577. And the heads of the horses as the heads of lions, signifies knowledge (scientia) and thought therefrom destructive of truth. This is evident from the signification of "the heads of horses," as being knowledge [scientia] and thought therefrom (of which presently); and from the signification of "the heads of lions," as being the consequent destruction of truth. "The heads of lions" signify here the destruction of truth, because a "lion" in the highest sense signifies Divine truth in respect to power, and in the contrary sense falsity destroying truth, consequently the destruction of truth, and "the head of a lion" signifies the powers of the mind through which it destroys, which are reasonings from falsities. (That a "lion" signifies Divine truth in respect to power, and in the contrary sense falsity destroying truth, may be seen above, n. 278.) The "heads of horses" signify knowledge [scientia] and thought therefrom, because "head" signifies intelligence, and "the horse" the understanding; and as the sensual man and here his reasoning from falsities are treated of, and the sensual man who reasons from falsities has no intelligence, but only knowledge [scientia] and thought therefrom, therefore these are here signified by "the heads of the horses." (That those who are in falsities have no intelligence, but instead of intelligence only knowledge, may be seen in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 33.)

[2] The "head" signifies intelligence, because the understanding and the will of man have their seat in the interiors of his head; consequently in the front part of the head, which is the face, are the senses of sight, hearing, smell, and taste, into which the understanding and the will flow from the interior and vivify them, and also cause them to enjoy their sensations; this is why the "head" signifies in the Word intelligence. But as those only who receive influx from heaven are intelligent, for all intelligence and wisdom flow in out of heaven from the Lord, it follows that they who are in the falsities of evil have no intelligence; for in them the higher and spiritual mind is closed, and only the lower mind, which is called the natural mind, is opened; and when the higher mind is closed the lower receives nothing of truth and good, consequently no intelligence from heaven, but only from the world. Such, therefore, in place of intelligence have mere knowledge [scientia] and thought from it, and from this proceeds reasoning, and by means of it the confirmation of falsity and evil against truth and good.

[3] That the "head" signifies in the Word intelligence and wisdom, and in the contrary sense knowledge [scientia] and fatuous thought therefrom, can be seen from the following passages in the Word. In Ezekiel:

I put a jewel upon thy nose, and ear-rings in thine ears, and a crown of adorning upon thy head (Ezekiel 16:12).

This is said of Jerusalem, which signifies the church, here such as it was in the beginning; "a jewel upon the nose" signifies the perception of truth from good; "the ear-rings in the ears" signify hearkening and obedience, and "a crown upon the head" signifies wisdom; for intelligence, which is from Divine truth, becomes wisdom from the good of love, and this is signified by "a crown of gold."

[4] In Revelation:

A woman encompassed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars (Revelation 12:1).

The "head" upon which was a crown of twelve stars, signifies intelligence, as will be seen in the explanation hereafter.

That the Jews placed a crown of thorns upon the Lord's head, and that they smote His head (Matthew 27:29, 30; Mark 15:17, 19; John 19:2);

signifies that they treated with such contumely Divine truth itself and Divine wisdom; for they falsified the Word, which is Divine truth and in which is Divine wisdom, and adulterated it by their traditions and by applying it to themselves; thus they desired a king who would exalt them over all in the whole earth. And as the Lord's kingdom was not earthly but heavenly, they perverted everything that was said respecting Him in the Word, and mocked at what was foretold of Him. This is what was represented by "their placing a crown of thorns upon His head, and smiting His head."

[5] Where the statue of Nebuchadnezzar seen in a dream is described, it is said in Daniel:

Its head was of pure gold, its breast and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of brass, its legs of iron, its feet part of iron and part of clay (Daniel 2:32, 33).

That statue represented the successive states of the church; "the head of gold" represented and signified the Most Ancient Church, which was in celestial wisdom, and thus in intelligence above the churches that followed; this wisdom and its intelligence are meant by the "head of gold." That the other parts of that statue signified the states of subsequent churches may be seen above (176, 411).

In David:

Thou hast brought us into the net; thou hast laid oppressions ¹ upon our loins. Thou hast caused man to ride over our head (Psalms 66:11, 12).

