417. Four angels standing on the four corners of the earth. That this signifies the Divine proceeding from the Lord in the whole spiritual world, is plain from the signification of angels, for they denote the Divine which proceeds from the Lord; concerning which see above, n. 130, 200, 302; and from the signification of the four corners of the earth, which denote the whole spiritual world. By four corners is signified the spiritual world, because there are lands there just as on our globe; for in that world, as is the case on our earth, there are mountains, hills, rocks, plains, valleys, and many other things. This has been often stated above. And as the Last Judgment upon all in the spiritual world is treated of in the Apocalypse, and in this place the separation of the good from the evil, therefore that world is meant by the earth. The reason why the earth also signifies the church, as frequently stated before, is, that the appearance of the land (terra) in the spiritual world is exactly in agreement with the state of the church with spirits and angels there. The appearance is the most beautiful where the angels of the superior heavens dwell, and beautiful also where the angels of the lower heavens dwell, but it is totally wanting in beauty where evil spirits dwell. For where the angels dwell, are gardens, fruit gardens, flower-beds, palaces, and everything in heavenly form and harmony, whence pleasantnesses issue forth, imparting inmost delight to the mind; but where evil spirits are, every place is marshy, stony, and barren, and they live in huts of a vile appearance, and also in caverns and dens.

[2] These things are mentioned to show that "the earth," in the proximate sense, means the spiritual world; nor could any other earth (terra) appear to John, for it was seen by him when he was in the spirit. Man also, when in the spirit, cannot see any thing on our Earth (tellus), but only what is in the spiritual world. Therefore John saw four angels, and they were standing on the four corners of that earth. Four angels were seen, because by their standing on four corners is signified the Divine which proceeds from the Lord in the whole spiritual world, for that entire world has four quarters; these are the eastern, western, southern, and northern, that world being thus divided. Those who are in the good of love to the Lord dwell in the eastern quarter, and also in the western, but the former in the clear good of love because they are in the interior [good of love]; the latter, in the obscure good of love, because they are in the exterior [good of love]; in the southern quarter dwell those who are in the clear light of truth, and in the northern those who are in an obscure light of truth. Concerning these quarters see Heaven and Hell 141-153, where they are treated of. And since all things have reference to the good of love, and to the truth from that good, or generally to good and truth, therefore by those four quarters are also meant all things of heaven and the church. Those quarters are also meant in the Word by the four winds, here also by the four corners. It is therefore evident, that the angels were not seen standing on the four corners of the earth, but in the four quarters. They are called the four corners, because corners signify the extremes, and the extremes signify all things, because they include all.

[3] That corners signify quarters is evident from these passages in the Word, where quarters are described by corners, as in the following:

In Moses:

"For the tabernacle thou shalt make twenty boards for the south corner southwards. And for the second side of the tabernacle, towards the north corner, twenty boards," and so forth (Exodus 26:18, 20; 27:9, 11; 36:21, 23, 25).

Here the south corner denotes the southern quarter, and towards the north corner, the northern quarter, for there were twenty boards for each side.

So in Ezekiel:

"By the border of Dan, from the east corner unto the west corner, Asher one. And thence by the border of Asher, from the east corner even unto the corner towards the west," and company (48:1-8).

In the same prophet:

"These the measures; the north corner four thousand and five hundred, and the south corner as many, and the east corner as many, and the west corner as many, by the boundary to the east corner towards the west, and so forth" (48:16, 17, 23-25, 26, 27, 28, 33, 34; also 47:17-20).

Again, in Moses:

"Ye shall measure from without the city the corner towards the east two thousand cubits, and the south corner as many, and the west corner as many, and the north corner as many" (Num. 35:5; also in Joshua 15:5; 18:12, 14, 15, 20).

In these passages, by the east, the south, the west, and the north corners are meant the sides facing the eastern, southern, western, and northern quarters; from which it is evident, that by the four angels standing upon the four corners of the earth, is not meant upon its four corners, but in its four quarters. Similarly in another passage in the Apocalypse, it is said:

Satan "shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth" (20:8).

