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Christus
Rex
Satan Loves Proof-Texts
Gregory Soderberg
The history of Christian theology is filled with the abuse of Scriptural texts. Among the most heinous of hermeneutical crimes is wrenching a verse or two completely out of context in order to fit the pre-conceived conceptual system of the interpreter. Faithful interpretation, in contrast, pays attention to the entire context in which we find particular verses. Context means not only chapter and book, but also literary genre, historical time period, and place in the process of revelation.
Satan (and his cohorts) loves to proof-text. Every heretic has a verse or two that supports their position. Jehovah’s Witnesses, Mormons, and Roman Catholics all have their proof-texts. If we are to interpret God’s Word faithfully, it is helpful to see how Satan misinterprets it. By examining a few instances where Satan (or Satanic forces) actually quote Scripture, a general pattern of Satanic misinterpretation will emerge. Seeing this pattern should enable faithful interpreters to spot errors a mile away. Error is never original. Satan believes in recycling.
The first example of Satanic misinterpretation is found in Gen. 3:1-5. First, Satan asks an innocent question: “Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden?” Satan’s first tactic is to cast doubt on what God has said. Heresy always leads to rejecting to the word of God. But notice how Satan has subtly misquoted God. Eve corrects him: “We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die (emphasis mine).”
Eve, at this point, does not give in to Satan. She corrects Satan’s slanted question. Even though Satan’s question was technically true, he focused on the prohibition. Don’t think about all the other trees God has given you; think about this one tree you can’t have…
Now that he has cast aspersion on God’s command, Satan goes on to twist the command: “Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.”
Was this true? Partly. It was patently false that Adam and Eve would not die. Satan lies here. But what about the rest? It is all true. Satan is not just a liar. He does not only tell untruths. He uses the truth whenever it is to his advantage. All Satan said was proven true by subsequent events. But Adam and Eve still died.
Moving to another portion of Scripture, Matt. 4, we see how Satan uses Scripture to tempt the Author Himself. Satan uses God’s words to test the Word Incarnate. Although there are three temptations, Satan only quotes Scripture in one temptation. But, there is a general pattern Satan follows.
In the first temptation, Satan challenges Jesus to turn rocks into bread. Christ, who has fasted for forty days, still has the strength to quote Dt. 8:3, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” Satan is tempting Jesus to imitate Moses, to make bread in the desert. But, Jesus, as the greater Moses, knows that Moses’ true power was not his ability to “do” miracles. Rather, Moses’ power lay in his humility and total reliance on God (Nu. 12:3; Dt. 34:10-11).
In the second temptation, Satan tempts Jesus to throw himself from the top of the Temple. This time, Satan handily quotes part of Psalm 91. Again, Jesus replies with Scripture: “Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God,” (Dt. 6:16).
The third temptation is pregnant with Satanic theology. Satan takes Jesus to a very high mountain and shows him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. Satan will give all these kingdoms to Jesus if only Jesus will bow down and serve him. The parallel account in Luke 4:6 allows Satan to boast a little more: “All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will give it.”
In this temptation, Satan seems to get a little frisky. Does he actually own all the kingdoms of the earth? It looks as if our dispensational brethren might actually be right. Well, phooey, Satan is alive and well on planet earth! All poor Jesus can do is quote Deuteronomy again (6:13 to be exact), and this is apparently enough to drive Satan away. Big Bad Satan, who owns all the kingdoms of the world, scared away by a little Bible verse! Actually, this verse reveals that Jesus, meek and mild, is not interested in the kingdoms of the earth. No, Jesus just wants to save souls. Cultures and nations can go to hell, because Satan owns them anyway.
At this point, my tongue is so far in my cheek that I look like a demented chipmunk. Fleshing out a Biblical view of Satan and his role after the resurrection must wait for another time. Suffice it to say that Scripture clearly teaches that Jesus has triumphed over all principalities and powers, including angelic ones (Eph. 1:19-23), and is currently putting all enemies beneath his feet (1 Cor. 15:24-25; Matt. 28:18).
However, returning to Satan’s tactics, we see a clear pattern. In tempting Jesus, Satan held forth some good and desirable thing each time. First, he offered the prospect of food, then of being delivered by God, and then of ruling all the kingdoms of the world. All these are good in and of themselves. Furthermore, these are all things that Jesus would obtain. He ate again. He was miraculously protected numerous times. Finally, Jesus gained and now rules over all the kingdoms of the world.
