1100. And a hold of every unclean and hateful bird, signifies where there are nothing but falsities from the falsified truths of the Word. This is evident from the signification of a "hold," as being where the falsifiers are, thus hell (as above); also from the signification of "every unclean and hateful bird," as being falsities from the falsified truths of the Word; for "birds" signify things rational and intellectual, thoughts, ideas, and reasonings, thus truths or falsities, and "unclean" means what flows forth from a filthy love, and especially from the love of having dominion, for this constitutes uncleanness in hell; and "hateful" signifies what flows forth from a false principle, thus from a religious principle confirmed by the sense of the letter of the Word falsified. It is from correspondence that "birds" signify such things as pertain to man's thought, both spiritual and infernal, thus both truths and falsities, for these pertain to thought. That this is from correspondence is evident from the birds seen in the spiritual world, where all things that appear before the eyes and the other senses are correspondences. All sorts of animals of the earth, also flying things of heaven, both beautiful and unbeautiful, are seen there, and they appear from the affections and thoughts of angels or of spirits, the animals from affections, and the flying things from thoughts. It is known to everyone there that these are correspondences; and they know also to what affections and thoughts they correspond. That they are correspondences of affections and thoughts is made to appear most clearly; since they are instantly dissipated when the spirit or the angel goes away or stops thinking about the matter. As birds are correspondences of thoughts both rational and not rational, thus of both verities and falsities, therefore they have this signification in the Word, for all things of the Word are correspondences.

[2] That "birds" signify thoughts that are from truths, both rational and spiritual, can be seen from the following passages. In David:

Let them praise the name of Jehovah, the wild beast and every beast, creeping thing and winged bird (Psalms 148:5, 10).

That "the wild beast and beast" signify the affections of the natural man, both of truth and of good, and in the contrary sense the cupidities of falsity and evil, may be seen above (n. 522, 650, 781); therefore "winged bird" signifies thoughts. This is why it is said that they should praise Jehovah, for it is man who must praise from affections and thoughts, thus from goods and truths.

[3] In Hosea:

In that day will I make a covenant for them with the wild beast of the field, and with the bird of the heavens, and with the creeping thing of the earth; and I will break the bow and the sword and the war from the earth (Hosea 2:18).

This is said of the Lord's coming and of the state of heaven and the church from Him. "In that day" means the Lord's coming; "the covenant" that He will then make signifies conjunction with those who believe in Him; therefore, "the wild beast of the field and the bird of heaven" cannot mean wild beasts and birds, but must mean the things to which they correspond, which are the affections of good and truth and consequent thoughts. That there will then be no infestation from falsities and evils from hell is signified by "the bow, the sword, and the war, shall be broken in the earth."

[4] In David:

Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of Thy hands, Thou hast put all things under his feet, flocks and herds, yea, the beasts of the fields, the birds of heaven, and the fish of the sea (Psalms 8:6-8).

This treats of the Lord, of whom it is here said that "He shall have dominion over all the works of Jehovah's hands," which does not mean terrestrial things, such as flocks, herds, beasts, birds, and fishes. For what have these things to do with His dominion, which is in the heavens, and from the heavens over men on the earth, whom He will lead to life eternal? Therefore the spiritual things of the church are what are meant, "flock" signifying in general all things spiritual with man, "herd" all things natural with him that correspond to things spiritual, "beasts of the fields" affections of good in the natural man that pertain to the church (for "field" signifies the church), "birds of heaven" signify the thoughts of the rational man, and "fishes of the sea" knowledges.

[5] In Ezekiel:

I will take of the shoot of a high cedar, in the mountain of the height of Israel will I plant it, that it may lift up the bough and bear fruit and become a magnificent cedar; that under it may dwell every bird of every wing, in the shades of its branches shall they dwell (Ezekiel 17:22-23).

This means the establishment of a new church by the Lord; its establishment anew or from its first rise is meant by "the shoot of a high cedar," "cedar" here as elsewhere in the Word signifies the spiritual rational church, such as was the church with the ancients after the flood. "To plant a shoot in the mountain of the height of Israel" signifies in spiritual good, which is the good of charity, "the mountain of the height of Israel" signifying that good; "to become a magnificent cedar" signifies the full establishment of that church; "that under it may dwell every bird of every wing" signifies that there will be rational truths of every kind in that church; "to dwell in the shade of its branches" signifies these terminated in natural truths, since these cover and guard rational truths that are from a spiritual origin.

[6] In the same:

Ashur a cedar in Lebanon, which has become high. In his branches have all the birds of the heavens built their nests, and under his branches all the beasts of the field have brought forth, and in his shade have dwelt all great nations (Ezekiel 31:3, 5-6).

