VERSE 6: And said unto him, If thou be the son of God cast thyself down
VERSE 6.
And said unto him, If thou be the son of God cast thyself down: for it is written, that he will give his Angels charge over thee, and with their hands they shall lift thee up, lest at any time thou shouldst dash thy foot against a stone. - MAT. 4.6.
These words contain the second main point in this conflict, to wit, Satan's assault upon Christ: wherein we are to observe, first his temptation: then the reason whereby he doth enforce it. His temptation here is framed as the former was, in a kind of reasoning, thus:
If thou be the son of God, then show the same by casting thyself down from this pinnacle of the temple:
But as I see thou art certainly persuaded, that thou art the son of God: Therefore cast thyself down, and thereby declare it.
Seeing this is a distinct temptation from the former, I doubt not but it must be thus framed with this conclusion: for if it had the same conclusion with the former it should be the same temptation. Satan's meaning then is this, as if he had said; I have made trial to see expressly whether thou be the son of God or not, and it seems thou doest undoubtedly believe that voice of thy father to be true, which said, This is my well-beloved son in whom I am well pleased: Now if this be so indeed, it is convenient thou shouldest confirm the same by some miracle, and the fittest place thou canst do it in, is this;
therefore cast thy self down headlong from this pinnacle, and yet preserve thyself in safety without all hurt in the fall.
The drift of Satan in this temptation was, to bring our Savior Christ to a vain confidence in his Fathers protection, and indeed to flat presumption upon his extraordinary providence in the neglect of lawful ordinary means, as by Satan's conclusion, and the answer of Christ will easily appear. And hereby we may observe that one main drift of Satan in his ordinary temptations in God's church, is to carry men to presumption, and vain confidence in the love, favor, and mercy of God: this appears by the strange reasonings for liberty in sin which many frame to themselves, and some are not ashamed to utter; as first, God is merciful, and Christ shed his blood for their redemption, and therefore they will not be so strict and precise in hearing sermons, and reading and conferring about the word as many are, but they will take the pleasures and seek the profits of this life. Thus reasoned some in the Apostles days: Let us continue in sin that grace may abound: of such Jude complaineth, saying, They turn the grace of God into wantonness. Such there have been ever since, and at this day they do everywhere abound. Secondly, some say, they are either ordained to salvation or damnation; now if to salvation, they are sure of it how ever they live; and if to damnation, they cannot escape it, though they live never so holily, for God's decree is unchangeable; and therefore they will take their pleasure and live as they list. Thirdly others say they have ever found God's goodness towards them, and they are persuaded he will never see them want, and therefore they will not toile themselves with labor and care as others do, but take their ease and pleasure while they may have it; and so neglect their charge and calling, and give themselves wholly to their sports and pleasures, to company keeping or such like. Yea, by this temptation to presumption, Satan oft prevails with the better sort; for if a man favor the truth, and give himself to know religion in
any sort, the Devil will straight way go about to persuade him, that that which he doth is sufficient to his salvation, and thus will keep him from using further means to come by the certain knowledge of his election, and full affiance in Christ Jesus, to become a perfect man in Christ, which is the end of God's holy ministry, Ephes. 4.13. whereunto we should give all diligence, 2 Pet. 1.10. See the truth hereof in the fine foolish virgins, who carried burning lamps, but took no oil with them, never minding that till it was too late; and so do most men content themselves with the blazing lamp of an outward profession, never looking for the oil of grace, till the time of grace he past.
The use. Hereby then we are all taught, in special manner to beware of presumption; this is the common snare of the Devil wherein he entangles many a soul. It is true indeed that he oft prevails by bringing men to desperation, but a thousand perish through presumption, almost for one by desperation; for despair is a painful thing to flesh and blood, and as the Devil knows well, doth sometimes turn to a man's more sound conversion; but to presume is sweet and pleasant to the flesh, and most agreeable to man's corrupt nature: in regard whereof we ought to keep out heart with all watch and ward, as David prayeth, Keep thy servant from presumptuous sins, Ps. 19.13.
