MATTHEW CHAPTER 4

Matthew Chapter 4

Matthew 4:1 “Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.”

You can understand from the above Scripture that this happened soon after the Spirit descended on Jesus at His baptism. Most Christians do not realize that the minute you really give your life to the Lord Jesus Christ, temptation comes from every direction.

Following His public baptism, Jesus was “led up of the Spirit into the wilderness,” referring to the elevation of the Judean wilderness. The historical settling of the temptation, which was directed against Jesus’ human nature, indicates that this was a literal experience, which He really conquered, not merely a mental victory over His own thoughts. That Jesus was “Tempted of the devil” is clearly presented as a fact.

The attack against Christ’s humanity was a genuine temptation that would have overcome any ordinary man. However, Jesus was no mere man. And God Himself is never the agent of temptation (James 1:13), but here – as in the book of Job – God uses even satanic tempting to serve His sovereign purposes.

As the virgin-born God-man, His divine nature could not sin (1 Sam. 15:29), and this held His human nature in check. Some have objected that the impeccability of Christ (that He was not able to sin) denies the reality of Satan’s temptation.

Such an objection is meaningless when one remembers that Satan’s rebellion against God has already been defeated in Christ’s atonement, but his rebellion is nevertheless real, even though the outcome of God’s victory is certain. The same is true of the temptation of Christ. One may attack a battleship with a canoe. The outcome of the attack will be certain defeat for the canoe, but the attack is nonetheless real.

The Bible says Jesus was tempted in every way that we are. Job was tempted, as well.

You see, the devil believes that under heavy temptation we will not be able to withstand. He believes, that just like Adam and Eve fell to temptation in the garden, that with the right temptation we will fall, also.

He believed he would be able to tempt Job, but worse than that, the devil felt if he could make the temptation great enough that even Jesus would succumb to the temptation.

Hebrews 4:15 “For we have not a high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as [we are, yet] without sin.”

Jesus came to conquer sin and the devil. He faced temptation (greater than we face) and yet, He did not fall to temptation. Temptation comes to all, and it is not sin until it is acted upon in a negative way for self-gain.

Verses 2-3: Jesus had “fasted forty days and forty nights,” a remarkable feat of human endurance, indicating the physical strength of the former carpenter. While the three major tests followed this period, other tests evidently had occurred throughout the 40 days (Luke 4:2).

His real physical hunger serves as the setting for the first temptation by the “tempter” (Satan). The conditional clause, “If thou be the Son of God,” indicates Matthew’s purpose for including this record of Jesus’ victory: it proves that He is, in fact, the Son of God!

Matthew 4:2 “And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungered.”

All temptation comes when we are at our weakest point, and when we are alone (usually). In the case of Jesus, here, the devil realized that Jesus had not eaten for forty days. He tempted Jesus at this point of need.

Similarly, Moses was without food or drink on Sinai for “forty days and forty nights” (Deut. 9:9), and Elijah also fasted that long (1 Kings 19:8).

What the devil was not aware of is that Jesus (or anyone else for that matter) is much stronger when they are fasting. God miraculously feeds the inner man. During a fast to God, I seldom get hungry. It is only when I fast to lose weight, that I nearly starve.

Take note of the 40 here: (time of testing). With every test (if we depend on Jesus Christ our Lord), there is a way out.

Matthew 4:3 “And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.”

Notice in verse 3, the devil approached Jesus with a question, as he did Eve. “If thou be the Son of God.” He was trying to plant a doubt in Jesus’ mind that He was the Son of God.

The conditional “if” carries the meaning of “since” in this context. There was no doubt in Satan’s mind who Jesus was; but Satan’s design was to get Him to violate the plan of God and employ the divine power that He had set aside in His humiliation (Phil. 2:7).

Matthew 4:4 “But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.”

Jesus set an example for us with this answer. He said, “It is written.” Our answer, when the devil or our lusts tempt us, should be, “It is written”.

