“Matthew . . . is the Gospel of the King and His kingdom.”1 We have seen this in our previous posts on Matthew. For example, the “little horn” king (Herod) opposed the King (Matt 2).2 And, John the Baptist preached the gospel of the kingdom (Matt 3:1).3
In Matthew 4, John the Baptist decreases and his Lord increases. Jesus enters his public ministry. John enters a prison for preaching against Herod’s adultery (Luke 1:5; Matt 14:3). John said it must be so (John 3:30).
The emphasis on the kingdom of heaven does not change in this transition. John’s statement—“the kingdom of heaven is at hand” (Matt 3:2)—echos throughout this chapter.
This post will show how this is true in Satan’s temptation of Christ (Matt 4:1–11). Each of its three phases involves Israel’s Exodus from Egypt. This event happened in the fifteenth century BC. God led “Israel after the flesh” (1 Cor 10:18) out of physical bondage. He made them “a kingdom of priests” (Exod 19:6).
God designed these events to be types. We saw this in previous posts, especially Typology And Inmillennialism.4 Two charts from that post provide background information for the following discussion.
The first chart shows the Exodus events. They created Israel’s kingdom on earth.
These events showed what God would do later through Christ on a spiritual level (cp. 1 Cor. 10:6, 11).
The second chart shows the corresponding events in Jesus’s generation. When Satan tempted him, “the kingdom of heaven [was] at hand” (Matt 3:2). The antitypical events created that kingdom.
Each of the tempter’s three propositions and Jesus’s response to them show Israel’s failure in the Exodus. They also show Jesus’s victory.
The First Temptation: God’s Provisions
The first temptation deals with God’s provisions for his people (Matt 4:1–4). Satan says to Jesus, “command that these stones be made bread” (Matt 4:3).
Bread played an important role in the Exodus typology. Israel murmured and complained in the wilderness. God’s food provisions dissatisfied them (Exod 15:24; 16:2–9; 17:2–3).
Still, God remained faithful to his covenant with Israel. He provided manna—bread from heaven—for their physical hunger (Exod 16:15).
Matthew showed an antitype (or, fulfillment) in the last chapter. In the Exodus, Israel was God’s son. “Thus saith the LORD, Israel is my son” (Exod 4:22). God later used this language when speaking through the prophets. “When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out of Egypt” (Hosea 11:1).
Now, Jesus is the Son whom God calls out of Egypt (Matt 2:13–15). Israel was the type; Jesus the antitype. In the New Testament, Jesus is Israel. His actions benefit all persons united to him (e.g. Eph 2:6; Col 2:13; 1 Thess 5:10).
In the Exodus, Israel after the flesh was inheriting their kingdom on earth. In the New Testament, the “Israel of God” (Gal 6:16) was inheriting the kingdom of heaven (Heb 12:28). As we saw in our last post, John the Baptist said this kingdom was “at hand” (Matt 3:1).
Matthew says the Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness (Matt 4:1).5 This is a reenactment of Israel’s wilderness experience. They were in the wilderness for forty years. Now, Jesus is in the wilderness forty days (Matt 4:2).
God tested Israel with hunger in the wilderness (cp. Exod 16:2–8). Now, he allows Satan to tempt Jesus the same way. The tempter suggests he make bread from stones. This would both satisfy his hunger and show his divine power.
Where Israel failed, Jesus triumphs. This creates an inverted typology in which Jesus replaces failure with success.
Jesus overcomes temptation with Scripture. He says, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God” (Matt 4:4). God had said these words to Israel in the wilderness (Deut 8:3).
Israel after the flesh failed their wilderness test about bread. The true Israel—Jesus—did not. As a result, the “holy nation” (1 Pet 2:9; cp. Exod 19:6) entered the kingdom of heaven. They did so in Jesus’s generation (cp. Matt 24:34).
The Second Temptation: God’s Protection
Satan’s second temptation involves God’s protection (Matt 4:5–7). He misuses Psalm 91 to tempt Jesus to cast himself from a pinnacle.
God had addressed this psalm to the faithful in Israel. Its opening verse shows the intended audience. “He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty” (Psa 91:1). To such persons, the psalmist says God “shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler” (Psa 91:4).
Satan takes part of this psalm out of context. He repeats the words, “he [God] shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone” (Psa 91:11–12).
These words show God would preserve Israel if she remained faithful. They were not an insurance policy against any foolish act she might perform.
Before we look at Jesus’s response, let us consider another aspect of this psalm. Israel after the flesh failed to “abide under the shadow of the Almighty.” At the end of his ministry, Jesus says “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem . . . how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!” (Matt 23:37).
Israel rejected God’s protection by refusing to enter the kingdom that was “at hand” (Matt 3:1). As a result, God would leave their house (the Temple) desolate in Jesus’s generation (Matt 23:38). Israel after the flesh did not qualify for the protections of Psa 91:11–12. Satan perverted this Scripture.
Let’s return to the temptation. Jesus—the true Israel—corrects Satan’s misapplication of Scripture by citing Deut 6:16. That verse also comes from Israel’s wilderness experience.
