Matthew 4:8 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.

NIV: Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor.

NASB: Again, the devil *took Him along to a very high mountain and *showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory;

CSB: Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor.

NLT: Next the devil took him to the peak of a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.

KJV: Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;

NKJV: Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.

Satan's temptations of Jesus are progressive. He starts by appealing to Jesus' physical appetite. He knows Jesus is hungry, literally starving, after a 40–day fast. The first temptation was to turn stones to bread if He was the Son of God. Knowing this was outside of God's will, Jesus said no (Matthew 4:1–4).

Second, the Devil tempted Jesus to test God's Word in Psalm 91: that angels would not allow Him to be hurt. Satan's challenge was for Jesus to jump from the highest point of the Jewish temple in Jerusalem, and to be rescued in dramatic fashion. This may have been designed to appeal to Jesus' desire to become king over Israel without suffering through God's plan for His death on the cross. Jesus said no (Matthew 4:5–7).

Now Satan takes Jesus to a high mountain. The location seems to be literal, but what Jesus sees might have been part of a vision or supernatural images. The Devil is able to show Jesus all the kingdoms of the world and their glory from this one vantage point. The choice of the mountain, then, seems to be more for the sake of creating a dramatic scene, not a place to literally see the entire world at once. Satan will offer Jesus rule over earth with this temptation, though at a very high price.

Matthew 4:1–11 describes Jesus' temptation in the wilderness. After 40 days and nights of fasting, Jesus faces three temptations from Satan. Each one attempts to lure Christ into abusing His power; to take immediately what God the Father has promised to provide later. Jesus resists each temptation with a quote from Deuteronomy, refusing to rebel against the plans of God the Father. Finally, Jesus refuses to worship the devil in exchange for the kingdoms of the earth. He tells the devil to leave, and angels come minister to Him.

Matthew 3 ended with the Holy Spirit coming to rest on Jesus following His baptism. Now the Spirit leads Him into the wilderness to endure tempting by the devil after 40 days of fasting. Jesus demonstrates His sinlessness by resisting all temptations. He begins His ministry in the region of Galilee, settling in Capernaum and calling some disciples to follow Him. Jesus' work in Galilee includes traveling from place to place, proclaiming the good news that the kingdom of heaven is near and healing every kind of affliction. He soon becomes famous, drawing huge crowds from great distances.

Matthew 3 ends with a great affirmation from the voice of God the Father: Jesus is His Son. Immediately after that, God's Spirit leads Jesus into the wilderness for a time of temptation by the devil. Jesus passes that test and then begins His ministry in the region of Galilee. Jesus begins to call His disciples and travel around the region. He teaches in the synagogues and heals people with every kind of affliction. Jesus' fame grows quickly. This provides Him a large audience for the Sermon on the Mount, which Matthew begins to record in chapter 5.

The Gospel of Matthew clearly shows the influence of its writer's background, and his effort to reach a specific audience. Matthew was one of Jesus' twelve disciples, a Jewish man, and a former tax collector. This profession would have required literacy, and Matthew may have transcribed some of Jesus' words as they were spoken. This book is filled with references to the Old Testament, demonstrating to Israel that Jesus is the Promised One. Matthew also includes many references to coins, likely due to his former profession. Matthew records extensive accounts of Jesus' teaching, more than the other three Gospels.