By Fr. Glenn Jones:

Some of us remember when, before they were combined into a universal celebration for all presidents, we celebrated Abe Lincoln’s birthday (Feb. 12) and Washington’s birthday (Feb. 22) separately. And one of the stories that children used to grow up with was that of young George Washington chopping down a cherry tree and, when confronted, “could not tell a lie” and confessed to it. Whether true or not, it served as example to children of the importance of being truthful and not succumbing to the temptation of lying.

These days “sin” and “temptation” is ridiculed, often seen as outdated or prudish and resting on moral foundations long past. But are they? The Ten Commandments, for instance, are still applicable at least in part even for the atheist. And are these not still destructive to self and societal relations? Are we still tempted to steal, to commit adultery, to covet, to bear false witness? To kill? Obviously yes. The world has changed by extraordinary leaps technologically, but internally we’re just the same ol’ fallible humans … easily lured and often swayed by our own desires.

In the Bible are three themes that speak of general temptations of Mankind—Genesis 3:6, 1 John 2:16, and Jesus’ temptations in Matthew 4. They are often read together as three patterns of human temptation, with Jesus being victorious precisely where humanity tends to fail.

Genesis 3:6 describes Eve’s response to the serpent’s temptation: she sees that the tree is “good for food”, “a delight to the eyes” and “desirable to make one wise”, then takes and eats the forbidden fruit, giving also to Adam who eats with her. These three phrases suggest bodily appetite, visual attraction, and a desire for an elevated status or wisdom like God’s—in effect, to be our own gods.

Then in 1 John 2:16, John warns believers not to love the world, summarizing “all that is in the world” as “the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life”. This is similar in the main to that of Genesis 3: bodily desire, covetous looking, and self‑exalting pride.

In Matthew 4:1–11 which recounts Jesus being tempted by the devil in the wilderness in three ways: to turn stones into bread, to throw himself from the temple, and to receive all the kingdoms of the world by worshiping Satan. These temptations, too, concern physical need, trust (or not) in God, and allegiance in exchange for glory and power.

The “lust of the flesh” in 1 John 2:16 points to ungoverned bodily desire, which we all know (and have likely experienced), the negative effects of such—gluttony and lust likely being the most prevalent. Eve first notes that the tree is “good for food,” letting the appeal to her physical appetite outweigh divine prohibition. Her body’s natural capacity for hunger leads to rebellion from reason—her (and Christians’) rebellion against trust in God’s munificence and word. Even apart from scripture the destructive effects of gluttonies of all sorts—food, drink, sexual desire—on ourselves and others is obvious.

In Matthew 4, the devil tempts Jesus to satisfy hunger by turning stones into bread after forty days of fasting. The parallel to Eve is obvious; in both cases, food becomes a testing ground for trust. Yet unlike Eve, Jesus resists bodily need, answering Biblically with Deuteronomy 8:3, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” He subordinates fleshly desire to reliance on the Father … reliance on what is good.

“Lust of the eyes” of 1 John essentially speaks to covetousness—unreasonable desire for things, especially for those of others. Genesis 3 emphasizes that the tree was “pleasing to the eyes,” and Eve’s longing look at the forbidden fruit is by which desire is inflamed and reason clouded. The eye is that through which the serpent’s promises take root in imagination. Our own “lust of the eyes” is that envy and desire for ever greater wealth, glory, etc., no matter the effect on others.

But in Matthew’s account, the devil shows Jesus “all the kingdoms of the world and their glory,” the kingdoms and their splendor are set before him as objects to be desired and possessed—the temptation to rival the unseen will of the Father. Where Eve lets what is “a delight to the eyes” obscure what God has said, Jesus resists letting a promise of worldly power define what is desirable. He answers with Deuteronomy 6:13, insisting that worship belongs to God alone, refusing to let his eyes and the promise of power and wealth dictate his allegiance.

The phrase in 1 John 2:16, “the pride of life,” is confidence in one’s status, possessions, or life‑situation—the temptation of glory apart from God, and then to boast in self‑secured life. This is like the condemned rich man in Luke 12, to whom God says in Jesus’ parable: “You fool!”.  Similarly, Eve saw that the tree is “desirable to make one wise,” echoing the serpent’s promise that “you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Thus, the sin is not actually love of wisdom but rather desiring God‑like status on one’s own terms.

The second temptation in Matthew 4, where the devil urges Jesus to throw himself down from the temple, engages this desire for self‑display and presumption. By quoting Psalm 91, Satan invites Jesus to perform a dramatic act that would showcase his status as Son and test God’s faithfulness. Jesus refuses, citing Deuteronomy 6:16, “You shall not put the Lord your God to the test,” thereby rejecting attempted manipulation of God for the sake of public proof or personal reassurance.

So the pattern of “flesh, eyes, pride” is not only about three kinds of sins but about three directions in which the heart turns away from God and from what is truly right. Here again we see the deadly sins: avarice, envy, pride, etc. No matter the age, scripture reminds us that “there is nothing new under the sun”, at least as regards our humanity. Our only anchor is recognizing the temptations that always lie before us and governing our desires—our passions—and temperately steering them always in a way that is truly right and good.

Editor’s note: Rev. Glenn Jones is the Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe and former pastor of Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church in Los Alamos.