395. (Verse 11) And white robes were given unto every one. That this signifies Divine truth from the Lord with them, and protection, is plain from the signification of a white robe, as denoting Divine truth from the Lord; for a robe signifies truth in general, because it is the general covering; and white is said of truths from the Lord, for whiteness is characteristic of light, and the light proceeding from the Lord as a Sun is in its essence Divine truth. That by the white robes given to every one, is also signified protection, will be explained below. First, however, it shall be explained why a white robe signifies Divine truth from the Lord. All spirits and angels are clothed according to their intelligence, or according to the reception of truth in the life, for this is intelligence, and the light of their intelligence is formed into garments, which, when they are thence formed, not only appear as garments, but also are garments. For all things that exist in the spiritual world, and appear before their eyes, exist from the light and heat that proceed from the Lord as a Sun. From this origin not only are all things in the spiritual world created and formed, but also all things in the natural world; for the natural world exists and subsists from the Lord through the spiritual world. Hence it is evident that appearances in heaven before the angels, are altogether real; similarly also the garments. Because spirits and angels are clothed according to intelligence, and all intelligence belongs to truth, and angelic intelligence is from Divine truth, therefore they are clothed according to truths. On this account garments signify truths; garments that are next to the body, and thence interior, signify interior truths; and the garments that are around and enclose the former, signify exterior truths; whence a robe, a gown, and a cloak, which are general coverings, signify truths in general, and the white robe which they have from the Lord, the Divine truth in general. (But see what has been shown concerning the garments with which the angels are clothed, in the work concerning Heaven and Hell 177-182; and what has been said above concerning the signification of garments, n. 64, 65, 195, 271.)

[2] The white robes given to those who were under the altar, also signify protection by the Lord, because the white robes given to them, represented the Lord's presence with the Divine truth around them; and the Lord by means of Divine truth protects His own, for He surrounds them with a sphere of light, from which they have white robes; and when they are thus encompassed, they can no longer be infested by evil spirits; for, as said above, they were infested by them, and, therefore, were hidden by the Lord. This also takes place with those who are raised by the Lord into heaven. They are then clothed with white robes, which is an indication that they are in Divine truth, and thus in safety. But concerning those who are clothed in white robes, more will be seen in the explanation of the chapter which follows, at verses 9, 13-17.

[3] That a robe, a gown, and a cloak, signify Divine truth in general is evident also from the following passages. In Zechariah:

"The prophets shall be ashamed every one on account of his vision, when he hath prophesied; neither shall they wear a mantle of hair to deceive" (13:4).

By prophets are signified those who teach truths from the Word, and in an abstract sense, truths of doctrine from the Word, and because these things were signified by prophets, therefore, these were clothed with a mantle of hair; for by a mantle of hair was signified Divine truth in ultimates, which is Divine truth in general, for the ultimate contains all things interior, hair also signifies the ultimate. Hence it was, that Elijah from his mantle was also called a hairy man (2 Kings 1:7, 8); and that John the Baptist, who was like Elias, by reason of a similar representation, had a garment of camel's hair (Matthew 3:4). From these things it is evident what is signified by the prophets not wearing a mantle of hair to deceive, namely, that they shall not declare truths to be falsities, and falsities to be truths, this being signified by deceiving.

[4] Because Elijah represented the Lord as to the Word, which is the very doctrine of truth, and Elisha continued the representation; and because a mantle signified Divine truth in general, which is the Word in ultimates, therefore, the mantle of Elijah passed to Elisha; and by Elijah's mantle also the waters of Jordan were divided, according, to these statements in the books of the Kings:

When Elijah found Elisha "he cast his mantle upon him" (1 Kings 19:19).

"Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters" of Jordan, "which were divided hither and thither, and they two went over on dry ground."

Elisha seeing "when Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven," took up the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of Jordan; and he took the mantle and smote the waters, which parted hither and thither; and he went over" (2 Kings 2:8, 11-14).