The victory in each aspect of the temptation is related to Jesus’ use of Scripture. “It is written”: First, He quotes Deuteronomy 8:3, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” The source of bread is more important that the bread itself.

Later, Jesus would say, “I have meat to eat that ye know not of” (John 4:32). His source of strength was obedience to the Father’s will and He would not even work a miracle to avoid personal suffering when such suffering was a part of God’s purpose for Him.

We are instructed to eat the Word of God. Our source of help in every situation is to have the Word of God so engraved in our inner being, that we will be able to draw our strength from the Word.

In each of these verses above, God is telling us that it is our responsibility to prepare for the battles we will face. It is, also, our responsibility to stand head to head with the devil in combat. We must stand and fight, if we are to win over the devil.

Our weapons are not physical, they are spiritual. It is important to prepare and be ready. Our day of combat is here. The church is being shaken. All who have not prepared will fall to the devil.

There must be no compromise of the Word of God. We must make it even more important to consume the Word of God, than to eat physical food. A more important source of sustenance than food, it nurtures our spiritual needs in a way that benefits us eternally, rather than merely providing temporal relief from physical hunger.

We cannot win battles with the devil in our own power and might. We must fight the devil with the Word of God and in the name of Jesus the Christ.

Verses 5-7: The second temptation took place in the “holy city” (Jerusalem) on the “pinnacle of the temple,” which towered above the Kidron Valley. Evidently, Jesus was transported there by Satan’s power, and this time the Devil quoted Scripture (out of context), in order to get Him to sin and ultimately to shake His faith in the Word.

Satan used Psalm 91:11-12 urging Jesus to “cast thyself down.” Again, Jesus replied with Scripture (Deut. 6:16), that He was not to “temp … God” by such a presumptuous action. The very passage of Scripture quoted by Satan actually goes on to promise God’s ultimate victory over him!

Matthew 4:5 “Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,”

“Pinnacle of the temple”: This was probably a roof with a portico at the southeast corner of the temple complex, where a massive retaining wall reached from a level well above the temple mount, deep into the Kidron Valley. According to the Jewish historian Josephus, this was a drop of nearly 450 feet.

Matthew 4:6 “And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in [their] hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.”

This started off with “then”. It simply meant the devil gave up on the first temptation, so he tried another tactic.

Probably, “the holy city” mentioned here was Jerusalem. Take note that the temptation was outside the temple. In fact, it was on the top of the temple.

In verse 6, the devil again asked whether Jesus is the Son of God. He even went so far as to quote a Scripture to get Jesus to tempt God the Father.

So many times today the enemy will come to us, using passages from the Scripture to make us believe that we are not of God. The devil never changes. It is the same devil, and the same tactics. In verse 7, we see the correct way to talk to the devil.

“For it is written”: Note that Satan also quoted Scripture (Psalm 91:11-12) – but utterly twisted its meaning, employing a passage about trusting God to justify testing Him.

Matthew 4:7 “Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.”

“It is written”: Christ replied with another verse from Israel’s wilderness experience (Deut. 6:16), recalling the experience at Massah, where the grumbling Israelites put the Lord to the test, angrily demanding that Moses produce water where there was none (Exodus 17:2-7).

Jesus could have thrown Himself headlong from the temple to show a sign or wonder of who He was. God calls people who have to have signs and wonders, before they will believe, a wicked and perverse generation.

You see, God is not interested in convincing us through our mental capacity. He wants us to believe from our hearts.

Not every sign and wonder is from God. The devil is a counterfeiter. Matthew 24:24 is printed in red, because it is the words of Jesus Himself.

“For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.”

You see, we must know the Word so well that we will be able to discern the truth from a lie.

Matthew 4:8 “Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;”

The third temptation takes place on an “exceeding high mountain.” The mountain is clearly real in the text, though its exact location is unidentified. Despite the grandeur of this temptation, nothing in the passage itself indicates that these temptations were only in the mind of Christ.

Clearly, they are depicted as real experiences that actually occurred in the human life of the Messiah. That Satan, the usurper, would attempt to give the kingdoms of the world to Jesus, the Messiah, the rightful King, is the height of absurdity!

