And said to him, If you be the Son of God, cast yourself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning you: and in their hands they shall bear you up, lest at any time you dash your foot against a stone.
for.
Matthew 4:4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.
2 Corinthians 11:14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
He shall.
Psalm 91:11,12 For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways…
Luke 4:9-12 And he brought him to Jerusalem, and set him on a pinnacle of the temple, and said unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down from hence: …
Hebrews 1:14 Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?
test.
Job 1:10 Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land.
Job 5:23 For thou shalt be in league with the stones of the field: and the beasts of the field shall be at peace with thee.
Psalm 34:7,20 The angel of the LORD encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them…
he said, “throw Yourself down.”
The devil tempts Jesus to test God's protection by performing a miraculous act. This temptation occurs at the pinnacle of the temple in Jerusalem, a significant religious and cultural site. The act of throwing Himself down would be a public spectacle, tempting Jesus to misuse His divine power for self-glorification rather than fulfilling His mission through humility and obedience. This reflects the human temptation to seek validation through dramatic displays rather than trusting in God's plan.
For it is written: ‘He will command His angels concerning You,
Satan quotes Psalm 91:11, a messianic psalm that speaks of God's protection over His faithful. By using Scripture, the devil attempts to manipulate God's word for his purposes, highlighting the importance of understanding Scripture in context. This misuse of Scripture serves as a warning against taking verses out of context to justify actions contrary to God's will. The promise of angelic protection is real, but it is not to be tested presumptuously.
and they will lift You up in their hands,
This imagery of angels lifting Jesus up emphasizes divine protection and care. Angels are often depicted as God's messengers and protectors, as seen in Daniel 6:22 and Hebrews 1:14. The devil's suggestion distorts the purpose of angelic intervention, which is to serve God's will, not to be manipulated for personal gain or spectacle. This phrase underscores the spiritual reality of angelic beings and their role in God's providence.
so that You will not strike Your foot against a stone.’”
The devil concludes his quotation of Psalm 91:12, emphasizing physical safety. This promise of protection is part of God's covenant with His people, assuring them of His care. However, the devil's challenge is a perversion of this promise, tempting Jesus to act outside of God's timing and purpose. The reference to not striking one's foot against a stone symbolizes God's comprehensive care, yet it is not a license for reckless behavior. Jesus' response in the following verses highlights the importance of trusting God's plan without testing His promises.
• Satan’s opening line mirrors the Father’s declaration at the Jordan (Matthew 3:17), yet it twists that heavenly affirmation into a challenge.
• Doubt is the oldest strategy of the enemy (Genesis 3:1). Here he tempts Jesus to prove divine Sonship through spectacle instead of humble obedience.
• The demons already know who Jesus is (Luke 4:41); the question is not for discovery but for provocation.
• Application: identity grounded in God’s Word stands secure; it must not be re-won by dramatic self-assertion.
• The speaker is “the devil” (Matthew 4:5). Scripture presents him as an actual, personal being whose words are deceitful (John 8:44).
• 2 Corinthians 11:14 shows his ability to masquerade “as an angel of light.” This encounter is no myth but a historical confrontation between two real persons.
• Note the calm yet calculating tone—he argues, he reasons, he quotes Bible. Evil often sounds pious.
• The location is “the pinnacle of the temple” (Matthew 4:5). A leap from that height would draw instant crowds in the courts below.
• The temptation is to test God’s care through reckless display, presuming upon divine protection.
• Deuteronomy 6:16, later cited by Jesus, forbids putting the LORD to the test. Testing God places self at the center and demands God perform on cue.
• A parallel pressure appears at the cross: “come down… and we will believe” (Matthew 27:42). Spectacle never satisfies unbelief.
• Satan affirms Scripture’s authority yet distorts its intent—a reminder that quoting verses is not the same as obeying them.
• Psalm 91:11-12 is the text. Proper interpretation requires the whole counsel of God (2 Timothy 2:15), not selective citation.
• Jesus soon answers with “It is also written” (Matthew 4:7), modeling how Scripture interprets Scripture.
