blaming God when things go wrong, or when you stumble into sin? James cuts through that excuse with a bold declaration about God's very nature.
James 1:13 is crystal clear: God is not the source of our temptations to sin. He states two powerful truths about God:
God Cannot Be Tempted with Evil:
This means God is completely separate from and unaffected by evil. It's not that He chooses not to be tempted, but that evil is fundamentally alien to His perfect, holy nature. Think of it like trying to explain the color blue to someone who has never seen. Evil simply doesn't compute or have any sway in God's reality.
God Tempts No One:
The Greek word here is emphatic – He Himself tempts no one. This isn't a passive allowance; it's an active refusal to be the initiator of sin for anyone. God's actions are always for our ultimate good, even when they involve difficult trials. He doesn't set traps or present irresistible lures to make us sin.
The word 'temptation' can feel tricky. Sometimes it means a difficult test, other times a sinful pull. James clarifies who is behind each.
The original audience, like us, likely used the word 'temptation' for both difficult circumstances (trials) and direct solicitations to sin. James, having just spoken about 'trials of various kinds' in the previous verses (James 1:2), wants to make a crucial distinction here.
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Blaming God for sinful temptations is a way of avoiding personal responsibility. James redirects us, showing that while God permits trials, He never prompts us to sin.
Understand the original words
peirazō · Greek Verb
In a biblical context, it refers to the solicitation to evil, either through external pressure (trial) or internal inclination (desire). God is never the source of evil solicitation.
This passage shows Adam blaming Eve and, by extension, God for his sin, mirroring the idea in James that people try to shift blame for temptation away from themselves.
Deuteronomy 8:2-3This passage explains that God allowed Israel to face hardship and hunger not to tempt them to sin, but to 'test' them and teach them dependence on Him, aligning with James' distinction between God's testing and tempting.
1 Corinthians 10:13This verse directly addresses the nature of temptation, stating that God 'will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear' and provides a way out, reinforcing the idea that God is not the source of sinful temptation.
Hebrews 4:15This verse highlights that Jesus, our High Priest, experienced temptations just as we do, yet without sin, underscoring God's own perfect nature and His inability to be tempted by evil as described in James.
1 John 2:16This passage explains that temptation comes from 'the desire of the flesh, the desire of the eyes, and the pride of life,' not from God, directly supporting James' assertion that God himself tempts no one.
vincentJames 1:13: "Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man:"
Of God (ἀπὸ Θεοῦ)Lit., from God. Not by God, as the direct agent, but by agency proceeding from God. Compare Matthew 4:1, where the direct agency, "by the spirit," "by the devil," is expressed by ὑπό.Cannot be tempted (ἀπείραστος ἐστι)Lit., is incapable of being tempted. But some of the best expositors render is unversed in, evil things, as better accor…
clarkeJames 1:13: "Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man:"
Let no man say - Lest the former sentiment should be misapplied, as the word temptation has two grand meanings, solicitation to sin, and trial from providential situation or circumstances, James, taking up the word in the former sense, after having used it in the latter, says: Let no man say, when he is tempted, (solicited to sin), I am tempted of God; for God…
The verse emphasizes that God Himself tempts no one, meaning He doesn't initiate or instigate anyone towards sin, even though He allows trials. This is crucial because it separates God's perfect nature from the source of our sinful desires.
James is addressing believers who are facing trials, and he wants to make sure they don't misinterpret the source of their struggles. He's clarifying that while God allows difficult circumstances to test and strengthen them, He is never the one prompting them to do evil or sin.
James is addressing believers who are facing trials, and he wants to make sure they don't misinterpret the source of their struggles. He's clarifying that while God allows difficult circumstances to test and strengthen them, He is never the one prompting them to do evil or sin.
"Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one." — The verse emphasizes that God Himself tempts no one, meaning He doesn't initiate or instigate anyone towards sin, even though He allows trials. This is crucial because it separates God's perfec…
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Last reviewed October 2026