Luke 4:6, commentary and pictures

Satan bore Jesus to a high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in their splendor in a moment of time, offering to give Him at once all their power and glory if He would acknowledge Satan's superiority and worship him. His claim that the dominion had been delivered to him was true only in part, for Adam had surrendered his delegated authority through sin in Eden, yet Adam's rule was never independent and the earth still belongs to God who entrusted all things to Christ, so Satan's boast of rightful, permanent ownership was false and usurped. The offer was a studied plan to turn Christ from His Father's will and the path of suffering and death, that redemption might fail and Satan might retain the kingdom he claimed and save his life. Jesus turned from the dazzling bribe, refused to bow to any but His Father, and with It is written commanded Satan to depart, choosing the appointed way of sacrifice to redeem what Satan claimed and winning on humanity's behalf on the same ground where Adam fell. That same temptation still comes to believers not by open demand for homage but by dazzling allurements of money, land, power, honor and worldly prospects, and to yield for temporal gain is to bow to mammon and give Satan the worship he asked of Christ.

Setting in Wilderness Temptation

Luke 4:6 belongs to the third, last, and most alluring temptation in the wilderness, pressed with Satan's full strength as the deciding contest for who would be victor. Satan bore Jesus to the top of an exceedingly high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time in panoramic view in the most attractive light. From the most extensive view upon which the eye could rest He caused the glories of empires to pass before the vision, exhibiting them in their splendor as a dazzling spectacle to veil the truth.

The temptation came after forty days and forty nights of fasting, when Christ was in weak, suffering human nature, emaciated, hungry, fainting, and under intense mental strain. The severe battle with the prince of darkness was fought at great cost until angels ministered to and strengthened Him. The conflict stands at the beginning of Christ's public ministry after His baptism, when He was led by the Spirit into the desolate wilderness to face a threefold test before His mission began and to seek strength to endure it for those He came to redeem. After the Father's declaration of His close relation to the Infinite Majesty, with opening heavens and descent of glory attesting His divine character, He bowed on Jordan's banks and prayed to the Eternal for strength to endure the conflict with the fallen foe, and after overcoming returned to the Jordan without outwardly drawing attention to Himself.

In the first two temptations Satan hid his purpose and character as an exalted messenger from heaven, but here he throws off disguise and openly declares himself prince of the world and prince of the power of the air. Elsewhere the same adversary is described as coming not openly as a fallen angel but enshrouded in light as a beautiful young man looking more like a monarch, as an angel of light just from God's presence and clothed in the livery of heaven, claiming to be sent on mercy to sympathize with Christ and relieve His suffering condition. He tried to make Christ believe God did not require Him to pass through anticipated self-denial and suffering but only designed to prove His willingness to endure, that He was to set His feet in the blood-stained path but not travel it, that like Abraham He was tested only to show perfect obedience, even stating he was the angel that stayed Abraham's hand when the knife was raised to slay Isaac and had now come to save Christ's life and help bear the work in the plan of salvation. Satan had real power and daring to take Christ in his arms and carry Him to the pinnacle of the temple and up into the high mountain, a power rooted in his place as a once-exalted covering cherub whose rebellion shut him out of heaven without destroying his powers or making him a beast but made him more artful in turning that mighty strength against the government of heaven.

The verse belongs to the wilderness temptation account in which, after fasting forty days and nights, Christ refused to turn stones into bread to satisfy His hunger and refused to imperil His life by throwing Himself from the temple to prove He was God's Son.

Satan's Claim and Bargain

The words record Satan's own declaration that all the power of the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them had been delivered to him and that he could give them to whomever he chose. The same declaration is the offer that he would bestow that power and glory on Christ. He claimed in so saying to be the rightful and permanent ruler of the world and the possessor of its riches and glory, as though he had created the world and all it contains. In that claim he presented himself as prince of the world and prince of the power of the air, and as god of this world, a false usurper, pretender and deceiver making a presumptuous boast to the Son who made the world.

He offered to make over at once his whole claimed dominion in one great gift, yielding his scepter and dominion so that Christ should come into possession as rightful ruler. That transfer was to be without sorrow, hardship, conflict, suffering, peril, or striking a blow to obtain it. It was held out as escape from the suffering and death required by His mission, a way to gain His object without the appointed path of trial and sacrifice. The one condition was that Christ acknowledge Satan's superiority and worship him with homage as supreme. It was a direct bargain of worldly dominion at the price of worship, an exchange of homage for honor, riches and glory.