Here, too, "cedar" signifies the spiritual rational church, since "Assyria" signifies the rational; and as "cedar" signifies the church, it follows that "the birds of the heavens that have built their nests in its branches," and "the beasts of the field that have brought forth under them," mean rational thoughts respecting the truths of the church, and the affections of them; and this being the meaning it is added, "In his shade have dwelt all great nations."

[7] In Daniel:

Nebuchadnezzar in a dream saw a tree in the midst of the earth, and the height thereof was great; and it grew and became strong, and the height thereof reached even unto heaven, and the sight thereof unto the end of the earth; the leaf thereof was beautiful, and the flower thereof much; and in it was food for all. The beast of the field had shade under it, and the birds of the heavens dwelt in the branches of it, and all flesh was nourished by it. But a watcher and an holy one came down from heaven, crying out, Hew down the tree, and cut off his branches, shake off his leaf, and scatter his flower; let the beast flee away from under it, and the birds from his branches (Daniel 4:10-14, 20-21).

Here, too, "tree" signifies the church called Babylon in its beginning and progress, and here that church in the knowledges of truth and good. Its beginning and progress is described in the words, "it became great and strong, the leaf thereof was beautiful, and the flower thereof much, and in it was food for all;" its affections of good and thoughts of truth are signified by "the beast of the field that had shade under it, and the birds that dwelt in its branches." That it lifted up its dominion over the holy things of the church and of heaven, is meant by "a watcher and an holy one came down from heaven, and cried out, Hew down the tree and cut off his branches." That "beast and bird" here signify affections and thoughts is evident from its being said, when the tree was cut down, "let the beast flee away from under it, and the birds from his branches."

[8] "The birds of heaven" have a similar signification in the Gospels:

Jesus said, The kingdom of the heavens is like unto a grain of mustard seed, which a man took and sowed in his field, and it becometh a tree, so that the winged things of heaven come and build nests in the branches thereof (Matthew 13:31-32; Mark 4:31-32; Luke 13:19).

"A tree from a grain of mustard seed" signifies a man of the church, and also a church beginning from a very little spiritual good by means of truth; for if only a very little spiritual good takes root with a man it grows like a seed in good ground. And as a "tree" thus signifies a man of the church, it follows that "the winged things of heaven" that made nests in its branches signify the knowledges of truth and thoughts therefrom. Anyone can see this is not a mere comparison, for if it were, what would be the need of such things in the Word and of like things in the Prophets?

[9] So again in David:

Jehovah sendeth forth fountains into the streams, they go between the mountains. They give drink to every wild beast of the fields; the wild asses quench their thirst; by them the bird of the heavens dwells, from among the boughs they utter their voices. The trees of Jehovah are satisfied, the cedars of Lebanon which He hath planted, where the birds make their nests; as to the stork her house is in the fir trees (Psalms 104:10-12, 16-17).

Such things as these also would not have been said in the Divine Word unless each particular of them had been a correspondence of things spiritual and celestial, and consequently holy. For otherwise why should it be said that "streams from fountains go between the mountains, and give drink to every wild beast of the field; that the wild asses quench their thirst, and by them the bird of the heavens dwells, and utters its voice among the boughs, and the stork in the fir trees"? But when by "fountains" truths of the Word are understood, by "rivers" intelligence therefrom, by "mountains" goods of love, by "wild beast of the fields" affections of truth, by "wild asses" the rational, and by "birds of the heavens" thoughts from Divine truths, then the Word is the holy Divine; otherwise it would be merely human.

[10] In Job:

Ask, I pray, the beasts, and they shall teach thee, or the birds of heaven, and they shall tell thee, and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee. Who doth not know from all these that the hand of Jehovah doeth this? (Job 12:7-9).

Evidently "beasts, birds of heaven, and fishes of the sea," do not mean here beasts, birds, and fishes, for these cannot be asked, or teach, or tell, or declare "that the hand of Jehovah doeth this;" but these signify the things that pertain to man's intelligence, "beasts" meaning his affections, "birds of heaven" his thoughts, and "fishes of the sea" cognitions and knowledges [cognitiones et scientifica]. From these man can teach that the hand of Jehovah doeth it. Unless the things of man's intelligence were signified by "beasts, birds, and fishes," it could not be asked, "Who doth not know from all these?"

[11] In Ezekiel:

Son of man, Say to the bird of every wing, and to every wild beast of the field, Gather yourselves and come, gather yourselves from every side to a great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel. And I will give My glory among the nations (Ezekiel 39:17, 21).

