FOR SINCE HE HIMSELF WAS TEMPTED: en ho gar peponthen (3SRAI) autos peirastheis (APPMSN):
The Greek reads more
literally (specifically the literal word order) "for in that He
suffered, Himself being tempted, He is able to help those who are tempted."
(Young's literal translation)
"For" (gar)
indicates that what follows can explain how Jesus' being made like His
brethren in all things has made Him a merciful and faithful High Priest
for us.
Tempted ((3985)
(peirazo
from the noun peira =
test from peíro = perforate, pierce through to test durability of
things) is a morally neutral word simply meaning “to test” or to try.
The
aorist tense points to the fact that His "having been
tempted" is a past completed action.
Paul explains that now as our
great High Priest
"Christ Jesus is He Who died, yes, rather Who was
raised, Who is at the right hand of God, Who also intercedes for us
(present tense = He is constantly interceding on our behalf and so
is always ready to come to the aid upon hearing our cry for help!)."
(See note
Romans 8:34)
Christ did not have
each temptation we have but experienced every kind of temptation a person
can have. He has met our sorrows. He has faced our temptations. He knows
exactly what help we need; and He can come to our aid immediately when we
cry out for help!
Wuest comments that
peirazo
"referred
first to the action of putting someone to the test to see what good or
evil is in the one tested, and second, because so many broke down under
the test and committed sin, the word came to mean a “solicitation to do
evil.” Both meanings are in view here. Our Lord in His incarnation as the
Last Adam, was put to the test and was also solicited to do evil (Mt
4:1–11 "Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the
wilderness to be tempted by the devil.")."
(Wuest,
K. S. Wuest's Word Studies from the Greek New Testament: Eerdmans)
Whether the tests becomes a proof of
righteousness or an inducement to evil depends on our response. If we
resist in God’s power, the tests becomes a test that proves our
faithfulness. If we do not resist in His power (or try to resist in our
own power), the test becomes a solicitation to sin. The Bible uses
peirazo
in both ways. Be of sober spirit, be on the alert!
IN THAT WHICH HE HAS SUFFERED:
en ho gar autos peponthen (3SRAI): (Hebrews
4:15-note;
Hebrews 4:16-note;
Hebrews 5:2-note,
Hebrews 5:7-9-note;
Mt 4:1-10;
26:37-39;
Lu 22:53)
He (Himself) is
emphatic. Contrary to what might have been expected, He suffered.
O Saviour Christ,
Thou too art man;
Thou hast been troubled, tempted, tried;
Thy kind but searching glance can scan
The very wounds that shame would hide.
-Henry Twells
Suffered (3958) (pascho)
means to suffer (to feel or bear what is painful, disagreeable or
distressing, either to the body or mind. We suffer pain of body; we suffer
grief of mind). It means to be affected by something from without. It
means to undergo an experience, usually difficult, and normally with the
implication of physical or psychological suffering.
Christ’s suffering
included temptation. He experienced the lure of sin, but He never
surrendered Himself to it. He knows what it is like to be tempted, so He
knows how to assist those who are being tempted.
Suffered is in the
perfect tense which emphasizes that
although the temptation Christ suffered
in the flesh is a thing of the past, its effect is permanent, in the sense
that the
effect of His compassion and understanding remains to aid us in our
own temptations.
Alexander Whyte
notes that...
We shall never understand anything of
our Lord's preaching and ministry unless we continually keep in mind what
exactly and exclusively His errand was in this world.
A T Robertson summarizes Jesus' suffering noting that
"The
temptation to
escape the shame of the Cross was early and repeatedly presented to
Christ, by Satan in the wilderness (Mt
4:1–11), by Peter in the spirit of Satan
("And Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, “God forbid
it, Lord! This shall never happen to You. ”But He turned and said to
Peter, “Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are
not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.”
