Temptations, Trials and Testings Matthew 6:13

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1 Temptations, Trials and Testings Matthew 6:13 Nowhere else in the New Testament is there so unqualified an injunction to pray for escape from temptation. 1 Matthew 6:13 And lead us not into temptation [tests, trials], but deliver us from evil. In verse 12, we are taught to pray, forgive us our debts or sins; here we are taught to pray, lead us not into temptation or sins. Verse 13 is an expansion on verse 12. We need forgiveness from sin; we also need deliverance from sin. But to put it another way, if you haven t dealt with past sins in repentance and in forgiving others their sins, how do you expect to deal with victory over future sins? For the one who defies God s plea to forgive others, where will this deliverance of sin come from? Verses 12 and 13 are forged together in an unbreakable bond to make this point. From Adam (Genesis 2:17), to Job (Job 1:12), to Abraham (Genesis 22:1), to the children of Israel (Deuteronomy 8:2), to Jesus (Luke 22:42), testing and trial have been the normal course of life. From day one, it seems that it has been God s intent to test the mettle of his creation by means of trials. So we might ask, why should one pray not to be led into peirasmos [temptation, trial, testing] when it is apparently God s will that we should suffer it, and when benefits become available through it? 2 The reason is that it is because it is not God s will that we suffer often, in fact for the child of God it is often God s intention that temptation (trails, tests) be limited as much as possible. But although God s intention is that trials be limited in quantity, this does not change the quality of these temptations. So, we see in the great saints of the Old Testament that the quality or difficulty of their trials was severe. That is still our lot today. But a loving God still seeks to limit them. Trials and test come from God and the temptations are there because God allows them. So, on the one hand, we see here and in other places in the Gospels, Jesus asking people to pray that they may not enter into temptation (Matthew 26:41; Mark 14:38; Luke 22:40, 46) minimizing temptation appears to be important to Jesus. On the other hand, we learn from Job that it is God, the sovereign of the universe who is the ultimate cause of trials, test and temptation. Without his permission, they do not happen; but with his permission, they can be limited. temptation [test, trial] 3 One of the first things we might note is that temptation, trial or test, are all possible translations in this word, but in the light of James, the only options in this particular verse are trial or test for he himself tempts no one. 1 Hans Dieter Betz, The Sermon on the Mount: A Commentary on the Sermon on the Mount, Including the Sermon on the Plain (Matthew 5:3-7:27 and Luke 6:20-49) (ed. Adela Yarbro Collins; Hermeneia a Critical and Historical Commentary on the Bible; Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1995), The Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society (electronic edition.; Garland, TX: Galaxie Software, 1998). 3 πειρασμός to make trial of, try, tempt. Trial, temptation, a putting to the test, spoken of persons only. Zodhiates, S. (2000). The complete word study dictionary: New Testament (electronic ed.). Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers.

2 Let no one say when he is tempted, I am being tempted by God, for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. (James 1:13 14, ESV) In the passing of time, this Greek word here translated temptation began a subtle shift in meaning. As a result, In the New Testament there are several passages where this sense of tribulation, trouble, and even chastisement and persecution are the more suitable renderings. 4 The idea of temptation, although still there, is weakened. When God is the agent, peirasmós [temptation, test, trial] is for the purpose of proving someone, never for the purpose of causing him to fall. If it is the devil who tempts, then it is for the purpose of causing one to fall. 5 It seems that every trial by God is a temptation by Satan. Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. And the tempter came and said to him, If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread. (Matthew 4:1 3, ESV) For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted. (Hebrews 2:18, ESV) The Joy of Trials But before we go further, let s look at a comment by James, Jesus half-brother, and a commentator on the Sermon on the Mount. Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, (James 1:2, ESV) Having read this, the first question might be, why would one pray that he not be led into testing or trials if in fact the trials were all joy? Of course, I ve somewhat misquoted the passage in James. It actually says, count it all joy not that it is all joy. Count 6 means to consider it to be so; it does not mean that it actually is so; that is an important point. But, let s also look at the phrase all joy. A better translation would be consider it a genuine joy. James does not, then, suggests that Christians facing trials will have no response other than joy, as if we were commanded never to be saddened by difficulties. His point, rather, is that trials should be an occasion for genuine rejoicing. 7 So, we are to consider or reckon the trials to be a cause for genuine rejoicing in the midst of the many other emotions that may also be present. And we do that why? It is not because the testing itself is joyous, but because of the outcome of that testing is joyous. James explains that in the next two verses. 4 Ethelbert William Bullinger, Figures of Speech Used in the Bible (London; New York: Eyre & Spottiswoode; E. & J. B. Young & Co., 1898), Zodhiates, S. (2000). The complete word study dictionary: New Testament (electronic ed.). Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers. 6 ἡγέομαι to hold a view, to have an opinion, to consider, to regard. Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains (New York: United Bible Societies, 1996), Ralph E. Bass Jr., The Book of James (Living Hope Press, Greenville, SC, 2011).

