9987. 'And this is the word which you shall do to them' means a law of order. This is clear from the meaning of 'the word' as Divine Truth, and consequently a law of order, dealt with below. The ordinary meaning of 'word' is an expression spoken by the mouth, or utterance; and since utterance is thought taking place in the mind which is expressed by means of vocal sounds, 'word' also means a thing that is being thought about. This explains why in the original language whatever comes into actual being and is indeed something is called 'a word'. But a grander meaning of 'word' is Divine Truth, because the source of all that comes into being and is indeed something is Divine Truth. This accounts for the statement in David,

By the Word of Jehovah were the heavens made, and all their host by the Spirit of His mouth. Psalms 33:6.

Here 'the Word of Jehovah' is Divine Truth emanating from the Lord; 'the Spirit of Jehovah's mouth' is the life brought by His Truth; and 'the heavens' made by His Word, also 'all their host', are angels, to the extent that they are recipients of Divine Truth. The reason why angels are meant by 'the heavens' is that they constitute heaven. Furthermore, since angels are recipients of Divine Truth, Divine Truths coming from the Lord are meant by them in the abstract sense, see 8192; and in that same sense 'the host of the heavens' means Divine Truths, 3448, 7236, 7988.

[2] From this it becomes clear what 'the Word' means in John,

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us; and we saw His glory. John 1:1, 3, 14.

Here it is self-evident that the Word is used to mean the Lord, for it says that the Word became flesh. The Lord is the Word because while He was in the world the Lord was Divine Truth itself; and since His departure from the world Divine Truth has emanated from Him, see the places referred to in 9199 (end), 9315 (end).

[3] In the highest sense the Word is the Lord in respect of Divine Truth, or what amounts to the same thing, the Word is Divine Truth emanating from the Lord. This is clear from very many places, for example in David,

They cried out to Jehovah, and He sent His Word and healed them. Psalms 107:19-20.

In John,

You do not have the Father's word abiding in you, because the One whom He has sent, Him you do not believe; nor are you willing to come to Me that you may have life. John 5:38, 40.

In the same gospel,

I have given them Your word; therefore the world hates them. Sanctify them in Your truth; Your word is truth. John 17:14, 17.

And in the Book of Revelation,

The One seated on the white horse was clothed in a garment dyed with blood, and His name is called The Word of God. And on His garment and on His thigh He had a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords. Revelation 19:13, 16.

From these and many other places it is clear that Divine Truth emanating from the Lord is meant by 'the Word', and in the highest sense the Lord in respect of Divine Truth; for it says that the name of the One seated on the white horse is The Word of God, and that He is King of kings and Lord of lords. And since the Word is Divine Truth it says that He was clothed in a garment dyed with blood, for 'garment' means truth, 9952, and 'blood' truth from good, 9393. For a fuller explanation of these things, see 2760-2762.

[4] This now explains why every truth that comes from God is called His word, as in Joel,

Jehovah uttered His voice before His army, His camp is exceedingly great; for those who execute His word are uncountable. Joel 2:11.

'The voice' which Jehovah utters is the truth from God, 9926, Jehovah's 'camp' is heaven, 4236, 8193, 8196, from which it is evident that 'those who execute His word are uncountable' means those who do God's truth. In Matthew,

[As for the one] who hears the word of the kingdom and does not give heed to it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. [The one] who has been sown on stony ground is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root. [The one] who is sown among thorns is he who hears the word but the cares of this world ¹ and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word. [The one] who is sown in good soil is he who hears the word and gives heed to it, and consequently bears fruit. Matthew 13:19-23.

It is evident without explanation that 'the word' here is God's truth. The expression 'the word of the kingdom' is used because it is the truth that is heaven and the Church's; for 'the kingdom' means heaven and the Church.

[5] From all this it becomes clear that 'words' means Divine Truths that come from the Lord, as in John,

The words that I speak to you, they are spirit and they are life. John 6:63.

