374. Verse 6. A measure of wheat for a denarius, and three measures of barley for a denarius, signifies that the genuine good of the church, as also the genuine truth of the church, is of no account to them. This is evident from the signification of "measure" [choenix] (which was the Greek measure for wheat and barley), as being the quality of estimation, for "measures" in the Word (as was said in the article above), signify the quality of a thing in respect to good and in respect to truth. It is evident also from the signification of "wheat," as being the good of the church in general (of which presently); also from the signification of "barley," as being the truth of that good (of which presently); and from the signification of "a denarius," the standard of estimation, as being as of no account. Because this was the smallest coin, it signifies the least worth, but here as of no account. The reason for this is that "the red horse" (mentioned above), signifies the understanding of the Word destroyed in respect to good, and "the black horse" the understanding of the Word destroyed in respect to truth (See above, n. 364, 372); and when the understanding of the Word in respect to good and in respect to truth has been destroyed, then the genuine good and the genuine truth of the church are estimated as of no account. The "denarius" is here taken as the standard of estimation, because some piece of money must be taken that some price may be expressed in the sense of the letter, since it is said that "a balance was in the hand of him that sat upon the horse," and that "the wheat and the barley were measured;" consequently the smallest coin of all was taken as the standard of the estimation of the price; and as there was no longer any understanding of the Word in respect to good and in respect to truth, a "denarius" in the spiritual sense here signifies as of no account.

[2] It is said, "a measure of wheat and three measures of barley," because "one" is predicated of good, and "three" of truths; and "one," when predicated of good, signifies what is perfect, thus also what is genuine; and "three," when predicated of truths, signifies what is full, thus also what is genuine; consequently "a measure of wheat and three measures of barley" signify the genuine good and the genuine truth of the church. "Wheat" signifies good, and "barley" its truth, because all things belonging to the field signify the things that belong to the church; and things belonging to the field, as crops of various kinds, serve for food; and things for food and for the nourishment of the body signify in the spiritual sense such things as nourish the soul or mind, all of which have relation to the good of love and the truth of faith; thus especially wheat and barley, because bread is made from them. (That foods of every kind signify spiritual food, thus the things of knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom, consequently the good and truth from which these are, see Arcana Coelestia 3114, 4459, 5147, 5293, 5340, 5342, 5410, 5426, 5576, 5582, 5588, 5655, 5915, 8408, 8562, 9003. Of "bread" in general, see the work on The New Jerusalem, n. 218; that "field" signifies the church, seeArcana Coelestia 2971, 3766, 9139.)

That "wheat" and "barley" have such a signification is from correspondence, as is evident from the things that appear in the spiritual world, where all appearances are correspondences. There plains, fields, crops of various kinds, and also bread appear; from this is the knowledge that they are correspondences, and consequently that they have significations according to correspondences.

[3] That "wheat" and "barley" signify the good and truth of the church, "wheat" its good, and "barley" its truth, can be seen also from the passages in the Word where they are mentioned, as from the following. In Jeremiah:

Jehovah, who hath dispersed Israel, will bring him together and will keep him as a shepherd doth his drove; for Jehovah hath ransomed Jacob, and hath redeemed him out of the hand of him that was stronger than he. Therefore shall they come and sing aloud in the height of Zion, and shall flow together unto the good of Jehovah, to the wheat, to the new wine, and to the oil, and to the sons of the flock, and of the herd; and their soul shall become as a watered garden (Jeremiah 31:10-12).