"To cause man to ride over our head" signifies that there is no intelligence (See above, n. 355), where this is more fully explained).

[6] In Moses:

These blessings shall come upon the head of Joseph, and upon the crown of the head of the Nazirite of his brethren (Genesis 49:26; Deuteronomy 33:13-16).

That "blessings shall come upon the head of Joseph" signifies that all the things that had just been mentioned, that are blessings of heaven, should take place in the interiors of his mind, which are the lives of the understanding and will, for these are the interiors of the mind. That they shall come upon "the crown of the head of the Nazirite of his brethren" signifies that they should also take place in the exteriors of his natural mind, for the "Naziriteship" signifies the exteriors of the natural mind, since it means the hairs, or the hair of the head. (But these words may be seen further explained above, n. 448; and in (Arcana Coelestia 6437, 6435) the Arcana Coelestia 6437, 6438.) In the same:

Take you wise men and intelligent, and I will put them as your heads (Deuteronomy 1:13).

It is said "as your heads" because wisdom and intelligence, in which they should excel all others, are meant; therefore it is said, "Take you wise men and intelligent."

[7] In Isaiah:

Jehovah hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes, the prophets; and your heads, the seers, hath He covered (Isaiah 29:10).

"Prophets" signify those who teach truths and are intelligent, and in an abstract sense, the doctrine of truth and intelligence; therefore it is said, "Jehovah hath closed your eyes, the prophets, and your heads, the seers," where the prophets are called "eyes," and the seers "heads," because "eyes" signify the understanding of truth in respect to doctrine, and "seers" like as "heads" signify intelligence.

[8] In the same:

Jehovah will cut off from Israel ² head and tail, branch and rush. The old man and the honorable will make the head, and the prophet, the teacher of lies the tail (Isaiah 9:14, 15).

In the same:

Neither shall there be for Egypt any work which will make the head or tail, branch or rush (19 Isaiah 19:15).

"He will cut off from Israel head and tail," and "neither shall there be for Egypt head or tail," signify that all the intelligence and knowledge [scientia] of truth they have shall perish (as may be seen above, n. 559, where these passages are more fully explained). In the same:

In that day shall the Lord shave with a razor that is hired in the crossings of the river, by the king of Assyria, the head and the hairs of the feet; and shall also consume the beard (Isaiah 7:20).

That this signifies that reasonings from falsities will deprive the men of the church of all wisdom and spiritual intelligence, may be seen above n. 569, where this is explained in particular; it is said "in the crossings of the river," because "the river Euphrates" signifies the reasonings from falsities, therefore here attack by these upon the truths of the church which are destroyed by reasoning from falsities.

[9] In Ezekiel:

Son of man, take thee a sharp sword, a barber's razor, and cause it to pass over ³ the head and over the beard; a third part thou shalt burn with fire, a third part thou shalt smite with the sword, and a third part thou shalt disperse in the wind (Ezekiel 5:1, 2).

Here also "to cause a razor to pass over the head" signifies to deprive of all intelligence of truth; for the reason that intelligence perishes when there are no ultimates of intelligence, which are signified by "the hairs of the head, which should be shaved with a razor by causing it to pass over the head;" for when ultimates are taken away it is as when the base is taken away from a column, or the foundation from a house. This is why it was unlawful in the Jewish Church, which was a representative church, to shave the hairs of the head and induce baldness, in like manner the beard; so also those who are without intelligence appear bald in the spiritual world.

[10] From all this the signification of "a bald head" and "baldness" in the following passages can be seen. In Isaiah:

On all their heads is baldness, every beard is cut off (Isaiah 15:2);

in other words, there is no intelligence. In Ezekiel:

Shame shall be upon all faces, and baldness upon all heads (7 Ezekiel 7:18).

In the same:

Every head was made bald, and every shoulder was peeled (2 Ezekiel 29:18).

These words have a similar meaning. So Aaron and his sons were forbidden to shave their heads and the corner of the beard, of which it is said in Moses:

That Aaron and his sons shall not shave their heads nor rend their clothes, lest they die, and lest Jehovah be angry in consequence with the whole congregation (Leviticus 10:6).