This describes the establishment of the church among the nations, and the invitation and calling to it, for it is said, "So will I give my glory among the nations;" therefore "the bird of every wing," and "every wild beast of the field," signify all who are in the affection of good and the understanding of truth.

[12] So in Revelation:

An angel standing in the sun cried out with a great voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and be gathered together to the supper of the great God (Revelation 19:17).

Here "birds flying in the midst of heaven" cannot mean birds, but men who are rational and spiritual; for they are invited to the supper of the great God.

[13] In Jeremiah:

I beheld the mountains, and lo they were moved, and all the hills were overturned; I beheld, when lo there was no man, and all the birds of heaven were flown away. I beheld when Carmel was a wilderness, and all its cities were desolated (Jeremiah 4:24-26).

This was said of the devastation of the church as to all its good and truth. "Mountains and valleys" signify celestial and spiritual loves; and "to be moved and overturned" signifies to perish. For in the spiritual world, when there no longer exists in spirits any celestial or spiritual love, the mountains are actually moved and the hills overthrown upon which they dwelt. "All the birds were flown away" signifies that there was no longer any knowledge and consequent thought of truth; "there was no man" signifies no understanding of truth; "Carmel was a wilderness" signifies a church destitute of good and truth; and "its cities desolated" signifies that there were no longer any doctrinals of truth.

[14] In the same:

The habitations are laid waste, so that no man passeth through, neither do they hear the voice of cattle; from the bird of the heavens even to the beast they have flown away, they have gone; for I will make Jerusalem heaps, a habitation of dragons (Jeremiah 9:10-11; 12:9).

Here, too, the devastation of the church is described. "The habitations that are laid waste, so that no man passeth through," signify the doctrinals of the church which were from the Word, in which now there is no good or truth; "the voice of cattle which they do not hear," signifies good of charity and truth of faith, of which there is none; "the birds of the heavens and even the beasts are flown away, they have gone" signifies that there is no longer any thought of truth from the knowledge of it, nor any affection of good. This evidently does not mean the flying away of the birds of heaven and the going away of the beasts of the earth, but the vastation of the church as to doctrine, for it is added, "I will make Jerusalem into heaps, a habitation of dragons," "Jerusalem" signifying the church as to doctrine, and "making it into heaps, and into a habitation of dragons," its devastation.

[15] In Hosea:

There is no truth and no mercy, and no knowledge of God in the land. Therefore the land shall mourn for the wild beast of the field, and for the bird of the heavens; yea, the fishes of the sea shall be gathered together (Hosea 4:1, 3).

Evidently "the wild beast of the field, the bird of the heavens, and the fishes of the sea," have the same signification here as above, for here, too, the devastation of the church is treated of, for it is said, "there is no truth, no mercy, and no knowledge of God in the land," and "the land" signifies the church.

[16] In Zephaniah:

I will consume man and beast, I will consume the bird of the heavens and the fishes of the sea, I will cut off man from the faces of the land (Zephaniah 1:3).

"To consume man and beast" signifies to destroy spiritual and natural affection; "to consume the birds of the heavens and the fishes of the sea" signifies to destroy the perceptions and knowledges of truth; and as these signify things pertaining to the church it is said, "I will cut off man from the faces of the land," "man" signifying everything of the church.

[17] In David:

God said, I know every bird of the mountains, and the wild beast of My fields is with Me (Psalms 50:11).

In Ezekiel:

There shall be a great earthquake upon the land of Israel, and the fishes of the sea, and the bird of the heavens, and the wild beast of the field, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man who is upon the faces of the earth shall tremble before Me (Ezekiel 38:19-20).

Here "the bird of the heavens and the wild beast of the field" have the same signification as above. "Earthquake" signifies a change of state of the church.

[18] In Isaiah:

Woe to the land shadowed with wings, which is beyond the rivers of Cush. The bird of the mountains and the beasts of the earth shall be left, but the bird shall loathe it, and every beast of the earth shall despise it (Isaiah 18:1, 6).

This treats of the establishment of the church with the nations and the devastation of the Jewish church; therefore "the bird and beast of the earth" signify the knowledges of truth and the affections of good.

[19] In the same:

I am God, and there is no God besides, and there is none like Me, calling a bird from the east, a man of counsel from a land far off (Isaiah 46:9, 11).

The "bird" called from the east signifies the truth of the Word, which is said to be "from the east" because it is from the good of love, "the east" being the good of love. Otherwise, what could be meant by "God shall call a bird from the east, and a man of counsel from a land far off"? "A man of counsel" means a man who is intelligent from truths that are from the good of love.