Verses 9-11: For Christ to fall down and worship Satan would have been to acknowledge the Devil’s lordship over Him. In His direct rebuke “Get thee hence, Satan,” Jesus clearly asserts His lordship over the old serpent whose head He will soon crush. Matthew’s statement that Satan “leaveth him” shows that his order of the temptations is the chronological one (Luke 4:1-13).

Matthew 4:9 “And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.”

“Will I give thee”: Satan is the “ruler of this world” (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11), and the “god of this world” (2 Cor. 4:4). The whole world lies in his power (1 John 5:19). This is illustrated in Dan. 10:13, where demonic power controlled the kingdom of Persia, so that a demon is called the prince of the kingdom of Persia.

Matthew 4:10 “Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.”

“For it is written”: Here Christ was citing and paraphrasing (Deut. 6:13-14). Again, these relate to the Israelites’ wilderness experiences. Christ, like them, was led into the wilderness to be tested (Deut. 8:2), unlike them, He withstood every aspect of the test.

We can see, from these Scriptures above that Satan increased what he offered each time. He thought that if he offered Jesus the whole world as His kingdom that Jesus would jump at this. Along with the greater offering came an even more blatant sin. Jesus had to fall down and worship Satan to receive the world and all that was in it (Satan’s belief).

What Satan did not realize was that Jesus would take the earth back for mankind. He did not take it back by compromising with the devil. He took it back through the victory of the cross.

Sometimes, it is difficult to recognize the enemy. Jesus had no trouble recognizing him, standing against him, and removing him. “Get thee hence Satan”. We should take a lesson from this.

Anything, or anyone, who compromises with the devil in sin, has sold out to sin. We must not fellowship with those who continually practice sin. As Jesus did not stay in this place with the tempter, neither should we.

Anything that is not pleasing to God is sin. In the statement made by Jesus, “Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve”; we see we must not serve Satan or sin. We must walk in the footsteps of Jesus. Of course, we are not perfect; we will stumble and fall, but we must not be a servant to sin. The desire of our hearts must be to please God.

Matthew 4:11 tells it all. “Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.”

The devil is subject to the command of Jesus, and he had to leave.

The Bible says, In James 4:7 “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you”.

The angels (ministering spirits) came and saw to Jesus’ needs. The angels, encamped around Christians, will help them, also.

“Angels came and ministered unto him” Psalm 91:11-12. The verse Satan tried to twist, was thus fulfilled in God’s way, and in God’s perfect timing.

Verses 12-16: Matthew designates four clear geographical areas in relation to the ministry of Christ: Galilee (4:12), Perea (“beyond Jordan,” 19:1), Judea (4:25), and Jerusalem (21:1). The author then omits some of the early Judean ministry and begins with Jesus at Capernaum in Galilee where he first met Christ (9:9).

“John was cast into prison”: The circumstances of the arrest and eventual beheading of John the Baptist are recorded in chapter 14. Apparently a widespread persecution of the followers of John and Jesus took place at this time. Luke 4:16-31 explains that the reason for Jesus “leaving Nazareth” was an attempt on His life after a synagogue service at Nazareth. From this point on, Capernaum became the headquarters of Jesus’ ministry to the house of Israel. This city was a Roman settlement near the Sea of Galilee and was the center of the Roman government of the northern provinces of Israel.

“That it might be fulfilled” (verses 14-16) refers to the coming of Christ into Galilee in fulfillment of the prophecy of (Isaiah 9:1-2), “beyond Jordan, in Galilee of the nations. The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light,” Jesus Himself was that great Light that now would shine forth in His earthly ministry to the people of Galilee, who had so long been despised by their southern Judean cousins.

Matthew 4:12 “Now when Jesus had heard that John was cast into prison, he departed into Galilee;”

John was imprisoned for his bold rebuke of Herod Antipas (see 14:3-4).