He set the kingdoms before Christ in their splendor in panoramic view in the most attractive light, as a dazzling, enchanting spectacle to veil the truth. The presentation caused the glories of empires to pass before the vision with flattering inducements to bribe integrity. While showing their apparent beauty and prosperity it hid their evil and did not reveal the misery covered by that beauty.

Basis and Validity of Claim

Satan's boast that the power and glory of the kingdoms had been delivered to him to give to whom he would is false, usurped and presumptuous, the lie of a pretender and deceiver who calls himself god of this world and prince of the power of the air. He made that fearful boast to the very Son who made the world, displaying the kingdoms in their splendor in the most attractive light and offering them all at once in exchange for worship and homage. He knew the claim was false and could not be sustained unless he overcame Christ, for only by conquering Christ in that contest could he remain conqueror and prince of the world. What he offers is not truly his to give and will soon be taken from him, yet he uses the same flattering prospect as a false pretense to draw people into his net, promising worldly success, riches, pleasure, honor and happiness if they will serve him, disregard conscience and live for self. He does not come as a hideous monster with bat's wings and cloven feet but as a beautiful angel of light as if just from God's presence, exercising the same deceiving power by which he induced a third of the heavenly angels to believe him right and unite with him against God and His Son.

His claim was true only in part. Adam had surrendered his delegated authority to Satan, but Adam's rule was never independent, and the earth belongs to God who entrusted all things to Christ as the rightful King. Satan can therefore exercise his usurped authority only with God's permission, and Christ came to disprove the false claim of absolute sovereignty, to free those who sought deliverance from Satan's power, and to recover the dominion Adam lost through sin.

The claim is founded on his easy victory over Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden, where by deceptive temptation they threw off allegiance to God, cast aside His Word, and accepted the word of the fallen foe. Having conquered Adam, the monarch of the world, he claimed he had gained the human race as his subjects and claimed their Eden home and the world God had made as his dominion. He exultingly boasted to Christ and to loyal angels that all its power and glory was delivered to him, declaring he would possess Eden, make it his headquarters, there establish his throne, and be monarch of the world. He feared that empire was now to be contested, his right disputed and his power broken, knowing that everything concerning his own prosperity hung on his success or failure in overcoming Christ with temptation in the wilderness.

He boasts at the same time of having already drawn a portion of the angels in heaven to unite with him in daring rebellion. His tempter had once been an honored angel in heaven, a covering cherub, who became ambitious for the more exalted honors bestowed upon the Son, became envious of Christ, claimed he should be exalted equal in honor with Christ, obtained sympathizers among the angels, and fell with them from their high and holy estate and was expelled from heaven with them. He was the same adversary with whom Christ had contended in the war in heaven, and though Christ appeared to be alone in the wilderness, angels surrounded Him and ministered to Him during the enemy's assaults.

Through the sin of the first parents the world came under his sway. Before Christ's first advent his authority had become nearly supreme and his rule appeared nearly complete, even among God's covenant people, who had lost a true understanding of God's character. Christ came to earth in person to challenge that authority, meeting the temptation with Scripture and conquering after fasting forty days and nights in the wilderness.

Purpose Behind the Offer

The offer was a studied plan to keep Jesus from finishing redemption by death, for if that work failed Satan would keep the kingdom he claimed, save his own life and kingdom, and reign in opposition to God. He knew his power would be limited and finally taken away if salvation succeeded, with Jesus' death ending his power after a time and bringing his destruction. It was for that reason he sought to lead Jesus to depart from His Father's will just as Adam and Eve had done.

The aim was to shake Christ's trust in His heavenly Father and separate Him from God. By getting Him to break allegiance to His Father and abandon integrity, Satan sought to win the world and make Him surrender the victory in the great controversy. To accept would have meant yielding to Satan and the triumph of rebellion itself.

He therefore held out an easier way to gain His object than the path of trial and suffering upon which He had entered. The bargain promised escape from the suffering and death required by His mission, with immediate worldly dominion without suffering or peril if He would worship Satan as superior. It was a call to turn from humiliation and sacrifice and to gain the kingdoms without enduring suffering, pressed again later through Peter to draw Him toward earthly glory and away from the cross central to saving the world.

The demand for homage was a presumptuous insult to God and daring blasphemy. In it Satan sought on earth the worship he had failed to gain in heaven, making an arrogant attempt to secure homage as though he had created the world and all it contains. That cruel warfare upon the world's Redeemer unmasked the malicious character of the great deceiver and stirred amazement and indignation through the heavenly angels and the whole loyal universe.

