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...
said
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...
moses
Moses's name appears 814 times in the Bible (KJV), third-most of any one character (Jesus at 961 actually trails David at 991). He himself wrote...
see
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...
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...
pharaoh
'Pharaoh' signifies scientific ideas, or the natural principle in general. 'Pharaoh' signifies false ideas infesting the truth of the church. Pharaoh,' in Genesis 40, represents...
aaron
Aaron was the brother of Moses. He symbolizes two things, one during the first part of the exodus, when he was Moses' spokesperson, and another...
brother
There are two ways "brother" is used in the Bible, ways that are still reflected in modern language. One denotes an actual blood relationship; the...
prophet
The idea of a "prophet" is very closely tied to the idea of the Bible itself, since the Bible was largely written by prophets. At...
speak
Like "say," the word "speak" refers to thoughts and feelings moving from our more internal spiritual levels to our more external ones – and ultimately...
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,...
send
'To send' signifies revealing.
children
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....
israel
Jacob is told twice that his name will now be Israel. The first time is when he wrestles with an angel on his journey to...
land
"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...
pharaoh's
'Pharaoh' signifies scientific ideas, or the natural principle in general. 'Pharaoh' signifies false ideas infesting the truth of the church. Pharaoh,' in Genesis 40, represents...
heart
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...
multiply
'Spreading themselves on the earth,' as in Genesis 8:17, signifies the internal self operating on the external.
signs
'A token,' as in Genesis 9:12, 13, 17, signifies causing it to be.
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...
hearken
'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...
hand
Scientists believe that one of the most crucial developments in the evolution of humans was bipedalism – walking on two legs. That left our hands...
armies
Armies of the heavens and the sands of the sea ('Jeremiah 33:15-22') signify the knowledges of truth and good in the spiritual and natural ma{ign21}
great
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;...
judgments
'Great judgments' signify the laws of divine order, or divine truths.
egyptians
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...
know
In a general sense, men represent things of the intellect – facts, ideas, knowledge, everything from the deepest truths to the most pernicious falsities about...
commanded
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,...
eighty
Swedenborg tells us that 80, like 40, can represent a state of temptation, when we face and battle our desires for evil – and that...
old
Swedenborg tells us that space and time in the physical world correspond to states of life in the spiritual world. So when the Bible talks...
Three years old
'Three years old,' as in Genesis 15:9, implies all the times and states of the church, which appears from the significance of 'three' in the...
spoke
Like "say," the word "speak" refers to thoughts and feelings moving from our more internal spiritual levels to our more external ones – and ultimately...
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...
show
'Shew' signifies instruction to the life.
before
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...
servants
“Servant” literally means “a person who serves another,"" and its meaning is similar in reference to the spiritual meaninngs of the Bible. Our lives in...
called
'To proclaim' signifies exploration from influx of the Lord.
wise
At its heart, wisdom is love's imperative desire to take form. That's a tricky statement, but think of it this way: If you love someone,...
man
The relationship between men and women is deep and nuanced, and one entire book of the Writings – Conjugial Love or Love in Marriage –...
swallowed
To 'swallow' signifies natural truth.
rods
In a general sense, "rod" and "staff" both represent power, in particular the power of true ideas coming from the Lord. There are a number...
To
‘To grieve at heart’ is in reference to love, and ‘to repent,’ to wisdom, as in Genesis 6:6.
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...
morning
Morning comes with the rising of the sun, and the sun – which gives life to the earth with its warmth and light – represents...
goeth
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...
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...
stand
'To sit before Jehovah' is to be with Him, and so, it also means willing and acting from Him. 'To stand before Him,' is to...
turned
Swedenborg says that the Lord is the sun of heaven, and like the natural sun of our world shines on everyone, good or evil. What...
serpent
Serpents in the Bible represent reasoning that is based on what we know through our senses. This is the lowest and most outward mode of...
hebrews
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...
sent
'Being sent' everywhere signifies, in an internal sense, going forth, as in John 17:8. In similar manner, it is said of the holy of the...
serve
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...
wilderness
'Wilderness' signifies something with little life in it, as described in the internal sense in Luke 1:80 'Wilderness' signifies somewhere there is no good because...
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...
saith
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...
smite
'The smitten' signify people who are oppressed by the falsities of ignorance.
blood
Bloods signify evil, in Ezek. 16:9.
die
Dead (Gen. 23:8) signifies night, in respect to the goodnesses and truths of faith.
smell
To 'stink,' as in Genesis 34:30, denotes aversion and abomination.
drink
Food in the Bible represents the desire for good, and water and other drinks represent the understanding and true ideas we need to recognize what...
stretch out
The hand in the Bible represents power, which is easy to understand, so to reach out or stretch out the hand means to exercise power,...
stretch
The hand in the Bible represents power, which is easy to understand, so to reach out or stretch out the hand means to exercise power,...
rivers
'Waters,' 'rivers,' and 'depths,' as in Psalm 78:15-16, signify truths from the Lord.
wood
In general, plants in the Bible represent facts, thoughts and ideas – intellectual things. This makes sense: Plants are rooted in place, but can grow...
stone
Stones in the Bible in general represent truths, or things we know concerning the Lord and what He wants from us and for us in...
smote
To strike or smite, when used in the Bible, means to attack, harm or destroy, and is usually in reference to an attack on someone’s...
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...
died
Dead (Gen. 23:8) signifies night, in respect to the goodnesses and truths of faith.
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...
digged
In general, digging in the Bible means applying your own mind, your own faculties to find or create spiritual things. This is reflected in common...
Round about
'Round about' denotes the things most distant from the middle, or from good and truth.
seven
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,...
days
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...
after
According to Swedenborg, time and space don’t exist in spiritual reality; they are purely natural things that exist only on the physical plane. This means...
smitten
'To smite' signifies condemnation. 'To smite,' as in Genesis 14:15, signifies vindication. 'To smite,' as in Genesis 32:8, signifies destruction. 'To smite the earth with...
