Recently, I communicated with a woman whose husband left her for another woman and subsequently filed for divorce.
When she confronted him with Scripture regarding his adultery and divorce he countered by citing Scripture to justify his actions. He referred to the story of the woman caught in adultery, saying, “Jesus didn’t tell her to leave the relationship she was in,” even though Jesus clearly tells her to “go and sin no more.”
On the one hand, the fact that he knows some Scripture is commendable. But the fact that he twists it to suit his own perverted actions is deplorable.
Using the Word of God for sinful ends is nothing new. Would it surprise you to learn that our enemy, Satan, has memorized Scripture and uses it to tempt us to sin? At the beginning of Genesis, Satan knows what God commanded Adam (2:16,17), and tempts the first couple by reciting a twisted version of God’s Words back in the form of a question (3:1). Interestingly, as Eve attempts to respond to Satan with what God actually said, she only offers a loose paraphrase, omitting some significant truths.
Satan uses God’s Word when he confronts Jesus in the wilderness (Matthew 4:1-11; cf. Luke 4:1-13). In the process of trying to tempt Jesus to sin, and thereby cause Him to fail as Messiah and Redeemer, Satan recites God’s Word from Psalm 91:11,12. He says, “If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down; for it is written, ‘HE WILL COMMAND HIS ANGELS CONCERNING YOU’; and ‘ON their HANDS THEY WILL BEAR YOU UP, SO THAT YOU WILL NOT STRIKE YOUR FOOT AGAINST A STONE.’”
My initial thought as I read the account is, “Wow! That’s pretty good. I wonder how many of us could use Scripture like that?” But then I catch myself. Many of us do use Scripture like that—regularly. Unfortunately, we do it the way Satan does, and that is the problem.
What Satan actually does here is use Scripture for his own devious, deceptive purposes. He tries to get Jesus to claim a promise of God in a way it wasn’t intended. Jesus had just asserted His faith and dependence on the Father by refusing to turn stones to bread. So Satan tries a reverse tactic and in effect says, “OK, so you want to prove you are dependent on the Father. Jump and let Him protect you! God’s Word says you can.”
The devil purposely sets one Scripture against another. He stresses one passage and disregards others that should go with it. Satan tries to use the authority of Scripture to suggest to Jesus that He would be justified in risking His life arbitrarily and then expecting God to protect Him.
Many of us do the same thing, although perhaps unintentionally. We simply don’t know Scripture well enough. I’ve been among Christians where the Bible is being discussed and I rarely hear verses quoted accurately and in context. Instead, (and I’ve been guilty of it too) I hear a profound vagueness as they say, “Doesn’t the Bible somewhere say something like…?” Bits of verses out of context are paraphrased and strung together like beads on a necklace to support presuppositions contradicting what Scripture says in the plainest language elsewhere.
Jesus didn’t fall for Satan’s deception. He knew a text out of context becomes a pretext and that by mishandling Scripture you can make the Bible say anything you want it to. He knew that to cast Himself down to prove something to Satan or the Jews would not have been God’s will. To expect protection while being disobedient is putting God to the test—something He says is wrong.
In dealing with the devil the way He does, the Lord shows us a great principle of all true interpretation: Scripture must be explained by comparison to other Scripture. Jesus used God’s Word hidden in His heart—accurately memorized and understood—to fend off Satan’s lure to sin. Jesus doesn’t try to reason His way around Satan’s ploy. He simply states the truth already given by God in His Word.
Ignorance of the Word and not having it hidden in our hearts makes us sitting ducks in Satan’s shooting gallery. Eve was deceived when she failed to accurately recall what God said. The man I referred to earlier continues in sin, having justified his actions by distorting God’s Word.
The devil knows and has memorized the Bible but uses it deceitfully. Jesus shows us how the power of God’s Word, memorized accurately and recalled faithfully, enables us to effectively stand against temptations and be aware of Scripture-twisting. And that is something we dare not forget.