The stakes were absolute, with the destiny of the human race at stake in the conflict. Success in tempting Him would have meant victory over the entire human race and, as Satan thought, the establishment of his own life and kingdom, while failure would leave his case hopeless. If Christ could be overcome the earth would become Satan's kingdom forever and the human race would be forever in his power, with Christ Himself eternally separated from God and identified with Satan's kingdom.

Christ's Refusal and Victory

Jesus rested His eye upon the offered glory for a moment, then turned away and refused to look or dally with the bribe. He rejected the transfer of power and glory in exchange for worship and would bow to no one but His Father. He declared that God alone must be worshiped and served and refused to acknowledge Satan as supreme.

He did not argue, repeat Satan's words, or answer objections on Satan's ground, but held to the affirmative of the Word with It is written. His divinity came to the aid of His humanity as He met each test with the words of Scripture. With divine authority He commanded Satan to depart because only the Lord God is to be worshiped and served. Satan was baffled by the constant affirmative, had nothing to say, and left the field defeated. Arguments and reasons would have been of no avail, but It is written put Him upon solid, immovable rock and is the only weapon that repulses Satan.

He saw through what Satan tried to veil when the world was held up as a dazzling, enchanting spectacle. He did not exchange divinity for humanity but clothed divinity in humanity. By rejecting the condition He proved He was the Son of God.

He chose the life of suffering and ignominious death in the way appointed by His Father rather than dominion without suffering or peril. He would redeem what Satan claimed by giving His own life and afterward become its lawful ruler and heir. The kingdoms would be given into His hands as an everlasting possession. Satan himself will be given into His hands to be destroyed by death, never more to annoy Him nor the saints.

He resisted without yielding to sin even in thought, His will remaining submitted to His Father and never yielded to the enemy. Satan's assaults found no foothold and no place in Him, and He did not yield. Satan can solicit sin but cannot compel it, having no power to control the will or to force the soul to sin without consent. He may distress and cause agony, but he cannot contaminate or defile without consent.

His victory was won on humanity's behalf on the same ground where Adam fell, redeeming Adam's failure and disgrace. His divine power joined with humanity gained an infinite victory that raised humanity's moral value before God. That victory at the point of appetite showed appetite can be denied and that people can overcome. It broke appetite's power and made it possible for people to conquer in His name and strength, with strength given to all who seek it.

After prevailing nothing, Satan was left disappointed and enraged yet departed only for a season without abandoning hope. He looked to Christ's ministry for future opportunities to try his power and artifices against Him again. His plan included blinding the Jews with envy, jealousy, hatred and unbelief so they would not discern or receive Him, would make His life bitter, and would serve as agents to discourage Him in His mission. He worked through human agents to oppose Christ and continued trying to thwart His mission by stirring unbelief and hatred among the people. The same issue of mastery over earth and the human race would return in the final struggle at Gethsemane, where if he failed his hope of mastery was lost and the kingdoms would finally become Christ's, who would bind the strong man and cast him out.

That earlier conquest stands behind His later authority, for having met the prince of darkness face to face and conquered him He could confront the same evil spirit again. The tempter in the wilderness was the same evil spirit who later controlled the demoniac and confronted Him in the synagogue at Capernaum. He broke that cruel tyranny by a word of authority and set the captive free, proving His power to conquer the prince of darkness and release Satan's victims. As the conqueror who stilled the tempest He commands unclean spirits with authority and does not flee before demon-possessed men.

Prophecy and Coming Triumph

Prophecy had foretold that the Prince of Heaven would establish a kingdom upon the earth embracing all the kingdoms of the world, and Satan knew that when that kingdom came his own power and glory would cease. He understood that the empire he claimed as his dominion and right would then be contested, his right disputed and his power broken by Christ. He feared that Christ would challenge his rule and would bring upon him retribution for the sin he had introduced and the misery he had brought upon man. He therefore saw everything concerning his own prosperity as hanging on his success or failure in overcoming Christ with temptation in the wilderness, and brought every artifice and force of powerful temptation to allure Him from allegiance.