This treats of the establishment of a new church; "Israel" and "Jacob" signify that church, "Israel" the internal spiritual church, and "Jacob" the external; for every church is internal and external. Its establishment is described by "Jehovah will bring him together and will keep him as a shepherd doth his drove, for He hath ransomed Jacob, and hath redeemed him out of the hand of him that was stronger than he;" "to redeem" signifies to reform (See above, n. 328; "out of the hand of him that was stronger than he" signifies out of evil and falsity, which before had possession; the internal joy or joy of heart arising from celestial good and truths therefrom that such have, is signified by "therefore shall they come and sing aloud in the height of Zion, and shall flow together unto the good of Jehovah, to the wheat, to the new wine, and to the oil, and to the sons of the flock and of the herd," "to sing in the height of Zion" signifying internal celestial joy, or such as is in the Lord's celestial kingdom, "to sing aloud" meaning that joy (See above, n. 326, "height" what is internal, and "Zion" the celestial kingdom; "wheat" signifies the good of the natural man, "new wine" its truth; "oil" the good of the spiritual man, "the sons of the flock" spiritual truths, and "the sons of the herd" natural truths; because these are what are signified they are called "the good of Jehovah." That such have intelligence and wisdom from this source is signified by "their soul shall become as a watered garden," for "garden" in the Word signifies intelligence, and "watered" continual growth. "Wheat," "new wine," "oil," "the sons of a flock and of the herd," are plainly not here meant, for it is said, "Jehovah hath ransomed Jacob, and their soul shall become as a watered garden. "

[4] In Joel:

The field was devastated, the ground mourned; for the corn was devastated, the new wine was dried up, the oil languished. The husbandmen were ashamed, the vine-dressers howled for the wheat and for the barley, because the harvest of the field hath perished (Joel 1:10, 11).

This is not said of a field and its barrenness, but of the church and its vastation; therefore "field," "ground," "corn," "new wine," and "oil" do not mean these things themselves, but "field" and "ground" mean the church, "field" the church in relation to the reception and bringing forth of truth and good, and "ground" the church in respect to the nation that is in it; "corn" means good of every kind in the external man; "new wine" the truth also therein; "oil" the good in the internal man; "the husbandmen that were ashamed," and "the vine-dressers that howled for the wheat and for the barley" signify those who are of the church, "wheat" and "barley" signifying the good and truth of the church; and "the harvest of the field that thus perished" signifying all worship from good and truth.

[5] In Jeremiah:

Upon all the heights in the wilderness the devastators have come; because the sword of Jehovah devoureth from the end of the land even to the end of the land; no flesh hath peace. They have sown wheat and have reaped thorns (Jeremiah 12:12-13).

This, too is said of the church and its vastation; "the heights in the wilderness upon which the devastators have come" signify that every good of charity has perished through evils and falsities, "heights" in the Word signifying where there is the good of charity, and in an abstract sense that good itself, "wilderness" signifies where there is no good because no truth, and "devastators" signify the evils and falsities through which good and truth perish; "the sword of Jehovah devoureth from the end of the land even to the end of the land" signifies falsity destroying all things of the church, "the sword devouring" meaning falsity destroying, and "from the end of the land even to the end of the land" signifying all things of the church; "no flesh hath peace" signifies that there is no longer internal rest, because of the dominion of evil and falsity; "they have sown wheat and have reaped thorns" signifies that instead of the goods of truth there are the evils of falsity, "wheat" meaning the goods of truth, and "thorns" the evils of falsity.

[6] In the same:

Ishmael, who was of the seed of the kingdom, slew Gedaliah, whom the king of Babylon had appointed over the land, and all the Jews who were with him, and the Chaldeans, also the men from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria; but ten men were found among them who said unto Ishmael, Put us not to death, for we have things hid in the field, wheat and barley, and oil and honey. So he forbare, and put them not to death (Jeremiah 41:1-8).

These historical statements describe, in the internal sense, the damnation of those who profane holy things; for "Gedaliah, whom the king of Babylon appointed over the land," and "the Jews who were with him," and "the Chaldeans," and "the men from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria," mean those who profane, and in the abstract sense, profanations of every kind, "the king of Babylon" signifying the profanation of good and truth. Their damnation is signified by their being put to death, for "to be put to death" signifies to be slain spiritually (See n. 315; but "the ten men who said to Ishmael, put us not to death for we have things hid in the field, wheat and barley, and oil and honey," mean those who have not profaned the holy things of the church, because inwardly they have good and truth; for those who profane have nothing of good and truth inwardly, but only outwardly when they speak and preach, while those who do not profane have good and truth inwardly; this is meant by their saying that "they have things hid in the field, wheat, barley, oil, and honey," "wheat and barley" signifying the goods and truths of the external man, "oil" the good of the internal man, and "honey" the delight thereof; "ten men" signify all who are such, "ten" signifying all persons and all things; that "he forbare and put them not to death" signifies that they were not profane, thus not damned; "Ishmael" represents those who are in the genuine truths of the church, which is also signified by "the seed of the kingdom," of which he was. Such are the things involved in this history, the histories in the Word equally with the prophecies having an internal sense.