So, this citation continues the Exodus typology of the first temptation. Israel after the flesh was preparing to enter their earthly kingdom (Deut 6:10–11). When they did, they must not forget God had brought them out of Egypt (Deut 6:12). To forget would be to tempt God as they had “tempted him in Massah” (Deut 6:16).
This Massah temptation reveals the reason Jesus uses this passage. Israel had “tempted the LORD, saying, Is the LORD among us, or not?” (Exod 17:7). They were thirsty and demanded that God provide water. It was
as if they should say, if we perish through thirst, the Lord is not among us, nor takes any care of us; nor was it he that brought us out of Egypt, but Moses; nor is he in the pillar of cloud and fire, as is said; but if he works a miracle, and gives us water, for us, our children, and cattle, then it will appear he is among us.6
They required a sign to show God’s presence.
Satan’s demand was of this sort. He wants Jesus to cast himself from a pinnacle of the Temple. His survival would be a miracle. It would prove him to be the Son of God and show God’s presence7 in Israel. This is the thing God commanded Israel not to do.
Israel after the flesh failed to recognize God’s presence. The true Israel—Jesus—did not. He recognized the motive behind Satan’s demand. He did not “tempt God” by performing a miracle to show what was clear to the eye of faith. As a result, those in him would escape the “wrath about to come” (Matt 3:7).8 They would enter the soon-coming kingdom (Matt 3:2).
The Third Temptation: God’s Promises
Satan’s third temptation involves God’s promises to Christ about the kingdoms of the world (Matt 4:8–10). Satan said he would give the kingdoms to Jesus for worshiping him.
Several interesting questions arise from this passage. How did Satan show Jesus all the kingdoms and their riches “in a moment of time” (Luke 4:5)? Did he have the authority to offer the kingdoms to Christ? Should “we take the world to mean only the land of Judea, and some of the surrounding nations, as it appears sometimes to signify”9?
We will bypass all these. Our purpose here is to show how this temptation fits into Matthew’s kingdom theme.
God had promised to give the nations to Christ (Psa 2:7–9). He would reign until all enemies became his footstool (Psa 110:1). But this would require the entire Messianic Age to do (1 Cor 15:25–26). The tempter now offers a shortcut.
Jesus says, “Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve” (Matt 4:10; cp. Deut 6:13). Jesus is using the same passage—Deut 6—he used in the second temptation. As we saw above, God gave this Scripture when Israel was in the wilderness. They were preparing to enter their earthly kingdom.
Israel failed to obey God. Their disobedience had continued for fifteen centuries. Now, God is about to judge them. He will soon take the kingdom from them and give it to another nation (Matt 21:43).
The receiving nation—the church—will obey God. Part of that obedience involves the Great Commission. Jesus says, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations” (Matt 28:18–19, NKJV; emphasis added). Jesus will gain the nations in this way—through the faithfulness of his people.
Still, the conversion of the nations depends upon Christ. The church can succeed only through Christ’s power. His obedience—including his rejection of Satan’s shortcut—bought the Holy Spirit for the church. The Holy Spirit’s power will enable the church to win the nations for Christ (cp. Acts 1:8).
For the third time, we see Israel after the flesh fail. They did not obey God’s commands given in Deut 6. They continued in disobedience until God poured his vengeance on them in Jesus’s generation (e.g. Deut 32:35, 43; cp. Luke 21:22).
And again, Jesus—the true Israel—obeys. As a result, he will yet receive the nations as his inheritance (Psa 2:7–9; cp. Rev 11:15).
Conclusion
Matthew’s account of Jesus’s temptation fits well in his kingdom theme. Jesus draws all of his responses from Israel’s wilderness experience (i.e. Deut 8:3; 6:16; 6:13). Israel after the flesh failed in each case. They would not inherit the kingdom of heaven.
Jesus—the true Israel—passes each test. The coming of the kingdom of heaven resulted from his obedience. Israel is now victorious over all his enemies.
This Israel comprises those who are children of Abraham by faith in Christ. They will bless the nations (Gal 3:7) by preaching the gospel of the kingdom (Matt 4:23).
This view of Jesus’s victory over Satan’s temptation fits well in inmillennialism.10
Footnotes
- Myron S. Augsburger and Lloyd J. Ogilvie, Matthew, vol. 24 of The Preacher’s Commentary Series, (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), 16.
- See Meditations In Matthew Two: Herod As The Little Horn.
- See Meditations In Matthew Three: John’s Kingdom Announcement.
- Please see that post for a discussion of the terms type and antitype. For more, click on the Typology tag in any post in this blog.
- The image in this post is The Temptation in the Wilderness by Briton Rivièr (1840–1920). This file (here) is in the public domain (PD-US).
- John Gill, An Exposition of the Old and New Testaments, of The Baptist Commentary Series, (Paris, AR: The Baptist Standard Bearer, 1989), 1:412.
- We believe the word parousia represents Christ’s presence with the church in the kingdom of heaven. A full discussion of that idea is beyond the scope of this post. Please see our post here.
- For a justification of this translation, see our last post, Meditations In Matthew Three: John’s Kingdom Announcement.
- Adam Clarke, The Old and New Testaments With a Commentary and Critical Notes (Nashville: Abingdon, [1970?]), 5:58–59.
- A PDF summary of inmillennialism is available here.
