seventh
The number 'seven' was considered holy, as is well known, because of the six days of creation, and the seventh, which is the celestial self,...
friend
In the Bible, there is a careful distinction between the word “brother” and the word “companion” or “friend.” That’s partly because the people of Israel...
neighbour
In the Bible, there is a careful distinction between the word “brother” and the word “companion” or “friend.” That’s partly because the people of Israel...
brother
Brethren (Gen. 27:29) signify the affections of good.
the Lord
The Bible refers to the Lord in many different ways, which from the text seem indistinguishable and interchangeable. Understood in the internal sense, though, there...
lord
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...
foreigner
There is a long history of using travel to round out an education, from the 19th-century “world tours” taken by Oxford and Cambridge graduates to...
poor
In most cases, those described as "needy" in the Bible are those who lack true knowledge of the Lord and his teachings, but have a...
God
When the Bible speaks of "Jehovah," it is representing love itself, the inmost love that is the essence of the Lord. That divine love is...
bless
The Lord is perfect love expressed as perfect wisdom. He created us so that He could love us, could give us love and wisdom of...
land
Land' in the Word, denotes the church, for the things which signify the church also signify the things relating to the church, for these constitute...
give
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...
hear
'To hearken to father and mother,' as mentioned in Genesis 28:7, signifies obedience from affection. 'To hearken,' as mentioned in Genesis 30:22, signifies providence. See...
voice
In Genesis 27:22, 'voice' relates to truth, and 'hand,' to good.
keep
"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...
all things
The Lord is life itself, is the Creator of the universe, and is the source of life on an ongoing basis. So in a literal...
command
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,...
day
"Day" describes a state in which we are turned toward the Lord, and are receiving light (which is truth) and heat (which is a desire...
lend
'To lend' signifies teaching. 'To lend' signifies communicating the goods and truths of doctrine from the Word.
many
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...
nations
The Bible generally uses two different terms for large groups: “people” and “nations.” When it uses “nation,” it is talking about a group with the...
one
A company might have executives setting policy and strategy, engineers designing products, line workers building them, managers handling personnel and others handling various functions. They...
brethren
Brethren (Gen. 27:29) signify the affections of good.
gates
"Gates" in ancient times had a significance that does not hold in the modern world. Cities then were enclosed by walls for protection; gates in...
hand
In Genesis 27:22, 'voice' relates to truth, and 'hand,' to good.
open
To open,' as in Revelation 9, signifies communication and conjunction.
say
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...
eyes
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...
Put
'To put' has reference to order, arrangement, application, and influx.
needy
In most cases, those described as "needy" in the Bible are those who lack true knowledge of the Lord and his teachings, but have a...
hebrew
The term 'Hebrew' is used in the Word to signify anything relating to service, whatever its nature may be. Hence Abraham, in one passage only...
sold
'To sell,' as in Genesis 41:56, means transferring to another as their own, because what is sold becomes the property of the one who buys...
served
Generally speaking, those who are at lower levels of an organization serve those at higher levels. Bosses boss and their employees serve; coaches devise strategy...
six
Like most numbers in the Bible, "six" can have various meanings depending on context, but has a couple that are primary. When used in relation...
go
In the physical world, the places we inhabit and the distances between them are physical realities, and we have to get our physical bodies through...
way
These days we tend to think of "roads" as smooth swaths of pavement, and judge them by how fast we can drive cars on them....
flocks
A flock, as in Genesis 26, denotes interior or rational good. A flock signifies those who are in spiritual good. A flock signifies natural interior...
remember
'To remember,' as in Genesis 41:9, signifies conjunction. 'Remembering' denotes conjunction because the remembrance of anyone in the other life joins them together, because as...
egypt
Egyptians represent those who are in natural science, thus the natural, but the Hebrews, those who are of the church, thus respectively the spiritual. The...
house
A "house" is essentially a container - for a person, for a family, for several families or even for a large group with shared interests...
well
A pit,' or 'well which has no water,' as in Jeremiah 2:13, signifies doctrines which have no truths.
door
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...
ever
'Perpetual' in the literal sense, means to the end of one’s life, after death, and eternity.
hireling
'Hirelings' in the Israelitish church, as mentioned in Exodus 12:43, 45; Deuteronomy 24:14-15; Malachi 35, and elsewhere represent those who speak truth and do good,...
firstling
When the Bible talks about generations or birth order, the internal meaning has to do with the progression of spiritual states and their relative importance....
herds
'A herd,' as mentioned in Genesis 32:7, denotes exterior or natural good, and also not good things.
sheep
A flock, as in Genesis 26, denotes interior or rational good. A flock signifies those who are in spiritual good. A flock signifies natural interior...
sanctify
'To sanctify' denotes being led by the Lord. 'To sanctify' denotes being incapable of being violated.
sight
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...
eat
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...
place
'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...
Lame
The lame' signify people who are in a not genuine good, because they are in ignorance of truth. The lame leaping' signifies joy from perception...
clean
To be "pure" in the Bible means - unsurprisingly - to be devoid of evil. Thus all the washing for purification prescribed in the Laws...
unclean
'Pollution' denotes the truth of faith defiled.
roe
'A hart' signifies the natural affection of truth.
hart
'A hart' signifies the natural affection of truth.
blood
The internal meaning of “blood” is a little tricky, because Swedenborg gives two meanings that seem quite different. In most cases, Swedenborg links blood with...
earth
Land' in the Word, denotes the church, for the things which signify the church also signify the things relating to the church, for these constitute...
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...
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