How to Study the Bible: Part K
Matthew 4:5–7 (NLT)
5 Then the devil took him to the holy city, Jerusalem, to the highest point of the Temple, 6 and said, “If you are the Son of God, jump off! For the Scriptures say, ‘He will order his angels to protect you. And they will hold you up with their hands so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.’ ” 7 Jesus responded, “The Scriptures also say, ‘You must not test the Lord your God.’”
Deuteronomy 6:16 (NLT)
16 You must not test the Lord your God as you did when you complained at Massah.
Psalm 91:11–12 (NLT)
11 For he will order his angels to protect you wherever you go. 12 They will hold you up with their hands so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.
Descriptive Versus Prescriptive
As we look at the second of Christ's temptations, for me, anyway, it is disconcerting that the devil will use Scripture against us. This should be a reminder that Scripture can be misused. It should motivate us to study the Scriptures correctly because Scripture taken out of its context and wrongly applied is not the voice of God. As a matter of fact, it can be used to lead us into sin. In this passage, we see satan challenging Jesus to prove that He is the Son of God through showing off. The devil quotes Psalm 91:11, 12. Psalm 91 is a Psalm praising God's protection of His people, even promising them a long life and salvation. This is a descriptive Psalm, encouraging the people of God to not be afraid. The Psalm that follows in the Psalter speaks of God's eternity and man's frailty. There is a delicate balance throughout the Scripture between the blessing and protection of God and the difficulty and struggle of life. When we veer to either of these extremes, we lose our bearing. On the one hand, we may be driven to despair and feel