[4] The reason why four corners are mentioned, and not the four quarters, is that corners signify all things, since they are the extremes; for the extremes embrace all things from the centre to the ultimate circumferences; for they are the ultimate boundaries. It was for this reason that horns were placed upon the four corners of the altar, and that blood was poured on them, and thus the whole altar expiated; as is evident from Exodus 27:2; 29:12; 30:2, 3, 10; 38:2; Leviticus 4:7, 18, 25, 30, 34; 16:18, 19; Ezekiel 41:22; 43:20.

[5] That corners signify all things, because they signify the extremes, for the reason stated above, that the extremes include and embrace all things, is clearly evident from certain statutes given to the sons of Israel; as for instance, that they should not round off or shave the corner of their head (Leviticus 19:27). That they should not cut off the corner of their beards (Leviticus 19:27; 21:5).

Again:

And when they reaped the harvest of their land, they should not wholly reap the corner of the field (19:9; 23:22).

Why such statutes were given them cannot be understood, unless it be known what the hair of the head, the beard, a field, and also a corner mean. The hair of the head, and the beard, signify the ultimate of the life of man, which is called the Corporeal Sensual; a field signifies the Church; and reaping, the truth of doctrine. Wherefore, by these [statutes], it was represented that the extremes should be preserved, because they signify all things; for unless there are extremes, intermediates cannot be held together, but are dissipated, just as the interiors of man would be scattered unless they were enclosed by the skin. The same is the case in every thing and therefore also in regard to the signification of the hair of the head, the beard, and the harvest of the field. That the hair of the head signifies the extreme of the life of man, which is called the Corporeal Sensual, may be seen above (n. 66), and that the same is signified by the beard, see the Arcana Coelestia 9660); that extremes or ultimates, signify all things in the aggregate, thus the whole (n. 10044, 10329, 10335). Now since a field signifies the church, and harvest the truths of the church, therefore by their not wholly reaping the corner of the field when they reaped the harvest, is meant the preservation of all those things which are signified by the harvests of the field.

[6] That corners signify all things because they are extremes, is also evident from the following passages in Moses:

"I will cast them into the farthest corners, I will make the remembrance of them cease from among men" (Deuteronomy 32:26).

To cast into the farthest corners signifies to deprive of all good and truth; therefore it is also said, "I will make the remembrance of them to cease from among men," which signifies, that they no longer possess any thing of spiritual life, which comes to pass when man remains only in the ultimates of life, called the Corporeal Sensual; in this condition are very many, who have not attained to anything of spiritual life. Such persons then become not unlike beasts, which have no other life, with this difference, that a man, because he is born a man, can speak and reason, but he does this from the fallacies of the senses, or of the outermost things of nature, the world, and the body. This is what is meant here by being cast into the farthest corners.

[7] In Jeremiah:

"And their camels shall be a prey, and the multitude of their cattle a spoil; and I will scatter them into every wind into the cut off of the corner; and I will bring their destruction from all the passages thereof, saith Jehovah" (49:32).

These things are said concerning the devastation of Arabia and Hazor by the king of Babylon, and by Arabia and Hazor are signified the knowledges of good and truth, and by the king of Babylon evil and falsity vastating. The vastation of all confirmatory scientifics and of the knowledges of good and truth, is signified by their camels being a prey, and the multitude of their cattle a spoil; for camels denote confirmatory scientifics, and cattle the knowledges of good and truth. The vastation of all things pertaining to good and truth, until none remains, is signified by, "I will scatter them into every wind into the cut off of the corner;" the cut off of the corner denoting the extremes where good and truth no longer exist. That evils and falsities will then break in on every side, is signified by, "I will bring their destruction from all the passages thereof." For in the spiritual world, where the evil are, ways from the hells lie open on all sides, and through these, evils and falsities therefrom break in; and all who are in similar evils and falsities pass through the same ways, and associate with them. These things are said in order that it may be known what is meant by "I will bring their destruction from all the passages." By their becoming a prey and a spoil, as well as by being scattered and destroyed, is signified devastation.

