201. The Lord's Temptations. The Lord endured the most grievous and terrible temptations, which are but little treated of in the literal sense of the Word, but much in the internal sense, Arcana Coelestia 1663, 1668, 1787, 2776, 2786, 2795, 2814, 9528. The Lord fought from Divine Love towards the whole human race, Arcana Coelestia 1690, 1691, 1812, 1813, 1820. The Lord's love was the salvation of the human race, Arcana Coelestia 1820. The Lord combated from His own power, Arcana Coelestia 1692, 1813, 9937. The Lord alone became Justice and Merit, through temptations and victories from His own power, Arcana Coelestia 1813, 2025-2027, 9715, 9809, 10019. Through temptations the Lord united the Divine Itself which was in Him from conception, to His Human, and made this Divine; as He makes a man spiritual through temptations, Arcana Coelestia 1725, 1729, 1733, 1737, 3318, 3381, 3382, 4286. The temptations of the Lord in the end were attended with despair, Arcana Coelestia 1787. Through the temptations admitted against Himself, the Lord subjugated the hells, and reduced all things in them and in the heavens to order, and at the same time glorified His Human, Arcana Coelestia 1737, 4287, 9315, 9528, 9937. The Lord alone fought against all the hells, Arcana Coelestia 8273. He admitted temptations from hell against Himself, Arcana Coelestia 2816, 4295.
The Lord could not be tempted as to the Divine, because the hells cannot assault the Divine; wherefore He assumed from the mother such a Human as could be tempted, Arcana Coelestia 1414, 1444, 1573, 5041, 5157, 7193, 9315. Through temptations and victories He expelled everything hereditary from the mother, and put off the Human from her, until at length He was no longer her son, Arcana Coelestia 2159, 2574, 2640, 3036, 10830. Jehovah, who was in Him from conception, appeared to be absent in His temptations, Arcana Coelestia 1815. This was the state of His humiliation, Arcana Coelestia 1785, 1999, 2159, 6866. His last temptation and victory, by which He fully subjugated the hells, and made His Human Divine, was in Gethsemane and on the cross, Arcana Coelestia 2776, 2803, 2813, 2814, 10655, 10659, 10828.
Not to eat any bread and not drink any water for forty days, signifies an entire state of temptations, Arcana Coelestia 10686. Forty years, months, or days, signify a complete state of temptations from beginning to end; such a state is meant by the deluge lasting forty days; by Moses abiding upon Mount Sinai during forty days; by the sons of Israel sojourning in the desert for forty years; and by the Lord's temptation in the desert for forty days;Arcana Coelestia 730, 862, 2272, 2273, 8098.