We will see, here, that the end of John’s work (proclaiming the coming of the Christ) would be the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. Just as Jesus came not for those who already knew God, He began His ministry in a very spiritually dark place. Without Jesus Christ, there is no hope, nothing to look forward to.

God’s purpose in His beginning in the dark place was to show that His power and might were not drawn from Jewish law. This was a new day. Jew and Gentile alike would have to receive Him not through law, but through grace.

Galilee is the regional name for the northern part of Palestine extending from the Esdraelon plain some 50 miles north and from the Sea of Galilee about 30 miles to the west. Its primary feature is the 13-mile-long Sea of Galilee (seven miles wide at its broadest point). In the Old Testament this lake is call Chinnereth (Num. 34:11; Josh. 12:3; 13:27); in the New Testament it is variously identified as Gennesaret (Mark 6:53), Tiberias (John 21:1) and Galilee (John 6:1).

It lies 695 feet below sea level with the Jordan River flowing through it. Some towns of Galilee that were situated on the seashore were Capernaum, Bethsaida, Tiberias, and Magdala. Of these only Tiberias exists today. Other significant Galilean towns include Nazareth and Chorazin. Galilee is important to the New Testament not only as the place of Jesus’ youth, but also as the

primary region of His public ministry (the Sermon on the Mount, the Transfiguration, 25 of His 33 miracles and 19 of His 32 parables).

During New Testament times this region was governed successively by Herod the Great, Herod Antipas and Herod Agrippa. Since Antipas ruled Galilee from 4 B.C. to A. D. 39, virtually all of the events of the Gospels and of the first decade of the church age relate to his time. Tiberias beside the sea was his capital.

Matthew 4:13 “And leaving Nazareth, he came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zebulon and Naphtali:”

“Leaving Nazareth”: Some time elapsed between verses 12 and 13. Jesus’ stay in Nazareth ended abruptly when He was violently rejected by the people of Nazareth, who tried to murder Him (see Luke 4:16-30).

Capernaum lay on the northwest shore of Galilee. The exact site has been confirmed in modern times through archaeology. Though two sites had been traditionally claimed, only one (Tell Hum) possesses archaeological evidence that dates it as early as the New Testament.

Capernaum is never mentioned in the Old Testament and is found in the New Testament only in the Gospels. Yet it was a central city in Christ’s ministry; most of the time Christ spent in Galilee was in Capernaum.

When Jesus began His public ministry He made it His home base (verse 13; 9:1), partly because of its prominence in Galilee. It housed a tax collector (9:9), a high government official (John 4:46), and a centurion with his soldiers (8:5-9). It became the home of Peter and Andrew, and probably James and John (Mark 1:29; Luke 5:10).

Jesus performed many miracles in Capernaum including healings of the centurion’s servant, the nobleman’s son, Peter’s mother-in-law, the paralytic, and probably the raising of Jairus’s daughter (also Luke 4:23). Later, Jesus condemned the people of Capernaum, for despite His many miracles, they still disbelieved (11:23).

Matthew 4:14-15 “That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Esaias the prophet, saying,” “The land of Zebulun, and the land of Naphtali, [by] the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles;”

“Galilee of the Gentiles”: This name was used even in Isaiah’s time because Galilee lay on the route through which all Gentiles passed in and out of Israel. In Jesus’ time, the region of Galilee had become an important center of Roman occupation. The prophecy cited by Matthew is from (Isa. 9:1-2; Isa. 42:6-7).

Matthew 4:16 “The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.”

Later on, we will hear Jesus say that He came not for those who need not a physician, but for the lost. It is very interesting, to me, that God would have Jesus come from Nazareth where it would be spoken (that “no good thing could come out of Nazareth”.)

The “sea”, mentioned here, was the Sea of Galilee, a large rough sea where much fishing was going on. This sea had several towns scattered along the banks. Capernaum was where Peter’s home was. Later on, because of so widespread unbelief here, this city would be totally destroyed. Today it is a tourist sight. Walls are thrown down and rubble is everywhere.

