8593. And Amalek came. That this signifies falsity from interior evil, is evident from the signification of “Amalek,” as being the falsity from interior evil (of which below). It is first to be told who and what they are who are in falsity from interior evil. Interior evil is that which lies inwardly concealed with man, hidden in his will, and thence in his thought, no trace of which appears in his externals, as in his actions, speech, and face. They who are in such evil study by every method and art to hide and hoard it under the semblance of what is honorable and just, and under the semblance of the love of the neighbor; yet still they devise nothing else within themselves than how they can inflict evil, and so far as they can they do inflict evil by means of others, taking care that it should not appear to be from them; they also color over the evil itself, that it may not seem like evil. The greatest delight of their life is to meditate such things, and to attempt them in concealment. This is called interior evil. They who are in this evil are called “evil genii,” and in the other life are completely separated from those who are in exterior evil, and who are called “spirits.” The evil genii have their hell behind man, that is, at his back, and are there in various caverns; but evil spirits have their hell before man, and also at the sides. In the Grand Man these genii belong to the province of the cerebellum, and also to that part of the spinal marrow which sends forth fibers and nerves to the involuntary parts.

[2] As further concerning the falsity from this evil-it is not like the falsity from the evil of evil spirits, for in itself it is evil. They who are in this evil do not attack the truths of faith, but the goods of faith; for they act by means of depraved affections, whereby they pervert good thoughts, and this in a manner almost incomprehensible. Because they are of such a nature, their hells are completely separated from the hells of evil spirits, insomuch that they have scarcely any communication, and this for the reason that they may be separated from the men of the spiritual church; for if they were to flow in from their hells, it would be all over with the man of that church, because they would act in the most hidden manner into his conscience and would pervert it, and this by the breathing in of depraved affections. These infernal genii never attack a man openly, nor when he is capable of vigorous resistance; but when it appears that a man is falling so as to yield, they are then suddenly at hand, and push him on to a complete fall. This too is represented by the fact that Amalek now fell upon Israel; and also afterward, when the sons of Israel had set themselves in opposition to Jehovah, and were afraid of the nations in the land of Canaan:

Then Amalek came down with the Canaanite from the mountain, and they smote the sons of Israel even unto Hormah (Numbers 14:45).

[3] From all this it can be seen what is the quality of those who are represented by Amalek, and why the judgment came upon Amalek from Jehovah that there should be perpetual war against them, and that the memory of them should be blotted out from under heaven, according to these words in the last verse of this chapter:

Because the hand of the evil is against the throne of Jah, there shall be war to Jehovah against Amalek from generation to generation (Exodus 17:16).

And in Deuteronomy:

Remember what Amalek did to thee by the way, when thou camest forth out of Egypt; that he met thee in the way, and smote the hindmost in thee, all that were feeble, when thou wast faint and weary, and he feared not God; when Jehovah thy God shall have given thee rest, thou shalt blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven; thou shalt not forget (Deuteronomy 25:17-19).

Also in the first book of Samuel, where it is said by Jehovah through Samuel unto Saul:

I have resolved to visit that which Amalek did to Israel, who laid wait for him in the way, when he was coming up out of Egypt; wherefore go and smite Amalek, and give to the curse all things which are his, and spare them not; but slay from man even to woman, from infant even to suckling, from ox even to small cattle, from camel even to ass. But Saul spared king Agag, and the best of the flock, and of the oxen, and the second sort, and the rams, and all that was excellent;

and so it was denounced against Saul that from him there should no more be a king over Israel (1 Samuel 15:1-3, 9 (1 Samuel 15:9), 23, 26).

That “the memory of Amalek was to be blotted out,” and that “all things with him were to be given to the curse,” signified that evil genii should have no communication whatever with those who are of the spiritual church; for they communicate with those who are not in truths, but who favor falsities from evil affection.

[4] Who cannot see that without a cause that lies deeply concealed Jehovah would never have said that “there should be perpetual war against Amalek,” and that “the memory of them should be blotted out from under heaven,” and that “all things with him should be given to the curse,” and that nevertheless this was not done. The deeply hidden reason why these things were said and done, is involved in the words of Samuel to Agag the king of the Amalekites, whom Saul spared:

Agag the king of Amalek came unto Samuel delicately; but Samuel said, As thy sword hath bereaved women, so shall thy mother be bereaved beyond women; and Samuel hewed him in pieces before Jehovah (1 Samuel 15:32-33).

