206. He that openeth and no one shutteth, and shutteth and no one openeth, signifies power to admit into heaven all who are in the faith of charity, and to remove from heaven all who are not. This is evident from the signification of "that openeth and no one shutteth," as being, in reference to the Lord, to admit into heaven (of which presently); and from the signification of "and shutteth and no one openeth," as being to remove from heaven. The former means to admit into heaven, and the latter to remove from heaven, because the Lord alone opens heaven to those who are admitted. This no man, spirit, or angel can do from himself. How this is shall be explained in a few words. When a man after death is in such a state that he can be admitted into heaven, there appears to him a way that leads to the heavenly society in which he is to be; until he is in this state the way thither does not appear to him; this way is opened to him by the Lord only. Such is each one's introduction and admission into heaven. The same is true of the evil man after death. When he is in the state for passing into hell, a way appears to him that leads to the infernal society in which he is to be; until he is in this state the way thither does not appear to him. The reason of this is that ways in the spiritual world appear to each one according to the intention of his thought, thus according to the affection of his love. When, therefore, a spirit has been brought into his reigning love (for everyone after death is brought into that love), then ways to the society where his love reigns appear. From this it is clear that it is love itself that opens; and as all the love of good and truth is from the Lord, it follows that the Lord alone opens the ways for those who are admitted into heaven. On the other hand, as all the love of evil and of falsity is from the man or spirit only, it follows that the spirit himself opens for himself the way to hell. (These things may be seen more clearly in the work on Heaven and Hell 545-550, where it is shown that the Lord casts no one into hell, but that it is the spirit who casts himself thither. That ways in the spiritual world appear to everyone according to the intention of his thought, thus according to the affection of his love, see in the same work, n. 479, 590.)

[2] As regards the hells, they are all shut, and can in no wise be opened except by the Lord's permission; they are shut because of the evils and falsities that are continually striving to break out from them and do harm to those who are in goods and truths from the Lord (about which see also in the work on Heaven and Hell 584-592). From this then it is clear how it is and thence how it is to be understood that, "He that hath the key of David openeth and no one shutteth, and shutteth and no one openeth." Heaven is opened to those who are in the faith of charity, and is shut to those who are not, for those who are in the faith of charity are here treated of (See above, n. 203), and those who are in the faith of charity are in Divine truth from the Lord, and Divine truth from the Lord has all power, as was shown in the articles that immediately precede.

[3] Similar to what is here meant by the "key of David" is the signification of the "key of Peter," thus referred to in Matthew:

I say unto thee, Thou art Peter, and upon this Rock I will build My church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail over it. And unto thee will I give the keys of the kingdom of the heavens, and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in the heavens; and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in the heavens (Matthew 16:18-19).

"Peter" here, in like manner as "David," signifies in the highest sense, Divine truth proceeding from the Lord's Divine good, and in the internal sense, every truth from good that is from the Lord. The "rock" [petra] that is spoken of in the Word where Peter is mentioned, and from which Peter's name is derived, has a like signification. The Lord's twelve disciples represented all the truths and goods of the church in the complex; Peter represented truth or faith, James charity, and John the works of charity. But here Peter represented faith from charity, or truth from good which is from the Lord, because Peter here acknowledged the Lord in heart, saying:

Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answering, said, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jonah; ¹ for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but My Father, who is in the heavens. I say unto thee, Thou art Peter, etc. (Matthew 16:16-18, and the following).

(This may be seen illustrated in The small work on The Last Judgment 57.)

[4] There is a like meaning in the Lord's words to the rest of the disciples, in Matthew:

Jesus said to His disciples, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven (Matthew 18:18).

These things are said to the disciples because they represented all the truths and goods in the complex that are from the Lord. (That those things were represented by the twelve disciples, as also by the twelve tribes of Israel, see Arcana Coelestia 2129, 3354, 3488, 3858, 6397) The like is meant by the disciples where it is said, that:

They shall sit upon twelve thrones, and shall judge the twelve tribes of Israel (Matthew 19:28; Luke 22:30);

(See Arcana Coelestia 2129, 6397). And the like is meant by "Eliakim," who was to succeed Shebna over the house of the king, in Isaiah:

I will give dominion into his hands, that he may be for a father to the inhabitant of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah; and the key of the house of David I will lay upon his shoulder, that he may open and none shut, and that he may shut and none open (Isaiah 22:21-22).

By "the house of the king" over which he was to be, is signified the church that is in truth out of good from the Lord; "opening and shutting," and "binding and loosing," mean in general to save (See above, n. 86).

Poznámky pod čarou:

86. And I have the keys of hell and of death, signifies that He has power to save. This is evident from the signification of "keys," as being the power to open and shut (See Arcana Coelestia 9410); and from the signification of "hell," as being evils, for all evils are from hell and belong to hell; and from the signification of "death," as being damnation, which is also called spiritual death (See n. 5407, 6119, 9008). "To have the keys of hell and of death" means also the power to save, because the Lord alone removes the hells with man and thereby damnation; and when the hells are removed man is saved, for in their place heaven and eternal life flows in; for the Lord is constantly present with man, and desires to fill him with heaven, but evils stand in the way of its being received; so far, therefore, as the hells are removed, that is, so far as man refrains from evils, so far the Lord with heaven flows in.

The Lord here says that He "has the keys of hell and of death," because it is said immediately before that He is "alive unto the ages of the ages," by which is meant that from Him is eternal life; and so far as the Lord is received in faith and in love so far as He is in man, and so far as He is in man so far He removes evils, thus the hells and eternal death. This the Lord alone does, and for this reason He ought to be received, as is evident also from the passages from the Word cited just above n. 83. By "hell" evils of every kind are signified, because all evils are from hell. Whatever man thinks and wills is either from hell or from heaven. If he thinks and wills evil it is from hell, but if he thinks and wills good it is from heaven. There is no thought and will in man from any other source. The man who supposes that he thinks and wills from himself is not aware of this; but I can assert from all experience on this subject that every thing that a man thinks and wills is either from one or the other of these sources. For this reason, moreover, the man who thinks and wills evil is actually in hell; and where one actually is while he lives in the world thither will he come after death.

He can come into no other place because man's spirit is formed and composed of those things that he thinks and wills. When, therefore, he thinks and wills evil, the whole man is formed and composed of evil, so that he is his own evil in form. From this it is that infernal spirits are altogether images of their own evil, and are monstrosities, horrible according to the kind of evil. Furthermore, the only means whereby a spirit can be formed and constituted for heaven is receiving the Lord in faith and love; for the Lord alone, by His presence in faith and love with man, removes evils, and forms man into an image of heaven, which is an angel. From this it can be seen what is signified by "having the keys of hell and of death." The word "keys" is used because all the hells are closed up, and are opened only when evil spirits are cast into them, and when any are taken out of them, which occurs when evils increase with men. The openings that are then made are called "gates," and as they are called "gates," so also "keys" are mentioned, and these signify the power to open and to shut, since the opening and shutting of gates is effected by means of keys.

The keys given to Peter (Matthew 16:18, 19) have a like signification; for by "Peter" is there signified truth from the good which is from the Lord, thus it is meant that the Lord alone, from whom is all the truth of faith and the good of love, has that power (See the little work on The Last Judgment 57).