The Temptations of Jesus (Mt. 4:1-11)

Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. 2 He fasted for forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was hungry. 3 The tempter approached and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become loaves of bread.” 4 He said in reply, “It is written: ‘One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.’” 5 Then the devil took him to the holy city, and made him stand on the parapet of the temple, 6 and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written: ‘He will command his angels concerning you’ and ‘with their hands they will support you, lest you dash your foot against a stone.’” 7 Jesus answered him, “Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.’” 8 Then the devil took him up to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in their magnificence, 9 and he said to him, “All these I shall give to you, if you will prostrate yourself and worship me.” 10 At this, Jesus said to him, “Get away, Satan! It is written: ‘The Lord, your God, shall you worship and him alone shall you serve.’” 11 Then the devil left him and, behold, angels came and ministered to him.

The temptations of Jesus followed immediately after his Baptism (Mt. 3:13-17).  The Spirit led Jesus into the desert for a personal encounter with the devil, the “ruler of this world (Jn. 12:31),” as part of the preparation for his public ministry.  Temptation is a personal inner experience, so Mark’s account of the temptation was probably what the disciples knew about the event; “At once the Spirit drove him out into the desert, and he remained in the desert for forty days, tempted by Satan. He was among wild beasts, and the angels ministered to him (Mk. 1:12-13).”  Matthew and Luke expanded the event probably to make it pastorally useful for their communities.  Matthew’s version links the 40-day fast with Moses (Ex. 34:28) and Elijah (1 Kgs. 19:8), and with the 40 years the Israelites spent wandering in the wilderness (Num. 14:33).

The devil’s first temptation was to challenge whether Jesus was truly the Son of God, “If you are the Son of God (v. 3)” with the goal of getting Jesus to prove he was truly the  Son of God by an unnecessary display of power, but Jesus refused to work a miracle to show his own power.  Turning stones into bread would have been a rebellion against the divine will; “He therefore let you be afflicted with hunger, and then fed you with manna, a food unknown to you and your ancestors, so you might know that it is not by bread alone that people live, but by all that comes forth from the mouth of the Lord (Deut. 8:3).”  Jesus’ food is to do the will of his Father (Jn. 4:34). 

In the second temptation, the tempter challenged Jesus to throw himself down from the parapet of the Temple because if he is the Son of God his Father would not let any harm come to him (Ps. 91:11-12). That would be making a mockery of Jesus’ death and resurrection, and the future martyrdom of some of his followers. Jesus replied. “You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test, as you did at Massah (Deut. 6:16; Ex. 17:7).” Jesus did not need a miracle to trust in God.

The tempter then offered Jesus political power, splendor, and wealth as opposed to the love of God. Jesus replied, “The Lord, your God, shall you fear; him shall you serve, and by his name shall you swear (Deut. 6:13).” The temptations were all against the great commandment to love God; “Therefore, you shall love the Lord, your God, with your whole heart, and with your whole being, and with your whole strength (Deut. 6:5).” All of Jesus’ answers to the tempter were from Deuteronomy chapters 6-8. When the devil left, God sent His angels to provide for Jesus’ needs.

Almighty God, without your grace we are unable to serve you as you want us to serve you. Grant us the desire to love you above all things and to open our hearts to your will. This we ask through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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References
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.

                Orchard, Bernard, et al. A Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture. Feb. 1953.