“To go delicately” signifies the outward blandishments of such spirits in the presence of others; “thy sword hath bereaved women” signifies that the falsity of these spirits inflicts violence on good affections; “thy mother shall be bereaved beyond women” signifies that with them will prevail evil affection from the will, and not from the intellectual part; “and Samuel hewed him in pieces before Jehovah” signifies that they were separated from those who are in falsity from evil from the intellectual part; thus genii from spirits (as said above). (That “women” denote affections, see n. 568, 6014, 8337; and that “a sword” denotes falsity combating and vastating, n. 2799, 4499, 7102)

1186. That “Asshur” is reasoning, is evident from the signification of Asshur or Assyria in the Word, where it is constantly taken for the things which pertain to reason, in both senses; namely, for what is of reason, and for reasonings. By reason and rational things are properly meant things that are true; and by reasoning and reasonings, those which are false. Because “Asshur” signifies reason and reasoning, it is very frequently connected with “Egypt,” which signifies memory-knowledges; for reason and reasoning are from such knowledges. That “Asshur” signifies reasoning is evident in Isaiah:

Woe unto Asshur, the rod of Mine anger, he thinketh not right, neither doth his heart meditate right, he hath said, By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom, because I am intelligent (Isaiah 10:5, 7, 13), where “Asshur” denotes reasoning, of whom it is therefore predicated that he neither thinketh nor doth meditate right; and it is said, “by his own wisdom, because he is intelligent.”

[2] In Ezekiel:

Two women, the daughters of one mother, committed whoredom in Egypt; they committed whoredom in their youth. The one committed whoredom, and doted on her lovers, on Asshur (the Assyrians) her neighbors, who were clothed in blue, captains and rulers, all of them desirable young men, horsemen riding upon horses. The sons of Babel came to her, and they defiled her with their whoredom (Ezekiel 23:2-3, 5-6, 17).

Here “Egypt” denotes memory-knowledges; “Asshur,” reasoning; and “the sons of Babel,” falsities from cupidities.

[3] In the same:

O Jerusalem, thou hast also committed whoredom with the sons of Egypt, thou hast committed whoredom also with the sons of Asshur, and thou hast multiplied thy whoredom even into the land of Canaan unto Chaldea (Ezekiel 16:26, 28-29), where “Egypt” in like manner denotes memory-knowledges; “Asshur,” reasoning. Reasoning from memory-knowledges concerning spiritual and celestial things is called “whoredom,” both here and elsewhere in the Word. That whoredom with the Egyptians and the Assyrians is not meant, anyone can see.

[4] In Jeremiah:

Israel, what hast thou to do with the way of Egypt, to drink the waters of Shihor? and what hast thou to do with the way of Asshur, to drink the waters of the river [Euphrates]? (Jeremiah 2:18, 36).

Here likewise “Egypt” denotes memory-knowledges; and “Asshur,” reasoning. In the same:

Israel is a scattered sheep, the lions have driven him away, first the king of Asshur hath devoured him, and after that this king of Babel hath broken his bones (Jeremiah 50:17-18).

“Asshur” here is reasoning concerning spiritual things.

[5] In Micah:

This shall be the peace, when Asshur shall come into our land, and when he shall tread in our palaces, we will even set over him seven shepherds, and eight princes of men, and they shall feed down the land of Asshur with the sword, and the land of Nimrod, In the gates thereof, and he shall deliver from Asshur, when he shall come into our land, and when he shall tread upon our border (Micah 5:5-6).

The subject here is Israel, or the spiritual church, of which it is said that “Asshur shall not enter in,” that is, that reasoning shall not; “the land of Nimrod” denotes such worship as is signified by Nimrod, in which the interiors are evil and false.

[6] That “Asshur” in the Word is also reason, which is in the man of the church, whereby he discerns truth and good, is evident in Hosea:

They shall tremble as a bird out of Egypt, and as a dove out of the land of Asshur (Hosea 11:11).

“Egypt” here denotes the memory-knowledge of the man of the church; and “Asshur,” his reason. That a “bird” is the intellectual of the memory [scientificum intellectuale], and “a dove” rational good, has been shown before.

[7] In Isaiah:

In that day shall there be a path from Egypt to Asshur, and Asshur shall come into Egypt, and Egypt into Asshur, and the Egyptians shall serve Asshur. In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and with Asshur, a blessing in the midst of the land, which Jehovah Zebaoth shall bless, saying, Blessed be Egypt My people, and Asshur the work of My hands, and Israel Mine inheritance (Isaiah 19:23-25).

The subject here is the spiritual church, which is “Israel,” whose reason is “Asshur,” and memory-knowledge “Egypt.” These three constitute the intellectual things of the man of the spiritual church, which follow one another in this order. In other places also where Asshur is named, it signifies the rational, either true or false, as in:

Isaiah 20:1, 3; 23:13; 27:13; 30:31; 31:8, 36, 37; 52:4,

Ezekiel 27:23-24; 31:3-18; 32:22;

Micah 7:12;

Zephaniah 2:13;

Zechariah 10:11;

Psalms 83:8.

“Asshur” denotes reasoning in Hosea 5:13; 7:11; 10:6; 11:5; 12:1; 14:3; and in Zechariah 10:10, where Ephraim is spoken of, by whom is signified the intellectual, but here, perverted.