[20] In Hosea:

Ephraim, as a bird shall his glory fly away, from the birth and from the belly and from conception (Hosea 9:11).

In the same:

I will not return to destroy Ephraim. They shall go after Jehovah. With honor shall they come as a bird out of Egypt, and as a dove from the land of Assyria (Hosea 11:9-11).

"Ephraim" signifies the understanding of the truths of the church; and this is why he is compared to a bird, and it is said, "as a bird shall his glory fly away." Also in Hosea (Hosea 7:12) he is compared to a bird, for a "bird" signifies everything pertaining to the understanding, including the knowing, the thinking, and the reasoning faculties; while everything that is delightful and pleasurable, thus that pertains to the will and affection, is signified by "beast and wild beast." "The bird from Egypt" signifies the knowing faculty, which pertains to the natural man; and "the dove from Assyria" the rational faculty, since "Egypt" signifies the knowing faculty, and "Assyria" the rational faculty. Here a church to be established by the Lord is treated of.

[21] As most things of the Word have also a contrary sense, so have birds, and in that sense they signify fallacies from the sensual man, also reasonings from falsities against truths, and also falsities themselves, worse and more noxious according to the genera and the species of unclean birds; rapacious birds signifying especially the falsities that destroy truths. In many passages of the Word it is said that men "should be given for food to birds and wild beasts," which signifies that they would altogether perish by fallacies, falsities, consequent reasonings, cupidities of evil, and in general by evils and falsities from hell. This is signified by "being given for food to the birds of heaven and the beasts of the earth" in the following passages. In Jeremiah:

The carcass of this people shall be for food to the bird of the heavens, none shall frighten them away (Jeremiah 7:33).

In the same:

I will visit upon you in four kinds, with the sword to kill, and with dogs to drag about, and with the birds of the heavens and the beasts of the earth to devour and to destroy (Jeremiah 15:3).

In the same:

They shall be consumed by the sword and by famine, that their carcass may become food for the birds of the heavens and the beast of the earth (Jeremiah 16:4; 19:7; 34:20).

In Ezekiel:

Upon the faces of the field thou shalt fall, thou shalt not be brought together nor gathered; I have given thee for food to the wild beast of the earth and the bird of heaven (Jeremiah 29:5).

Upon the mountains of Israel thou shalt fall; I have given thee for food to the bird of the heavens of every wing and to the wild beast of the field (Jeremiah 39:4).

This is said of Gog. In David:

The nations have come into Thine inheritance, they have defiled the temple of Thy holiness; they have laid Jerusalem in heaps, the carcass of Thy servants have they given for food to the bird of the heavens, the flesh of Thy saints to the wild beast of the earth (Psalms 79:1-2).

[22] Because of this signification of "the birds of the heavens and the wild beasts of the earth," and because the nations of the land of Canaan signified the evils and the falsities of the church, it was customary for the Jewish nation to expose the carcasses of their enemies after their slaughter to the wild beasts and birds, by which they were devoured. This is why it was formerly regarded as horrible and profane, and is still so regarded, to leave dead men upon the face of the earth unburied, even after a battle. Also this is the signification in the Word of "not being buried," and of "bones drawn out of the graves and cast forth." Infernal falsities are signified also by:

The birds that came down upon the carcasses, that Abram drove away (Genesis 15:11).

Also by the birds in Revelation (Revelation 19:21);

Also by the birds that devoured that which was sown on the hard way (Matthew 13:3, 4; Mark 4:4; Luke 8:5).

In Daniel:

In the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the meal offering to cease. At last upon the bird of abominations shall be desolation, and even to the consummation and decision it shall drop upon the devastation (Daniel 9:27).

This is said of the total devastation of the Jewish church which was when the Lord was born. Its devastation by horrible falsities is signified by "the bird of abominations"; that falsity is here meant by "bird" is clearly evident. It is to be known that there are many kinds of falsities, and that each of them is signified by its own kind of bird; and these are enumerated in Moses (Leviticus 11:13; and Deuteronomy 14:11-20), and are mentioned in various parts of the Word, as the eagle, the kite, the woodpecker, the raven, the screech owl, the spoonbill, the heron, the owl, the horned owl, the dragon, and others.

