Matthew 4 · Verse 8

Matthew 4:8

Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;
Matthew 4:8, King James Version

Matthew 4:8 in other translations

BSBAgain, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.
WEBAgain, the devil took him to an exceedingly high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.
ASVAgain, the devil taketh him unto an exceeding high mountain, and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;
YLTAgain doth the Devil take him to a very high mount, and doth shew to him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them,
DARBYAgain the devil takes him to a very high mountain, and shews him all the kingdoms of the world, and their glory,
BBEAgain, the Evil One took him up to a very high mountain, and let him see all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them;
WebsterAgain, the devil taketh him up upon an exceeding high mountain, and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them,

What does Matthew 4:8 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
8. Again, the devil taketh him up--"conducteth him," as before. into--or "unto" an exceeding high mountain, and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them--Luke (Lu 4:5) adds the important clause, "in a moment of time"; a clause which seems to furnish a key to the true meaning. That a scene was presented to our Lord's natural eye seems plainly expressed. But to limit this to the most extensive scene which the natural eye could take in, is to give a sense to the expression, "all the kingdoms of the world," quite violent. It remains, then, to gather from the expression, "in a moment of time"--which manifestly is intended to intimate some supernatural operation--that it was permitted to the tempter to extend preternaturally for a moment our Lord's range of vision, and throw a "glory" or glitter over the scene of vision: a thing not inconsistent with the analogy of other scriptural statements regarding the permitted operations of the wicked one. In this case, the "exceeding height" of the "mountain" from which this sight was beheld would favor the effect to be produced.

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Barnes' Notes
Verse 8. An exceeding high mountain. It is not known what mountain this was. It was probably some elevated place in the vicinity of Jerusalem, on the top of which could be seen no small part of the land of Palestine. The Abbe Mariti speaks of a mountain on which he was, which answers to the description here. "This part of the mountain," says he, "overlooks the mountains of Arabia, the country of Gilead, the country of the Arnorites, the plains of Moab, the plains of Jericho, the river Jordan, and the whole extent of the Dead Sea." So Moses, before he died, went up into Mount Nebo, and from it God showed him "all the land of Gilead, unto Dan, and all Naphtali, and the land of Ephraim, and Manasseh, and all the land of Judah, unto the utmost sea, and the south, and the plain of the valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees, unto Zoar," De 34:1-3. This shows that there were mountains from which no small part of the land of Canaan could be seen; and we must not suppose that there was any miracle when they were shown to the Saviour.

All the kingdoms of the world. It is not probable that anything more here is intended than the kingdoms of Palestine, or the land of Canaan, and those in the immediate vicinity. Judea was divided into three parts, and those parts were called kingdoms; and the sons of Herod, who presided over them, were called kings. The term world is often used in this limited scale to denote a part, or a large part of the world, particularly the land of Canaan. See Rom 4:13, where it means the land of Judah; also Lk 2:1, Lk 2:1.

The glory of them. The riches, splendour, towns, cities, mountains, etc., of this beautiful land.

Albert Barnes, 1834 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 8 An exceeding high mountain, and showeth him - If the words, all the kingdoms of the world, be taken in a literal sense, then this must have been a visionary representation, as the highest mountain on the face of the globe could not suffice to make evident even one hemisphere of the earth, and the other must of necessity be in darkness. But if we take the world to mean only the land of Judea, and some of the surrounding nations, as it appears sometimes to signify, (see on Luk 2:1 (note)), then the mountain described by the Abbe Mariti (Travels through Cyprus, etc). could have afforded the prospect in question. Speaking of it, he says, "Here we enjoyed the most beautiful prospect imaginable. This part of the mountain overlooks the mountains of Arabia, the country of Gilead, the country of the Amorites, the plains of Moab, the plains of Jericho, the river Jordan, and the whole extent of the Dead Sea. It was here that the devil said to the Son of God, All these kingdoms will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me." Probably St. Matthew, in the Hebrew original, wrote הארץ haarets, which signifies the world, the earth, and often the land of Judea only. What renders this more probable is, that at this time Judea was divided into several kingdoms, or governments under the three sons of Herod the Great, viz. Archelaus, Antipas, and Philip; which are not only called ethnarchs and tetrarchs in the Gospels, but also βασιλεις, kings, and are said βασιλευειν, to reign, as Rosenmuller has properly remarked. See Mat 2:22; Mat 14:9.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Matthew 4:1-11

Concerning Christ's temptation, observe, that directly after he was declared to be the Son of God, and the Saviour of the world, he was tempted; great privileges, and special tokens of Divine favour, will not secure any from being tempted. But if the Holy Spirit witness to our being adopted as children of God, that will answer all the suggestions of the evil spirit. Christ was directed to the combat. If we presume…

Read the full comment on Matthew 4:1-11 →

Matthew 4:8 in the original Greek

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

ΠάλινPalinAgainG3825
παραλαμβάνειparalambaneitakesG3880
αὐτὸνautonHimG846
ὁhotheG3588
διάβολοςdiabolosdevilG1228
εἰςeistoG1519
ὄροςorosa mountainG3735
ὑψηλὸνhupsēlonhighG5308
λίανlianexceedinglyG3029
καὶkaiandG2532
δείκνυσινdeiknusinshowsG1166
αὐτῷautōto HimG846
πάσαςpasasallG3956
τὰςtastheG3588
βασιλείαςbasileiaskingdomsG932
τοῦtouof theG3588
κόσμουkosmouworldG2889
καὶkaiandG2532
τὴνtēntheG3588
δόξανdoxangloryG1391
αὐτῶνautōnof themG846

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Matthew 4:8

  • 1 John 2:15-16

    Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

  • Revelation 11:15

    And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

  • Psalms 49:16-17

    Be not thou afraid when one is made rich, when the glory of his house is increased; For when he dieth he shall carry nothing away: his glory shall not descend after him.

  • Matthew 16:26

    For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

  • Luke 4:5-7

    And the devil, taking him up into an high mountain, shewed unto him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. And the devil said unto him, All this power will I give thee, and the glory of them: for that is delivered unto me; and to whomsoever I will I give it. If thou therefore wilt worship me, all shall be thine.

  • Hebrews 11:24-26

    By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter; Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.

  • 1 Peter 1:24

    For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:

  • Daniel 4:30

    The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty?

  • Esther 5:11

    And Haman told them of the glory of his riches, and the multitude of his children, and all the things wherein the king had promoted him, and how he had advanced him above the princes and servants of the king.

  • Esther 1:4

    When he shewed the riches of his glorious kingdom and the honour of his excellent majesty many days, even an hundred and fourscore days.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
the devil.
5; Lu 4:5-7
and sheweth.
16:26; Es 1:4; 5:11; Ps 49:16,17; Da 4:30; Heb 11:24-26; 1Pe 1:24
1Jo 2:15,16; Re 11:15

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Matthew 4:7

    Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.

  • Matthew 4:8

    Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them;

  • Matthew 4:9

    And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.

Read all of Matthew 4

Matthew 4:8 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Otra vez le pasa el diablo á un monte muy alto, y le muestra todos los reinos del mundo, y su gloria,
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Le diable le transporte encore sur une fort haute montagne, et lui montre tous les royaumes du monde et leur gloire,
German
Elberfelder 1871		Wiederum nimmt der Teufel ihn mit auf einen sehr hohen Berg und zeigt ihm alle Reiche der Welt und ihre Herrlichkeit
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Iterum assumpsit eum diabolus in montem excelsum valde: et ostendit ei omnia regna mundi, et gloriam eorum,