The Jewish leaders had studied the teachings of the prophets concerning the kingdom of the Messiah; but they had done this, not with a sincere desire to know the truth, but with the purpose of finding evidence to sustain their ambitious hopes. When Christ came in a manner contrary to their expectations, they would not receive Him; and in order to justify themselves, they tried to prove Him a deceiver. When once they had set their feet in this path, it was easy for Satan to strengthen their opposition to Christ. The very words that should have been received as evidence of His divinity were interpreted against Him. Thus they turned the truth of God into a lie, and the more directly the Saviour spoke to them in His works of mercy, the more determined they were in resisting the light.

Jødernes ledere havde ransaget de profetiske skrifters lære om Messias' rige; men de havde ikke gjort dette med et oprigtigt ønske om at lære sandheden at kende, men i den hensigt at finde beviser, der kunne støtte deres ærgerrige håb. Da Kristus kom på en helt anden måde, end de ventede, ville de ikke anerkende ham, og for at retfærdiggøre sig selv forsøgte de at bevise, at han var en bedrager. Da de én gang var slået ind på denne vej, var det en let sag for Satan at bestyrke dem i deres modstand mod Kristus. Netop de ord, som de burde have taget imod som beviser for hans guddommelighed, blev gennem deres forvanskning rettet imod ham. Således forvandlede de Guds sandhed til en løgn, og jo mere direkte Frelseren talte til dem gennem sine barmhjertigheds handlinger, jo mere fast besluttede de at modarbejde lyset.