d

c Psalm xci. 11.

access; and it was a proper place for the temptation with which our Lord was assaulted.

Verse 6. If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down : for it is written, &c.— Here the scripture is quoted by the tempter in aid of his design; and as the object of this suggestion was to lead to an unauthorized presumption upon special divine interposition, it represents a numerous class of temptations, by which many have been misled to put themselves into circumstances of moral danger, without a divine warrant. The promises of scripture are also often perverted by such persons to support their vain confidence, who consider not the persons and their circumstances to whom they are spoken. The quotation used by Satan is from Psalm xci. 12, and was employed by him either because the Jews applied it prophetically to the Messiah, or because it expresses God's special care of good men, and so suited his purpose; for the argument was, If God takes charge of good men generally, how much more of the Son of God" himself! "If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down," and let thy safety be the proof that thou art so. It is an observation of weight made by Jerom and others, that the tempter makes a mutilated citation of the passage, and leaves out a material circumstance: "He shall give his angels charge concerning thee, to to keep thee in all thy ways; that is in all thy lawful courses of conduct, of which to cast himself down from a precipice was not one. Thus our Lord was first tempted to distrust God's care, and then to presume without warrant upon it.

Verse 7. Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.-It has been disputed among

d Deut. vi. 16.

critics whether to tempt God in this passage signifies to presume upon his goodness, or to distrust it. The word tempt, when applied to God, as it signifies to make trial of him, has always a bad sense, and in general seems to mean to seek from God displays of his power, on occasions and in a way prescribed by ourselves. Now this may proceed either from distrust or presumption; and so the opinions alluded to may be somewhat reconciled. The passage referred to is, “Ye thall not tempt the Lord your God, as ye tempted him in Massah." Deut. vi. 16. Now although on that occasion, so provoking to God, when the Israelites wanted water, they are said to have tempted the Lord by saying, "Is the Lord among us or not?" it does not appear that this language proceeded so much from distrust, as from a petulant demand for an exertion of the divine power at the time, and in the manner they dared to prescribe. And though in a case of simple presumption upon divine interposition, the perverse temper of the Israelites on that occasion may be wanting, yet the essence of their fault is involved in it; a bold and unauthorized demand being made upon God in our own will for the exercise of his power. The appositeness of the quotation is therefore apparent.

Into an exceeding high mountain, &c.— The scene is here again changed into the same wilderness, or some other elevated region. From some of the mountains of Palestine the views are very extensive, as Mount Nebo, from the top of which Moses saw "all the land of Gilead unto Dan, and all Naphtali, and the land of Ephraim, and all the land of Judah, unto the utmost sea," the Mediterranean," and the south, and the plain of the valley of

;

Jericho, unto Zoar." Modern travellers have given their testimony to the vastness of the prospect opened also from some other mountains. Perhaps, as the old dominions of Judah and Israel were now divided into several provinces and tetrarchies, popularly called “ kingdoms," no more is meant by the "kingdoms of the world" than those, the states into which the ancient kingdom of David was now divided; for in this restricted sense the original word is sometimes used. But if "the world" be taken in a more extensive meaning, then, as from such a height, a vast landscape of woods, rivers, lakes, fertile fields, villages, towns, and opulent and splendid cities, would be exhibited, the tempter might from such a scene take occasion to descant upon other and still more glorious kingdoms of the civilized "world;” especially that vast portion of it comprised in the Roman empire, itself often called "the world;" using the actual scene before them to give effect to the picture, which was drawn no doubt with a powerful eloquence. In support of this it may be said that the Greek word rendered "to show," like the Latin ostendere, and indeed the English verb itself, does not necessarily signify to exhibit to the sight; but also to describe and make known in any mode. In either sense there is no need to suppose that phantasms and images of worldly regal splendour were supernaturally produced to give effect to the temptation. It must be confessed, however, that the natural import of the words of Matthew leans this way; and St. Luke's words, who says that he "showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time," still more so. But if this should be allowed, it gives no weight to the notion of those who think that the whole temptation took place in a vision; for there is an essential difference between a transaction and a vision, and the con