That Elijah cast his mantle upon Elisha, signified that he transferred to Elisha the representation of the Lord as to the Word; and the mantle falling from Elijah, when he was taken away, and being taken up by Elisha, signified that that representation was transferred to Elisha, for Elijah and Elisha represented the Lord as to the Word, and were clothed according to what they represented; the mantle signifying the Word in ultimates, which is Divine truth in general, or Divine truth in its whole extent. The waters of Jordan being divided by Elijah's mantle, first by Elijah and afterwards by Elisha, signified the power of Divine truth in ultimates. The waters of Jordan also signified the first truths which introduce into the church, and these first [truths] are those in the ultimates of the Word. Hence also it is evident that a mantle and robe signify Divine Truth in general. (That Elijah represented the Lord as to the Word, and similarly Elisha, may be seen, n. 2762, 5247. That the ultimate contains the interior things, and thence signifies all things in general, n. 634, 6239, 6465, 9215, 9216, 9828; that hence strength and power are in ultimates, n. 9836; that Jordan signifies entrance into the church, and that hence the waters of Jordan signify the first truths by which there is entrance, n. 1585, 4255; and that waters denote truths, see above, n. 71.) The first truths are also ultimate truths, such as are those in the sense of the letter of the Word; for by these entrance is effected, for they are first learnt, and in them are all the interior things that constitute the internal sense of the Word.

[5] He who does not know what a robe or mantle signifies, does not know what a cloak signifies; for a cloak, the same as a mantle, was a general garment, because it encompassed the waistcoat, or inner garment, whence it has also the same signification; consequently, neither does he know what was signified by Saul's rending the skirt of Samuel's cloak; by David's cutting off the skirt of Saul's cloak; by Jonathan's giving David his cloak and garments; and by the daughters of a king, being arrayed in cloaks of divers colours, and many other cases in which cloaks are mentioned in the Word. Concerning Saul's rending the skirt of Samuel's cloak, we read thus:

"Samuel turned about to go away, but he laid hold upon the skirt of his cloak, and it rent. And Samuel said, Jehovah hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to thy companion, who is better than thou" (1 Sam. 15:27, 28).

From the words of Samuel it is evident that the rending of the skirt of the cloak signified the rending of the kingdom from Saul, for he said, after it was done, "Jehovah hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day." For by a king and his kingdom is signified the Divine truth of the church; and by the skirt of his cloak is signified Divine truth in ultimates, or all [Divine truth] in general; for the kings over the sons of Israel represented the Lord as to Divine truth, and their kingdom signified the church as to this; therefore by that historical circumstance is signified that king Saul was become such that he could no longer represent the Lord, and that otherwise the representative of the church would perish. (That kings represented the Lord as to Divine truth, and that a kingdom thence signified the church as to that, may be seen above, n. 29, 31.)

[6] The same is signified by David's cutting off the skirt of Saul's cloak, concerning which we read thus:

David entered into the cave where Saul was, and cut off the skirt of Saul's cloak, and when thereafter he showed it to Saul, Saul said, "Now I know that thou shalt reign, and the kingdom of Israel shall be established in thy hand" (1 Sam. 24:4, 6, 12, 21).

This was done by David of the Divine Providence, that the same thing might be represented as above, for by the skirt of the cloak, and by king Saul and his kingdom, similar things are signified.

[7] The same is also signified by Jonathan, the son of Saul, stripping himself of his cloak and his garments, and giving them to David, concerning which we read thus:

"Jonathan stripped himself of the cloak that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his garments, and even to his sword and to his bow and to his girdle" (1 Sam. 18:4).

By this was signified, that Jonathan, the heir of the kingdom, transferred all his right to David; for all the things that Jonathan gave to David were representative of the kingdom, that is of the Divine truth of the church, which Saul represented; for, as said above, all the kings who reigned over the sons of Israel represented the Lord as to Divine truth, and their kingdom, the church as to that [truth].

[8] Because cloaks and mantles signified Divine truth in general, therefore:

"Virgins, the king's daughters, were apparelled with mantles of divers colours" (2 Sam. 13:18).

Virgins, the king's daughters, signified the affections of truth, and thence the church, as is evident from a thousand passages in the Word where a king's daughter, the daughter of Zion, and the daughter of Jerusalem, and also the virgin Zion, and the virgin Jerusalem, are mentioned; therefore the king's daughters also represented the truths of that affection by garments, and in general by mantles, which thence were variegated with divers colours. So also truths from good, or truths from affection, are represented by the garments of virgins in heaven; which truths are more fully described by the garments of the king's daughters, in David (Psalms 45:8, 9, 13, 14).

