1691. That 'a mountain' means self-love and love of the world becomes clear from the meaning of 'a mountain', dealt with immediately below. All evil and falsity arise from self-love and love of the world; they have no other origin. Indeed self-love and love of the world are the reverse of celestial and spiritual love. And being the reverse they are loves which endeavour all the time to destroy the celestial and spiritual things of God's kingdom. From self-love and love of the world all kinds of hatred arise, and from hatred all kinds of revenge and cruelty, and from both the former and the latter all kinds of deception, in short, all the hells.

[2] That 'mountains' in the Word means self-love and love of the world becomes clear from the following places: In Isaiah,

The eyes of man's (homo) loftiness will be humbled, and the height of men (homo) brought low; the day of Jehovah Zebaoth will be against everyone that is lofty and high, against all high mountains, and against all hills that are lifted up, and against every lofty tower. Isaiah 2:11-12, 14-15.

'High mountains' plainly stands for self-love, and 'hills that are lifted up' for love of the world.

[3] In the same prophet,

Every valley will be lifted up, and every mountain and hill made low. Isaiah 40:4.

This too plainly stands for self-love and love of the world. In the same prophet,

I will lay waste mountains and hills, and dry up every plant on them. Isaiah 42:15.

Here similarly 'mountains' stands for self-love, and 'hills' for love of the world. In Ezekiel,

The mountains will be overturned, and the terraced ridges will fall, and every wall will fall to the ground. Ezekiel 38:20.

[4] In Jeremiah,

Behold, I am against you, O destroying mountain, destroying the whole earth, and I will stretch out My hand against you and roll you down from the rocks and make you into a mountain of burning. Jeremiah 51:25.

This refers to Babel and Chaldea, which, as shown already, mean self-love and love of the world. In the Song of Moses,

A fire has flared up in My anger, and will burn right down to the lowest hell, and will devour the land and its increase, and will set on fire the foundations of the mountains. Deuteronomy 32:22.

'The foundations of the mountains' stands for the hells, as is explicitly stated. They are called 'the foundations of the mountains' because self-love and love of the world reign there and have their origin in them.

[5] In Jonah,

The waters surrounded me, even to my soul, the deep closed around me, seaweed was wrapped about my head. I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the bars of the land were upon me for ever. Yet You brought up my life ¹ from the pit, O Jehovah my God. Jonah 2:5-6.

The Lord's temptations against the hells are described in this prophetic manner by Jonah when in the stomach of the great fish, as also in other parts of the Word, especially in David. A person undergoing temptation is within the hells. Being in the hells is not at all a question of place but of state.

[6] Since 'mountains' and 'towers' mean self-love and love of the world, it may therefore become clear what is meant by the reference to the Lord being led by the devil on to a high mountain and on to the pinnacle of the temple, namely that He was led into conflicts that constitute temptations - the most extreme conflicts of all - against self-love and love of the world, that is, against the hells. Mountains are also used, as is usual, in the contrary sense; in that sense they mean celestial and spiritual love, as shown already in 795, 796.

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2819. As regards the Lord's temptations in general, some were more external, others more internal. The more internal they were, the more severe they were. His inmost temptations are described in Matthew 26:37-39, 42, 44; 27:46; Mark 14:33-36; 15:34; Luke 22:42-44. But see what has been stated already regarding the Lord's temptations, namely the following:

The Lord first of all fought from goods and truths which were appearances of goods and truths, 1661.

Out of Divine love towards the whole human race He fought against the evils of self-love and of love of the world, 1690, 1691 (end), 1789, 1812, 1813, 1820.

He alone has fought out of Divine love, 1812, 1813.

All the hells fought against the Lord's love, which was the salvation of the whole human race, 1820.

The Lord suffered the severest temptations of all, 1663, 1668, 1787.

By means of temptations and victories the Lord by His own power became righteousness, 1813, 2025.

The Lord effected the union of the Human Essence to the Divine Essence by means of temptations and victories, 1737, 1813, 1921, 2025, 2026.

See also what has been stated already about temptations in general, in 59, 63, 227, 847.

Temptation is a power-struggle over whether good or evil, truth or falsity, is to prevail, 1923.

Temptations involve feelings of anger, and many other emotions, 1917.

Temptations are celestial, spiritual, or natural, 847.

In temptations evil genii and spirits attack the things that belong to a person's love, and so the things that constitute his life, 847, 1820.

What temptations accomplish, 1692, 1717, 1740.

The purpose of temptation therefore is that bodily things may be subdued, 857.

Evils and falsities with a person who is being regenerated are subdued by means of temptations, not done away with, 868.

Truth goes into battle first, 1685.

A person fights from the goods and truths which he has acquired by means of cognitions even when they are not in themselves goods and truths, 1661.

Spirits and evil genii activate the falsities and evils within man, and this leads to temptations, 741, 751, 761.

In temptations a person assumes that the Lord is absent, when in fact He is at such times more present, 840.

A person cannot by any means endure by himself the conflicts brought about by temptations, for they are conflicts against every hell, 1692 (end).

The Lord alone fights in man, 1661, 1692.

By means of temptations evil genii and spirits are deprived of their power to do evil and to inspire falsity within man, 1695, 1717.

Temptations take place with those who have conscience, and are more intense with those who have perception, 1668.

Temptations take place rarely at the present day; instead occasions of anxiety occur, which are something different and have a different origin, 762.

Persons who are dead spiritually are not able to suffer the conflicts brought about by temptations, 270.

All temptations bring with them despair over the end in view, 1787, 1820.

After temptations fluctuation occurs, 848, 857.

By means of temptations the good learn that [left to themselves] they are nothing but evil, and that all things are subject to mercy, 2334.

By means of temptations goods become joined more closely to truths, 272.

People are not saved by virtue of enduring temptations if they go under, or if they imagine that they have acquired merit through them, 273.

Every temptation involves freedom, greater freedom than outside of temptations, 1937.