• Angels are literal ministering spirits (Hebrews 1:14). The Father truly sends them for protection (Psalm 34:7; Daniel 6:22).
• For Messiah, Psalm 91 guarantees the Father’s watchful care throughout His earthly mission.
• The promise, however, never authorizes self-generated peril. Protection accompanies obedience.
• Picture gentle yet powerful rescue—angels bearing up the Lord much like God bore Israel “on eagles’ wings” (Exodus 19:4).
• Acts 12:7 offers another scene of angelic deliverance, underlining that the promise is real.
• Satan’s aim is to detach promise from purpose, converting a safeguard into a stunt.
• The assurance covers accidental harm, not intentional leaps.
• Significantly, Satan omits the very next verse, “You will tread on the lion and cobra” (Psalm 91:13), which foretells his own defeat.
• God’s Word, when read in full, points to Christ’s victory over the serpent, not to the serpent’s manipulative agenda.
Matthew 4:6 records a real temptation in which Satan tries to lure Jesus into flashy self-validation by misusing Psalm 91. The devil’s demand questions Sonship, distorts Scripture, and invites presumption. Jesus will answer with obedient trust, showing that genuine faith rests in the Father’s promise without demanding proof. The passage calls believers to know God’s Word thoroughly, refuse manipulative tests of the Lord, and stand secure in their God-given identity while relying on His promised—but never presumed—protection.
(6) If thou be the Son of God.--In this case, as before, the temptation starts from the attestation of the character of Jesus as the Son of God. With this there is now joined an appeal to familiar and sacred words, and the subtlety of the Tempter lay in his perversion of their true meaning. Here, too, the words throw light on the previous spiritual life of the Son of Man. As in all analogous temptations (and the history would have but little significance or interest for us if it were not analogous to many human experiences) the words which were presented to the soul, with their true meaning obscured and perverted, must have been precisely those that had before been most precious. We can think of Him as having fed on those words, found in them the stay and comfort of His life, without ever dreaming (if one may venture so to speak) of putting them to the test by devices of His own imagining.In their hands.--Better, on. The angelic hands are thought of as sustaining and up-bearing.
Verse 6. - If thou be the Son of God (ver. 3, note). For it is written. Psalm 91:11, 12, verbally from the LXX., but omitting the clause, "to keep thee in all thy ways." Luke omits only "in all thy ways." The clause, according to either record, was omitted possibly because the devil shrank from reminding Jesus of "ways" which he need not take; more probably because . ' ways" hardly fitted this case (cf. Weiss). Trench ('Studies,' p. 40), following St. Bernard, says that the omission of the clause alters the whole character of the quotation, considering that "ways" implies ways appointed by God. But this appears to be strained. The devil, appealing to Jesus' consciousness of abiding communion with God (Psalm 91:1), bids him enjoy to the full the promise of God's protection. There is no thought here of a "miracle of display" to the multitudes who were assembled, "as a matter of course," on the temple area (Meyer; cf. even Trench). Neither the devil's solicitation nor our Lord's reply hint at anything else than Divine protection. If it be urged that for this any one of the many precipices by the Dead Sea, e.g. those of the Quamntana (ver. 1, note) itself, would have been sufficient, the answer may be found in the fact that at the temple, the seat of God's special manifestation, God's special protection might be looked for. There is a slight doubt whether the ὅτι after γέγραπται is recitative (Westcott and Hort, and most) or part of the quotation (Rheims, Meyer, Weiss). In favour of the latter view is the fact that the recitative ὅτι is not used elsewhere in this section (vers. 4, 7, 10), but as in Luke 4:10 it can hardly be other than recitative (for another ὅτι is inserted before "on their hands"), the probability is that it was recitative in the oral source, and therefore recitative here. In their hands; Revised Version, on; ἐπὶ χειρῶν. The thought is not so much of surrounding care as of physical support through space. Lest at any time; Revised Version, lest haply; and so always, for "in the New Testament use of rids particle (μή ποτέ) the notion of time usual to ποτέ seems to recede before that of contingency" (Thayer).