(Continuation respecting the Athanasian Faith)

[23] About God and about Divine things, which are called in heaven celestial and spiritual, and in the world ecclesiastical and theological, there is thought from light; there is also thought not from light about them. Those have thought not from light who know about these things but do not understand them. Such are all those at the present day who wish the understanding to be kept under obedience to faith, holding even that a thing must be believed and not understood, and claiming that intellectual faith is not true faith. But these are such as are not interiorly in the genuine affection of truth, and consequently are in no enlightenment; and many of them are in the pride of self-intelligence, and in the love of ruling over the souls of men by means of the holy things of the church, not knowing that truth wishes to be in the light, since the light of heaven is the Divine truth, and that a truly human understanding is moved by that light and sees from it, and that when the understanding does not see from that light it is the memory that has faith and not the man; and such faith is blind, because without an idea from the light of truth; for the understanding is the man, and the memory introduces. If what is not understood must be believed a man might be taught like a parrot to speak and to remember, even that there is holiness in the bones of the dead and in sepulchers, that carcasses perform miracles, that man will be tormented in purgatory if he does not consecrate his wealth to idols or to monasteries, that men are gods because heaven and hell are in their power, with other like things which man must believe from a blind faith and from a closed understanding, and thus from the light of both extinguished. But be it known that all the truths of the Word, which are the truths of heaven and of the church, can be seen by the understanding, in heaven spiritually, in the world rationally; for a truly human understanding is the sight itself of these truths, for it is separated from what is material, and when separated it sees truths as clearly as the eye sees objects; it sees truths as it loves them, for as it loves them it is enlightened. The angels have wisdom in consequence of seeing truths; when, therefore, it is said to any angel that this or that must be believed although it is not understood, the angel answers, Do you think that I am insane, or that you are God whom I am to believe if I do not see? It may be falsity from hell.

409. And every servant, and every freeman, signifies the natural man and the spiritual man. This is evident from the signification of "servant," as meaning the natural man (of which presently); and from the signification of "freeman," as meaning the spiritual man. The spiritual man is meant by "freeman" and the natural man by "servant" because the spiritual man is led by the Lord from heaven, and to be led by the Lord is freedom; while the natural man obeys and serves the spiritual, for it executes what the spiritual man wills and thinks. "Servant" is mentioned in many passages in the Word; and one who does not know that in these "servant" means what does service and effects the things the spiritual man wills and thinks, might suppose that "servant" there means one who is in servitude, thus he might understand it in its ordinary sense, but it will be plain from the passages in the Word that will presently be cited that it means what does service and effects. When "servant" is mentioned in the Word in this sense, the natural man is meant by it, which is "a servant" in the same sense as the body is a servant to its soul.

As what does service and effects is meant by "servant," so "servant" is predicated not only of the natural man in its relation to the spiritual, but also of men who perform service for others and of the angels who execute God's commands, yea, of the Lord Himself as to His Divine Human when He was in the world; it is also predicated of truths from good, because good acts and produces effects by means of truths, and truths perform the service to good which good wills and loves, and so forth. Moreover, "servant" is predicated of the natural man with regard to obedience and effect, although with the regenerate the natural man is just as free as the spiritual, for they act as one, like principal and instrumental; and yet the natural man, in relation to the spiritual, is called "a servant," because, as was said, the natural man is of service to the spiritual in producing effects. But with those with whom the spiritual man is closed and the natural man only open, the whole man in a general sense is a servant, although in appearance it is like a freeman; for the exterior natural man is subservient to the evils and falsities which the interior wills and thinks, and is thus led by hell, and to be led by hell is to be altogether a servant, and after death such a man also becomes altogether a servant and vile slave in hell; for after death the delights of everyone's life are changed into things that correspond, and the delights of evil are changed into servitude and into loathsome things (See in the work on Heaven and Hell 485-490). In this sense also "servant" is mentioned in the Word. But here it shall be shown especially that "servant" means what is of service and what effects, and this in every respect.

[2] That "servant" means what is of service and effects is plainly evident from this, that the Lord in relation to His Divine Human is called "servant" and "minister," as in the following passages. In Isaiah:

Behold My servant, on whom I lean, My chosen, in whom My soul is well pleased; I have given My spirit upon Him. [He shall bring forth judgment to the nations]. Who is blind but My servant? or deaf as My angel that I send? Who is blind as He that is perfect, and blind as My ¹ servant? (Isaiah 42:1, 19).

