Here
The Lord, in the simplest terms, is love itself expressed as wisdom itself. In philosophic terms, love is the Lord's substance and wisdom is His...
Mamre
Mamre was an Amorite who lived in the land of Canaan, in the area called Hebron in what would much later be the kingdom of...
ingang
In a general sense, doors in the Bible represent the initial desires for good and concepts of truth that introduce people to new levels of...
tent
'The tabernacle' has almost the same meaning as 'temple,' that is, in the highest sense, the Lord’s divine humanity, and in a relative sense, heaven...
sit
If you think about sitting, it seems fair to say that where you're sitting is more important than that you're sitting. Sitting in a movie...
dag
The expression 'even to this day' or 'today' sometimes appears in the Word, as in Genesis 19:37-38, 22:14, 26:33, 32:32, 35:20, and 47:26. In a...
oë
It’s common to say “I see” when we understand something. And indeed, “seeing” in the Bible represents grasping and understanding spiritual things. So it makes...
kyk
To look,' as in Genesis 18:22, signifies thinking, because seeing denotes understanding. Look not back behind thee,' as in Genesis 19:17, means that Lot, who...
drie
The Writings talk about many aspects of life using the philosophical terms "end," "cause" and "effect." The "end" is someone’s goal or purpose, the ultimate...
sien
The symbolic meaning of "seeing" is "understanding," which is obvious enough that it has become part of common language (think about it; you might see...
buig
To bow, as in Genesis 18:2 signifies to humble.
aarde
"Earth" in the Bible can mean a person or a group of like-minded people as in a church. But it refers specifically to the external...
sê
As with many common verbs, the meaning of “to say” in the Bible is highly dependent on context. Who is speaking? Who is hearing? What...
gevind
Finding, or being found, can have different meanings in the Word, depending on the context. Here are two examples, From Arcana Coelestia 5756, 'Behold, the...
water
'Waters' signify truths in the natural self, and in the opposite sense, falsities. 'Waters' signify particularly the spiritual parts of a person, or the intellectual...
voete
The foot, as in Deuteronomy 33:3, signifies an inferior principle. To set the right foot on the sea and the left on the earth, as...
onder
In the Bible, things that are lower down, or under, physically, generally represent things that are lower or more external spiritually. In some cases, the...
boom
In general, plants in the Bible represent facts, thoughts and ideas – intellectual things. This makes sense: Plants are rooted in place, but can grow...
brood
Just as natural food feeds the natural body, so spiritual food feeds the spiritual body. And since our spiritual body is the expression of what...
hart
The heart means love. A good heart means love to the Lord and to the neighbor while a hard or stony heart means the love...
gesê
As with many common verbs, the meaning of “to say” in the Bible is highly dependent on context. Who is speaking? Who is hearing? What...
Abraham
Abraham (or Abram, as he is named in the beginning of his story) was the ancestor of all the Children of Israel, through his son...
haastig
'To hasten' or 'hastiness' in the internal sense, does not denote what is quick, but what is certain, and also what is full, thus every...
sara
'Sarah' denotes truth joined to good. Sarai was called 'Sarah' so she would represent the divine intellectual principle by adding the 'H' from the name...
gou
'To hasten' or 'hastiness' in the internal sense, does not denote what is quick, but what is certain, and also what is full, thus every...
meel
Flour, or meal, signifies celestial truth, and wheat, celestial good. Flour and oil signify truth and good from a spiritual origin, and honey, good from...
jong
"Youths" or "Young men" generally represent intelligence or the understanding of truth. This is fitting, since adolescent boys tend to be more advanced intellectually than...
gee
Like other common verbs, the meaning of "give" in the Bible is affected by context: who is giving what to whom? In general, though, giving...
voor
In most cases, the meaning of "before" is pretty straightforward, both as a way of assessing relative time, and in its use meaning "in someone's...
bly
'To stay with,' as in Genesis 32:4, relates to the life of truth when accompanied by good, and in this instance, it means to take...
staan
'To stand,' and 'come forth' as in Daniel 7:10, refers to truth. In Genesis 24:13, it signifies a state of conjunction of divine truth with...
geëet
When we eat, our bodies break down the food and get from it both energy and materials for building and repairing the body. The process...
vrou
The word "woman" is used a number of different ways in the Bible – as a simple description, as someone connected to a man ("his...
na
Behind, or after, (Gen. 16:13), signifies within or above, or an interior or superior principle.
seun
'A son,' as in Genesis 5:28, signifies the rise of a new church. 'Son,' as in Genesis 24:3, signifies the Lord’s rationality regarding good. 'A...
agter
Behind, or after, (Gen. 16:13), signifies within or above, or an interior or superior principle.
dae
The expression 'even to this day' or 'today' sometimes appears in the Word, as in Genesis 19:37-38, 22:14, 26:33, 32:32, 35:20, and 47:26. In a...
vroue
'Women,' as in Genesis 45:19, signify the affections of truth. But in Genesis 31:50, 'women' signify affections of not genuine truth, so not of the...
geword
To beget or to be begotten is very similar in meaning to birth: It represents one spiritual state leading to the next spiritual state. "Beget,"...
tyd
Time is an aspect of the physical world, but according to Swedenborg is not an aspect of the spiritual world. The same is true of...
bang
The fearful signify people who have no faith.