necting of phantasms or aërial, optical appearances with a real scene, which do not affect the mental faculties of the beholder. But whether this preternatural illusion, favoured by the situation, did take place, or the kingdoms of Palestine only were represented to the eye, the devil in desperation now undisguises himself, and makes a bold attack upon our Lord, hoping to influence his mind with the ambition of attaining a splendid earthly monarchy; and that he presented this temptation in his proper character as Satan, is manifest, from his declaration, Luke iv. 6, "For that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it;" a falsehood worthy of the "father of lies," but yet often to appearance, and considering the manner in which earthly power was acquired in that age, and is often acquired now, had great verisimilitude; and it was true, in fact, that he had established a dark and polluted, though not an uncontrolled, dominion among the

nations.

Verse 9. If thou wilt fall down and worship me.—' -This mode of paying homage was exacted by eastern monarchs; but, when understood to imply a reference to the divinity of the person so honoured, was refused by Jews and Christians. Here it is manifest from the answer of our Lord, that it was demanded by Satan as the god and absolute ruler of the world; on which our Lord indignantly rebukes him: "then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan; for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve." Our Lord here showed both that he knew Satan, and that he had power to command him away,—a proof that his submission to the humiliation and pain of these temptations had been voluntary; and that they were endured not for his own sake, but for ours.

h

g Isaiah ix. 1.

Arabians, and Phenicians, and so was a striking emblem of the whole world of Jews and Gentiles. These "sat in darkness," in ignorance of God and spiritual things, and "in the region and shadow of death; expressions used for the grave, and for the obscure abodes of the departed spirits of the wicked in the invisible world; and, by a strong and impressive metaphor, they are used to describe the misery, helplessness, and danger of a people without truth and piety. In a still stronger sense they apply to all the pagan Gentile nations, and the Jews in that state of unbelief and rejection in which they have been for so many ages. But as Christ fixed his dwelling in Galilee of the Gentiles as THE LIGHT in these regions of darkness, and THE LIFE amidst these shadowy abodes of death, and filled this benighted country with his heavenly doctrine; so shall this glorious prophecy, one of those which, as Lord Bacon says, have "a germinant accomplishment," be in every succeeding age more extensively fulfilled, until “the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together." Isaiah uses the phrase, “walked in darkness," and St. Matthew, “sat,” the meaning of which is the same; each, in the Hebrew mode of speaking, signifying To Be or to dwell.

Verse 17. From that time Jesus began to preach, &c.—He fully employed himself henceforth in his public ministry; and to show that the doctrine of the necessity of repentance was not to be confined to

i Mark i. 16.

John's dispensation, he himself begins by preaching it as a necessary preparation for that spiritual kingdom which he was about to establish; and thus he taught all his servants, by his own example, where their ministry was to BEGIN. In that respect he took up the dispensation of John the Baptist into his own, and laid the foundations of his religion in "repentance towards God," as well as faith in his own offices.

Verse 18. Walking by the sea of Galilee. -This was otherwise called the sea or lake of Tiberias, from the city of that name which was built on its western shore by Herod the tetrarch, and so named in honour of Tiberius Cæsar. This inland sea had also the appellation of the lake of Gennesaret; and in the Old Testament is called "the sea of Cinnereth." It is between seventeen and eighteen miles in length, and near six in breadth. It is surrounded with a varied scenery of mountains and valleys; is generally smooth and tranquil, but subject to storms of wind suddenly beating down upon it from the mountains.

Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother.-These had been disciples of John the Baptist; but this was not their first calling, which is related John i. 37, &c. At first, therefore, they only continued with Christ for a time; now they were more specially called to "follow" him, and to abandon their occupation to be trained up to be apostles for Christ, by constant attendance upon his teach