Mt 16:22-23.), in Gethsemane
("Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and said to
His disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” And He took with
Him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be grieved and
distressed. Then He *said to them, “My soul is deeply grieved, to the
point of death; remain here and keep watch with Me.” And He went a little
beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it is
possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as Thou wilt.”
Mt 26:36-39) and caused intense
suffering to Jesus ("And being in agony He was praying very
fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the
ground."
Lu 22:44; "Although He was a Son,
He learned obedience from the things which He suffered."
Heb 5:8)." (Robertson, A T. Word Pictures
in the New Testament)
Constable
adds that...
"As our priest Jesus Christ can
help us because He has undergone the same trials we experience (in body,
mind, and emotions) and has emerged victorious. The testing in view is
temptation to depart from God’s will, specifically apostasy. The picture
is of an older brother helping his younger brothers navigate the pitfalls
of growing up successfully. That is the role a priest plays." (Tom
Constable's Expository Notes on the Bible)
Illustration
of the great truth that Jesus Who Suffered as a Man is thus "Able to
come to our aid" - Bob Weber, past president of Kiwanis
International, told this story. He had spoken to a club in a small
town and was spending the night with a farmer on the outskirts of the
community. He had just relaxed on the front porch when a newsboy
delivered the evening paper. The boy noted the sign Puppies for Sale.
The boy got off his bike and said to the farmer, "How much do you want
for the pups, mister?" "Twenty-five dollars, son." The boy's face
dropped. "Well, sir, could I at least see them anyway?" The farmer
whistled, and in a moment the mother dog came bounding around the
corner of the house tagged by four of the cute puppies, wagging their
tails and yipping happily. At last, another pup came straggling around
the house, dragging one hind leg. "What's the matter with that puppy,
mister?" the boy asked. "Well, Son, that puppy is crippled. We took
her to the vet and the doctor took an X ray. The pup doesn't have a
hip joint and that leg will never be right." To the amazement of both
men, the boy dropped the bike, reached for his collection bag and took
out a fifty-cent piece. "Please, mister," the boy pleaded, "I want to
buy that pup. I'll pay you fifty cents every week until the
twenty-five dollars is paid. Honest I will, mister." The farmer
replied, "But, Son, you don't seem to understand. That pup will never,
never be able to run or jump. That pup is going to be a cripple
forever. Why in the world would you want such a useless pup as that?"
The boy paused
for a moment, then reached down and pulled up his pant leg, exposing
that all too familiar iron brace and leather knee-strap holding a poor
twisted leg. The boy answered, "Mister, that pup is going to need
someone who understands him to help him in life!"
Crippled and
disfigured by sin, the risen, living Christ has given us hope. He
understands us--our temptations, our discouragements, and even our
thoughts concerning death. By His resurrection we have help in this
life and hope for the life to come. (Brian
Bell, Calvary Chapel, Murrieta)
><>><>><>
Spurgeon
in Morning and Evening writes...
It is a common-place thought, and
yet it tastes like nectar to the weary heart—Jesus was tempted as I
am. You have heard that truth many times: have you grasped it? He was
tempted to the very same sins into which we fall. Do not dissociate
Jesus from our common manhood. It is a dark room which you are going
through, but Jesus went through it before. It is a sharp fight which
you are waging, but Jesus has stood foot to foot with the same enemy.
Let us be of good cheer, Christ has borne the load before us, and the
blood-stained footsteps of the King of glory may be seen along the
road which we traverse at this hour. There is something sweeter
yet—Jesus was tempted, but Jesus never sinned. Then, my soul, it is
not needful for thee to sin, for Jesus was a man, and if one man
endured these temptations and sinned not, then in his power his
members may also cease from sin. Some beginners in the divine life
think that they cannot be tempted without sinning, but they mistake;
there is no sin in being tempted, but there is sin in yielding to
temptation. Herein is comfort for the sorely tempted ones. There is
still more to encourage them if they reflect that the Lord Jesus,
though tempted, gloriously triumphed, and as he overcame, so surely
shall his followers also, for Jesus is the representative man for his
people; the Head has triumphed, and the members share in the victory.