Sodom
"Sodom" in the Bible represents the love of self and the love of ruling or dominating others springing from the love of self. This is...
wat
The "high mountains being covered " (Gen. 7:19) signifies that all the good things of charity were extinguished.
groot
The word "great" is used in the Bible to represent a state with a strong degree of love and affection, of the desire for good;...
magtige
'Might' denotes the forces or power of truth.
nasie
'A nation,' as in Genesis 21:18, signifies the spiritual church which should receive the good of faith. Nation from afar,' as in Jeremiah 5:17, signifies...
nasies
'The time of the heathen,' as mentioned in Ezekiel 30:3, signifies the heathen, or wickedness.
kinders
A child is a young boy or girl in the care of parents, older than a suckling or an infant, but not yet an adolescent....
huis
A "house" is essentially a container - for a person, for a family, for several families or even for a large group with shared interests...
bevel
To command is to give an order that something must be done, and is directed to an individual, or a group. It is an imperative,...
hou
"Keeping" in the Bible generally has to do with controlling the actual actions of life, though in some cases it can mean holding something away...
geregtigheid
The word "righteous" has taken on a bit of negative shading in modern language. That may be because we hear it most often as part...
reg
He is said to be 'just' in a spiritual sense, who lives according to divine laws. They on the right hand being called 'just,' as...
bring
As with common verbs in general, the meaning of “bring” is highly dependent on context, but in general it represents an introduction to a new...
sonde
In the Word three terms are used to mean bad things that are done. These three are transgression, iniquity, and sin, and they are here...
baie
Intellectual things – ideas, knowledge, facts, even insight and understanding – are more separate and free-standing than emotional things, and it’s easier to imagine numbering...
neerdaal
"Down" is used many different ways in natural language, and its spiritual meaning in the Bible is highly dependent on context. Phrases like "bowing down,"...
gekom het
As with common verbs in general, the meaning of “come” in the Bible is highly dependent on context – its meaning is determined largely by...
weet
Like so many common verbs, the meaning of "know" in the Bible is varied and dependent on context. And in some cases – when it...
nader
'Nigh' denotes truth in affinity with good.
regverdige
He is said to be 'just' in a spiritual sense, who lives according to divine laws. They on the right hand being called 'just,' as...
goddelose
Swedenborg several times associates the “wicked” with “malevolence,” defines “malevolence” as “destroying good, interior and exterior,” and says that the wicked do this by disowning...
vyftig
God rested on the seventh day of creation. That represents a state of holiness and tranquility that was preserved in the form of the sabbath....
Stad
Cities of the mountain and cities of the plain (Jeremiah 33:13) signify doctrines of charity and faith.
plek
'A dry place,' as in Luke 11:24, signifies states of evil and falsity which are in the life of someone who does the work of...
regter
It’s easy to see the connection between judging and truth. In a court of law, the judge’s whole purpose is to find the truth. In...
vind
Finding, or being found, can have different meanings in the Word, depending on the context. Here are two examples, From Arcana Coelestia 5756, 'Behold, the...
antwoord
To "answer" generally indicates a state of spiritual receptivity. Ultimately this means being receptive to the Lord, who is constantly trying to pour true ideas...
spreek
Like "say," the word "speak" refers to thoughts and feelings moving from our more internal spiritual levels to our more external ones – and ultimately...
stof
Dust, in Ezekiel 26:12, signifies the lowest things which are of the sensual principle of man. In Isaiah 40:12, the dust signifies exterior or natural...
as
Ashes as in ('Ezekiel 27:30') signify what is condemned; because fire from which they are derived signify infernal love. Ashes of the furnace ('Exodus 9:8')...
vyf
Five also signifies all things of one part.
ontbreek
'Want of spiritual nourishment,' denotes a lack of knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom.
veertig
'Forty' means completeness because 'four' means what is complete, as does 'ten.' Forty is the product of four and ten. Compound numbers have a meaning...
dertig
'Thirty' has a twofold significance because it is is the product of five and six, and also three and ten. From five multiplied by six,...
twintig
'Twenty,' when referring to a quantity, signifies everything, or fullness, because it is ten twice. In Genesis 18:31, 'twenty', like all numbers occurring in the...
net
He is said to be 'just' in a spiritual sense, who lives according to divine laws. They on the right hand being called 'just,' as...
tien
Most places in Swedenborg identify “ten” as representing “all,” or in some cases “many” or “much.” The Ten Commandments represent all the guidance we get...
teruggekeer
Everyone knows the phrase "the natural order of things." It means that everything is in its proper place, occupying the niche it is meant to...