Again, observe the order of Satan's temptations by comparing this with the former. There he sought to overthrow Christ's faith and to bring him to distrust the truth of God's word uttered from heaven; but finding he could not that way prevail, here he takes the clean contrary course, and seeks to bring him to presume.
This serves to discover unto us, the deep guile and subtlety of the Devil, that can so cunningly turn himself from one extreme unto
another. And look as he dealeth here with Christ the head, so doth he continue towards all his members, if he cannot bring them to one extreme, he will assay them hard in the other. If he cannot bring a man to covetousness, and keep his heart to the love of money, then let him beware of riot and prodigality. Is a man given to pleasures and delight, and a length is deprived of them? Then let him beware; the Devil swallow him not up with overmuch grief, as he sought to do with the incestuous person of Corinth. Doth a man come to love religion, that formerly was given to looseness of life? Then if it be possible the Devil will carry him to schism and heresy. The Devil cannot abide that a man should keep the mean according to God's word, Isaiah 30.21. He would have our first parents to be God's, or nobody, Gene. 3.5. And so still he laboreth to bring a man to some extreme. We therefore in all estates during life, must labor to keep the golden mean, as Christ here did, neither doubting on the one hand nor presuming on the other, but retaining still that blessed faith, whereby his blessed heart was firmly settled in these assaults.
Thus much for Satan's drift. Now come to the words of this temptation.
If thou be the son of God, then cast thy self down: that is, show by this miracle that thou art the son of God. Mark here, the Devil persuades him not, to show himself to be the son of God by doctrine in the execution of his ministry; but Cast thyself down, show a miracle: wherein we may behold the very lively image of that natural disposition which is in all impenitent persons; they affect Christ's miracles, but they care not for his doctrine. Herod longed to see
Christ, and was glad of his coming, when Pilate sent him; yet not to hear his doctrine, for that he could not endure; else he would not have imprisoned John, and also put him to death; but he hoped to see a miracle. The wicked Jews desire a sign, that put Christ to death for his doctrine; yet if he will come down from the cross, and so
miraculously save himself, then they will believe, Mark. 15.32. And this venom of the old serpent hath poisoned the hearts of many students in the Scriptures, who care not at all to ground themselves in the fundamental points of religion, as faith and repentance; and yet are wonderful eager after quiddities and difficulties, wherein may appear some outward show of wit and learning; like the hypocritical
Pharisees, that would tithe mint and rue, and yet pass over judgment and the love of God, Luk. 11.42. And the cause hereof is the want of sound grace, for natural men indeed cannot savor the things of the spirit of God; the knowledge of Christ crucified seems foolishness unto them.
Secondly, the Devil took occasion of his former temptation from Christ's infirmity of hunger: but perceiving Christ's sure faith in his fathers word by his gracious answer to that assault, here he borrows his temptation from that profession of his faith; as if he should say, thou seemest to be resolved of the truth of thy fathers word that thou art the son of God; and if that be true indeed, then show it by this miracle, Cast thyself down.
Here then behold another trick of Satan; if he cannot prevail by assaults drawn from our infirmities, then will he assay us by temptations drawn from God's good gifts and graces in us; If he cannot keep a man in ignorance that hath good gifts of wit and memory, then will he seek from his knowledge to puff him up with pride, and so mingling his poison with God's good gifts, doth cause many a one to become a bane to God's church, that otherwise might have proved an excellent instrument therein; as might easily be showed in sundry particulars.