The kingdoms of the earth will finally become Christ's, who as rightful King will bind the strong man, cast him out, and overthrow him. Jesus rested His eye upon the offered glory for a moment but turned away and refused to look or dally, and in divine indignation at the insult to the Creator and the blasphemous assumption exercised divine authority to rebuke and dismiss the tempter. He remained steadfast and chose the life of suffering and ignominious death in the way appointed by His Father, to redeem what Satan claimed by giving His own life and afterward to become its lawful ruler and have the kingdoms given into His hands as an everlasting possession. The same issue at stake in the wilderness returned in the last fearful struggle at Gethsemane, where the destiny of the human race was at stake and where, if Satan failed, his hope of mastery was lost, while if Christ could have been overcome the earth would have become Satan's kingdom forever, the human race would have remained forever in his power, and Christ Himself would have been eternally separated from God. Satan himself will be given into Christ's hands to be destroyed by death, never more to annoy Jesus nor the saints.

The same temptation will be presented to people in a final conflict, when Satan will display the kingdoms in their glory and promise them to those who worship him. His claim that those alluring views belong to God's kingdom is false, for they are views of his own kingdom. The compromise that failed with Christ has succeeded with men, for the church for the sake of worldly gains and honors sought the favor and support of great men of earth, and having thus rejected Christ yielded allegiance to the representative of Satan, the bishop of Rome. The same claim Satan made to Christ is still urged through the Church of Rome, where the pope claims to be the visible head of the universal church with supreme authority over all bishops and pastors, arrogates the very titles of Deity as Lord God the Pope, assumes infallibility, and demands homage from all men, and vast numbers yield him homage. By that success he has carried out his ever-present design to draw minds from Jesus to man and to destroy individual accountability, corrupting the doctrine of Christianity, leading popes and priests to take an exalted position and teach people to look to them to pardon sins instead of looking to Christ for themselves, and keeping the Bible from them to conceal truths that would condemn them.

Pattern and Warning for Believers

The wilderness trial stands as the pattern for fallen people, showing that reliance on God's word and promises and on Christ's power makes resistance possible. Christ met the assault in great weakness without yielding even in thought, denied appetite and broke its hold after nearly six weeks of fasting, and gained no disadvantage to the enemy. In His strength people can resist every assault, withstand Satan's fiercest temptations by divine power, and overcome in His name.

The lesson for meeting opponents and unbelieving objections is to keep to the affirmative and not spend time answering every objection on Satan's ground. Christ did not argue, repeat Satan's words, or reason with the objection, but held to the affirmative of the Word with It is written and with divine authority commanded Satan to depart, leaving him baffled with nothing to say and the field defeated. Arguments and reasons would have been of no avail, but It is written put feet upon solid immovable rock, for all things written in the law and in the prophets are true and carry proof in themselves. The lessons of the Word are therefore to be learned and hung in memory's hall, Scripture committed to memory in spare time, the soul strengthened by quoting the promises, and temptation met by speaking words in season, for It is written is the only weapon that will repulse Satan and by it characters become strengthened and perfected for transfer to immortal life where no tempting devil can overcome. When provoked, impulse of speech is to be restrained and Scripture made the safe answer after Christ's example.

The same third temptation rooted in love of the world still comes through money, land, gain, power, honor, riches, and flattering worldly prospects suited to each person's circumstances. Christ rejected the offer of worldly power and glory for worship and overcame, proving worldly allurements can be overcome, and His example strengthens resistance. Accepting the bargain lures to compromise integrity and conscience, sacrifice principle for approval or personal advantage, indulge selfishness, dull conscience, degrade faculties, and bring the soul into captivity to sin. Those drawn by worldly attractions come to serve wealth rather than God and thereby lose their souls.

Satan no longer comes as he came to Christ with a direct demand for homage and outward worship, but asks only that minds and affections be dazzled and allured. If he engages the mind and affections, lessens heavenly attractions, and leads to love of the world and love of rank and position and money with affections set on earthly treasure, he gains from people all he asked of Christ. The bribe is often presented with the suggestion that with power and wealth much good can be done, making the world very attractive, yet those who yield give the best of their strength to worldly pursuits and bow to mammon. They sacrifice honor, violate God's law to serve personal interests and increase earthly treasures, lose love for God and precious truth, despise self-denial and sacrifice, hold to earthly treasures with no connection to the self-denying Redeemer, exchange Masters by accepting Mammon in place of Christ, and thus render to Satan the worship he claimed. When greatest anxiety and labor are given to worldly interests while eternal considerations are made secondary, that selfish love of the world is homage to him.

