Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
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Matthew
Book: Matthew
Chapter: 4
Overview:
The
Temptation of
Christ.
(1-11) The opening of
Christ's
ministry in
Galilee.
(12-17) Call of
Simon and others.
(18-22)
Jesus teaches and
Works miracles.
(23-25)
1-11 Concerning
Christ's
Temptation, observe, that directly
after he was declared to be the
Son of God, and the
Saviour of
the world, he was tempted; great privileges, and special tokens
of Divine favour, will not secure any from being tempted. But if
the Holy
Spirit Witness to our being adopted as children of
God,
that will answer all the suggestions of the evil
Spirit.
Christ
was directed to the combat. If we presume upon our own strength,
and tempt the
Devil to tempt us, we provoke
God to leave us to
ourselves. Others are tempted, when drawn aside of their own
Lust, and enticed, Jas 1:14; but our
Lord Jesus had
No corrupt
nature, therefore he was tempted only
By the
Devil. In the
Temptation of
Christ it appears that our enemy is subtle,
spiteful, and very daring; but he can be resisted. It is a
comfort to us that
Christ suffered, being tempted; for thus it
appears that our temptations, if not yielded to, are not sins,
they are
Afflictions only.
Satan aimed in all his temptations,
to bring
Christ to
Sin against
God. 1. He tempted him to despair
of his
Father's
Goodness, and to distrust his
Father's care
concerning him. It is one of the wiles of
Satan to take
advantage of our outward condition; and those who are brought
into straits have need to double their
Guard.
Christ answered
all the temptations of
Satan with "It is written;" to set us an
Example, he appealed to what was written in the Scriptures. This
method we must take, when at any time we are tempted to
Sin. Let
us learn not to take any wrong
Courses for our supply, when our
wants are ever
So pressing: in some way or other the
Lord will
provide. 2.
Satan tempted
Christ to presume upon his
Father's
power and protection, in a point of safety. Nor are any extremes
more dangerous than despair and presumption, especially in the
affairs of our souls.
Satan has
No objection to holy places as
the scene of his assaults. Let us not, in any place, be off our
watch. The holy
City is the place, where he does, with the
greatest advantage, tempt men to pride and presumption. All high
places are slippery places; advancements in the world makes a
Man a
Mark for
Satan to shoot his fiery darts at. Is
Satan So
Well versed in
Scripture as to be able to quote it readily? He
is
So. It is possible for a
Man to have his head full of
Scripture notions, and his mouth full of
Scripture expressions,
while his
Heart is full of
Bitter Enmity to
God and to all
Goodness.
Satan misquoted the words. If we go out of our way,
out of the way of our duty, we forfeit the promise, and
Put
ourselves out of
God's protection. This
Passage, De 8:3, made
against the tempter, therefore he left out part. This promise is
firm and stands good. But shall we continue in
Sin, that
Grace
may abound?
No. 3.
Satan tempted
Christ to
Idolatry with the
offer of the kingdoms of the world, and the
Glory of them. The
Glory of the world is the most charming
Temptation to the
unthinking and unwary;
By that men are most easily imposed upon.
Christ was tempted to
Worship Satan. He rejected the proposal
with abhorrence. "Get thee hence,
Satan!" Some temptations are
openly wicked; and they are not merely to be opposed, but
rejected at once. It is good to be quick and firm in resisting
Temptation. If we resist the
Devil he will flee from us. But the
soul that deliberates is almost overcome. We find but few who
can decidedly reject such baits as
Satan offers; yet what is a
Man profited if he gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
Christ was succoured after the
Temptation, for his encouragement
to go
On in his undertaking, and for our encouragement to trust
in him; for as he knew,
By experience, what it was to suffer,
being tempted,
So he knew what it was to be succoured, being
tempted; therefore we may expect, not only that he will feel for
his tempted people, but that he will come to them with
seasonable relief.
12-17 It is just with
God to take the
Gospel and the means of
Grace, from those that slight them and thrust them away.
Christ
will not stay long where he is not welcome. Those who are
without
Christ, are in the dark. They were
Sitting in this
condition, a contented posture; they chose it rather than
Light;
they were willingly ignorant. When the
Gospel comes,
Light
comes; when it comes to any place, when it comes to any soul, it
makes
Day there.
Light discovers and directs;
So does the
Gospel. The doctrine of
Repentance is right
Gospel doctrine. Not
only the austere
John the Baptist, but the gracious
Jesus,
preached
Repentance. There is still the same reason to do
So.
The kingdom of
Heaven was not reckoned to be fully come, till
the pouring out of the Holy
Spirit after
Christ's
Ascension.
18-22 When
Christ began to preach, he began to gather
disciples, who should be hearers, and afterwards preachers of
his doctrine, who should be witnesses of his miracles, and
afterwards testify concerning them. He went not to Herod's
Court, not to
Jerusalem, among the chief priests and the elders,
but to
The Sea of
Galilee, among the fishermen. The same power
which called
Peter and
Andrew, could have wrought upon
Annas and
Caiaphas, for with
God nothing is impossible. But
Christ chooses
the foolish things of the world to confound the
Wise. Diligence
in an honest
Calling is pleasing to
Christ, and it is
No
hinderance to a holy
Life. Idle people are more open to the
temptations of
Satan than to the calls of
God. It is a happy and
hopeful thing to see children careful of their parents, and
dutiful. When
Christ comes, it is good to be found doing. Am I
in
Christ? is a very needful question to ask ourselves; and,
next to that, Am I in my
Calling? They had followed
Christ
before, as common disciples, Joh 1:37; now they must leave
their
Calling. Those who would follow
Christ aright, must, at
his command, leave all things to follow him, must be ready to
part with them. This instance of the power of the
Lord Jesus
encourages us to depend upon his
Grace. He speaks, and it is
done.
23-25 Wherever
Christ went, he confirmed his Divine mission
By
miracles, which were emblems of the healing power of his
doctrine, and the influences of the
Spirit which accompanied it.
We do not now find the
Saviour's miraculous healing power in our
bodies; but if we are cured
By medicine, the praise is equally
his. Three general words are here used. He healed every sickness
or disease; none was too bad; none too hard, for
Christ to heal
with a
Word. Three diseases are named; the
Palsy, which is the
greatest weakness of the body; lunacy, which is the greatest
malady of the mind; and possession of the
Devil, which is the
greatest misery and calamity of both; yet
Christ healed all, and
By thus curing bodily diseases, showed that his great errand
into the world was to cure spiritual maladies.
Sin is the
sickness, disease, and
Torment of the soul:
Christ came to take
away
Sin, and
So to heal the soul.