The Biggest Misquote in History

I know there have been a number of times where I have been misquoted.  Sometimes it is a matter where my words are taken out of context.  Context is everything - without the surrounding words, what we are trying to say can be misinterpreted.  Sometimes it is a matter of omission where missing words leave the remaining words to mean something completely different from what we meant.  Finally, it can be complete misuse of the words I said.  They take the same words and apply it to a completely different application.  Many times the party hearing my words means no misquote.  They simply heard me wrong or misunderstood.  It would be a completely different story if the party on the other end intentionally misused my words.  That happens occasionally.

The devil does this in Psalm 91:11-13.  Many know these words but may not see the whole context.  These words from the psalmist are quoted by the devil when Jesus was tempted in the desert in Matthew 4:5-6.  These are the only words in the bible that we see as a direct quote from the devil.  Jesus is tempted to throw himself from the pinnacle of the temple.  The devil says "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".  The devil leaves out a glaring omission that changes the whole context.  It is the simple words "in all your ways".  Seams like a minor omission.  But it changes the whole context of the quote.  If Jesus threw himself down to tempt God, it would be for the purpose of self-exaltation because Jesus already knew of why He was here.  Sometimes we use God's word in the same way.  We leave words out to accomplish our purposes, not God's.  The devil also omitted words of judgment.  The psalmist says the serpent will be trampled.  Guess who that is referring to?  Wonder why he left that one out.  The devil's judgment is pronounced.  The sentence has not been carried out.  The devil is still free to abuse an misquote but there comes a time when his abuse is over.

I am told that there are thousands of counterfeit currencies out there.  Bank tellers are not trained in all of the counterfeits.  They are trained in knowing the original so well the counterfeit stands out.  That is Jesus' response here as He identifies the omissions and context.  How well do you know the original?