And in the same:

That the sons of Aaron should not make baldness upon their head, nor shave the corner of the beard (Leviticus 21:5).

The "beard" signifies the ultimate of the rational man, and "not shaving the beard" signifies not to be deprived of the rational, by taking away its ultimate; for, as was said above, when the ultimate is taken away the interior also perishes. What is meant by:

When a woman taken captive from the enemy is desired for a wife she must shave her head and pare her nails (Deuteronomy 21:11, 12);

may be seen explained above n. 555.

[11] Because shame was represented by the hands upon the head, it is said in Jeremiah:

Thou shalt be ashamed of Egypt also, as thou wast ashamed of Assyria. From her also thou shalt go forth with thy hands upon thy head (Jeremiah 2:36, 37).

And in the same:

They were ashamed and put to confusion and covered their heads (Jeremiah 14:3-4).

Because this was a representative of shame:

Tamar, after she had been ravished by her brother Amnon, put her hand on her head, and went weeping ⁴ and crying (2 Samuel 13:19).

To "put the hand upon the head" signified that no intelligence remained. Also grief for sin in having acted insanely and foolishly was represented by sprinkling dust upon the head, and by bowing the head down even to the earth; and by this cursing also was signified. As in Ezekiel:

They shall cast up dust upon thy head, they shall roll thee in ashes (Ezekiel 27:30).

In Lamentations:

The elders of the daughter of Zion sit on the earth, they keep silence; they have cast up dust upon their head; they have girded themselves with sackcloth; the virgins of Jerusalem have made their head to hang down to the ground (Lamentations 2:10).

[12] But in the contrary sense the "head" signifies the craftiness that those have who are in the love of ruling. This is meant by the "head" in Moses:

The seed of the woman shall trample upon the head of the serpent, and the serpent shall hurt the heel (Genesis 3:15).

In David:

The Lord at thy right hand hath stricken through kings in the day of His anger; He hath judged among the nations; He hath filled with dead bodies; He hath stricken through the head over many a land; He shall drink out of the brook in the way; therefore shall He exalt the head (Psalms 110:5-7).

(This passage may be seen explained above, n. 518.) In the same:

God shall strike through the head of His enemies, the hairy scalp of such as go on in guilt (Psalms 68:21).

That the craftiness by which they purpose and contrive evil against others returns upon themselves is signified by:

Bringing their way upon their own head (Ezekiel 9:10; 11:21; 16:43; 17:19; 22:31; Joel 3:4, 7).

What is signified in Revelation by:

The seven heads upon which were seven diadems (Revelation 12:3; 13:1, 3; 17:3, 7, 9);

will be seen hereafter. Moreover, the "head," as what is highest and primary in man, has also many other meanings; as the peak of a mountain, the top of anything, what is primary, the beginning of a way, of a street, of a month, and the like.

Бележки под линия:

413. Verse 17. For the great day of His anger is come, signifies the Last Judgment upon the evil. This is evident from the following passages from the Word. The Last Judgment, which is signified by "the great day," is upon the evil and also upon the good; the judgment upon the evil is called "a day of indignation," "of wrath," "of anger," and "of vengeance," while the judgment upon the good is called "the time of the Lord's coming," "the year of His good pleasure," "the year of the redeemed," "the year of salvation." Everyone, whether evil or good, is judged immediately after death, when he enters the spiritual world, where he is to live to eternity, for man is then immediately marked out either for heaven or for hell; he that is marked out for heaven is connected with some heavenly society into which he will afterwards come, and he that is marked out for hell is connected with the infernal society into which he will afterwards come. There is, however, an interval of time before they go thither, chiefly for the purpose of preparation; for the good, that the evils that adhere to them from the body in the world may be wiped away; and for the evil, that the goods that adhere to them outwardly from teachers and from religion may be taken away; according to the Lord's words in Matthew:

Whosoever hath, to him shall be given, that he may have more abundantly; whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath (Matthew 13:32; 25:29).

