What does Matthew 4:8 mean?

Satan's temptations of Jesus are progressive. He starts by appealing to Jesus' physical appetite. He knows Jesus is hungry, literally starving, after a 40–day fast. The first temptation was to turn stones to bread if He was the Son of God. Knowing this was outside of God's will, Jesus said no (Matthew 4:1–4).

Second, the Devil tempted Jesus to test God's Word in Psalm 91: that angels would not allow Him to be hurt. Satan's challenge was for Jesus to jump from the highest point of the Jewish temple in Jerusalem, and to be rescued in dramatic fashion. This may have been designed to appeal to Jesus' desire to become king over Israel without suffering through God's plan for His death on the cross. Jesus said no (Matthew 4:5–7).

Now Satan takes Jesus to a high mountain. The location seems to be literal, but what Jesus sees might have been part of a vision or supernatural images. The Devil is able to show Jesus all the kingdoms of the world and their glory from this one vantage point. The choice of the mountain, then, seems to be more for the sake of creating a dramatic scene, not a place to literally see the entire world at once. Satan will offer Jesus rule over earth with this temptation, though at a very high price.