r is as
follows:

"Then was Jesus led up of the spirit into the wilderness to be tempted
of the devil. And when the tempter came to him, he said: 'If thou be
the son of God command that these stones be made bread.' But he
answered, and said 'It is written: man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.' Then the
devil taketh him up into the holy city and setteth him upon a pinnacle
of the temple and saith unto him: 'If thou be the son of God, cast
thyself down, for it is written. He shall give his angels charge
concerning thee, lest at any time thou shalt dash thy foot against a
stone.' Jesus said unto him 'It is written again, thou shalt not
tempt the Lord thy God.' Again the devil taketh him up into an
exceeding high mountain and showeth him all the kingdoms of the world
and the glory of them, and saith unto him 'All these will I give thee
if thou wilt fall down and worship me.'"

The Christians now claim that Jesus was God. If he was God, of course
the devil knew that fact, and yet, according to this account, the devil
took the omnipotent God and placed him upon a pinnacle of the temple,
and endeavored to induce him to dash himself against the earth.
Failing in that, he took the creator, owner and governor of the
universe up into an exceeding high mountain, and offered him this
world--this grain of sand--if he, the God of all the worlds, would fall
down and worship him, a poor devil, without even a tax title to one
foot of dirt! Is it possible the devil was such an idiot? Should any
great credit be given to this deity for not being caught with such
chaff? Think of it! The devil--the prince of sharpers--the king of
cunning--the master of finesse, trying to bribe God with a grain of
sand that belonged to God!

Is there in ail the religious literature of the world any thing more
grossly absurd than this?

These devils, according to the bible, were various kinds--some could
speak and hear, others were deaf and dumb. All could not be cast out
in the same way. The deaf and dumb spirits were quite difficult to
deal with. St. Mark tells of a gentleman who brought his son to
Christ. The boy, it seems, was possessed of a dumb spirit, over which
the disciples had no control. "Jesus said unto the spirit: 'Thou dumb
and deaf spirit. I charge thee come out of him, and enter no more into
him.'" Whereupon, the deaf spirit having heard what was said, cried out
(be