7 here, is meant ſolicited, or moved to ſm; in which The general Notion of Tempting , is maling 4 Trial. God makes a Trial oft his People for the Pf and .niſe/tation of their Gractous Habit: Satan, by moving to Sin, makes a Trial of Corruption which was the reaſon , char alcho? Chriſt was Tempred, That he might be able to ircey thiſe that ce Tempted , Heb. 2. 18, and that he might taſte all choſe Evils ro which we are expoſed, and might overcome? the Devil; yer when the Prince of this World came, he could eficet no- ing avainſt him, becauſe he found nothing in tm to comply With his Motions.
> And when he had faſted forty days, and forty nights, he was afterwards an hungred.
He was in the Wilderneſs, a place of Solituce , and fo fitter for Satan's purpoſe; and he was an bungie, which was another advantage Saran had. Bur he was not an hunered till He had fiſted forty days, and forty rights. Here was the Divine Power miraculoaſly ſeen, in upholding the Humane Nature of Chritt, without any thing to ear; this was a Miracle: Ine hike did AMbſes before the Law, Elijah under the Law ; Chriſt doth the ſame in the beginning of the Goſpel. Nor did he faſt as rhe Fews were wont; of whom we ſometimes read, thar they Kept Faſts ſeveral days; they only faſted in the Day-time, but are their Food at Nizhr ; or ſometimes only forbare pleaſant Bread, as Daniel did, Dan. 10. 2, 2. for three full Wecks; bur Chriſt taſted trom all Food, and that not only forty Days, bur forry Nights allo ; trom whence may cafily be gathered, how 1dly, 1t not impioully, the Papiſts found their Faſting forty Days in Lent, Here all Chriſt's Atffts ( moſt certainly his Miraculous Works) are nor recorded for our Imitation : Some of them are only for our Adoration ; all his miraculous As are ſo. There can be nothing more fot- tiſh, chan for us to think , thar becauſe Chriſt (ſupported by the Divine Nature) faſted forry Days, therefore we are oblized ro do it ; and becauſe we cannot faſt forty Days, and forty Nights without eating ſomething , theretore we may cat Filh, tho' no Fleſh, (when all know thar to ſome Palars, there 15 no mcre deli- cate Food than Fiſh) or ie. are obliged to faſt in che Day-rime, tho* not at Night. And becauſe Chriſt once in his Lite-rime faſted forty Days , and forty Nights , therefore we muſt do 10 every Year ; or that the Church hath any Vower to injoin any fuch thing. If Papi/ts think , Chriſt's Faſt of forty Days, and forry Nizhrs , obligeth chem ro Imiration , ler chem keep rhem as he did (wich ſuch a Faſting I mean } and try whether they be able ro do it; or whether four Days or Nights, inftead of forty, will not convince them of their Folly. Chriſt taſted forty Days, and forty Nights, and thereby ſhewed he was God-Man : the Divine Nature ſapporrcd the Humane. Afrerward he was Hungry, to ſhe that he was truly Mn, touched with the feeling of our Inpirmities, in all Points Tempted as we are, yet without ſin,
Heb. 4. 15+ : 2 And when the Tempter came unto him he ſaid, Tf thou be the Son of God, command that theſe
ſtones be made Bread.
[And when the Tempter. | Satan, the Devil, as he 1 called, { came unto him,] probably in ſome viſible ſhape; he forming an audi- ble Voice ot the Air, ſaid, [ If thou be the Son of God, | not that he doubred ir, which ſhewed his horrible Impudence. | Com- mand that theſe ſtones, | this ſtone, faich Luk. ch. 4.3. [ be made Bread. The Temptation plainly was, to the uſe of means which God did not alliyw him, to relieve him in his Diſtreſs of Hunger , to diſtruſt the Providence of God in ſupporting of him. A Tempration com- mon to thoſe who are the Memhers of Chriſt; and enough co in- ſiru& us, Thar we ought to look upon all Thoughts, and Mortons, to the uſe of means not allowed by God , in order to a Lawful end, as are Temptatims; wel a Carne, vel Hiſte, eicher from our own Fleih, ( for Fam. 1. 14. every man # Tempted, when he % drawn away by his own Lu$, and enticed_) or from our Grand Adwver- ſary rhe Devil. Ir is not much material tor us ro know from which, they being both whar we ought ro refiſt; rho thoſe from Saran are uſually more violent and imperucue.
4 But he anſwered, and ſaid, Tr is written, Man ſhall not live by bread alone , but by ever word that proceedeth our of the mouth of God.
So alſo Lyh. 4. 4. there 15 no better anſivering the Tempter, than by oppoiing the Precepts of Holy wrir, ro his Mations #9 ſn. The Word is called , The Sword of the Spirit, Eph:{. 5.17. The P2pifts therefore denying People the uſe of tlie Word, diſarm them asto the Spiritual Combate. Tt # writter, Deuter. 8.3. Tho' Man ordinarily livech by common Bread, ſuch Food as bien uſually eat, yer God's Power 1s not reſtrained; he can uphold the Life of Man when that is wanting ; as he ſupported the Tſraclites by Manna : (to which that Text relates ) nor 15 God obliged ro create any extraordinary mean ; tor his Power winch ts ſeen in creating ſuch means, can produce the fame Effet wichour ſuch a mean, if it pleaſerh him : His Power muſt be fecn in creating the mcan,and in upinlding the proper Pewer and Faculcy of the mean, in order to irs End; why cannot he by the fame Power produce rhe Effet withour any ſuch mean ?
5 Then the Devil taketh him up into the holy City, and ſetteth him on a Pinacle of the Temple,
By the 72! City, is meant eru/alem, once an Holy City, Dan. 9. 24. now, tho' a moſt impure and filrhy City upIn many Ac- counts, yer up2n other Accounts {till an #oly City, being the only Ciry in the World, which had then 1n ic the true Worſhip of rhe true Gut; and in which God, doubtleſs, ( who in 4hab's time had ſeven :2ufand in JF:el) had many Holy People. How the
and by Tempte: Sente God teimpteth no Man, Zum. I. 13s
Pevil rook Chriſt into the Holy City, 1s variouſly argued and judzed ; the ward uſed in the Greek, is ſuch as would incline us to think, tharhe was not carried by force, bur tolloived the Tempter ly ; bur ic being ſaid, He was (et upon a Finacle, 7. e. a place
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> hk Wl
St M ATTH E.V.
| his Power, or his Goodneſs, Thus the word is uſed, Num.
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on the top of the Temple, higher than the other parts of ir « ro-imply the concrary. The End of his being fer there, th => Verle tells u:, © IO