"Though thou despisest my offers," cried Satan, "thou knowest that I
esteem them highly, and will not part with them for nought. This is the
condition; Wilt thou fall down and worship me as thy superior lord?"
"It is written, thou accursed one," responded the Savior in disdain, "that
thou shouldst worship and serve the Lord thy God alone. Who gave thee the
kingdoms of the earth if He did not? And what gratitude thou showest! Get
thee behind me! Truly thou art Satan!"
Satan, abashed but not silenced, pointed southwest toward Athens. Since
the Savior seemed to prefer a contemplative life, why should he not seek
that seat of learning? All wisdom was not contained in Moses' law and the
writings of the prophets. Let him master the learning of the great
Athenian teachers, philosophers and orators, and he would be a king within
himself.
But the Savior assured Satan that, having received light from above, he
knew how false and fallacious were the boasted philosophies of the Greeks.
Their philosophers, ignorant of themselves and of God, and arrogating all
glory to themselves and ascribing none to Him, were unable to impart
wisdom to any one. From Hebrew psalm and hymn, and captive harps in
Babylon, the Greeks derived their arts, and the results, the odious
praises of their vicious gods, could not compare with the songs of Sion in
praise of the Father.
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