3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. (James 1:3 4, ESV) This brings us to an interesting point, Jesus allows us to pray that testing might be minimized in our lives but we should remember that this is a privilege not granted to the lost. It is also a privilege that few Christians take advantage of. Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak. (Matthew 26:41, ESV) then the Lord knows how to rescue [deliver] the godly from trials, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment until the day of judgment, (2 Peter 2:9, ESV) Because you have kept my word about patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial that is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell on the earth. (Revelation 3:10, ESV) We will not avoid all testing, but as children of God, unlike the world, we can pray that those tests be limited. deliver us 8 Deliver us could mean either, on the one hand, spare us from, preserve us against or, on the other hand, deliver us out of, save us from. 9 We find this word, deliver, in two other interesting verses. He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he desires him. For he said, I am the Son of God. (Matthew 27:43, ESV) Here in Matthew 27 Jesus is mocked because his father does not deliver him from the cross. However, it is only because he refused deliverance then that we can ask for deliverance now. And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written, The Deliverer will come from Zion, he will banish ungodliness from Jacob ; (Romans 11:26, ESV) In Romans 11 Jesus is identified as the Deliverer. So, Jesus refused deliverance at the cross that he might become the Deliverer in our lives. Because he refused deliverance at Calvary, we can pray to him and ask the Deliverer to deliver us from evil now. And in fact, he has begun this work of deliverance and will continue it until that day when we finally reach heaven s portal. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, (Colossians 1:13, ESV) 8 ῥύομαι to rescue from danger, with the implication that the danger in question is severe and acute to rescue, to deliver. Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida, Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains (New York: United Bible Societies, 1996), Carson, D. A. (1984). Matthew. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke (Vol. 8, pp ). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.

4 The Lord will rescue (deliver) me from every evil deed and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen. (2 Timothy 4:18, ESV) But in what sense was Paul, the one who wrote these statements, rescued or delivered from every evil deed? In fact, Nero murdered him. But, for Paul the key element in rescue is not physical but spiritual and bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. For Paul this was deliverance par excellence. You and I will not be delivered from every threat or medical condition; but ultimately we will be delivered from sin, the flesh and the devil. We will be rescued and brought safely into his heavenly kingdom. Given the depth of human entanglement in evil, a divine rescue operation is needed to bring it about. 10 from evil 11 [or the evil one 12 ] The gender of this word could be either masculine or neuter. If neuter, then the translation would be the evil thing or the generic sense of evil. If masculine, then the translation would be evil one. Most scholars favor the neuter with generic evil as the idea. Some prefer the masculine with Satan as the one addressed. The preposition used may be the key to deciding. Deliver us can take either the preposition ek ( from ) or apo ( from ), the former always introducing things from which to be delivered, the latter being used predominantly of persons. 13 In this context, the preparation used is apo and therefore from a person, Satan. In addition, the greater context would support this point as well, the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness by Satan. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. (John 17:15, ESV) But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one. (2 Thessalonians 3:3, ESV) How Does That Work? 10 Hans Dieter Betz, The Sermon on the Mount: A Commentary on the Sermon on the Mount, Including the Sermon on the Plain (Matthew 5:3-7:27 and Luke 6:20-49) (ed. Adela Yarbro Collins; Hermeneia a Critical and Historical Commentary on the Bible; Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1995), πονηρός labor, sorrow, pain. Evil in a moral or spiritual sense, wicked, malicious, mischievous. Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament (Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 2000). 12 The question has been raised whether at the end of the Lord s prayer in ῥῦσαι ἡμᾶς ἀπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ (Mt 6:13) the words ἀπὸ τοῦ πονηροῦ are to be understood as referring to «evil» or to a personal «evil one» (the devil). Various reasons in favour of the latter sense are given by J. -B. BAUER in Verb. Dom. 34, 1956, 12 15, and one of them is the use of the preposition ἀπό instead of ἐκ after ῥύεσθαι, which is predominantly used with ἐκ when the reference is to deliverance from non-personal evils, and with ἀπό when the reference is to personal foes. In the NT (leaving out of consideration the text at present in question) ἀπό is twice found with a personal object and once with a non-personal one, while ἐκ is never found with a person but seven times with things. This is confirmed by the usage of the LXX: ἀπό with persons ten times, with things seven times; ἐκ with persons ten times, with things sixty times. This perhaps suggests, so far as this argument is concerned, that Mt 6:13 is to be understood as referring to the devil. Max Zerwick, Biblical Greek Illustrated by Examples (vol. 114, English ed., adapted from the fourth Latin ed.; Scripta Pontificii Instituti Biblici; Rome: Pontificio Istituto Biblico, 1963), D. A. Carson, Matthew, in The Expositor s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke (ed. Frank E. Gaebelein; vol. 8; Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1984), 8174.