[7] In Moses:

Jehovah thy God bringeth thee into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths going forth in valley and mountain; a land of wheat and barley, and of vine, and fig-tree, and pomegranate; a land of oil olive and honey (Deuteronomy 8:7-8

In the sense of the letter this is a description of the land of Canaan, but in the spiritual sense the Lord's church is described, since this is meant in that sense by "the land of Canaan;" and all kinds of good and truth pertaining to the church are enumerated. The land is called "a land of brooks of water," because "brooks of water" signify the doctrinals of truth; "fountains and depths going forth in valley and mountain" signify interior and exterior truths from the Word, "fountains," interior truths therefrom, and "depths" exterior truths. The latter are said to go forth "out of the valley," because "a valley" signifies what is lower and exterior, where such truths are; and the former are said "to go forth out of the mountain," because a "mountain" signifies what is higher and interior, where truths of that kind are; "a land of wheat and barley, and of vine and fig-tree, and pomegranate," signifies the church in respect to good and truth of every kind, "wheat and barley" signifying good and truth from a celestial origin, "vine and fig-tree" good and truth from a spiritual origin, and "pomegranate" knowledges of good and truth; and "a land of oil olive and honey" signifies the church in respect to the good of love and its enjoyment. One who does not know the spiritual sense of the Word believes no otherwise than that this merely describes the land of Canaan; but in that case the Word would be merely natural, and not spiritual, and yet the Word everywhere is in its bosom spiritual, and it is spiritual when by these words are understood the spiritual things they signify, namely, goods and truths of every kind. (But what "brooks," "fountains," "depths," "valley," "mountain," "vine," "fig-tree," "pomegranate," "olive," "oil" and "honey" signify is shown in Arcana Coelestia, all of which would be too extended to cite here; but many of these things have been shown and will be shown in this explanation of Revelation, and these may be consulted in their places.)

[8] In Job:

If I have eaten the strength (of the earth) without silver, and have made the soul of its [masters] to expire, let the thorn come forth instead of wheat, and the wild vine instead of barley (Job 31:39-40).

"To eat the strength of the earth without silver" signifies to appropriate to oneself the good of the church without the truth, "earth" meaning the church, and "silver" truth; and "to make the soul of its [masters] to expire" signifies thus to empty out the spiritual life; "let the thorn come forth instead of wheat, and the wild vine instead of barley" signifies that evil will be held for good, and falsity for truth, "wheat" meaning good, "thorn" evil, "barley" truth, and "wild vine" falsity; for good can be acquired only by means of truths.

[9] In Isaiah:

I have heard a consummation and decision from the Lord Jehovih of Hosts upon the whole earth. Will the ploughman plough all day for sowing? will he open and harrow his ground? when he hath made plain the faces thereof doth he not scatter the fennel? and doth he not put in the measured wheat and the appointed barley and the appointed spelt? Thus doth he chasten him for judgment, his God doth instruct him (Isaiah 28:22, 24-26).

This in the spiritual sense describes the total destruction of the church with the Jewish and Israelitish nation, and teaches that it is of no avail to learn and know the Word except for the purpose of applying its good and truth to the use of life; from this source and no other is intelligence from the Lord. That the church with that nation was wholly destroyed is meant by "I have heard a consummation and decision from the Lord Jehovih of Hosts upon the whole earth," "consummation and decision" meaning the complete destruction, and "the whole earth," the whole church, that is, every thing of it; that it is of no avail to learn and know the Word is signified by "will the ploughman plough all day for sowing? Will he open and harrow his ground?" "to plough for sowing" meaning to learn, and "to harrow the ground" meaning to deposit in the memory. That the good and truth of the Word should be applied to the use of life is signified by "when he hath made plain the faces thereof, doth he not scatter the fennel, and put in the measured wheat and the appointed barley and the appointed spelt?" "When he hath made plain the faces of the ground he scattereth the fennel" signifies when there is preparation by the Word; "the measured wheat and the appointed barley and the appointed spelt" signify the application of good and truth to the use of life, "wheat" meaning good, "barley" truth, and "spelt" knowledges; and that from this source and no other is intelligence from the Lord is signified by "thus doth he chasten for judgment, his God doth instruct him," "judgment" signifying intelligence, and "his God doth instruct him" signifying that it is from the Lord.