Fears are needless, for Christ is with us, armed for our defence. Our
place of safety is the bosom of the Saviour. Perhaps we are tempted
just now, in order to drive us nearer to him. Blessed be any wind that
blows us into the port of our Saviour’s love! Happy wounds, which make
us seek the beloved Physician. Ye tempted ones, come to your tempted
Saviour, for he can be touched with a feeling of your infirmities, and
will succour every tried and tempted one.
><>><>><>
HE WAS
TEMPTED - We had everything set .for the first bass fishing
expedition of the year. We had exotic new lures that we knew would be
irresistible to those big six-pounders lurking beneath the surface of
our favorite fishing lake. We would tempt them with Sassy Shads,
brightly colored new Hula Poppers, buzz baits, a "killer" red flatfish
with a black stripe, and a white double spinner with long bright
streamers. And, if all else failed, we had some fresh Canadian
crawlers. Out at dawn, we hit all the best spots with our assortment
of delectable temptations. But nothing happened. We worked the shore.
We cast along the weeds. We tried every lure in the tackle box—even
the crawlers. Finally we gave up. Heading back to the cabin, we
concluded, "The fish just aren't hungry."
Satan has a whole "tacklebox" of alluring devices he uses to tempt us.
Some are gaudy and exotic, easy to spot—yet oh, so tempting. Others
whet our appetites in quiet and subtle ways, appearing harm-less until
the hook is set. Whatever the temptation, we can best resist if we do
not let our thoughts dwell on evil but on things that are true, noble,
just, pure, and lovely (see note
Philippians 4:8).
With mental discipline and the help of the Holy Spirit, we can keep
our hearts full of goodness. Then, in frustration, Satan will have to
say, "They just aren't hungry."—D. C. Egner (Our
Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by
permission. All rights reserved)
Every step
away from the devil
leads us one step closer to God.
HE IS ABLE TO COME TO THE AID: dunatai (3SPPI) toiz
peirazomenois (PPPMPD) boethesai (AAN): (7:25,26;
Jn 10:29;
Phil 3:21;
2Ti 1:12;
Jude 1:24)
Touched with a
sympathy within,
He knows our feeble frame;
He knows what sore temptations mean,
For he has felt the same.
Isaac Watts
(Play
With Joy We Meditate the Grace)
Able (1410) (dúnamai
- see related word
dunamis)
means to have power, whether by virtue of one’s own ability and resources
through a state of mind or favorable circumstances. To be capable, to have
the ability. Dúnamai implies both a fitness and
willingness to do a thing. Christ is both competent and ready to undertake
for His people. If we have not, it is because we ask not.
"Able" is in the
present tense indicating that Jesus is continually able to help
the tempted because he has perfect sympathy with them. Stated another way, present tense speaks of the fact that "being able" is always true of
Jesus.
Robertson notes that "He is
able"
"strikes the heart of it all. Christ’s power to help is
due not merely to his deity as God’s Son, but also to his humanity without
which he could not sympathize with us (Heb.
4:15)." (Word Pictures in the New Testament)
Expositor's Bible Commentary
writes that...
"The words "he is able"
are important and mean more than "he helps." Only he who suffers can help
in this way. Jesus went all the way for us. He was not only ready to
suffer, but he actually did suffer." ((Gaebelein,
F, Editor: Expositor's Bible Commentary 6-Volume New Testament. Zondervan
Publishing)
Kent Hughes says
Think of it this way—which bridge has undergone the greatest stress, the
one that collapses under its first load of traffic, or the one that bears
the same traffic morning and evening, year after year? (Hughes,
R. K. Hebrews: An Anchor for the Soul. Volume 1. Crossway Books;
Volume 2 or
Logos)
Jesus is a "bridge"
which is continuously able.
Jamieson writes
that...
Not only as God He knows our trials, but also as man He knows them by
experimental feeling. (Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., Fausset, A. R.,
Brown, D., & Brown, D. Critical and explanatory commentary)
Barnes writes
that...