[9] Because mourning in the ancient churches signified spiritual mourning, which is on account of the deprivation of truth, therefore, this was then represented in mourning, by their rending their mantles or cloaks, as is clear in Job:

When Job had lost everything, "then he arose, rent his mantle, and said, Naked came I out of my mother's womb, and naked shall I return" (1:20, 21).

And in another place:

Job's three friends, when they saw him, wept "and rent their cloaks" (2:12).

(That to rend the garments was representative of mourning on account of truth being injured or destroyed, may be seen, n. 4763.)

And again, in Ezekiel:

"All the princes of the sea shall come down from their thrones, and shall cast away their cloaks, and put off their embroidered garments; they shall be clothed with terrors; they shall sit upon the ground" (26:16).

These things are said of Tyre, by which is signified the church as to the knowledges (cognitions) of truth and good; in this passage the church where these are destroyed. That they have no longer any truths by which the church is formed, is signified by, all the princes of the sea shall come down from their thrones, the princes of the sea denoting primary scientific truths, to come down from the thrones, signifying that they were destroyed, and, consequently, that there is no intelligence. The same is signified by their casting away their cloaks, and putting off their embroidered garments, robes denoting truths in general, and embroidered garments the knowledges (cognitions) of truth. Condemnation thence is signified by, "they shall be clothed with terrors; they shall sit upon the ground."

[10] In Micah:

"My people have accounted every one as an enemy to them for the sake of a garment, ye draw off the mantle from them that pass securely, that are returning from the war" (2:8).

By these words is not signified that the sons of Israel have accounted any for an enemy for the sake of a garment, and that they drew off the mantle of those that passed by securely; but that they held as enemies those who spoke truths, and deprived of all truth those who lived well, and shook off falsities; garment denoting truth; robe denoting all truth, because denoting truth in general. To pass by securely, denotes to live well; men returning from war, denote those who have shaken off falsities, war denoting the combat of truth against falsity. Who cannot see that such is the spiritual meaning of the Word; and that the people of Israel did not account any one as an enemy for a garment, or draw off the mantle from those who passed by?

[11] In Matthew:

The scribes and Pharisees "do all their works that they may be seen of men; they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments" (23:5).

These things the scribes and Pharisees did, but still, thereby was represented and signified that they spoke many things from the ultimates of the Word, and applied them to life, and to their traditions, in order that they might appear holy and learned. By their phylacteries, which they make broad, are signified goods in the outward form, for the phylacteries were worn upon the hands, and by the hands are signified actions, because the hands are employed to act. By the borders of their garments which they enlarge, are signified external truths, external truths are those in the ultimate sense of the letter; mantles denoting truths in general, and borders their ultimates. (That the borders of the mantles signify such truths, may be seen in the Arcana Coelestia 9917.)

[12] In Isaiah:

"I will greatly rejoice in Jehovah, my soul shall exult in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation; he hath covered me with a cloak of justice" (61:10).

To rejoice in Jehovah, signifies to rejoice in Divine good; to exult in God, signifies, in the Divine truth; for the Lord is called Jehovah from Divine good, and God from Divine truth; and all spiritual joy is from them. To clothe with the garments of salvation, signifies to instruct and gift with truths; and to cover with a cloak of justice, signifies to fill with every truth from good, a cloak denoting all truth because it denotes truth in general, justice being said of good.

[13] In the same:

"He put on the garments of vengeance, and clothed himself with zeal as a cloak" (59:17).

These things are said of the Lord, and of His combat with the hells; for when He was in the world He reduced all things in the hells and in the heavens to order, and this by Divine truth from the Divine love. The garments of vengeance signify the truths by which [He fought]; zeal, as a cloak, signifies the Divine love from which [He fought]; a cloak is mentioned, because it is signified by Divine truths from the Divine love. (But what the cloak of the ephod signifies, with which Aaron was wrapped around, and upon the borders of which were pomegranates and bells, of which [mention is made] in Exodus 27:31-35; Leviticus 8:7, may be seen in the Arcana Coelestia 9910-9928.)

3147. 'And water to wash his feet' means purification there. This is clear from the meaning of 'water to wash' or 'washing with water' as purifying, dealt with below, and from the meaning of 'feet' as natural things, or what amounts to the same, those things that are in the natural man, dealt with in 2162. In the representative Church washing feet with water was a ceremonial act which meant washing away the filth of the natural man. The filth of the natural man is composed of all the things that belong to self-love and love of the world, and when such filth has been washed away goods and truths flow in, for that filth alone is what hinders the influx of good and truth from the Lord.