[10] In Moses:

Jehovah made him ride upon the high places of the earth, and fed him with the increase of the fields; He made him to suck honey out of the cliff, and oil out of the flint of the rock; butter of the herd and milk of the flock, with the fat of lambs, and of rams, the sons of Bashan, and of he-goats, with the fat of the kidneys of wheat; and thou drinkest the blood of grapes, unmixed wine (Deuteronomy 32:13-14).

This is said of the Ancient Church established by the Lord after the flood, which was in intelligence and wisdom, because it was in the good of charity and in the faith therefrom. This intelligence and wisdom from the Lord is signified by "Jehovah made him to ride upon the high places of the earth, and fed him with the increase of the fields;" the celestial and spiritual goods that they received through truths are described by "He made him to suck honey out of the cliff, and oil out of the flint of the rock; butter of the herd and milk of the flock, with the fat of lambs, and of rams, the sons of Bashan, and of he-goats, with the fat of the kidneys of wheat; and thou drinkest the blood of grapes, unmixed wine," "wheat" signifying here in a general sense all good, and "blood of grapes" and "unmixed wine" all truth therefrom.

[11] In David:

O that My people would hearken unto Me, and Israel would walk in My ways! I would feed ¹ them with the fat of wheat; and with honey out of the rock I would satisfy them (Psalms 81:13, 16).

"Fat of wheat," and "honey out of the rock with which they would be fed and satisfied" signify good of every kind from celestial good and enjoyment thereof from the Lord; for "fat" signifies celestial good, "wheat" good of every kind, "honey" the enjoyment of good, and "rock" the Lord. That those who live according to the Lord's commandments will possess these things is meant by "O that My people would hearken unto me, and Israel would walk in My ways!" "Ways" in the Word signifying truths and also commandments, and "to walk" signifying to live.

[12] In the same:

Celebrate Jehovah, O Jerusalem; praise thy God, O Zion. For He strengtheneth the bars of thy gates, He blesseth thy sons in the midst of thee. He maketh thy border peace, and satisfieth thee with the fat of wheat (Psalms 147:12-14).

"Jerusalem" and "Zion" mean the church; "Jerusalem" the church in respect to the truths of doctrine, and "Zion" the church in respect to the goods of love; "He maketh thy border peace" signifies all things of heaven and the church, for "border" signifies all these things; "He satisfieth thee with the fat of wheat" signifies with every good of love and with wisdom, "fat" signifying the good of love, and "wheat" all things from it, which are goods because they are from good; these things being signified, it is said, "the fat of wheat."

[13] In Hosea:

Jehovah said to the prophet, Go yet, love a woman beloved of her companion, and an adulteress, even as the love of Jehovah to the sons of Israel, who regard other gods, and love flagons of grapes. And I bought her to me for fifteen pieces of silver, and for a homer of barley, and a half homer of barley (Hosea 3:1-2).

This represented what the Jewish and Israelitish church was in respect to doctrine and worship, namely that by vain traditions it had falsified all things of the Word, though worshiping it as holy; "a woman beloved of her companion, and an adulteress whom the prophet should love" signifies such a church, "a woman" signifying the church, and "beloved of her companion and an adulteress" the falsification of truth and the adulteration of good; "even as the love of Jehovah to the sons of Israel, who regard other gods" signifies the falsities of doctrine and the evils of worship; these are signified by "regarding other gods;" "loving flagons of grapes" signifies the Word in the sense of the letter alone, for "wine" signifies the truths of doctrine from the Word, "grapes" its goods from which are truths, and "a flagon" signifies that which contains, thus the ultimate sense of the Word, which is the sense of the letter, and which they apply to their falsities and evils. "He bought her to him for fifteen pieces of silver" signifies for a small price, "fifteen" meaning very little; "a homer of barley" and "half a homer of barley" signifying so little of good and truths as to be scarcely any.

[14] In Matthew:

John said of Jesus, He shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire; whose fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly purge His floor; and will gather the wheat into the garner; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire (Matthew 3:11-12).