This delay occurs for this reason also, that the affections, which are of many kinds, may be so arranged and reduced to the ruling love that the man-spirit may become wholly his own love. Yet many of them, both evil and good, were reserved for the Last Judgment; but only such of the evil as from habit acquired in the world had been able to lead a moral life in externals, and such of the good as from ignorance and from their religion had been imbued with falsities; but the rest, when their time had been fulfilled, were separated from these, the good were elevated into heaven, and the evil were cast into hell, and this before the Last Judgment.

[2] The Last Judgment is called "the great day of the anger of God" because to the evil who are cast down into hell it appears as if it were God who did this from anger and wrath, for the destruction that then comes upon them comes from above, and also from the east where the Lord is as a sun, and they are then in terrors, griefs, and also in torments. But the Lord has no anger whatever, for He is love and mercy itself and good itself; and pure love and good itself cannot be angry; for this is contrary to its essence. But it so appears for this reason: when the last state is reached, which is when evils on the earth and at the same time then in the spiritual world have so increased that the supremacy inclines to their side, and thereby the equilibrium between heaven and hell is perishing, and this perishing, the heavens where the angels dwell begin to labor, then the Lord from the sun directs His energy, that is His love, to protecting the angels and restoring the state which labors and begins to totter; and by this energy and power Divine truth united to Divine good, which in its essence is Divine love, penetrates through the heavens to the places below, where the evil have associated themselves together; and because they cannot endure such influx and presence of the Divine love they begin to tremble, and to be in anguish and torment; for thereby the goods and truths which they have learned to feign by speech and action merely in externals, are dispersed, and their internals, which are nothing but evils and falsities, are opened; and as these are in direct opposition to the goods and truths that flow in from within, although they have made evils and falsities their life, they experience such tremor, anguish and torment, that they can no longer maintain themselves, therefore they flee away and cast themselves into the hells which are under the mountains and rocks, where they can be in evils and in the falsities of their evils. This in particular is signified by the words explained above, "They said to the mountains and to the rocks, Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the anger of the Lamb."

[3] From this it can be seen why the words "the anger of the Lamb" are used, and why the Last Judgment is called "the great day of His anger," although it is the Divine love that is meant, the operation of which viewed in itself is to save all, for it is a will to save, thus not anger at all, but love. The like is true when an evil spirit who can feign himself an angel of light ascends into heaven. When he comes thither, as he cannot endure the Divine good and the Divine truth that are there, he begins to feel anguish and torment to the extent even that he casts himself down with all his might, nor does he rest until he is in the hell corresponding to his evil.

It is from this appearance, and because when they do evils they are punished, that indignation, anger, wrath, and even fury and vengeance, are so often in the Word attributed to Jehovah, that is, the Lord; but a presentation of all the passages where these are attributed to Jehovah, that is, to the Lord, is here omitted because there are so many of them, and a few only will be cited, in which the Last Judgment is called "the day of the indignation," "of the anger," "of the wrath," and "of the vengeance" of Jehovah and God, as in the following.

[4] In Isaiah:

Behold the day of Jehovah cometh, cruel and of indignation and of the glowing of anger, to lay the land waste, and He shall destroy its sinners out of it. I will make heaven to tremble, the land shall quake out of its place, in the indignation of Jehovah of Hosts, and in the day of the glowing of His anger (Isaiah 13:9, 13).

"A day cruel and of the glowing of Jehovah's anger" means the Last Judgment; and because it is evil that glows, and falsity that is angry, it is called "a day of the glowing of anger." "The land that shall be laid waste, and that shall quake out of its place," means the land that is in the spiritual world, for there are lands there the same as on our globe; and those lands, while the Last Judgment is going on, are "laid waste" and "quake out of their place," for the mountains and hills are then overturned, and the valleys sink down into marshes, and the face of all things there is changed. Nevertheless, "land" in the spiritual sense means the church everywhere, for in the spiritual world the face of the land is similar to the state of the church with those who dwell upon the land there, consequently when the church perishes the land also perishes, for they make one; and then in place of the former land a new one comes into existence; but these changes are unknown to us on our earth. Nevertheless they must be made known, in order that it may be understood what is meant by "the land shall be laid waste, and shall quake out of its place."