This is said of the Lord, who is treated of in the whole of this chapter, and the Lord in respect to His Divine Human is here called "a servant," because He served his Father by doing His will, as He frequently declares; and this means that He reduced to order all things in the spiritual world, and at the same time taught men the way to heaven. Therefore by "My servant on whom I lean," and by "My chosen, in whom My soul is well pleased," the Divine Human is meant; and this is called "a servant" from the Divine truth by which it produced effects, and "chosen" from the Divine good. That it was by means of the Divine truth which belonged to Him that the Lord produced effects is meant by "I have given My spirit upon Him, He shall bring forth judgment to the nations;" "the spirit of Jehovah" meaning the Divine truth, and "to bring forth judgment to the nations" meaning to instruct. He is called "blind" and "deaf" because the Lord is as if He did not see and perceive the sins of men, for He leads men gently, bending and not breaking, thus leading away from evils, and leading to good; therefore He does not chastise and punish, like one who sees and perceives. This is meant by "who is blind but My servant? or deaf as My angel?" He is called "blind" and hence "a servant" from the Divine truth, and "deaf" and hence "an angel" from the Divine good; for "blindness" has reference to the understanding and thence to the perception, and "deafness" to the perception and thence to the will; it is therefore here meant that He as it were does not see, although He possesses the Divine truth from which He understands all things, and that He does not will according to what He perceives, although He has the Divine good, from which He is able to effect all things.

[3] In the same:

He shall see out of the labor of His soul, He shall be satisfied; by His knowledge My just servant shall justify many, in that He hath borne their iniquities (Isaiah 53:11).

This, too is said of the Lord, of whom the whole chapter evidently treats, and indeed of His Divine Human. His combats with the hells and His subjugation of them are signified by "the labor of His soul," and "He hath borne their iniquities;" "bearing their iniquities" means not that He transferred them unto Himself, but that He admitted into Himself evils from the hells that He might subdue them; this therefore is what is meant by "bearing iniquities." The consequent salvation of those who are in spiritual faith, which is the faith of charity, is meant by the words, "by His knowledge My just servant shall justify many;" "knowledge" signifying Divine truth, and thence Divine wisdom and intelligence, and "many" signifying all who receive; for "many" in the Word is predicated of truths, but "great" of good, therefore "many" means all who are in truths from good from the Lord.

It is said that "He shall justify" these, because "to justify" signifies to save by Divine good, and from Divine good He is also called "just." Because the Lord accomplished and effected these things by His Divine Human, He is called "the servant of Jehovah;" this makes clear that Jehovah calls His Divine Human "His servant," because of its serving and effecting.

[4] In the same:

Behold My servant shall act prudently, He shall be exalted, and lifted up, and made exceeding high (Isaiah 52:13).

This, too is said of the Lord, whose Divine Human is called "a servant," for the same reason as was mentioned just above; the glorification of His Human is meant by "He shall be exalted, and lifted up, and made exceeding high." In the same:

Ye are My witnesses, and My servant whom I have chosen; that ye may know and believe Me (Isaiah 43:10).

Here, too, "servant" means the Lord in respect to His Divine Human. That the Lord Himself calls Himself "a minister" from serving is clear in the Gospels:

Whosoever will become great among you must be your minister, and whosoever will be first must be your servant, as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto but to minister (Matthew 20:25-28; Mark 10:42-44; Luke 22:27).

This may be seen explained in the work on Heaven and Hell 218). And in Luke:

Blessed are the servants whom the Lord when He cometh shall find watching; verily I say unto you, that He will gird Himself, and make them to recline to meat, and drawing near He will minister to them (Luke 12:37).

[5] Since "David" in the Word means the Lord in respect to Divine truth, and Divine truth serves, so David also, where the Lord is meant by him, is in many places called "a servant," as in Ezekiel:

I Jehovah will be their God, and My servant David a prince in the midst of them (Ezekiel 34:24).

In the same:

My servant David shall be king over them, that they all may have one shepherd (Ezekiel 37:24).

This was said of David after his times, when he was never again to be raised up to be a prince in the midst of them, or a king over them. In Isaiah:

For I will defend this city to save it for Mine own sake, and for My servant David's sake (Isaiah 37:35).

In David:

I ² have made a covenant with My chosen, I have sworn to David My servant, even to eternity will I establish thy seed. I have found David My servant; with the oil of My holiness have I anointed him (Psalms 89:3-4, 20).

The whole of this Psalm treats of the Lord, who is here meant by "David." In the same:

He chose David His servant; from following the ewes giving suck He brought him to feed Jacob His people, and Israel His inheritance; and he fed them in the integrity of his heart, and guided them by the intelligence of his hands (Psalms 78:70-72);

and elsewhere. That the Lord in respect to Divine truth is meant by "David" in the Word, may be seen above (n. 205), and in the passages there cited. The Lord is also called "a servant" in the Word where He is meant by "Israel." As in Isaiah:

Thou art My servant, O Israel, in whom I will be made glorious. It is a light thing that thou shouldst be My servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to lead back the preserved of Israel; but I have given thee for a light to the nations, that thou mayest be My salvation unto the end of the earth (Isaiah 49:3, 6).