"To baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire" signifies to reform the church and to regenerate the man of the church by means of Divine truth and Divine good; "to baptize" signifying to reform and to regenerate, "the Holy Spirit" Divine truth proceeding from the Lord, and "fire" the Divine good of His Divine love. "The wheat that He will gather into the garner" signifies good of every kind that is of heavenly origin, which He is to preserve to eternity, thus those who are in good; and "the chaff that He will burn with unquenchable fire" signifies falsity of every kind that is of infernal origin, which He is to destroy, thus those who are in falsity; and because "wheat," "garner," and "chaff" are mentioned, "fan" and "floor" are also mentioned, "fan" signifying separation, and "floor" signifying where separation is effected.

[15] In the same:

Jesus said, The kingdom of the heavens is like unto a man that sowed good seed in his field; but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares, and went away. But when the blade sprang up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. And the servants of the householder coming said unto him, Lord, didst thou not sow good seed in thy field? whence then hath it tares? Then he said unto them, A man, an enemy hath done this. But the servants said, wilt thou then that we going out gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest haply while ye gather up the tares, ye root up at the same time the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest; and in the season of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye first the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn (Matthew 13:24-30).

What these words involve is very clear from the spiritual sense, for the particulars here are correspondences. For when the Lord was in the world, He spoke by pure correspondences, because He spoke from the Divine. Here the Last Judgment is treated of when there must be a separation of the good from the evil, and the good are to come into heaven, and the evil into hell. "The good seed in the field that the man sowed" signifies the truths of the church that are from good, "field" signifying the church where these are, and "sowing" signifying influx and reception, thus also instruction; "the man who sowed" means the Lord through the Word, in which are all the truths of the church; "while men slept his enemy came and sowed tares, and went away," signifies that with natural men the falsities of evil flow in from hell, and are received; for "to sleep" signifies to live a natural life separated from the spiritual life (See above 187), and "enemy" signifies hell, and "tares" signify the evils of falsity. What the remainder to the end signifies, can be seen from what is presented in the small work on The Last Judgment 70); for it involves arcana that are there explained; here it need only be said that "wheat" signifies the good of truth, and therefore those who are in good through truths; and that "tares" signify the evil of falsity, and therefore those who are in evil through falsities. That these things are said of the Last Judgment is evident from what follows in the same chapter, where it is said:

He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man; the field is the world; the seed are the sons of the kingdom; the tares are the sons of the evil one; the enemy is the devil; the harvest is the consummation of the age (Matthew 13:37-39).

"The consummation of the age" is the last time of the church when judgment takes place. From these passages quoted from the Word it can be seen that "wheat" signifies the good of the church in general, and "barley" its truth.

Бележки под линия:

186. That thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead, signifies the quality of their thought, in that they think themselves to be alive, because they are living a moral life, when yet they are dead. This is evident from the signification of "name," as being quality of state (See above, n. 148); also from the signification of "living," as being to have spiritual life (of which presently); also from the signification of "being dead," as being not to have spiritual life, but only moral life without it. This is "being dead," because in the Word "life" signifies the life of heaven with man, which is there also called "life eternal;" while "death" signifies the life of hell, which life in the Word is called "death," because it is the privation of the life of heaven. Here, therefore, "thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead," signifies thinking that they have spiritual life, and thus are saved, because they are living a moral life, when yet they are spiritually dead. But how this is to be understood can be seen from what was said above n. 182 of each life, spiritual and moral, namely, that moral life apart from spiritual life is the life of the love of self and the love of the world, while moral life that is from spiritual life is a life of love to the Lord and love towards the neighbor; this life is the life of heaven, but the other life is what is called spiritual death. When this is understood (See above, n. 182), it can be known what is meant here by "being alive and yet being dead."

[2] That "to live," or "being alive," signifies spiritual life in man, and "being dead" deprivation of that life, and damnation, can be seen from many passages in the Word, of which I will cite the following. Thus in Ezekiel:

When I shall say unto the wicked, In dying he ¹ shall die, and thou shalt not give him warning, nor speak to warn the wicked one from his evil way, that he may be made alive, the wicked shall die in his iniquity. But if thou shalt give warning to the wicked, and he shall not ² turn back from his wickedness nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; yet hast thou delivered thy soul. So if thou shalt give warning to a righteous man that he sin no more, ³ and he sin not, living he shall live, because he took warning (Ezekiel 3:18-21).

