Temptation
James 1:12–15
Excerpt
The term is used in the Bible to convey two somewhat different ideas. The first is that of ‘testing’ or ‘proving. By testing,’ to determine the depth and integrity of one’s commitment to God (see, e.g., God’s command to Abraham to offer his son Isaac as a sacrifice in Gen. 22:1-19; also the testing of Job in Job 1-2). In the NT, some of the writers thought of persecution as a ‘testing’ in this manner (e.g., 1 Pet. 1:3-9). The intent of this testing is ultimate to strengthen the person’s faith and devotion to God.
The other nuance of temptation is more in line with modern understandings of the term, namely, an enticement toward sin leading to a deliberate act of evil against God or one’s neighbor. The biblical writers are careful, however, to make it clear that God does not ‘tempt’ humans to do evil (e.g., James 1:12-15) and in fact makes available the resources necessary to resist temptation (e.g., 1 Cor. 10:13). The humble petition in the Lord’s Prayer dealing with temptation probably should be understood as ‘Do not allow us to go into temptation’ (Matt. 6:13a), as the original Aramaic likely would have read. It is entirely possible, moreover, that the reference is to ‘testing’ rather than to ‘temptation’ as this is popularly understood.
Achtemeier, Paul J., Harper & Row and Society of Biblical Literature.Harper’s Bible Dictionary 1985: 1032. Print.
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