This does not mean that he would not have had “power” to assist others if
he had not gone through these sufferings, but that he is now qualified to
sympathize with them from the fact that he has endured like trials. The
idea is, that one who has himself been called to suffer is able to
sympathize with those who suffer; one who has been tempted, is able to
sympathize with those who are tempted in like manner. One who has been
sick is qualified to sympathize with the sick; one who has lost a child,
can sympathize with him who follows his beloved son or daughter to the
grave; one who has had some strong temptation to sin urged upon himself
can sympathize with those who are now tempted; one who has never been
sick, or who has never buried a friend, or been tempted, is poorly
qualified to impart consolation in such scenes. Hence, it is that
ministers of the gospel are often - like their Master - much persecuted
and afflicted, that they may be able to assist others. Hence, they are
called to part with the children of their love; or to endure long and
painful sicknesses, or to pass through scenes of poverty and want, that
they may sympathize with the most humble and afflicted of their flock.
(Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible)
C H Spurgeon commenting on "He is able" notes that Jesus
"(1) has the right, acquired by His suffering, to enter in among sufferers,
and deal with them. (2) He has also the disposition to succour them. He
obtained that tender temper through suffering, by being Himself tempted.
(3) And then He has the special ability. Our Blessed Master, having lived
a life of suffering, understands the condition of a sufferer so well that
He knows how to make a bed for him." (The Biblical Illustrator)
The fact that God is "able"
is illustrated in God's rhetorical question in the face of Sarah's failure to bear Abraham a son, Jehovah
stating
"Is anything too difficult for the Lord? (the expected
answer of course is "no") At the appointed time I
will return to you, at this time next year, and Sarah shall have a son.”
(Ge
18:14)
Later in Hebrews the writer in
reference to Jesus reminds his tested readers that
"Hence, also, He
is able (priests were never able to save even temporarily) to
save (present tense = continually save = see following note)
forever (KJV is more accurate = "uttermost" - to
final perfection or completeness) those who draw near to God through
Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them." (Heb
7:25)
Here "salvation" appears to be referring primarily
to sanctification (present
tense salvation) rather than justification (past
tense salvation). To state it another way "save forever"
refers to Jesus' saving work in the sense that He is bringing about God's
desired end, conformity to the image of His Son and ultimately
glorification (future
tense salvation).
Paul writes Timothy that as a preacher, an apostle and a teacher he
had suffered and yet his firm declaration remained
"I
am not ashamed; for I know (knowing with
certainty) Whom I have believed (perfect tense = began in the past and has continuing
effect or result, speaks of permanence) and I am
convinced (perfect tense = a settled persuasion regarding the
matter, a fixed and immovable position) that He is able (literally = is powerful enough)
to guard (military term = soldier on watch accountable with his
life to protect that entrusted to his care) what I have entrusted
(“my deposit” as in a bank, the bank of heaven which no burglar can break) to Him until that day."
(See note
2 Timothy 1:12)
Jude emphasizes God's inherent
ability to act on our behalf writing the great benediction
"Now to
Him Who is able (present tense = continually able) to keep (guard = soldier on watch accountable with his
life to protect that entrusted to his care) you
from stumbling, and to make you stand in the presence of His glory
blameless with great joy, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ
our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion and authority, before all time and
now and forever. Amen." (Jude
1:24-25)
Paul states that God's enablement
working for and in and through believers is unlimited and beyond our
comprehension writing
Now to Him Who is able to do exceeding
abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that
works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to
all generations forever and ever. Amen. (See notes
Ephesians 3:20;
Ephesians 3:21)
Spurgeon writes that...
this is the reason why he suffered, and
why he became a man capable of suffering, that he might be able to succor
the tempted. It was for this that Christ left heaven,
for this he was born of the virgin, for this he lived for this he died,
that he might be “able to succor them that are tempted.”
Glory be to his holy name for