(That in the highest sense the Lord is meant by "Israel," see Arcana Coelestia 4286; and that "the Stone of Israel," means the Lord in respect to Divine truth, n. 6426.)

[6] Since the Lord in respect to Divine truth is called in the Word "a servant" from serving, so those who are in Divine truth from the Lord and thereby serve others are there called "servants," as the prophets are in these passages. In Jeremiah:

Jehovah sent unto you all His servants the prophets (Jeremiah 25:4).

In Amos:

He hath revealed His secret unto His servants the prophets (Amos 3:7).

In Daniel:

He hath set [His laws] before us ³ by the hand of His servants the prophets (Daniel 9:10).

So too:

Moses is called The servant of Jehovah (Malachi 4:4).

And also Isaiah, in his prophecy (Isaiah 20:3; 50:10).

For "prophets" in the Word signify the doctrine of Divine truth, thus Divine truth in respect to doctrine (See Arcana Coelestia 2534, 7269). So again, David calls himself "a servant of Jehovah," as in the following passages:

I rejoice in Thy statutes; I do not forget Thy word. [Deal well with Thy servant.] Thy servant doth meditate in Thy statutes. Thou hast done good to Thy servant, O Jehovah, according to Thy word. Deal with Thy servant according to Thy mercy, and teach me Thy statutes. I am Thy servant, cause me to discern, that I may know Thy testimonies. Make Thy faces to shine upon Thy servant, and teach Me Thy statutes. I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek Thy servant (Psalms 119:16-17, 23, 65, 124-125, 135, 176).

In the same:

Keep my soul, for I am holy; save Thy servant, for I trust ⁴ in Thee. Gladden the soul of Thy servant; for unto Thee, O Lord, do I lift up My soul. Give strength unto Thy servant, and save the son of Thy handmaid (Psalms 86:2, 4, 16; and elsewhere, as Psalms 27:9; 31:16; 35:27; 116:16; Luke 1:69).

Since the Lord in respect to Divine truth is meant by "David" in the above cited passages, and thus "David," in like manner as the prophets, means Divine truth, so "servant" in these passages also means in the spiritual sense, what is of service. One who is ignorant of the spiritual sense of the Word might believe that not only David but also others who are spoken of in the Word, called themselves "servants," for the reason that all are servants of God; but still wherever "servants" are mentioned in the Word, what is of service and effect is meant in the spiritual sense. For this reason too:

Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon is called the servant of Jehovah (Jeremiah 25:9; 43:10).

But in a particular sense, "servant" and "servants" in the Word mean those who receive Divine truth and who teach it, since Divine truth is what serves, and by means of it Divine good produces effects. For this reason "servants" and "chosen" are frequently mentioned together, "servants" meaning those who receive Divine truth and who teach, and "chosen" those who receive Divine good and who lead, as in Isaiah:

I will bring forth a seed out of Jacob, and out of Judah an inheritor of My mountains; that My chosen may possess it, and My servants may dwell there (Isaiah 65:9).

In the same:

Thou, Israel, art My servant, and Jacob, whom I have chosen (Isaiah 41:8).

In the same:

Hear, O Jacob, My servant; Israel, whom I have chosen. Fear not, O Jacob, My servant, and thou Jeshurun, whom I have chosen (Isaiah 44:1-2

(That those are called "chosen" who are in the life of charity, see Arcana Coelestia n. 3755 near the end, 3900.)

[7] Now as "servants" have reference in the Word to what is of service and effects, consequently to such as serve and produce effects, therefore the natural man is called "a servant," since this serves the spiritual in effecting what it wills; and for this reason the spiritual man is also called "a freeman" and "master." This, too, is meant by "servant" and "master" in Luke:

No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will prefer the one and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon (Luke 16:13).

This must be understood as referring, not to servants in the world, for such can serve two masters, and yet not hate and despise one of them, but to servants in a spiritual sense, who are such as desire to love the Lord and themselves equally, or heaven and the world equally. These are like those who wish to look with one eye upwards, and with the other downwards, that is, with one eye to heaven, and with the other to hell, and thus to hang between the two; and yet there must be a predominance of one of these loves over the other; and where there is a predominance, that which opposes will be hated and despised when it offers opposition. For the love of self and of the world is the opposite of love to the Lord and love towards the neighbor. For this reason, those who are in the heavenly love would rather die or be deprived of honors and wealth in the world than be drawn away by them from the Lord and from heaven; for this they regard as the all, because it is eternal, but the former as relatively nothing, because it comes to an end with life in the world. On the other hand, however, those who love themselves and the world above all things, regard the Lord and heaven as relatively of no account, and even deny them, and so far as they see that they are opposed to self and the world they hate them; this becomes clearly manifest with all such in the other life. With those who love the Lord and heaven above all things, the internal or spiritual man is open, and the external or natural man serves it; then the latter is a servant because it serves, and the former is a master because it exercises its will; but with those who love themselves and the world above all things, the internal or spiritual man is closed, and the external or natural man is open; and when the latter is open and the former closed, the man loves the one master, namely, himself and the world, and hates the other, namely, the Lord and heaven. To this I am able to bear witness from experience; for all who have lived for self and the world, and not, as they ought, for God and heaven, in the other life hate the Lord and persecute those who are His, however in the world they may have talked about heaven and also about the Lord. From this it can be seen how impossible it is to serve two masters. That these words of the Lord must be understood spiritually is clear from the Lord's own words; for He says, "Ye cannot serve God and mammon. "

