ACC ~ Matthew 4 v9

THE INCONSISTENCY IN THE DEMONIC PROMISE

ANONYMOUS: Consider how every promise of the devil is intrinsically irrational and untrue. Certainly he could not give everything to one person unless he took everything away from everybody. If he took everything away from everybody, he would be adored by no one. Remember that the devil is not adored either out of love or out of fear but because he promises and makes deals for riches. So how could the devil take everything away from everyone and give it to one person, in order to be despised by all and worshiped by one? Nor can we say that anyone could keep his own when the devil has charge of everything. There is no case in which one person is in a situation where he is subject to no one else. This has not happened, nor can it happen. Why? First, because God will not grant the devil such absolute power. Second, because of the devil himself, for in what do his joy and glory and power consist except in pride, envy, wrath, vain ambition and the like? When these things come into play, a kingdom cannot stand in unity. It would be necessary to divide up such a kingdom into many kingdoms. But when these things do not come into play, the devil is not reverenced, nor does he reign. INCOMPLETE WORK ON MATTHEW, HOMILY 5. [1]

[1] PG 56:667.

THE THREE TEMPTATIONS

GREGORY THE GREAT: If we look at the progression of his temptation, we see how great the struggle was that set us free from temptation. Our ancient enemy rose up against the first human being, our ancestor, in three temptations. He tempted him by gluttony, by vain ambition and by avarice. And he overcame [Adam] when tempted, because he subjugated him through consent. He tempted him by gluttony when he showed him the forbidden food of the tree and told him, “Taste it.” He tempted him by vain ambition when he said, “You will be like gods.” He tempted him by adding avarice when he said, “knowing good and evil.” Avarice is concerned not only with money but also with high position. We rightly call it avarice when we seek high position beyond measure. If grasping at honor was not related to avarice, Paul would not have said of God’s only begotten Son, “He did not think that being equal to God was something to be grasped.” [1] The devil drew our ancestor to pride by stirring him up to an avaricious desire for high position.

But the means by which he overcame the first man were the same ones that caused him to yield when he tempted the second Adam. The devil tempted him by gluttony when he said, “Tell these stones to become bread.” He tempted him by vain ambition when he said, “If you are the Son of God, cast yourself down.” He tempted him by an avaricious desire for high position when “he showed him all the kingdoms of the world, saying, ‘I will give you all these if you will fall down and worship me.’” But the devil is overcome by the second man in the same way as he boasted of overcoming the first man. He exits our heart at the same juncture where he first made his earliest inroads.

But there is something else we have to consider in this temptation of the Lord, dearly beloved. When the Lord was tempted by the devil, he answered him with the commands of sacred Scripture. By the Word that he was, he could have easily plunged his tempter into the abyss. But he did not reveal the power of his might, but he only brought forth the precepts of Scripture. This was to give us an example of his patience, so that as often as we suffer something from vicious persons we should be aroused to teach rather than to exact revenge. Consider how great God’s patience is, how great our impatience. When we are provoked by some injury or threatened harm, or moved to rage, we seek revenge as far as possible. When we are unable to obtain it, we make our threats. But the Lord endured the devil’s opposition, and he answered him with nothing except words of meekness. He put up with one he could have punished, so that this might all the more redound to his praise. He overcame his enemy not by destroying him but by suffering him for a while. FORTY GOSPEL HOMILIES 16.2-3. [2]

[1] Phil 2:6.

[2] 52.