[2] For good is flowing in constantly from the Lord, but when by way of the internal or spiritual man it reaches the external or natural man it is either perverted there, or turned away, or stifled. But when indeed the things that belong to self-love and love of the world are removed, good is received there, and bears fruit there, since the person now performs the works of charity. This may become clear from many considerations, such as this: When the things that belong to the external or natural man are quiescent - as they are in times of ill-fortune, wretchedness, and sickness - a person instantly starts to become spiritually-minded and to will what is good, and also to perform acts of devotion insofar as he is able. But when that state alters, these things are altered too.

[3] In the Ancient Church 'washings' were signs meaning these things, and in the Jewish Church the same were representations. The reason why in the Ancient Church they were meaningful signs but in the Jewish Church representations was that members of the Ancient Church regarded that custom as some external act of worship. Nor did they believe that they were purified by that kind of washing but by a washing away of the filth of the natural man, which, as has been stated, is composed of the things that belong to self-love and love of the world. But the member of the Jewish Church did believe that he was purified by such washing, for he did not know, and did not wish to know, that the purifying of a person's interior self was meant.

[4] That 'washing' means the washing away of that filth is clear in Isaiah,

Wash yourselves; purify yourselves; remove the evil of your doings from before My eyes; cease to do evil. Isaiah 1:16.

Here it is evident that 'washing themselves' means purifying themselves and removing evils. In the same prophet,

When the Lord will have washed the excrement of the daughters of Zion and washed away the blood of Jerusalem from its midst in a spirit of judgement and in a spirit of purging. Isaiah 4:4.

Here 'washing the excrement of the daughters of Zion and washing away the blood of Jerusalem' stands for purifying from evils and falsities. In Jeremiah,

Wash your heart from wickedness, O Jerusalem, that you may be saved. How long will your iniquitous thoughts lodge within you? Jeremiah 4:14.

[5] In Ezekiel,

I washed you with water, and washed away the blood from upon you, and anointed you with oil. Ezekiel 16:9.

This refers to Jerusalem, which is used here to mean the Ancient Church. 'Washing with water' stands for purifying from falsities, 'washing away the blood' for purging from evils, 'anointing with oil' for filling with good at that time. In David,

Wash me from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. You will purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean; You will wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Psalms 51:2, 7.

'Being washed' plainly stands for being purified from evils and derivative falsities.

[6] These were the things that were meant by 'washing' in the Representative Church. For the sake of the representation, when they had been made unclean and needed to be cleansed, people were commanded in that Church to wash the skin, hands, feet, and also their garments. All these meant things that belong to the natural man. Also for the sake of the representation, lavers made of bronze were placed outside the Temple - that is to say, 'the bronze sea and the ten bronze lavers' mentioned in 1 Kings 7:23-29; there was also the bronze laver from which Aaron and his sons were to wash themselves, placed between the Tent of Meeting and the Altar, and so outside the Tent of Meeting, Exodus 30:18-19, 21 - the meaning of which was that only external or natural things needed to be purified. And unless they have been purified, that is, unless things belonging to self-love and love of the world have been removed from them, internal things which belong to love to the Lord and towards the neighbour cannot possibly flow in, as stated above.

[7] To enable these matters to be understood more easily, that is to say, regarding the need for external things to be purified, let good works - or what amounts to the same, the goods of charity, which are at the present day called the fruits of faith, and which, since they are actions, are external - serve to exemplify and illustrate the point: Good works are bad works unless the things belonging to self-love and love of the world are removed. For until these have been removed works, when performed, are good to outward appearance but are inwardly bad. They are inwardly bad because they are done either for the sake of reputation, or for financial gain, or for improvement of one's position, or for reward. They are accordingly either merit-seeking or hypocritical, for the things that belong to self-love and love of the world cause those works to be such. But when indeed these evils are removed, works become good, and are the goods of charity. That is to say, they are done regardless of self, the world, reputation, or reward, and so are not merit-seeking or hypocritical, because in that case celestial love and spiritual love flow from the Lord into those works and cause them to be love and charity in action. And at the same time the Lord also purifies the natural or external man by means of those things and orders it so that that man receives correspondingly the celestial and spiritual things that flow in.

