"all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them," may be too wide for !Heral construing. Notice in the description of this temptation that- I. lT BEGS THE VANTAGE-GROUND, THE ENHANCING OIRCUMSTANOEB OF THE IMPRESSION, LENT DY ACTUAL srnnT. That this kind of consideration may legiti- mately be set to the credit of Christ's combined nature is sufficiently shown by tho numerous occR.sions in which we find such things as these-that his" tears," his" deep auger," his immeasurable "grief," reached their climax respectively when his eyo actually "beheld" (the city), "saw" (her weeping, and the Jews also weeping which came with her)," looked round :i.bout" (upon them, being grieved, etc.), For those even who believe that the temptations of Jesus were conducted only in vision, the words "actual sight" may still have their meaning. ll. IT WENT DIRECT TO THE SU13STANCE OF THE WORK W!IlCil BROUGHT CHRIST TO EARTH, TBE SECURING OF THE KINGDOMS OF THIS WORLD, To give what facility may be possible to any conception of thofeasibility of Satan's fulfilling the offer of his tempting, we might imagine that he meant he would" give all the kingrloms," etc., in the sense of utterly retreating himself from the conflict; and from the endeavour, at present too successful, to win the world for his own. On the other hand, we know by what very different method, of the Passion and blood of Christ, the victory was to be won, atd Satan to be dispossessed of his hold. III. lT ASSERTS (Luke iv. 6), WHAT CHRIST AT ALL EVENTS DOES NOT DENY OB CHALLEKGE, A CERTAIN .ABSOLUTE HOLD ON THE WORLD ON THE PART OF SATAN, AND BY SOME SORT OF BIGIIT. It is a thing supremely worthy of note that, in so small a compass as the description of the facts of the temptation, a place should thus be found for the recognition of a phenomenon so inscrutable, and so undeniably embedded in the facts of the world, in the statements of Scripture, and in the very grain of universal theology. JV. IT Pll.ESEKTS ITSELF IN TEMPTATION'S ABSOLUTE, ESSENTIAL FOBM, 'J.'hc essential crucial question in all temptation of moral matter is this-Will a man bow down from himself, from his God, to worship untruth, to do the thing called sin, to honour the thing ea.lied evil, to act the thing called a lie, to worship Satan, These thin:;s, all mystery apart, are to" worship" Satan, and not to "worship the Lord God." V. IT GETS ITSELF ITS ANSWER, POSITIVE .AND SWIFT. '!'bis twofuld answer is revealed. 1. The instinctive resentment of the nature : "Get thee behind me, Satan I" 2. The unqualified confession of the philosophy of that resentment: "It is written," i.e. written in reason, in conscience, in the Word: "Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve."-B.
Ver. 11.-The restJ,-om temptation. Remark on these representations of Scripture, and remark on them as tM representations of Scripture, that- I. THE TIIBICE-DENIED SATAN 18 DAUNTED, .AND LEAVES OFF AWIIILE AT LEAST HIS TEMPTING. Contra.Bt this with the thrice-denied Jesus (Luke xxii. 61), not then daunted, but with an intense love recalling Peter by a look. IL THE JIEED OF CaBIST wAB .A BEAL NEED, The " ministry" given now to him was probably in answer both to (1) his bodily exhaustion by hunger, aod (2) his sonl's weariness-a wea1iness not resulting from any supposed severity in the shape of struggle to overcome temptation, but from the" exceeding trouble" of the aspect of sin, of the presumptuous challenge of sin coming so near, and of the inevitable rnfile of perfect purity under the mere glare of the iucarnation of impurity and evil, III. THE MINISTRY OF ANGELS IS A FACT, AND TIIE KNOWN Gil.ANT OF SUOII HINISTilY AT DIFFERENT TIMES TO :MEN IS ALL THAT IS NOW PROFFERED TO CHRIST RIMSELF I 1. This instance of fact, with a hundred others, helps to corroborate our inforwatiou as t.o the reality of ChrisL's humanity. 2. It is a fresh conviction for a.JI of the watchful unforgcttingr.cess of supreme sympathy and divinest compalll!ion. 3. It should greatly help to dignify our sense of the vJ.lue and the adaptedness of the help and the solace vouchsafe,l to us, of the conflict, anxiety, vexation, and the irritation of a contact with the world, from which we should so often prefer to be saved, if things were left to our choice. 4. It may well be accepted as the expression and earnest of the calm afl.er e.11 storm is over, and the Divine feeding and succour after all worlt, trill.I, )ifo's-kngt4 duty are laid down for the last tiqie on earth.-:a, ou, 1v. 1-25,] THE GOSPEL .ACCORDING TO ST. MATTHEW. 129
Ver. 16.-The extremea of light and darkness, The interval between the vlace of this verso and the close of the three temptations is considerable, and is not evident from the passage before us. It is also even obscured by the order of the verses here. Much history belongs to the gap between vers. 11 and 12. The seventeenth verse, as regards the matter of it, follows the twelfth. That, again, begs the fuller explanations of eh. xiv. 3-6; and lastly, after all the history of Jesus visiting the synagogue of that Nazareth" where he had been brought up," given us in Luke iv. 16---31, the proper chronological place of our vers. 13-16 is found. The one chief fact of history revealed by these verses is to the intent that Jesus, for whatsoever reason, takes up his abode in Capernaum ; and certainly one chief moral significance is exhibited as attach- ing to that fact, namely, that so far from being an enlightened place, or a little more enlightened haply than some others, it was in and of itself, as also of the announce- ment of signal prophecy, the head-quarters and metropolis of darkness. The place waa dark, the district was dark, the people were dark-they even "sat in darkness." This spot was the principal residence of Jesus, this district the principal scene of his ministry, and "mighty works" and "gracious words.'' Notice in this prophetic announcement, now reduced to fact- L A SPLENDID ILLUSTRATION OF ONE LEADING METHOD FOLLOWED BY CHRISTIAXITY Fon THE REGENERATION OF MANKIND. '!'he Light comes to the darkness, though it take the darkness a long time to "comprehend" it, ll. A CONVINCING ILLUSTRATION OF/ THE GENUINELY CONDESCENDING CHARACTER OF THE FOUNDER AND EXEHPLAB OF.ClmISTIANITY. The personal Light comes to those thick-covered and sunk in the very degradation of darkness, and endures patiently all the consequence. Ill, A OONSUMMATE ILLUSTRATION OF THE THRILLING RESPONSIBILITY THAT GATHERS UPON HEN ON WBOH CHRISTIAN GIFT IS BESTOWED, Light itself is offered them- the light of (1) correct information about themselves; (2) correct instruction a.bout their Help and Deliverer; (3) perfect holiness and goodness; (4) a perfect Ex:a.mple and Model; (6) the unseen future and eternal. These are the things that make responsibility,-B.