Jesus could not give in to the temptation for he was impeccable.
There may also be a misunderstanding about the nature of the temptation itself: Satan was not offering back something Jesus owned. He was offering a quicker route to something that was going to take Jesus a lifetime capped with suffering to achieve. The Son of God was to be Prophet (Deut. 18.15), Priest (Psalm 110.4), and King (Daniel 7.14).
Satan was offering these things but without the need for hardship or waiting. He told Jesus to command the stones to become bread (=Prophet), took him to a mountain to survey the kingdom (=King), and took him to the temple with the promise of protection in God's "dwelling" (=Priest). All he had to do was accept Satanic lordship.
Oh, and I'm sure Satan thought he had a genuine chance to bring Jesus down.
There may also be a misunderstanding about the nature of the temptation itself: Satan was not offering back something Jesus owned. He was offering a quicker route to something that was going to take Jesus a lifetime capped with suffering to achieve. The Son of God was to be Prophet (Deut. 18.15), Priest (Psalm 110.4), and King (Daniel 7.14).
Satan was offering these things but without the need for hardship or waiting. He told Jesus to command the stones to become bread (=Prophet), took him to a mountain to survey the kingdom (=King), and took him to the temple with the promise of protection in God's "dwelling" (=Priest). All he had to do was accept Satanic lordship.
Oh, and I'm sure Satan thought he had a genuine chance to bring Jesus down.