Thirdly, here mark how Satan's malice is restrained, and his power limited: By God's permission he is able to carry Christ from the
wilderness to Jerusalem, and there to set him in a most dangerous place on a wing of the temple; the thing he now desireth is his destruction by casting down head long, but that he cannot do, and therefore persuades Christ to cast himself down; wherein we see the special providence of God over Christ Jesus in all these temptations, restraining his enemy in the thing he most desired. And the same providence doth he still continue over his Church for the effectual preservation of Christ's members in all their temptations. The Devils unwearied desire and drift is, to bring contentions, hurly-burlies and ruins into all societies in Church and Commonwealth; therefore the peace and tranquility of these is, and so must be acknowledged, a notable fruit of God's blessed providence restraining the spite and malice of Satan. Again, hence it is evident, that in temptation Satan cannot go beyond the permission of God: he can tempt Christ, yea transport his body, and set him in a dangerous place, for thus far
God permits him to go; but to cast Christ down from the pinnacle he cannot, therein comes God's restraint. So it fareth with God's children; for the trial of his graces in them, and to chastise them for some sins, he suffers Satan to buffet them; but yet one iota of his malice beyond God's permission he cannot show, as in Job's affliction by him may notably appear. Which we must carefully remember for our special comfort in our most grievous assaults;
God's will permitting Satan so far must make us patient, and yet his power restraining Satan from doing worse, must give us comfort.
Thus much for the temptation itself.
The reason whereby Satan enforceth his temptation is taken from a testimony of Scripture: For it is written he shall give his Angels charge over thee, &c. Satan hearing Christ allege scripture for his defense against the first assault, comes now upon him with his own weapon, that if it were possible he might foil him, after this sort:
Thou showest thyself to be the Doctor of the Church, by thine
alleging of Scripture, and that, it seems, thou makest the rule of thine actions: well then thou mayest well and safely cast thyself down hence if thou be the Son of God, for it is written, he shall give his
Angels charge over thee, and with their hands they shall lift thee up &c.
From this dealing of Satan, we are taught, not to embrace an opinion in religion, because a show of proof by testimony of Scripture may be given for it. But we must try the spirits, that is, the doctrines of men, whether they be of God, or not, 1 John. 4.1. For the Devil can allege
Scripture to move Christ unto presumption, and it is his usual practice, when he caries men into schisms, errors, and heresies.
Reason with a man that minds to live in sin, and tell him of that dangerous state, by reason of the shortness and uncertainty of this life: will he not tell you straight, he will do as he does, and repent when he is old? For it is written, At what time soever a sinner doth repent him of his sin, I will put all his wickedness out of my remembrance, saith the Lord: And some think three or four good words at a man's last end will serve his turn: for the thief on the cross said no more, but, Lord remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom. And all such as are trained up in the school of Satan, can easily allege scripture to further them in evil.
But let us come to the scripture which the Devil doth notoriously abuse by his allegation: it is written in the 91. Ps. v. 11. In the alleging whereof he would seem very careful and precise, at the first not omitting so much as this particle [ for ] which might have been left out, and yet nothing have been wanting to the force of his reason:
But herein is the deepness of his policy, to cause Christ not to suspect any falsehood afterward; for towards the end, he leaveth out that, on which the promise is grounded of being kept by the Angel: to wit, to keep thee in all thy ways, that is, in all the good duties of thy lawful
calling wherein thou shalt glorify God and do good to others; to such as so walk in their ways doth that promise belong.
Here then behold Satan's notable fraud and craft, that can so cunningly leave out that which makes not for his purpose, and so pervert the true meaning of scripture; this is his usual practice, in enmity against the word to deprave the true meaning by cutting off some part, when he cannot utterly overthrow the whole. The like is the dealing of all heretics, who by cutting off and leaving out, play legerdemain with the scripture. The Arian holds the Bible for the word of God; but such places as serve to prove the godhead of Christ, he doth notably abuse and pervert. The family of Love also, doth hold the bible for the word of God; but come to the true meaning of it, therein they fail, turning all into Allegories, even most true histories, as the fall of our first Parents, and such like, which are main grounds of religion in their natural sense: and the Apostatical Church of Rome, doth hold with us the books of the old and New Testament; but yet they put in and take out at their pleasure, and take from it all sense and meaning which agrees not with the determination of their holy father the Pope; and thereby they overturn the word of God, and strongly maintain their mystery of iniquity.
