1032. Saying unto me, Come, I will show thee the judgment of the great whore. That this signifies their religious persuasion, in which all the good and truth of the church is adulterated and profaned, is evident from the signification of judgment, as denoting all that concerns their religious persuasion, and at length the damnation thereof; and from the signification of the great whore, as denoting the adulteration and profanation of the good and truth of the church, as may be seen above (n. 141, 161, 717, 881). The reason why these things are meant by the great whore is, that Babylon is thereby understood, as is evident from the fifth verse of this chapter, where it is said: "Upon the forehead of the whore was a name written, Mystery, Babylon the great, the mother of the whoredoms and abominations of the earth." And by Babylon is signified the adulteration and profanation of good and truth, as shown many times above in article 1029.

[2] The reason why Babylon is called the great whore, and the mother of the whoredoms and abominations of the earth is, that the love of ruling over all things of the world, and also over all things of heaven and the church, and at last over the Lord Himself, cannot but entirely turn Divine truths into falsities, and Divine goods into evils; thus, the church into a religious persuasion, in which all its good and truth is adulterated and profaned. For, by that love, a man altogether turns himself away from the Lord, and turns towards himself alone. Consequently he can no longer be led by the Lord, but is led by his proprium; and to be led by this is to be led by hell. For a man is led either from heaven, or from hell; he cannot be led by both at the same time. And he is led from heaven, when he is led by the Lord, and from hell, when he is led by self. For a man is so created that he can be raised out of his proprium, and think in that state of elevation; and he is raised above his proprium, and thinks in that state of elevation, when he is thus raised by the Lord; and this takes place when he acknowledges the Lord, and His Divine power over heaven and earth. For by that confession and belief of the heart, he has conjunction with the Lord; and when conjunction takes place, then the Lord keeps under His view the interiors of his mind, or of his understanding and will, which takes place by raising him out of his proprium; and when he thinks in that state, he thinks truth from the Lord and does good from Him.

[3] The contrary is the case when a man seeks dominion over the world, over heaven, and over the Lord; for he then immerses the interiors of his mind, which are those of his thought and will, in his proprium, and when he is immersed in his proprium, he thinks and wills from hell, consequently falsities and evils. The reason is, that a man's proprium is nothing but evil, for it is his hereditary evil itself. Such therefore are the Babylonians. Therefore they have adulterated and profaned all the goods and truths of the church.

This is now why Babylon is called a whore, and the mother of the whoredoms, and abominations of the earth.

7836. In the number of the souls, everyone for the mouth of his eating ¹ shall ye count for the lamb. That this signifies thus the filling up of the good, conformably to the innocence, from so many truths of good, according to the appropriation of the innocence, is evident from the signification of “the number of the souls,” as being so many truths of good, for “number” in the Word is predicated of truth, and “soul” of spiritual good; from the signification of “for the mouth of his eating,” as being according to the appropriation of it (that “to eat” denotes appropriation, see n. 3168, 3513, 3596, 3832); and from the signification of a “lamb,” as being innocence (n. 7832). The filling up of the good conformably to the innocence, is signified by “taking from the house of a near neighbor” such a number as may be sufficient for the lamb. (That “house” denotes good, see above, n. 7833.) It is said, “the truth of good,” and by this is meant the truth which is from good. For when they who are of the spiritual church are being regenerated, they are introduced to the good of charity by means of the truth of faith; but when they have been introduced to the good which is of charity, the truths which are afterward born thence are called the “truths of good.”

[2] But how the case is with what is contained in this verse cannot possibly be known unless it is known how it is with the societies in heaven; for the consociations of the sons of Israel according to tribes, families, and houses represented these societies. With the societies in heaven the case is this. The universal heaven is one society, which is ruled by the Lord as one man; the general societies there are as many as are the members, the viscera, and the organs in man; but the specific societies are as many as are the little viscera contained within each viscus, member, and organ; and the particular societies are as many as in these little viscera there are lesser parts constituting a greater one. That this is the case is plain from the correspondences of man, and of his members, organs, and viscera, with the Grand Man, that is, with heaven, which has been treated of from experience at the end of many chapters. From all this it can be seen how the case is with the distinctions of societies in heaven.

[3] But with each society in particular the case is this: it consists of many angels who are in agreement in respect to goods; these goods are various, for each angel has his peculiar good; but these various concordant goods are disposed by the Lord into such a form that together they present one good. Such societies were represented by the houses of the fathers among the sons of Israel. This is the reason why the sons of Israel were distinguished not only into tribes, but also into families and houses; and when they are mentioned, that the names of their fathers in order even to the tribe are mentioned; as of the father of Samuel, that he was of Mount Ephraim, whose “name was Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph” (1 Samuel 1:1); also of the father of Saul, that he was “of Benjamin, whose name was Kish, the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, the son of a man a Benjamite” (1 Samuel 9:1); and so of very many others. Such mention was made in order that in heaven might be known the quality of the good which, being successively derived from the first, was represented by the one spoken of.

[4] Moreover, in heaven the case is this. If a society is not complete, as it should be, there are then taken from elsewhere, from some neighboring society, as many as will fill up the form of that good, according to the necessity in each state, and its changes; for the form of the good varies as the state is changed. But be it further known that in the third or inmost heaven, which is next above the heaven where the spiritual are (for these constitute the middle or second heaven), innocence reigns, because the Lord, who is innocence itself, flows in immediately into that heaven; whereas into the second heaven, where the spiritual are, the Lord flows in with innocence mediately, namely, through the third heaven.

[5] This influx is that by which the societies in the second heaven are disposed or arranged in order according to their goods; and therefore the states of the good are changed according to the influx of innocence; and consequently the conjunctions of the societies there are varied. From all this it can be seen how is to be understood that which is in this verse in the internal sense, namely, that if the particular good of anyone is not sufficient for the innocence, conjunction shall be effected with the nearest good of truth, in order that the good may be filled up, conformably to the innocence, from so many truths of good, according to the appropriation of the innocence.

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