What Satan did was offer a good thing, but in the wrong way, at the wrong time. This is the same tactic Satan used with Eve. We have reasons to believe that God would eventually give Adam and Eve the fruit from both the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil and the Tree of Life. Adam and Eve were little children. They needed to grow up. Theywere on probation. But, after they had matured, why wouldn’t they be given the privilege of eating the fruit?(1)
In the same way, Satan offered Jesus food before Jesus had finished his period of fasting and temptation (wrong time). Satan offered Jesus miraculous protection, but as a result of foolishly testing of God (wrong way). Lastly, Satan offered Jesus the kingdoms of the world. Because Jesus would eventually gain these kingdoms, after he had suffered and died, this was a good thing offered in both the wrong way and at the wrong time.
Now that we understand Satan’s basic tactic, the last example of Satanic proof-texting should be obvious. When Jesus is hanging on the cross, there is one last, merciless temptation he must undergo. As Matthew tells us, “Likewise also the chief priests mocking him, with the scribes and elders, said, ‘He saved others; himself he cannot save. If he be the King of Israel; let him now come down from the cross, and we will believe him. He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God.’ The thieves also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth,” (Matt. 27:41-44).
Matthew is full of Old Testament quotations, and the crucifixion narrative is no exception. In particular, Psalm 22 is quoted or paraphrased at least four times in Matt. 27. One of these instances is the temptation the chief priests and scribes cast into Jesus’ teeth. They quote Psalm 22:8. They know their Old Testament. These were the same fools who knew exactly which town the Messiah would be born in (Matt. 2: 3-6). They knew Psalm 22 was a grand narrative about the Messiah. Like Satan (or perhaps because Satan was speaking through them), they quoted Scripture in assaulting the Messiah.
What pain this must have caused Jesus! Was he the Son of God? Yes! Was this Psalm speaking of him? Yes! Would God deliver him? Yes! … but not now … not yet. In the midst of fulfilling this magnificent Psalm, the King of Glory must wait a little longer. This is the moment all of history has been moving toward. This is the meaning of the entire Old Covenant. Like a wave surging toward the shore, cresting and waiting to fall … he must wait a little longer.
What is his response? The Word responds with a word, with his words: “And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lamasabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” (Matt. 27:46). In responding to a Satanic proof-text temptation, Jesus replies with his own words. The satanic tempters threw Ps. 22:8, tempting him to come down off the cross. Jesus conquers the temptation by quoting the same psalm (22:1).
This may not seem like much of a victory, but I can’t help thinking that in quoting the first verse of this Messianic psalm, Jesus’ hearers (and readers) were supposed to call the entire psalm to mind. Although Psalm 22 begins in desperation and lament, and recounts the cruel sufferings of the Messiah, it doesn’t end there. Verse 22 begins the ascent out of the depths when the Psalmist praises God.
The transition from a psalm of lament to a psalm of glorification and redemption is striking. Out of the dust of death (v. 15), the psalm progresses to the glorious hope of redemption, where all the ends of the earth will remember the Lord, and generations will recount his mighty deeds to their children. Is it mere coincidence that Jesus chose the dire first verse of this psalm? He knew that his shame and “roaring” (v. 1) on the cross was only the beginning.
Rather than focusing on what it meant for the second Person of the Trinity to be “forsaken” by the Father (as if God could be separated from himself!), we should recall the hope latent in Jesus’ quotation of Psalm 22. Even as he seemed to be forsaken on the cross, surely he did not die in despair. He knew the Scriptures, and therefore he knew, “he hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; neither hath he hid his face from him; but when he cried unto him, he heard”! (v. 24). In our suffering, affliction, and temptations, we need to quote the Scriptures … all of it.
1 See James B. Jordan, Primeval Saints, for more on this neglected topic.
Volume
Two - Issue Two
Theology: Satan Loves Proof Texts - Gregory Soderberg
Science & Culture: The Cyborgs Are Coming! - Maurice Hagar
Family: Time To Eat - Robert Nash
Literature: The Da Vinci Code - Maurice Hagar
Liturgy: Liturgical Thoughts and Musical Musings - Gregory Soderberg
Poetry: Tylwyth Teg (The Fair Folk) - Josh McInnis
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