Isa 14:13

For you have said to yourself I will ascend to heaven and set my throne above God’s stars. I will preside on the mountain of the gods far away in the north.

Lucifer’s desire to “sit on the mount of the congregation” meant that he desired to be worshipped as the lawgiver. He wanted to eventually rule the universe, “the congregation,” by his own law. This was the foundational reason for his rebellion.

Lucifer coveted a position that only God could fill—the covering cherub did not have the ability to take on the job of lawgiver. The Creator designed His creatures for life—not death. But life is conditional upon their living by the moral law of life—agape love. A battery-operated toy functions only when the correct battery is used. If one inserts a different battery the toy may not function properly, or not function at all. Likewise, if we are to have life we must be in harmony with the law of life—God’s law. Lucifer’s law is a law that destroys life. We will explain how this works in the chapter titled “Fear.”

But you may say… Lucifer’s heart was lifted up because of his “beauty,” so it was all about pride. Yes, but the text also says that he corrupted his “wisdom” for the sake of his “splendor.” Is his wisdom referring to his outward appearance, his physical beauty?

What does “wisdom” have to do with physical appearance? Nothing really. But it has all to do with intellect. So then the words “beauty” and “splendor” are descriptive of Lucifer’s intellect, which had authored this thing called “iniquity.” He must have thought that his “throne of iniquity, which devises evil by law” was something so brilliant, so wise, that it placed him on an equal footing with God—“I will be like the most high.”