Here "dying he shall die" is to perish in eternal death, which is damnation, for it is said of the wicked; and "living he shall live" is to enjoy eternal life, which is salvation, for it is said of those who repent, and of the righteous.

[3] In the same:

Ye have profaned Me with My people, to kill the souls that should not die, and to keep alive the souls that should not live, whilst ye lie to My people, to them that hear a lie (Ezekiel 13:19).

This treats of the falsification of truth, which is meant by "Ye have profaned Me with My people," and by "ye lie to the people, to them that hear a lie." Here "a lie" signifies what is false, and what is falsified. "To kill the souls that should not die" is to deprive them of the life that comes from truths; and "to keep alive the souls that should not live" is to persuade them that life eternal is from falsities. That this is here meant by "making alive" is evident from the preceding verse there.

[4] In David:

Behold the eye of Jehovah is upon them that fear Him, to deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine (Psalms 33:18-19).

In the same:

Thou hast delivered my soul from death, and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of the living (Psalms 56:13).

In Jeremiah:

Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death (Jeremiah 21:8).

In John:

Jesus said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that heareth My Word hath eternal life, and shall not come into condemnation, but shall pass from death into life (John 5:24).

[5] It is clear that in these passages "death" means damnation, and "life" salvation. Because "death" is damnation it is also hell, for which reason hell is commonly called "death" in the Word, as in these passages. In Isaiah:

Hell will not confess Thee, nor will death praise Thee; they that go down into the pit will not hope on Thy truth. The living, the living, he shall confess Thee (Isaiah 38:18-19).

In the same:

We have made a covenant with death, and with hell we have made a vision (Isaiah 28:15).

In Hosea:

I will ransom them from the hand of hell; I will redeem them from death. O death, I will be thy plague! O hell, I will be thy perdition! (Hosea 13:14).

In David:

In death there is no remembrance of Thee; in hell who shall confess Thee? (Psalms 6:5).

In the same:

The cords of death compassed me, and the cords of hell (Psalms 18:4-5).

In the same:

Like sheep shall they be laid in hell; death shall feed them (Psalms 49:14).

In the same:

Jehovah, thou hast brought up my soul from hell; Thou hast made Me to live (Psalms 30:3).

In Revelation:

A pale horse, and he that sat upon him whose name was death, and hell will follow ⁴ him (Revelation 6:8).

And in another place:

Death and hell were cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:14).

[6] As "death" signifies damnation and hell, its meaning in the following passages is evident. In Isaiah:

He will swallow up death for ever; and the Lord Jehovih will wipe away tears from off all faces (Isaiah 25:8).

In the same:

That he might give the wicked to their sepulcher, and the rich in their deaths (Isaiah 53:9).

In David:

Jehovah, Thou liftest me up from the gates of death (Psalms 9:13).

Thou shalt not be afraid for the arrow that flieth by day, nor for the death that wasteth at noonday (Psalms 91:5-6).

In John:

If any one keep My word he shall never see death John 8:51).

In Revelation:

He that overcometh shall not be destroyed in the second death (Revelation 2:11).

In another place:

Many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter (Revelation 8:11).

In the same:

The second angel poured out a bowl upon the sea, and it became blood as of one dead, whence every living soul died in the sea (Revelation 16:3).

[7] From these passages it can be seen what is meant by "the dead," namely, those who have not in themselves the life of heaven, and consequently are in evils and in falsities therefrom. These are meant also in the following passages. In David:

They joined themselves also unto Baal-peor, and ate the sacrifices of the dead (Psalms 106:28).

In the same:

He hath made me to sit in darkness, like the dead of eternity (Psalms 143:3).

In Matthew:

One of His disciples said, Lord, suffer me first to go away and bury my father. Jesus said, Follow Me, and let the dead bury the dead (Matthew 8:21-22).