This dealing of Satan and his wicked miscreants with the scripture, must make all God's children willing to spend their strength in searching out the Scripture; for that is the only way to descry their fraud in depraving of it. This caused Christ to bid the people in his time to search the Scriptures, to learn to know him to be the true
Messias, which the Jewish teachers did then deny. In regard whereof we must say with Moses, oh that all the Lord's people were Prophets, and that the Lord would put his spirit upon them! oh that all could read and understand the word of God! This is it, wherein all that either be, or intend to be ministers must labor especially, even to get
sound knowledge and judgment in the text of Scripture. The Minister must not only be able to teach the truth, but also to discern, to discover, and to confute errors and heresies, which he can never soundly do without good understanding in the text itself. The Devil knows the whole Scripture, and he will spare no text therein it he can corrupt it; therefore to rescue God's truth out of his hands who is the father of lies, the Minister must show himself a good soldier of Jesus
Christ, as Paul exhorteth Timothy, giving such attendance to the word that all men may see his profiting therein; yea with Jeremiah, the Minister must eat the books of God, and digest them in his understanding, and rejoice therein, laboring to feel them the joy of his heart. The Devil knows that Scripture truly understood and well applied, is the only engine for the battery of his kingdom; and therefore, even from the beginning, but specially since the coming of Christ he hath labored by all means to keep men from the knowledge and true understanding of them: he it is that hath brought men from the reading of the Scriptures, to betake themselves to the writings of men, as schoolmen, fathers, and such; by this means he hath for many years even to this day in the Church of Rome, locked up the Scripture in an unknown tongue: yea even in God's church the Devil works mightily this way, by stealing away the affections of young students from the Bible, and ravishing them with delight in the writings of men; for thus he keeps them from the fountain of truth, that they either fall into error themselves, or be less able to discern and confute it in others. And hence come dissensions and errors into the schools of the Prophets, which cannot be avoided while men leave the text of scripture and addict themselves so much to the writings of men, for thereby he can more cunningly convey strange conceits into men's minds: and therefore everyone that would maintain the truth in purity and sincerity must labor painfully in the text.
Secondly, God's ministers must hereby be admonished, to be careful in alleging any text of Scripture, that the same be fit and pertinent: for to wrest the same from the proper meaning of the holy Ghost to serve their own conceit, is the practice of Satan, which every servant of God must be far from, and therefore must not do it hand over head. Which also may serve for a good advertisement to those that use to heap up manifold allegations of Scriptures in the doctrine of a sermon, for as in many words there cannot want iniquity, as Solomon saith; so in affected multiplicity of quotations can the abuse of Scripture be hardly escaped. If we deliver but a man's testimony, honesty will compel us as near as we can to keep both his words and his meaning; much more should conscience move us in alleging the testimony of the Lord, to have careful respect to the evidence of truth: and therefore that sparing course is very commendable, whereby in quoting of Scripture men make sure to keep themselves to the Lord's true meaning, lest by depraving his word they become followers of Satan: And thus much for the manner of Satan's allegation.
The true and proper meaning of that text is now briefly to be discussed. The ninety-one Psalm, from whence it is alleged, is a most heavenly part of scripture, penned for the comfort of God's people in the time of some grievous plague or sickness; and it contains a notable preservative against the plague, and by consequent against any judgment of God, to wit, true affiance and confidence in the Lord, that is the ground of all comfortable safety; thereto, among many other, is this gracious promise made of the protection of God's holy Angels, (which the Devil doth here allege) who shall be as careful for the safety of God's children in common calamities of famine, plague, pestilence &c. as the nurse is over her tender child to hold it in her hands, and bear it up in her arms, lest it should fall and hurt itself; always provided that the child of God keep himself in his