Many of the activities of Jesus took place near this sea. The demonic man was freed of the legion of demons near here, the feeding of the multitude took place here, the draft of the fishes was here; I could go on and on, but you get the idea.

Even all the fantastic miracles that Jesus did here, was not enough to convince these people of who He was. A prophet is not accepted in his or her own land. Many of the Gentiles believed, but their Jewish friends already had the law, and felt they were not in need of a Savior.

Matthew 4:17 “From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

“From that time Jesus began to preach”: This marks the beginning of His public ministry. Note that His message was an exact echo of what John the Baptist preached.

“Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand”: The opening word of this first sermon sets the tone for Jesus’ entire earthly ministry (Luke 5:32). Repentance was a constant motif in all His public preaching. And in His closing charge to the apostles, He commanded them to preach repentance as well (Luke 24:47).

The message of John the Baptist is now clearly proclaimed by Jesus Christ. However, Jesus, as the Messiah, is not calling on His listeners to prepare for the coming of the kingdom but rather announces that the kingdom is here. The kingdom blessings promised in Isaiah 35:5-6 to be fulfilled in a future kingdom, here become the credentials of the King at His first coming.

Verses 18-20: “Simon called Peter and Andrew” became the first two disciples called publicly by Jesus. Andrew had introduced his brother to Jesus on an earlier occasion (John 1:40). The invitation, “Follow me,” called these earlier believers into a permanent ministry to be shared with Christ.

“I will make you fishers of men” clearly indicates the nature of this ministry. They would receive special training in bringing men into the kingdom. Having “left their nets,” these disciples entered into a new relationship and would never again be able to fully return to the occupation they once held so dear.

Matthew 4:18 “And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers.”

“Two brethren”: Jesus had encountered Peter and Andrew before, near Bethabara, in the Jordan region, where Andrew (and perhaps Peter as well) had become a disciple of John the Baptist (John 1:35-42).

They left John to follow Jesus for a time before returning to fishing in Capernaum. Perhaps they had returned to Capernaum during Jesus’ earlier ministry here. Here He called them to follow Him in long-term discipleship.

“Peter” was originally named Simon. Jesus surnamed him “Rock” (Greek Petros; Aramaic Cephas). Peter and his brother Andrew were fishermen from Bethsaida on the Sea of Galilee (John 1:44) who later worked out of Capernaum (Mark 1:29).

Andrew, a disciple of John the Baptist, immediately began to follow Jesus on the day John announced Him. At once he introduced Simon to Christ (John 1:35-42). Peter’s devotion to Christ brought him within the innermost circle of disciples. Peter shared in the greatest moments of Christ’s ministry; Peter was always listed first among the Twelve.

Yet Peter’s devotion was at times an impulsive one. Peter’s faith in Christ’s command allowed him to walk on water; and then, after he had walked, his disbelief caused him to sink (14:28-31)! Peter’s sensitivity to God’s witness prompted his great confession that Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the living God,” only to be followed by words inspired by Satan (16:16-17, 22-23).

Three events during Christ’s earthly ministry were significant to Peter’s life and future ministry:

1. His confession concerning Christ at Caesarea Philippi (chapter 16);
2. His involvement at Christ’s transfiguration (chapter 17);
3. His threefold denial of Christ before the Crucifixion (chapter 26).

After the ascension of Jesus, Peter continues as the leader, opening the door of the gospel to the Jews (Acts 2), to the Samaritans (Acts 8:14-17), and to the Gentiles (Acts 10; 11:1, 18; 15:7, 14). However, his ministry in the early church remained primarily to the Jews.

Matthew 4:19-20 “And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.” “And they straightway left [their] nets, and followed him.”

This Sea of Galilee, as we said, was a popular place for the men in this area who made their living fishing. This sea is about six miles wide and seventeen miles long. When the wind would get up, it would be really rough; so rough that you could easily lose a ship and all aboard.

