The Temptation of Jesus

 In some ways it is harder to decide what to post on the New Testament sections we have been reading than it was for the Old Testament.  I was discovering so many new things last year as I went through the Old Testament, but I have studied the New Testament closely before, that I am not getting as many "new" insights.  

Plus, so many other people have written about the Temptations of Christ.  I feel like it is common knowledge that the three temptations represent three general kinds of temptations all people face: the temptation to gratify physical desires, the temptation to seek worldly fame and wealth, and the temptation to misuse power to assuage your own insecurity. Always the point it made that Jesus quotes scripture to resist each temptation as an example of how we can also resist temptation.

I guess the question I want to explore today is what is this passage doing in the whole text.  More specifically, what reference does it make to the Old Testament narrative that the people of Jesus' time would have recognized. We have already seen that Matthew, in particular, is trying to show Jews that Jesus fulfills Old Testament types.  So where in the Old Testament do we see a person (or group of people) going into the wilderness to be tempted?  The most obvious answer is the Children Of Israel. Let's look at the parallels.

The Children of Israel leave Egypt by passing through the Read Sea
        Jesus goes through baptism 
The Children of Israel enter the wilderness where they are tested
        Jesus goes into the desert to be tempted
The Children of Israel are in the wilderness 40 years
        Jesus fasts for 40 days
The Children of Israel face a food trial, and are given miraculous "bread" or manna
        Jesus is tempted to make bread from stone miraculously 

Moses leads the Children of Israel to the mountain to meet God

        Jesus is taken to the mountain and promised he could rule as God over all the earth

Moses builds a tabernacle which becomes the symbol that God is with them

        Jesus is taken to the temple and tempted to prove that God is with him. 

I think that the pattern of being lead to the wilderness to be tried and tempted is one that Jews would have recognized.  The Exodus narrative was one of the most important stories in Jewish tradition.  The house of Israel left the wilderness purified and ready to spread Jehovah worship throughout the promised land.  Jesus leaves his wilderness experience ready to spread the gospel to the Jews, and ultimately to the whole world.