[5] In Zephaniah:

When the glowing of the anger of Jehovah hath not yet come upon you; when the day of the anger of Jehovah hath not yet come upon you, it may be ye shall be hid in the day of Jehovah's anger (Zephaniah 2:2-3).

Here, too, "the glowing of anger" and "the day of Jehovah's anger" mean the Last Judgment. In Lamentations:

He doth not remember the footstool of His feet in the day of His anger (Lamentations 2:1).

"The footstool of Jehovah's feet" means the worship of the Lord in the natural world, for the reason that the whole heaven, together with the church in the world, is before the Lord a semblance of one man (as may be seen in Heaven and Hell 78-86), the inmost heaven constituting the head, the other heavens the breast and legs, and the church on earth the feet; consequently the feet signify also the natural; moreover, the heavens rest upon the church which is with mankind as a man does upon his feet (as can be seen from what is shown in the same work, n. 87-102, also 291-302). Since the Last Judgment comes when there is no longer any faith because there is no charity, thus when the church is at an end, it is evident what is meant by "He doth not remember the footstool of His feet in the day of His anger." And elsewhere:

There was none that escaped nor any residue in the day of Jehovah's anger; those whom I brought up and nourished hath mine enemy consumed (Lamentations 2:22).

"The day of Jehovah's anger" is the Last Judgment; that there is then no longer any good of love nor any truth of faith in the church, but evil and falsity is signified by "there was none that escaped nor any residue; those whom I brought up and nourished hath mine enemy consumed;" "there was none that escaped nor any residue" signifying that there was no good nor truth; "whom I brought up and nourished" meaning those who are of the church, who have all spiritual food or the knowledge of good and truth from the Word; "the enemy that consumed them" meaning evil and falsity.

[6] In Revelation:

Thine anger came, the time of judging the dead, and of giving the reward to Thy servants, and to those that fear Thy name, and of destroying them that destroy the earth (Revelation 11:18).

This makes clear that "anger" or "the day of anger" means the Last Judgment, for it is said "Thine anger came, the time of judging the dead." In Isaiah:

The day of vengeance is in My heart, and the year of My redeemed hath come. I have trodden down the peoples in Mine anger, and made them drunk in My wrath (Isaiah 63:4, 6).

This treats of the combats of the Lord, by which He subjugated the hells, thus of a Last Judgment which was accomplished by Him when He was in the world; for by combats, which were temptations admitted into Himself, He subjugated the hells and wrought a Last Judgment. It is this judgment that is meant by "the day of Jehovah's anger and wrath" in the Word of the Old Testament; but the Last Judgment, which has at the present time been accomplished is meant by "the day of His anger" in Revelation. (That a Last Judgment was performed by the Lord when He was in the world, see Last Judgment 46.) The subjugation of the hells is here signified by "I have trodden them down in Mine anger, and have made them drunk in My wrath;" "the year of the redeemed" signifies the judgment upon the good who are saved.

[7] In the same:

The spirit of the Lord Jehovih is upon me, to proclaim the year of Jehovah's good pleasure, and the day of vengeance for our God; to comfort all that mourn (Isaiah 61:1, 2).

The day of vengeance of Jehovah, the year of retributions for the controversy of Zion (Isaiah 34:8).

"The day of vengeance of Jehovah," like "the day of His anger and wrath," signifies the Last Judgment. This is because vengeance is attributed to Jehovah or the Lord for the same reason anger and wrath are-namely, from the appearance that those who have denied the Divine and have been hostile in heart and mind to the goods and truths of the church, consequently hostile to the Lord who is the source of these, are cast down into hell (as are all who live wickedly). And because these are treated as enemies, vengeance, like anger, is attributed to the Lord (See above). "The year of retributions" signifies the like as "the day of vengeance," but it is predicated of falsities, while "the day of vengeance" is predicated of evils; "the controversy of Zion" signifies the rejection of the truth and good of the church; "Zion" meaning the church. In other places also, the time of the Last Judgment is called "the day of Jehovah," "the day of visitation," "the day of slaughter," and "the day of the coming":

The day of the Lord's coming (Malachi 3:2; Matthew 24:3, 27, 37, 39).