[8] This becomes quite clear from what the Lord taught when He washed the disciples' feet: In John,

He came to Simon Peter, who said to Him, Lord, do You wash my feet? Jesus answered and said to him, What I am doing you do not know now, but you will know afterwards. Peter said to Him, You will never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me. Simon Peter said to Him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and head! Jesus said to him, He who is washed has no need except that his feet be washed, but is clean all over. Now you are clean, but not all of you. John 13:4-17.

'He who is washed has no need except that his feet be washed' means that anyone who has been reformed needs to be cleansed only in regard to natural things, that is, to have evils and falsities removed from them. For when that happens all is ordered by the influx of spiritual things from the Lord. Furthermore 'feet-washing' was an act of charity, meaning that one ought not to dwell on the evils of another person. It was also an act of humility, meaning the cleansing of another from evils, like filth from the body, as also becomes clear from the Lord's words in verses 12-17 of that chapter in John, and also in Luke 7:37-38, 44, 46; John 11:2; 1 Samuel 25:41.

[9] Anyone may see that washing himself does not purify a person from evils and falsities, only from the filth that clings to him. Yet because it belonged among the religious observances commanded in the Church it follows that it embodies some special idea, namely spiritual washing, which is purification from the filth that clings to man inwardly. Members of that Church therefore who knew these things and thought of purification of the heart, that is, the removal of the evils of self-love and love of the world from the natural man, and tried to achieve it with utmost zeal, practiced ritual washing as an external act of worship, as commanded. But among those who did not know and did not wish to know those things but who supposed that the mere ritual act of washing garments, skin, hands, and feet would purify them, and who supposed that provided they performed such rituals they would be allowed to continue leading lives of avarice, hatred, revenge, mercilessness, and cruelty - all of which constitute spiritual filth - the performance of the ritual was idolatrous. Nevertheless by means of that ritual they were still able to represent, and by means of the representation to display, some vestige of a Church, by means of which heaven was in a way joined to mankind prior to the Lord's Coming. But that conjunction was such that heaven had little or no influence at all on the member of that Church.

[10] The Jews and Israelites were such that they did not think at all of the internal man, nor did they wish to know anything about the same. Thus they knew absolutely nothing about the celestial and spiritual things which belong to the life after death. Nevertheless to prevent the end of all communication with heaven and so with the Lord, they were bound to the performance of external observances by which internal things were meant. All their captivities and plagues were in general to the end that external observances might be duly carried out for the sake of the representation. It was for this reason that the following laws were given:

Moses was to wash Aaron and his sons with water at the tent door, to sanctify them. Exodus 29:4; 40:12; Leviticus 8:6.

Aaron and his sons were to wash their hands and feet before entering the Tent of Meeting and approaching the Altar to minister, lest they died. This was to them a statute for ever. Exodus 30:18-21; 40:30-31.

Before putting on his vestments Aaron was to wash his flesh. Leviticus 16:4, 24.

Levites were to be purified by sprinkling the water of expiation over them, passing a razor over their flesh, and washing their clothes - then they were pure. Numbers 8:6-7.

Anyone who ate the carcass of a clean animal, ¹ or that which had been torn to pieces, was to wash his clothes and bathe himself with water, and if he did not wash himself and bathe his flesh he would bear his iniquity. Leviticus 17:15-16.

Anyone who touched the bed of a person who had a discharge, or sat on a vessel on which that person had sat, and anyone who touched that person's flesh was to wash his clothes and to bathe himself with water, and be unclean until the evening. Leviticus 15:5-7, 10-12 and following verses.

The person who sent the goat away to Azazel was to wash his flesh. Leviticus 16:26.

When a leper was to be cleansed he was to wash his clothes, shave off all his hair, wash himself in water, and then he would be clean. Leviticus 14:8-9.

Even vessels themselves which had become unclean through contact with unclean persons were made to go through water and be unclean until the evening. Leviticus 11:32.

From all these laws it may be seen that nobody was made clean or pure internally through ritual washing, but that such a person merely represented him who was pure or spiritually clean, for the reason stated above. The Lord teaches the same quite explicitly in Matthew 15:1-20; Mark 7:1-23.

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