These verses tell us a lot about our Lord Jesus Christ while He walked on the earth. He spoke and these two men obeyed. These men, by vocation, were fishermen. When the call came for the ministry, they did not hesitate. We could take a real lesson from these men. So many times, when the call comes to the ministry, we hesitate and try to finish the job at hand before we answer.

These men dropped everything and followed Jesus. This call that Jesus made to these two men was not for salvation, but to work with Him. They had to give up the comforts of home, and even the living they had, for an uncertain future of winning souls. This call brought them out of the worldly into the spiritual.

These men were strong. It takes a lot of muscle to pull in fish nets full of fish. The name “Andrew” means manly, and “Peter” means rock. You can see by their names, that these men were powerful physically. Jesus was about to make strong spiritual men of them. They would face more hardships as ministers of the Word than they ever did as fishermen.

These men were just ordinary men. They had no degrees in ministry, only the call of God upon their lives. These two were to become part of the elite l2 that would, through Jesus, make a giant impact upon the world. We will look at them, again and again, as we go through this study. For now, it is enough to know that they would no longer fish for food, but for the souls of men.

Verses 21-22: “James and John” were also brothers and fishing partners with Simon and Andrew. Matthew and Mark agree that they were “mending their nets,” but Luke seems to differ. The two accounts can be harmonized simply: As two men were mending nets, the other two were fishing.

Jesus they came upon them and called them all to follow Him. The statement in verse 22 that they “immediately” responded to His call gives us a perfect picture of true obedience to the lordship of Christ.

Matthew 4:21 “And going on from thence, he saw other two brethren, James [the son] of Zebedee, and John his brother, in a ship with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and he called them.”

“James”: This James is easy to distinguish from the other men named James in the New Testament, because he is never mentioned in Scripture apart from his brother John. His martyrdom by Herod Agrippa I marked the beginning at a time of severe persecution in the early church (Acts 12:2).

“James … and John,” the sons of Zebedee, two of the 12 apostles, were fishermen in partnership with their father and also Simon Peter (Luke 5:10). Since James is normally mentioned first, he was probably older than his brother John.

Peter, James and John formed the inner circle among the disciples, who exclusively witnessed the raising of Jairus’s daughter (Mark 5:37), Christ’s transfiguration (Mark 9:2), and the Gethsemane experience (Mark 14:33). But James and John are remembered with less distinction for their impulsive desire to destroy the non-receptive Samaritans with fire from heaven (Luke 9:54), and their desire to be first in Christ’s kingdom (Mark 10:35-40).

James is the first and only apostle whose martyrdom is recorded in Scripture. In A.D. 44 King Herod beheaded James and planned the same for Peter (Acts 12:1-3). John, by contrast, lived a very long life and was a prominent leader in the Jerusalem church (Gal. 2:9).

Among the 12 apostles, only John and Peter are given individual recognition in the Book of Acts and in Paul’s epistles. John wrote the fourth gospel, his three epistles, and the Revelation. John never mentions by name his brother James or himself, except in Revelation, and as the beloved disciple in the gospel. Hence, James is mentioned in Scripture only by Matthew, Mark and Luke (Acts included).

Matthew 4:22 “And they immediately left the ship and their father, and followed him.”

You see, again, James and John did not hesitate when Jesus called. They left their father, their means of support, their home, and all worldly possessions, and followed Jesus. These two were, also, known as “sons of thunder”. John, as we would see in later lessons, was very close to Jesus. He was known as John the beloved.

The mother of James and John would ask Jesus to let her two sons sit on the right and left of Jesus in His kingdom. He did not grant her wish. He said it was not His to give.

Matthew 4:23 “And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.”

Jesus was about the Father’s business. He taught, preached, and healed in their churches and wherever people had needs, the three main aspects of Christ’s public ministry.

There were a number of little towns in Galilee. Many miracles were done in these cities.

Jesus stated that if the miracles that were done in Capernaum had been done in Sodom, they would have repented and been saved. In Capernaum, they believed that Jesus was the carpenter’s son, not the Son of God.

Matthew 4:24 “And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatic, and those that had the palsy; and he healed them.”