5 Every day people get up in the morning taking medications or a drink in order to face the day. They hate their family, they fight with their children, they despise everyone on the way to work and they are angry at their job and their boss. Their great desire is to serve the flesh in some way to obtain riches, sex, power or acclaim, and they will steal, lie and cheat to get them. From morning to evening, they are bombarded with temptation and they rarely pass up on an opportunity to succumb to it. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. (James 1:14, ESV) When the natural consequences of such behavior comes pouring into their lives, they whine and complain that they can t catch a break. They are led into temptation where they willingly sin and then suffer the consequence of that sin. The point I m trying to make here is the utter severity and hopelessness of the trials of the world. The sorrows of those who run after another god shall multiply. (Psalm 16:4, ESV) Now this next point is huge, don t miss it! The believer is instructed to pray, lead us not into temptation. But, take careful note of this this sixth petition is a privilege dependent on the first five petitions in this prayer. If those are missed or minimized, one wonders why God would answer the sixth. James, the commentator on the Sermon on the Mount, gives us the secret of on how to experience God s deliverance, Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (James 4:7, ESV) And that is what the previous five prayer petitions are about, submitting to God. After the Christian has prayed, Hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done. After he has trusted God for his material needs, after he has asked for forgiveness and has forgiven others, after all this he then prays, lead us not into temptation. And God answers that prayer. The believer gets up in the morning in a right standing with God. In his heart, he has a smile. He loves his family, he delights in his children, he ask God to help him love his neighbor as he drives to work. He thanks God for his job and tries to honor the Lord in hard, honest work before his boss. He shares the gospel with all he can. He still lives in this sin cursed world but, you tell me, compared to our last illustration, how many temptations does he face this day? I have set the LORD always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken. (Psalm 16:8, ESV) I cannot stress enough the importance of submitting to God by means of the first five petitions of this prayer. As a result, the absence of sanctification of the divine name, the absence of God s kingdom, the disobedience to God s will, and so on the outcome of all this is evil. 14 This is the key in deliverance from evil. We can pray, lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil with confidence, knowing that in the first five petitions, we have submitted ourselves to God and have therefore resisted the devil. In doing this, God delivers and Satan flees In all the strife of mortal life Our feet shall stand securely; Temptation s hour shall lose its power, 14 Hans Dieter Betz, The Sermon on the Mount: A Commentary on the Sermon on the Mount, Including the Sermon on the Plain (Matthew 5:3-7:27 and Luke 6:20-49) (ed. Adela Yarbro Collins; Hermeneia a Critical and Historical Commentary on the Bible; Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1995),

6 The Last Three Petitions For thou shalt guard us surely. O God, renew, with heavenly dew, Our body, soul, and spirit, Until we stand at thy right hand, Through Jesus saving merit. 15 Notice how the last three petitions compare with the Exodus experience. 1) Their the children of Israel were freed from bondage, which would correspond here with the forgiveness of the bondage of sin. 2) In the wilderness their daily bread, manna, was provided. 3) Their also they were tested by God and tempted by Satan. God released his people from slavery and fed them with manna (Mt 6:11), and they, like Jesus, were tested in the wilderness (v. 13; also see 4:1 2). 16 What we are called to do now is to succeed in where others less faithful failed. do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, on the day of testing in the wilderness, (Hebrews 3:8, ESV) We might pray for deliverance from testing, and we may be delivered from many test, but some must come and we must pass those tests. The Benediction Sweet hour of prayer! Sweet hour of prayer! That calls me from a world of care, And bids me at my Father s throne Make all my wants and wishes known. In seasons of distress and grief My soul has often found relief, And oft escaped the tempter s snare By thy return, sweet hour of prayer. Sweet hour of prayer! Sweet hour of prayer! Thy wings shall my petition bear To him whose truth and faithfulness Engage my waiting soul to bless. And since he bids me seek his face, Believe his word and trust his grace, I ll cast on him my every care, And wait for thee, sweet hour of prayer. William W. Walford ( ) For yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory, forever. Amen 15 James Montgomery Boice, The Sermon on the Mount: An Expositional Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2002), Craig S. Keener, Matthew (vol. 1; The IVP New Testament Commentary Series; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1997), Mt 6:9.

7 At the beginning of the prayer, Jesus uses the phrase Your kingdom come. (Matthew 6:10, ESV) Now at the end of the prayer he returns to this word, kingdom, and using the word yours encourages us to ascribe this kingdom to the Father. Adding the words power and glory makes this phrase a hendiatris or a figure of speech used for emphasis, in which three words are used to express one idea. 17 That one idea would be the magnificence of God s kingdom. the kingdom the power the glory forever And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall the kingdom be left to another people. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand forever, (Daniel 2:44, ESV) He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names. Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure. The LORD lifts up the humble; he casts the wicked to the ground. (Psalm 147:3 6, ESV) O LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. (Psalm 8:1, ESV) Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever. (Revelation 11:15, ESV) The doxology itself, of course, is theologically profound and contextually suitable and was no doubt judged especially suitable by those who saw in the last three petitions a veiled allusion to the Trinity: the Father s creation and providence provides our bread, the Son s atonement secures our forgiveness, and the Spirit s indwelling power assures our safety and triumph. 18 Such doxologies are common to scripture as I Chronicles 29 illustrates. Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand are power and might, and in your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name. (1 Chronicles 29:11 13, ESV) Carson, D. A. (1984). Matthew. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor s Bible Commentary: Matthew, Mark, Luke (Vol. 8, p. 174). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.