Against that bribe self-denial is the Christian portion in this life, with self-abasement and cross-bearing as God's ordained provision. By sincere repentance toward God for transgression of His law and faith in Jesus Christ as Redeemer and Advocate the repenting sinner finds hope and comfort and peace with sweetest joy. The choice is willingness to endure and suffer and sacrifice for imperishable treasure, a life parallel with God's life, and a crown of immortal glory that fades not away, rather than toiling for the treasures and advantages of this life. Christ's divine power joined with humanity won an infinite victory on humanity's behalf, working out a righteous character for those who could not work it for themselves, and His endurance calls Christians to self-denial and resistance of appetite, indulgence, love of honor, and pride of display.

The snare appears as pressure to sign a compromising concession, the same kind of satanic snare as the offer to secure concession and compromise from Christ. It appears as praise and offers from others that must not be allowed to turn the heart from Christ and heavenly things, as ambition appealed to by kingdoms of the world, and as promises of wealth for adopting dishonest business methods that force choice between serving Christ or the deceiver. Christ refused to gain worldly wealth or power by yielding, teaching that integrity and principle must never be surrendered or traded for earthly advantage, for power and riches gained dishonestly become a curse. Those who worship Satan for freedom to use corrupt practices and grow rich follow the same temptation. The same temptation comes to ministers through promises of worldly gain to abandon the mission of redeeming the world and betray sacred calling, which would have left the world unransomed had Christ accepted it. It comes as trading spiritual and eternal interests for temporal things, seeking honor above God's glory, and, as in the case of Brother Miller, pursuing personal advantage instead of recognizing God's instrument for truth.

Satan adapts his bribes to circumstances, pressing them in suffering and need as he pressed Christ in hunger after forty days without food, and still adapts temptations by offering apparent good to draw into appetite and worldly pleasure. The offer comes with flattering inducements to bribe integrity, with specious bewitching influence, arts of infatuation and spiritual witchcraft, and noble-sounding ideas, while he conceals real character disguised as an angel of light and a Heaven-sent friend seeking to overcome the Redeemer by every device. He presents an easier way to gain the object than the path of trial and suffering, and even bears Scripture in his mouth to gain confidence and pervert the senses of those not protected by divine power. The same influence still leads many to obey the worst impulses of the heart while believing God is leading them, proving service to the enemy of righteousness and not to God. Christ refused compromise on a single point, stood firm, repulsed the enemy and forced him to depart as a conquered foe, setting the example that followers may resist his devices and gain victory in His name.

Yielding to the bargain harms spiritual life and can darken the minds of others through influence. Devotion to worldly interests gives Satan the homage he seeks, satisfies him, and opens the way to impatience, self-love, pride, greed, and other evils. The selfish love of the world corrupts faith, weakens moral power, and the more earthly riches are loved the farther the soul departs from God and the less it shares the divine nature. Yielding can amount to apostasy, a decision made in a moment fixing condition forever and costing what a lifetime of faithfulness would take to recover. Yet those who look to Jesus and accept by faith the virtues of the sinless Christ need not give in to sin.

The threefold wilderness temptation is an important yet neglected subject bearing on Christian temperance and on redemption in carrying out the plan of salvation. That conflict and victory are the foundation of the plan and give fallen man the key whereby in Christ's name he may overcome, for Christ has power from His Father to give divine grace and strength to overcome. The adversary who afflicted Christ remains the adversary of every person to the end of time, his power over man not weakened by his failure with Christ, and all are personally exposed to the very same temptations and must individually overcome in the all-powerful name of the great Conqueror. Christ's victory will not benefit anyone unless he also gains the victory on his own account, and it becomes meaningless to those who view this portion of His life as common warfare between kings with no bearing on life and character, or who indulge gaiety, pleasure, feasting, appetite, liquor, and tobacco and thus cannot appreciate it. Only those who break the force of appetite and overcome will enter through the gates of the city, yet no case of appetite bondage is irrecoverable, for through prayer and the help of a living Saviour ready and willing to assist, those enslaved to liquor and tobacco can break slavery of habit through His merits, and what is needed is daily living experience to escape error, testing faith, motives, and principles.

Christ met the strongest temptations armed with Scripture, proving the power of the Word and showing He has full power and is fully able to do the work laid upon Him and fulfill His commission to preach the gospel to all nations. Continued failure and dishonor therefore come not from lack of power in His word but from disobedience and failure by God's people. His example strengthens people to resist, and the trial was a decisive contest in which humanity's salvation was at stake, contended alone with the prince of darkness while angels watched with intense concern to see whether Satan or Christ would conquer.