Syria was the area immediately northeast of Galilee.

The Bible says that if all the miracles that Jesus did were written in a book, there would not be enough books in the entire world to hold them. You can easily see how this fame would spread.

Literally thousands were healed, freed from demon spirits, restored to sanity, and stopped shaking from the palsy. All these people had to do was to believe, and just one touch from Jesus’ hand restored them. You can easily see that His powers were not limited.

As we will see in verse 25, people from all areas that were in traveling distance, brought their sick to Jesus and then carried the message back of His great powers. He not only healed the body, but the spirit, as well.

Matthew 4:25 “And there followed him great multitudes of people from Galilee, and [from] Decapolis, and [from] Jerusalem, and [from] Judaea, and [from] beyond Jordan.”

We know of several occasions of over 5,000 people following Him. This was a great company of people. Where did they all disappear to when He was crucified?

“Decapolis” was a confederation of 10 Hellenized cities south of Galilee and mostly east of the Jordan. The league of cities was formed shortly after Pompey’s invasion of Palestine (64 B.C.), to preserve Greek culture in the Semitic region. These cities were naturally Gentile strongholds.

 

Matthew Chapter 4 Questions

1. Why was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness?
2. The minute you give your life to Jesus, what comes?
3. Satan had tempted Adam, Eve, and Job. If he could make the temptation great enough, who else did he believe would fall to his temptation?
4. What 2 things did Jesus come to conquer?
5. When does temptation become sin?
6. How many days did Jesus fast?
7. What kind of doubt did the devil introduce?
8. What did he tell Jesus to turn to bread?
9. How did Jesus answer?
10. Man is not to live by bread alone, but by what?
11. What did the devil not realize about fasting?
12. What similarity was there between Jesus’ and Eve’s temptation?
13. How should we reply to temptations of the devil?
14. Why are we to eat (consume), the Word of God?
15. If we are to win over the devil, what 2 things must we learn to do?
16. If our weapons are not physical, what are they?
17. We have no power of our own. What 2 things must we use against the devil?
18. What did the devil add to his argument at the “holy city” to try to convince Jesus?
19. What city was, probably, the “holy city” mentioned?
20. People, who have to have a sign or wonder, before they will believe, are called what kind of generation?
21. Not every sign and wonder is from God. In Matthew 24:24, what are we warned to watch out for?
22. What was Jesus offered in the third temptation?
23. How did Jesus get the world back from Satan?
24. Anything that is not pleasing to God, is what?
25. Who alone must we worship and serve?

Matthew Chapter 4 Continued Questions

1. What did Jesus hear had happened to John before He went into Galilee?
2. When John’s ministry ended, what happened to Jesus’ ministry?
3. Jesus’ ministry beginning in a spiritually dark place, showed what?
4. Jew and Gentile alike would have to receive Jesus, not through the law, but through what?
5. What was the regional name of the northern part of Palestine?
6. Capernaum was near what body of water?
7. The people, which sat in darkness, saw what?
8. What negative thing was spoken about Nazareth?
9. What was the main occupation of people around the Sea of Galilee?
10. Where was Peter’s home?
11. Why was this city destroyed later?
12. Name 3 special things that occurred near the Sea of Galilee.
13. Where is a prophet not accepted?
14. Why did the Jews believe they did not need a Savior?
15. What message did Jesus preach similar to John the Baptist’s message?
16. What two brothers did Jesus call to the ministry in verses l8-l9?
17. How big was the Sea of Galilee?
18. What occupation did Peter have?
19. What does the word “Andrew” mean?
20. What did Jesus call them to do?
21. Who were the two sons of Zebedee that Jesus called?
22. They were, also, called sons of what?
23. What special name was John called by?
24. What wish of James’ and John’s mother did Jesus not do?
25. Jesus went about Galilee doing what?
26. What four kinds of people were brought to Jesus for help?
27. How many books would it take to hold a list of Jesus’ miracles?
28. Name five places the multitudes came from?