Divine Mission vs. Inner Battles
The primary difference between the temptation of Jesus and that of Saint Anthony lies in their orientation and the nature of the trials they faced. In the case of Jesus, the temptation had a highly spiritual and missionary character. The devil tried to lead the Son of God away from the path of true service—a path that led to the moral transformation of people through suffering and self-sacrifice—by offering him a way to gain quick, earthly glory. As stated in one of the excerpts:"As the devil begins his temptation with the words, 'If you are the Son of God'... the temptation was primarily aimed at Jesus’ human nature, on which the devil hoped to extend his influence, leading it astray on a false path. Christ came to earth to establish His Kingdom among people—the Kingdom of God. There were two paths leading to this: one, as the Jews dreamed at the time, the way of the rapid and brilliant enthronement of the Messiah as an earthly king, and another—the slow and arduous path, a way of voluntary moral transformation of people, accompanied by many sufferings not only for the followers of the Messiah but also for Himself. The devil intended to divert the Lord from the second path by attempting to seduce Him in a human way, offering the ease of the first path, which promised not suffering but only glory." (source: link txt)In the case of Saint Anthony, however, the trials were of a more bodily, internal, and emotional nature. His temptations were closely linked with the harsh conditions of the desert, where physical deprivations—hunger, thirst, cold, or intense heat—were interwoven with deep emotional and spiritual torments. Anthony was tormented by a longing for the world, memories of the past, and familial attachments that awakened an inner struggle. This is well described in the following excerpt:"He suffered from hunger and thirst, from cold and heat. But the most dreadful temptation of the hermit, according to Anthony himself, was in the heart: it was a longing for the world and the restlessness of his thoughts. To all this were added the allurements and terrors of demons. At times, Anthony would become exhausted and ready to despair and return to the world, but with unwavering faith in God he overcame all temptations." (source: link txt)Thus, the temptation of Jesus represented a trial intimately connected with His Divine mission and the necessity to choose the path of true spiritual transformation, affirming His status and destiny. Meanwhile, the trials faced by Anthony were characterized by an internal struggle, emotional suffering, and temptations stemming from his human weaknesses amid the conditions of hermitage and physical deprivation.