Matthew 4:2

Fasted. The word thus translated is generally used in the NT for abstinence from food as a ritual practice. But this was obviously not a ritual fast. Throughout His life Jesus was censured for the fact that His disciples did not comply with fast days prescribed by the Pharisees (Matt. 9:14; Luke 5:33; cf. Luke 18:12). There is danger today, as there was in Bible times, that fasting be thought of as a means of earning merit before God — of doing something to commend oneself to God. But that is not the kind of fast God enjoins upon men (see Isa. 58:5, 6; cf. Zech. 7:5). If men fast today, it should be with the purpose of achieving clarity of mind, the antithesis of the drowsiness that comes from overeating. Spiritual perception of truth and the will of God is markedly increased by an abstemious diet, and perhaps at times even by complete abstinence from food. Fasting does not always mean complete abstinence from all food. However, Luke remarks that Jesus ate nothing while in the wilderness of temptation (ch. 4:2).

Forty days. Compare with similar fasts by Moses (Ex. 34:28) and Elijah (1 Kings 19:8). Attempts to find in the number 40 a mystical significance are pointless. See on Luke 4:2.