[8] In the same prophet:

"Behold, the days come, in which I will punish all them which are circumcised in their uncircumcision; Egypt, and Judah, and Edom, and the sons of Ammon, and Moab, and all the utmost of the corner, that dwell in the wilderness; for all these nations are uncircumcised, and all the house of Israel are uncircumcised in the heart" (9:25, 26).

Here, by "all the utmost of the corner," are signified those who are in the ultimates of the church separated from interior things, interior things being spiritual, therefore, those who are in sensual things only, which are the ultimates of the natural man. Concerning the nature and quality of those who are merely sensual, see the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem. (n. 50).

These are signified by the cut off of the corner, because corners signify the quarters of the spiritual world, and those quarters signify all the goods and truths of heaven and the church, as previously stated. The dwellings of spirits and angels in that world, are so arranged, that those who possess the greatest wisdom and intelligence dwell in the midst, and those who are successively in less and less, from the midst even to the outmost boundaries, and this gradation proceeds accurately according to distances from the centre. In the outermost parts are those who have no wisdom and intelligence, and beyond these those who are in evils and the falsities thence. The latter are those denoted by the cut off of the corner; and because there are deserts there they are said to dwell in the wilderness. Concerning these gradations in the spiritual world, see Heaven and Hell 43, 50, 189). The same are signified by the uncircumcised nations, and by the house of Israel uncircumcised in heart; for the uncircumcised signify those who, being without love and charity, and therefore without good, are consequently in the loves of self and of the world; and those who are in these loves are in the ultimates of the natural man, which are altogether separated from spiritual things; they are therefore "the cut off of the corner that dwell in the wilderness." By Egypt, Judah, Edom, the sons of Ammon and Moab, are meant all those who by means of those loves have separated themselves from the goods and truths of the church; therefore they are beyond the influence of these truths, and are thus the cut off of the corner. The same is signified by the cut off of the corner in Jeremiah (25:23).

[9] Again, in Moses:

"There shall come a star out of Jacob, and a sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall break in pieces the corners of Moab" (Num. 24:17).

By the corners of Moab are meant all things signified by Moab. By Moab are signified those who are in the ultimates of the Word, of the church, and of worship; and in the opposite sense, those who adulterate such things by looking to themselves, and regarding their own honour in every one of these things. The corners of Moab, therefore, mean adulterations of the Word, and consequently of the church and worship, as they exist with those who are of such a character. Similar things are signified by the corner of Moab in Jeremiah (48:45).

[10] In Zephaniah:

"A day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities, and against the high corners" (1:16).

Here, "a day of the trumpet and alarm," signifies spiritual combat against evils and falsities. The fenced cities signify confirmatory false doctrinals, and the high corners those things which favour their loves. Hence the signification of "a day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities, and against the high corners" is evident.

Again:

"I will cut off the nations; their corners shall be laid waste; I will make desolate their streets, that none passeth by; and I will lay waste their cities, so that there is no inhabitant" (3:6).

The destruction of all the goods of the church, is signified by "I will cut off the nations" and "their corners shall be laid waste." Nations mean the goods of the church, and corners, being the extremes (as above), all things belonging to it. By "I will make desolate their streets," and by "their cities shall be laid waste," is signified the destruction of the truths of doctrine; streets denoting truths and cities doctrinals; the total destruction, until no good and truth remain, is signified by there being no inhabitant, none to pass by; for to pass by is used in the Word of truths, and to inhabit of goods.

[11] In the book of Judges:

"Then all the sons of Israel went out, and the congregation was gathered together as one man, from Dan even to Beersheba, and the corners of all the people, even all the tribes of Israel, stood together in the assembly of the people of God" (20:1, 2).

That "the corners of all the people stood together in the assembly of the people of God," signifies all from every side, or from every quarter, is evident from its being said, that all the sons and all the tribes of Israel went out, and that the congregation was gathered together from Dan even to Beersheba. But in the spiritual sense, by "the corners of all the people" are meant all the goods and truths of the church; and similarly also by all the tribes of Israel from Dan even to Beersheba, are signified those things from ultimates to primaries (prima), and by the assembly of the people of God, is signified consultation concerning the things of the church. For in the historical parts of the Word, equally as in the prophetical, there is everywhere a spiritual sense. Therefore in the historical sense, by corners are signified quarters, such as are in the spiritual world; but in the spiritual sense, for the reason stated above, they signify all the truths and goods of the church.

[12] From these considerations the signification of corner stone in the following passages is evident:-

In Isaiah:

"He will lay in Zion a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone of sure foundation" (28:16).

In Jeremiah:

"And they shall not take of thee a stone for a corner, nor a stone of foundations" (51:26).

In Zechariah:

Out of Judah, "the corner, out of him the nail, out of him the battle bow" (10:4).

In David:

"The stone which they rejected is become the head of the corner" (Psalm 118:22). Matthew 21:42; Mark 12:10, 11; Luke 20:17, 18.

Corner stone signifies all Divine Truth upon which heaven and the church are founded, thus every foundation; and, because the foundation is the basis upon which a house or temple rests, it therefore signifies all things. Because by corner stone are signified all things upon which the church is founded, it is therefore said, "He will lay in Zion a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone of sure foundation." It is also called a stone for a corner and a stone of foundations; and because corner stone signifies all Divine Truth upon which the church is founded, it therefore also signifies the Lord as to the Divine Human because from That all Divine Truth proceeds. The builders, or architects, who rejected that stone, as we read in the Evangelists, mean those who are of the church, in this case, of the Jewish church, which rejected the Lord, and together with Him all Divine Truth; for there remained with them nothing but vain traditions from the sense of the letter of the Word, in which the very truths of the Word were falsified, and its goods adulterated. That ultimates signify all things, and the reason of this signification, may be seen in the Arcana Coelestia 634, 5897, 6239, 6451, 6465, 9216, 9824, 9828, 9836, 9905, 10044, 10099, 10329, 10335, 10548).

5321. 'And he made him ride in the second chariot' means an outward sign that the celestial of the spiritual was the source of all the teaching about goodness and truth. This is clear from the meaning of 'the chariot' as teaching which has reference to goodness and truth, dealt with below, so that 'making him ride in the chariot' is a sign denoting that the celestial of the spiritual was the source of that teaching. This particular matter is connected with what Pharaoh has stated previously, in verse 40,

You shall be over my house, and all my people shall kiss you on the mouth; only in the throne will I be great, more than you.

The reason why teaching that has reference to goodness and truth is meant by 'Joseph' is that 'Joseph' represents the Lord's Divine Spiritual, 3971, 4669, and so Divine Truth going forth from the Lord's Divine Human, 4723, 4727, the celestial of the spiritual being an extension of that Divine Truth. The reason why all the teaching about goodness and truth is derived from the celestial of the spiritual is that in a real sense the Lord is that teaching since every detail of it comes forth from Him and every detail of it has reference to Him. For all that teaching has reference to the good of love and the truth of faith; and since the Lord is the source of these, He is not merely present within them but in a real sense is both of them. From this it is clear that teaching which has reference to goodness and truth has reference to the Lord alone, and that such goes forth from His Divine Human.

[2] No doctrine at all can possibly go forth from the Divine itself except through the Divine Human, that is, through the Word, which in the highest sense is Divine Truth coming from the Lord's Divine Human. That which goes forth directly from the Divine itself cannot be understood even by angels in the inmost heaven. The reason for this is that it is infinite and so surpasses all understanding, even that of angels. But that which goes forth from the Lord's Divine Human is capable of being understood, for such truth refers to God as Divine Man, of whom some idea can be formed from His Human. No matter what kind of idea has been formed about that Human, it is an acceptable one if only the good of innocence has been inspired into it and the good of charity is present within it. This is the meaning of the Lord's words in John,

Nobody has ever seen God; the only begotten Son who is in the bosom of the Father, He has made Him known. John 1:18.

In the same gospel,

You have never heard the Father's voice nor seen His shape. John 5:37.

And in Matthew,

No one knows the Father except the Son, and he to whom the Son wishes to reveal Him. Matthew 11:27.

[3] Chariots are mentioned in very many places in the Word, yet scarcely anyone knows that matters of doctrine concerning goodness and truth, and also factual knowledge attached to those matters of doctrine, are meant by 'chariots'. The reason for such lack of knowledge is that nothing spiritual, only what is natural and historical, enters their thinking when 'a chariot' is mentioned, or similarly when the horses in front of a chariot are mentioned. But in the Word the powers of the understanding are meant by 'horses', 2760-2762, 3117, and therefore 'a chariot' means matters of doctrine and associated factual knowledge.

[4] It has become clear to me from the chariots which I have seen so many times in the next life that 'chariots' means the matters of doctrine and also the factual knowledge which the Church possesses. There is also a place over on the right, around the lower earth, where chariots and horses, together with rows of stables, appear. In that place people who in the world were considered learned, and who thought that life was the end in view of learning, stroll and converse with one another. The origin of such chariots and horses seen by them lies with the angels in higher heavens; when these angels' conversation turns to intellectual concepts, and to matters of doctrine and to known facts, those chariots and horses are seen by the spirits around the lower earth.

[5] The fact that such things are meant by 'chariots and horses' is perfectly plain from the occasion when Elijah was seen riding into heaven in a chariot of fire with horses of fire, and from what both he and Elisha were called - 'the chariot of Israel and its horsemen'. The two of them are spoken of in the second Book of Kings as follows,

Behold, a chariot of fire and horses of fire came between them, and Elijah went up in a whirlwind into heaven; Elisha saw this and cried out, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel and its horsemen. 2 Kings 2:11-12.

And in a reference to Elisha in the same book,

When Elisha was sick with the illness from which he died, Joash the king of Israel came down to him and wept before his face and said, My father, my father, the chariot of Israel and its horsemen. 2 Kings 13:14.

The reason they were called this is that both of them - Elijah and Elisha - represented the Lord as to the Word, see Preface to Genesis 18, and 2762, 5247 (end). The Word itself is primarily doctrinal teaching about what is good and true, for the Word is the source of all doctrinal teaching. It was for the same reason that Elisha's servant, whose eyes had been opened by Jehovah, saw around Elisha,

A mountain full of horses and chariots of fire. 2 Kings 6:17.

[6] The fact that 'chariot' means matters of doctrine and 'horse' intellectual concepts is also clear from other places in the Word, as in Ezekiel,

You will be filled at My table with horse and chariot, with mighty man and every man of war. Thus will I bring My glory to the nations. Ezekiel 39:20, 11; Revelation 19:18.

This refers to the Lord's Coming. Anyone can see that here 'horse and chariot' does not mean horse and chariot, for people are not going to be filled with these at the Lord's table but with such things as are meant spiritually by 'horse and chariot', which are intellectual concepts and matters of doctrine regarding what is good and true.

[7] Much the same is meant by 'horses' and 'chariots' in the following places: In David,

The chariots of God are myriad on myriad, ¹ thousands of peacemakers; the Lord is within them, Sinai is within the sanctuary. Psalms 68:17.

In the same author,

Jehovah covers Himself with light as with a garment; He stretches out the heavens like a curtain, laying the beams for His upper chambers ² on the waters; He makes the clouds His chariots; He walks on the wings of the wind. Psalms 104:2-3.

In Isaiah,

The prophecy of the wilderness of the sea. Thus said the Lord to me, Set a watchman; let him announce what he sees. He therefore saw a chariot, a pair of horsemen, a chariot of asses, a chariot of camels, and he listened diligently, with great care. For a lion cried out on the watchtower, O Lord, I am standing continually during the daytime, and at my post I have been set every night. Now behold, a chariot of men, a pair of horsemen. And he said, Fallen, fallen has Babylon. Isaiah 21:1, 6-9.

[8] In the same prophet,

At that time they will bring all your brothers in all nations as an offering to Jehovah, on horses, and in chariots, and in covered waggons, and on mules, and on fast runners, to My holy mountain, Jerusalem. Isaiah 66:20.

In the same prophet,

Behold, Jehovah will come in fire, and His chariots will be like a whirlwind. Isaiah 66:15.

In Habakkuk,

Has Jehovah been displeased with the rivers? Has Your anger turned against the rivers, has Your wrath turned against the sea, that You ride on Your horses, Your chariots being salvation? Habakkuk 3:8.

In Zechariah,

I lifted up my eyes and saw, and behold, four chariots coming out from between two mountains; but the mountains were mountains of bronze. The horses coupled to the first chariot were reddish, the horses coupled to the second chariot were black, the horses coupled to the third chariot were white, and the horses coupled to the fourth chariot were mottled. Zechariah 6:1-3.

[9] And in Jeremiah,

There will enter through the gates of this city kings and princes seated on the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they and their princes, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And this city will be inhabited for ever. Jeremiah 17:25; 12:4.

'The city that will be inhabited for ever' is not Jerusalem but the Lord's Church meant by 'Jerusalem', 402, 2117, 3654. The kings who will enter through the gates of that city are not kings but truths known to the Church, 1672, 1728, 2015, 2069, 3009, 3670, 4575, 4581, 4966, 5044, 5068. Thus 'princes' are not princes but the first and foremost aspects of truth, 1482, 2089, 5044. Those 'seated on the throne of David' are Divine Truths which go forth from the Lord, 5313; and those 'riding in chariots and on horses' are consequently intellectual concepts and matters of doctrine. Chariots are also mentioned many times in historical descriptions in the Word; and since historical events are representative of, and the words used to describe them mean, the kinds of things that exist in the Lord's kingdom and in the Church, 'chariots' have a similar meaning there also.

[10] Since most things in the Word also have a contrary meaning, so too does 'chariots'. In that contrary sense matters of doctrine maintaining what is evil and false, also factual knowledge used to lend support to these, are meant by 'chariots', as in the following places: In Isaiah,

Woe to those who go down into Egypt for help and rely on horses and trust in chariots because they are many, and on horsemen because they are extremely strong, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel. Isaiah 31:1.

In the same prophet,

By the hand of your ³ servants you have spoken ill of the Lord and have said, By the multitude of my chariots I have gone up [to] the height of the mountains, the sides of Lebanon, where I will cut down the tallness of its cedars, the choice of its fir trees. Isaiah 37:24.

This is a prophecy delivered in response to the haughty words spoken by the Rabshakeh, a leader serving the king of Assyria. In Jeremiah,

Behold, waters rising out of the north which will become a deluging stream, and they will deluge the land and all that fills it, the city and those who dwell in it. And every inhabitant of the land will wail at the sound of the beat of the hoofs of the horses his mighty ones, at the noise of his chariot, the rumble of its wheels. Jeremiah 47:2-3.

[11] In Ezekiel,

By reason of the abundance of his horses their dust will cover you; by reason of the noise of horsemen, and wheels, and chariots, your walls will be shaken, when he comes into your gates, like the entry into a city that has been breached. By means of the hoofs of his horses he will trample all your streets. Ezekiel 26:10-11.

In Haggai,

I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms, and I will destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the nations. I will also overthrow the chariots and those riding in them; the horses and their riders will come down. Haggai 2:22.

In Zechariah,

I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, I will cut off the battle bow. On the other hand He will speak peace to the nations. Zechariah 9:10.

In Jeremiah,

Egypt comes up like the river, like the rivers his waters are tossed about. For he said, I will go up, I will cover the earth, I will destroy the city and those who dwell in it. Go up, O horses; rage, O chariots. Jeremiah 46:8-9.

[12] The horses and chariots with which the Egyptians pursued the children of Israel and with which Pharaoh entered the Sea Suph, when the wheels of the chariots were made to come off, and much else regarding the horses and chariots which forms the major part of the description - Exodus 14:6-7, 9, 17, 23, 25-26; 15:4, 19 - mean intellectual concepts, matters of doctrine, and known facts which maintain what is false. They also mean therefore reasonings which pervert and destroy the truths known to the Church. The destruction and death of such reasonings is described there.

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