On account of this signification of "the dead":

The sons of Aaron were forbidden to touch any dead body (Leviticus 21:2-3, 11);

Likewise the priests, the Levites (Ezekiel 44:25);

Likewise the Nazirite (Numbers 6:6-7);

And whoever of the sons of Israel touched the dead must be cleansed by the water of separation (Numbers 19:11-22 end).

[8] As "death" signifies damnation and hell, so on the other hand "life" signifies salvation and heaven; as in the passages that follow. In Matthew:

Narrow is the gate and straitened is the way which leadeth unto life (Matthew 7:14).

In the same:

It is good to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes to be cast into the hell of fire (Matthew 18:9).

If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments (Matthew 19:17).

In John:

They shall come forth; they that have done good unto the resurrection of life (John 5:29).

From this it is that salvation is called "eternal life" (as in Matthew 19:16, 29; 25:46; Mark 10:30, 31; Luke 10:25; 18:18, 30; John 3:14-16, 36; 17:2, 3; and other places). For the same reason heaven is called "the land of the living," as in David:

"the land of the living," as in David:

O Jehovah, Thou art my reliance, my part in the land of the living (Psalms 142:5).

In the same:

That thou mayest see the good of Jehovah in the land of the living (Psalms 27:13).

In the same:

O bless our God, ye peoples, who places our soul among the living (Psalms 66:8, 9).

[9] That the Lord alone has life in Himself, and that even man has life from Him, the Lord Himself teaches in the following passages. In John:

As the Father raiseth up the dead and maketh them alive, even so the Son maketh alive whom He will. For as the Father hath life in Himself, so hath He given to the Son to have life in Himself (John 5:21, 26).

In the same:

Jesus said, I am the resurrection and the life; he that believeth in Me, though he die, shall live (John 11:25, 26).

In the same:

I am the way, the truth, and the life (John 14:6).

In the same:

I am the bread of life that cometh down out of heaven, and giveth life unto the world (John 6:33, 35, 47, 48).

From this it is that the Lord is said to be "Living" and "the Living One" (Revelation 4:9, 10; 5:14; 7:2; 10:6). The same is said of Jehovah in many passages in the prophets.

[10] And as the Lord is life, so all have life from Him; this also the Lord teaches. In John:

He that believeth on the Son hath eternal life; but he that believeth not the Son shall not see life (John 3:36).

In the same:

Jesus said, I came that the sheep may have life. I give unto them eternal life (John 10:10, 28).

In the same:

He that believeth on Me, though he die, shall live (John 11:25, 26).

In the same:

Ye will not come to Me, that ye may have life (John 5:40).

[11] "Life" signifies the Lord, and thence salvation and heaven, because all of life is from one only Fountain, and that only Fountain of life is the Lord, while angels and men are merely forms receiving life from Him. The Life itself that proceeds from the Lord and fills heaven and the world, is the life of His love, and in heaven this appears as light, and because this light is life it enlightens the minds of angels, and enables them to understand and be wise. From this it is that the Lord calls Himself not only "the Life" but also "the Light." As in John:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word. In Him was life; and the life was the light of men. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man coming into the world (John 1:1, 4-12).

In the same:

Jesus said, I am the Light of the world; he that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life (John 8:12).

In David:

Jehovah, with Thee is the fountain of life, in Thy light shall we see light (Psalms 36:9).

The light which is life from the Lord in heaven is there called Divine truth, because it shines in the minds of those who are there, and thence shines before their eyes. From this it is that in the Word "light" signifies Divine truth, and intelligence and wisdom therefrom, and that the Lord Himself is called "the Light." (But this is shown more fully in the work on Heaven and Hell 126-140, 275, which see.)

[12] The Lord is the source [a quo] of everything of life, because He is the sun of the angelic heaven, and the light of that sun is Divine truth, and its heat is Divine good; the two are life. From that origin is all life in heaven and in the world. The spiritual that flows into nature, and gives life there, is from no other source; but it gives life according to reception. (On this also see the work on Heaven and Hell 116-125.) From this it is now evident why it is that the Lord calls Himself "the Life," and why it is that those are said to have life and to live who receive light which is Divine truth, from the Lord, and why those who do not receive it are said not to live, but to be dead. (That there is one only Fountain of life, and that the Lord is that Fountain, see in the work on Heaven and Hell 9; and in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 278.)

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