Therefore also the ten commandments are called Ten Words in Exodus 34:28. The reason why 'the word' is a law of order is that Divine Truth emanating from the Lord brings order to the heavens, to such an extent that it constitutes order there. Consequently the laws of heavenly order consist of Divine Truths, see 1728, 1919, 2258, 2447, 4839, 5703, 7995, 8513, 8700, 8988. The law of order meant by 'the word' in this chapter is the manner in which the Lord glorified His Human, that is, made it Divine. This is the subject here in the internal sense, the subject in the relative sense consequently being human regeneration, since human regeneration is an image of the glorification of the Lord, 3138, 3212, 3245, 3246, 3296, 4402, 5688. The reason why this in particular is a law of order is that the Lord's Divine Human constitutes order in the heavens and everyone who is being regenerated is being remade to conform to that order. Those therefore with whom that order exists abide in the Lord.

Poznámky pod čarou:

8700. 'For the task is too heavy for you' means that it is not possible because it does not arise from true order. This is clear from the meaning of 'heavy task' as something not possible. The meaning of 'heavy burden' here as something not possible is clear from what comes before, where it says that he and the people with him would wither away, meaning that the truth which had been implanted was going to perish, and also from what comes after - 'You are not able to do it yourself alone', and later on in verse 23, 'If you do this thing, you are able to stand fast' - by which impossibility if no change takes place is meant.

[2] The reason why it is not possible because it does not arise from true order is that in the next life everything is possible which arises from order, and everything is impossible which does not arise from order. Divine Truth, which emanates from the Lord, is what makes order, indeed is order. Consequently everything that is in keeping with Divine Truth, being in keeping with order, is possible; and everything that is contrary to Divine Truth, being contrary to order, is impossible. Let some examples serve to show plainly that this is so. It is in keeping with order that people who have led good lives will be saved, and those who have led bad ones will be condemned. Therefore it is impossible to send to hell those who have led good lives, or to raise to heaven those who have led bad ones. Consequently it is impossible for those in hell to be brought, by the Lord's pure mercy, out of there into heaven and to be saved. For it is the acceptance of the Lord's mercy when they lived in the world that saves everyone. Those who accept it in the world are open to the Lord's mercy in the next life, for there they have the ability to accept it. Imparting it to others, and doing so at will to all and sundry provided that they possess faith and so believe they have been cleansed from sins, is impossible because it is contrary to true order, that is, contrary to the Divine, who is order.

[3] It is in keeping with order that faith and charity should be implanted in freedom and not under compulsion, and that faith and charity that has been implanted in freedom should remain, but not if implanted under compulsion. The reason for this is that when they are implanted in freedom they are instilled into the person's affection and so into his will, and are accordingly made his own, but not so if they are implanted under compulsion. Consequently it is impossible for a person to be saved unless, having been born in evil, he is left in freedom to do evil or to refrain from it. When with that freedom he refrains of his own accord from evil, an affection for truth and goodness is instilled by the Lord; and this gives him freedom to receive insights belonging to faith and desires belonging to charity; for freedom exists as a result of affection. From this it is evident that it is impossible for a person to be saved under compulsion; were it possible all people in the world would be saved.

[4] It is in keeping with order in the next life for all to be formed into different communities according to the life they acquired in the world, the evil living in association with the evil, and the good with the good. It is not possible therefore for the evil and the good to be together, nor is it possible for the evil to be governed by good; for good and evil are opposites and one destroys the other. From this it is also evident that it is not possible for those in hell to be saved, so that salvation by mercy alone, regardless of the life a person has been leading, is an impossibility. Those who are in hell and suffer torment there attribute the torments there to the Divine. They say that since the Divine is all-powerful He is able, if He is willing, to take their torment away, but that He is not willing, and that for this reason He is responsible for it. For they say that he who is able yet unwilling to take it away is the one who is responsible for it. But it is impossible for such things to be taken away because that is contrary to order. If they were taken away the evil would rise up against the good; they would overpower the angels themselves and destroy heaven. But the Divine desires only what is good, that is to say, the happiness of those who are good, and those torments only because they restrain and at the same time correct the wicked. Since this is the end in view, being the end that Divine Love and Mercy itself has in view, it is not possible for the torments suffered by those in hell to be taken away. From these examples it becomes clear that everything is impossible which is contrary to order, however possible it may seem to be to those unacquainted with the arcana of heaven.