[8] In Matthew:

The disciple is not above his teacher, nor the servant above his lord. It is enough for the disciple that he be as his teacher, and the servant as his lord (Matthew 10:24, 26).

This in the most general sense means that man must not make himself equal to the Lord, and that it is sufficient for him that all that he has he has from the Lord, and then the disciple is as the Teacher, and the servant as the Lord, for then the Lord is in him, and causes him to will good and to think truth. The term "disciple" is used in reference to good and "servant" in reference to truth. It is similar in a particular sense, namely, with each individual who is led by the Lord, the external or natural man with him is "a disciple" and "a servant," and the internal and spiritual man is "a teacher" and "a lord." When the external or natural man serves the internal or spiritual by obeying and carrying into effect, then it also is "as its teacher" and "as its lord," for they act as one, as is said of the principal cause and the instrumental, that they act as one cause. This particular sense coincides with the most general in this, that when the spiritual and natural man act as one, the Lord Himself acts, for the spiritual man does nothing of itself, but what it does comes solely from the Lord; so far, indeed, as the spiritual man has been opened (for this opens into heaven), so far man acts not of himself but from the Lord; this spiritual man is the spiritual man in its proper sense.

[9] In John:

Ye shall know the truth; the truth maketh you free. The Jews answered, We are Abraham's seed, and have never yet been in bondage to any man; how sayest Thou, Ye shall be made free? Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, everyone that committeth sin is a servant of sin. The servant abideth not in the house forever; the Son abideth forever. If the Son therefore make you free ye shall be free indeed (John 8:32-36).

This means that to be led by the Lord is freedom, and to be led by hell is slavery; "the truth that makes free" means Divine truth which is from the Lord, for he who receives this in doctrine and in life is free, because he is made spiritual and is led by the Lord; therefore it is also added, "the Son abideth in the house forever; if the Son make you free ye shall be free indeed," "Son" meaning the Lord, and also truth (See above 63, 151, 166), and "to abide in the house" meaning to abide in heaven. That to be led by hell is slavery is taught by these words, "everyone that committeth sin is a servant of sin," "sin" is hell because it is from hell.

[10] That to receive Divine truth from the Lord in doctrine and in life is to be free the Lord teaches also in John:

Ye are My friends if ye do whatsoever I command you. No longer do I call you servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth; I rather call you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known unto you. Ye have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you and appointed you that ye may go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit may abide (John 15:14-16).

"Friends" here mean the free, "friends" being contrasted with "servants." That those who receive the Divine truth in doctrine and life from the Lord are not "servants," but are "friends" or freemen, is taught by these words, "if ye do whatsoever I command you, no longer do I call you servants, but friends;" likewise by these words, "all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known unto you, that ye may go and bring forth fruit;" "to command" and "to make known" pertain to doctrine, and "to bring forth fruit" pertains to life. That these are from the Lord is thus taught, "ye have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you and appointed you." Something nearly similar was represented by the Hebrew servants who were sent away free in the seventh year and in the year of Jubilee (who are treated of in Exodus 21:2, 3;Leviticus 25:39-41; Deuteronomy 15:12; Jeremiah 34:9. Concerning these see Arcana Coelestia 8973-9005.)

From what has been thus far set forth it can be seen that those are called "servants" in the Word who serve and bring into effect, and that therefore "servant" means the natural man, because this serves its spiritual man by bringing into effect what it wills and thinks; also that those are called "freemen" who act from the love of truth and good, thus who act from the Lord, from whom is the love of truth and good. Moreover, "servants" in the Word mean also those who are led by self and the world, and thence by evils and falsities, consequently who are led by the natural man and not at the same time by the spiritual. But respecting these servants, the Lord willing, it shall be told elsewhere.

Бележки под линия: