412. And hide us from the face of Him that sitteth upon the throne, and from the anger of the Lamb, signifies lest they should suffer direful things from the influx of Divine good united to the Divine truth proceeding from the Lord. This is evident from the signification of "hide us," when it is said by those in whom the goods and truths of the church are destroyed by evils of life and falsities therefrom, as being lest they should suffer direful things (of which presently); also from the signification of "from the face of Him that sitteth upon the throne," as being the Lord in respect to Divine good in heaven; that "face," in reference to the Lord, means the Divine love, from which is Divine good in heaven, will be evident from the passages in the Word that will be cited presently; and that "He that sitteth upon the throne" means the Lord in respect to Divine good in heaven may be seen above (n. 297, 343). Also from the signification of "the anger of the Lamb," as being the casting into hell by the influx of Divine truth proceeding from the Lord.

That "the anger of Jehovah" or of the Lord signifies this, can be seen from passages in the Word to be cited in the following article. Moreover it may be seen above (n. 297, 343) that the Lord alone is meant by "Him that sitteth upon the throne," and by "the Lamb;" the Lord in respect to Divine good by "Him that sitteth upon the throne," and the Lord in respect to Divine truth by "the Lamb." The expression "the anger of the Lamb" does not mean that the Lord (who is meant by "Him that sitteth upon the throne" and by "the Lamb") is angry, for He is Divine good itself, and that cannot be angry, for anger has nothing to do with good itself; but it is so expressed in the sense of the letter of the Word, for reasons explained elsewhere; let it be merely shown here that "the face" of Jehovah, or of the Lord, signifies the Divine love, and thence Divine good in heaven and in the church; and in the contrary sense "to set His face against anyone," and "to hide or conceal His face," has a similar meaning as "wrath" and "anger;" also that "the face," in reference to man, means in both senses the interiors that belong to his mind and affection.

[2] That "the face," in reference to Jehovah or the Lord, signifies the Divine love and the Divine good therefrom is evident from the following passages. In David:

Make Thy faces to shine upon Thy servant; save me because of Thy mercy (Psalms 31:16).

"To make the faces to shine" signifies to enlighten in Divine truth from Divine love; this is signified by "making the faces to shine," because Divine truth, which proceeds from the Lord as a sun in the angelic heaven, gives all the light there, and also enlightens the minds of the angels and fills them with wisdom; consequently the Lord's face, in a proper sense, is the sun of the angelic heaven; for the Lord appears to the angels of the interior heavens as a sun, and this from His Divine love, for love in the heavens when presented before the eyes appears as fire, but the Divine love as a sun. From that sun both heat and light proceed, that heat is Divine good, and that light is Divine truth. From this it can be seen that "Make Thy faces to shine upon Thy servant" signifies to enlighten with Divine truth from Divine good; therefore it is also added, "save me because of Thy mercy;" mercy is of the Divine good. (But of the sun in the angelic heaven, and the heat and light from it, see in the work on Heaven and Hell; of The Sun there, n. 116-125; and of The Heat and Light from it, n 126-140)

[3] In the same:

Many say, Who will show us good? Jehovah, lift up the light of Thy faces upon us (Psalms 4:6).

In the same:

They shall walk, O Jehovah, in the light of Thy faces (Psalms 89:15).

In the same:

Turn us back, O God, and cause Thy faces to shine, that we may be saved (Psalms 80:3, 7, 19).

And in the same:

God be merciful unto us and bless us, and cause His faces to shine upon us (Psalms 67:1).

"The light of the faces" of Jehovah or of the Lord means Divine truth from Divine love (as above) and intelligence and wisdom therefrom, for both angels and men have all their intelligence and wisdom from Divine truth, or the Divine light in the heavens, therefore "make Thy faces to shine upon us," "lift up the light of Thy faces upon us," and "cause Thy faces to shine," in the above passages signify to enlighten in Divine truth, and to bestow intelligence and wisdom.

[4] The like is signified in the blessing of the sons of Israel in Moses:

Jehovah bless thee and keep thee; Jehovah make His faces to shine upon thee and be gracious unto thee; Jehovah lift up His faces upon thee and give thee peace (Numbers 6:24-26).

"To make the faces to shine and to be gracious" signifies to enlighten in Divine truth, and to bestow intelligence and wisdom; and "to lift up the faces and give peace" signifies to fill with Divine good and to bestow love. Both are necessary to make man wise, for everyone that is in the spiritual world is enlightened by the light that is from the Lord as a sun, and yet those only become intelligent and wise who are at the same time in love, because the good that is of love is what receives truth; for they are conjoined because they agree and love one another. Only such, therefore, as have love see the sun in heaven, the rest see merely the light. "To be gracious," which is said of making the faces to shine, is predicated in the Word of truth; and "peace," which is said of lifting up the faces, is predicated of good.

[5] Since the Lord's Divine love is seen as a sun in heaven, from which is the light there, so:

When the Lord was transfigured before Peter, James, and John, His face did shine as the sun, and His garments became as the light (Matthew 17:2).

Also when He was seen by John:

His face did shine as the sun in his power (Revelation 1:16).

"The garments which became as the light" signify Divine truth, for "garments" in the Word signify truth, and this because all angels are clothed by the Lord according to their reception of Divine truth; and their garments are moreover from the light of heaven, and are shining and brilliant therefrom, and the light of heaven, as was said, is Divine truth. This makes clear why the Lord's garments when He was transfigured "became as the light." (But on these things more may be seen in the work on Heaven and Hell 177-182; also above, n. 64, 195, 271, 395.)

[6] In Matthew:

Jesus said of the child whom He had placed in the midst of the disciples, See that ye despise not one of these little ones; I say unto you, that their angels in the heavens do always behold the face of My Father who is in the heavens (Matthew 18:10).

It is said "their angels behold," because with every man there are spirits and angels, and the spirits and angels are such as the man is. With infant children there are angels from the inmost heaven; these see the Lord as a sun, for they are in love to Him and in innocence; this is meant in the nearest sense by "their angels behold the face of My Father;" "the face of the Father" meaning the Divine love which was in the Lord, consequently the essential Divine which is Jehovah; for the Father was in Him, and He in the Father, and they were one, as He Himself teaches. But these same words in the purely spiritual sense signify that the Lord in respect to His Divine good is in the good of innocence, for this is signified by "infant child" in the spiritual sense, and "the face of the Father" signifies the Lord's Divine good. Of "the servants of the Lord," by whom are meant those who are in Divine truths because they are in the good of love and charity, the same is said in Revelation:

The throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in the New Jerusalem; and His servants shall do Him service; and they shall see His face ¹ (Revelation 22:3-4).

But on this see the explanation in the following.

[7] In Isaiah:

In all their distress He was distressed, and the angel of His faces saved them; because of His love and His pity He redeemed them; and He carried them and lifted them up all the days of eternity (Isaiah 63:9).

This treats of the Lord, who is called "the angel of the faces" of Jehovah from Divine truth which is from His Divine love; for "angel" in the Word signifies Divine truth; this is why the angels are called "gods" (See above, n. 130, 200, 302); and "the faces of Jehovah" mean the Divine love which is in the Lord, therefore it is also said, "because of His love and His pity He redeemed them; and He carried them and lifted them up all the days of eternity;" all this is of the Divine love. The Lord in respect to His Human was Divine truth, and from this He combated with the hells, and by it subjugated them; for this reason He is called "an angel," that is, in respect to His Divine Human. This chapter evidently treats of the Lord, and of His combats with the hells and of their subjugation.

[8] In David:

Thou hidest them ² in the hiding place of Thy faces from the elations of man; Thou concealest them in Thy covert from the strife of tongues (Psalms 31:20).

"To hide them in the hiding place of Thy faces" means in the Divine good that does not appear before others; and "to conceal in Thy covert" means in the Divine truth; "the elations of man" and "the strife of tongues" mean the evils of falsity and the falsities of evil; for "elations" are predicated of evils because they are of self-love, and "man" signifies truth and falsity; "the strife of tongues" means the falsity of evil. (What the evil of falsity and the falsity of evil are, see The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 21.)

[9] In the same:

Thou hast set our iniquities before Thee, and our hidden things in the light of Thy faces (Psalms 90:8).

"The light of Thy faces" means the light of heaven from the Lord as the sun there. Because this light is Divine truth itself, from which is all intelligence and wisdom, whatever comes into this light has its quality exhibited as in clear day; for this reason when the evil come into this light they appear just as they are, deformed and monstrous according to the evils concealed with them. This makes clear what is meant by "Thou hast set our iniquities before Thee, and our hidden things in the light of Thy faces."

[10] In Jeremiah:

Proclaim these words towards the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel; I will not cause My faces to fall upon you, for I am merciful (Jeremiah 3:12).

Here, too, "My faces" signify the Divine love, and every good that is of love; and "not causing the faces to fall" signifies not to let it be lowered or cease, for when the countenance falls then it ceases to look, which makes clear what is signified by "I will not cause My faces to fall upon you," so it is also said, "for I am merciful," mercy being the Divine love towards the miserable. "Proclaim towards the north" signifies towards those who are in falsities and in evils therefrom; so it is also said, "Return, thou backsliding Israel." "The north" signifies such, because those who are in falsities and in evils therefrom dwell in the northern quarter in the spiritual world. (Of falsities and the evils therefrom, see in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 21.) The bread upon the table in the tabernacle was called "the bread of faces," and the table itself "the table of faces" (Exodus 25:30; Numbers 4:7), because "the bread" there, the same as "the faces of Jehovah" signified the Divine good of the Divine love (See The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 212-213, 218).

[11] Because "the faces of Jehovah," or of the Lord, signify the Divine good united to Divine truth going out and proceeding from His Divine love, therefore also "the faces of Jehovah" signify the interiors of the church, of the Word, and of worship, for Divine good is in the interior of these; the exteriors of the church, of the Word, and of worship are only the effects and works therefrom. The interiors of the church, of the Word, and of worship are signified by "seeing," "seeking," and "entreating the faces of Jehovah." In Isaiah:

What is the multitude of your sacrifices unto Me? when ye shall come to see the faces of Jehovah? (Isaiah 1:11-12)

In Zechariah:

The inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying, In going let us go to entreat the faces of Jehovah, and to seek Jehovah of Hosts; thus many peoples and numerous nations shall come to seek Jehovah of Hosts in Jerusalem, and to entreat the faces of Jehovah (Zechariah 8:21-22).

In David:

My heart said unto thee, Seek ye my faces; Thy faces, O Jehovah, I do seek (Psalms 27:8).

We will make a joyful noise unto the Rock of our salvation; we will come before His faces with confession (Psalms 95:1, 2).

In Malachi:

Entreat the faces of God that He may be gracious unto us (Malachi 1:9).

In David:

My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God; when shall I come to appear before the faces of God? Hope thou in God, for I shall yet confess to Him; His faces are salvations (Psalms 42:2, 5).

In these passages, "faces of Jehovah," "of God," or "of the Lord," mean the interiors of the church, of the Word, and of worship, because Divine good and Divine truth, thus the Lord Himself, are in these interiors, and from them in externals; but are not in externals, namely, of the church, of the Word, and of worship apart from these.

[12] As it was the duty of all who went to Jerusalem to the feasts to carry with them such things as pertained to worship, and all worship is from the interiors which are of the heart and faith, and these interiors are signified by the gifts offered to the Lord, so it was commanded that everyone should offer some gift, which is meant by:

They shall not see My faces empty (Exodus 23:15).

The interiors of the church, of the Word, and of worship, are also signified by these words in Moses:

Jehovah spoke unto Moses, My faces shall go until I shall give thee rest. Then Moses said, If Thy faces go not make us not go up hence (Exodus 33:14-15).

This was said to Moses, because with that nation the Word was to be written, and also in the historical parts of the Word that nation was to be treated of, for with that nation a church was to be instituted which would be a representative church consisting of external things that corresponded to things internal; on this account it was said, "My faces shall go." (Respecting this see further in Arcana Coelestia 10567-10568, where it is explained.)

[13] But because that nation was only in the externals of the Word, of the church, and of worship, and not at all in the internals, therefore it was not granted to Moses to see the Lord's face, but only His back, according to these words in Moses:

Moses said, I pray Thee show me Thy glory; to whom He said, I will make all My good to pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of Jehovah before thee; thou canst not see My faces, for man shall not see Me and live. I will put thee in a hole of the rock, and will cover thee with My hand until I shall have passed by; and when I shall take away My hand thou shalt see My hinder parts, but My faces shall not be seen (Exodus 33:18-23).

Here Moses represented that nation, what was its quality in respect to the understanding of the Word, and thence in respect to the church and worship, namely, that it was in externals only without internals. These externals were represented and signified by "the hinder parts" of Jehovah which were seen by Moses, and the internals by the front parts and "the face." That the internals that are in the externals of the Word, of the church, and of worship, were not seen and could not be seen by that nation, was represented and signified by Moses being placed in the hole of a rock, and by his being covered with the hand of Jehovah while He passed by. (But this has been more fully explained in Arcana Coelestia 10573-10584.)

[14] Furthermore, since "the faces of Jehovah" or the Lord mean the internals of the Word, of the church, and of worship, they mean especially the externals in which are internals; since internals make themselves to be seen in externals, as the internals of man do in his face and features. But the Jewish nation was such that it looked to externals only, and to internals not at all; and to look at externals and not at the same time at internals, or at externals without internals, is like looking at the image of a man that is without life; but to look at externals and at the same time at internals, or at externals from internals, is like looking at a living man; this therefore is, in the proper sense, "to see the face of Jehovah," or "to entreat His faces," in the passages cited above.

[15] Since the internals of the Word, of the church, and of worship, appear in the externals, or present themselves to be seen in externals, comparatively as the internals of man do in the face, it is evident what is signified in the internal sense by "seeing Jehovah" or the Lord "face to face," in the following passages. In Moses:

I have seen God face to face, and yet my soul is delivered (Genesis 32:30).

Jacob said this after he had wrestled with God, who appeared to him as an angel. In the book of Judges:

Gideon said, I have seen the angel of Jehovah face to face. And Jehovah said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not, thou shalt not die (Judges 6:22-23).

So, too, with Manoah and his wife (Judges 13:21-23).

And respecting the Israelitish people:

Jehovah spoke with you face to face from the mount, out of the midst of the fire (Deuteronomy 5:4).

Respecting which it is further said:

Jehovah hath made [us] to see His glory and His greatness, and we have heard His voice out of the midst of the fire; we have seen this day that God doth talk to man and he remaineth alive (Deuteronomy 5:24).

And respecting Moses:

Jehovah spoke unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh to his companion (Exodus 33:11; Deuteronomy 34:10).

[16] But it should be known that no man, nor even any angel, can see the Lord's face, since it is Divine love, and no one can sustain the Divine love such as it is in itself; for to see the Lord's face would be like letting the eye into the very fire of the sun, whence it would instantly perish. Such also is the Lord's Divine love viewed in itself; therefore to those in the interior heavens the Lord appears as a sun, and that sun is encompassed by many radiant circles, which are envelopments one after another, in order that the Divine love may proceed to the angels in heaven tempered and moderated, and thus the angels may sustain it; the Lord therefore appears as a sun to the angels of the higher heavens only, while to the angels of the lower heavens He appears merely as light, and to the rest as a moon. Nevertheless, in heaven the Lord appears to the angels, but under an angelic form; for He fills an angel with His aspect, and thus with His presence from afar, and this He does in various places, but everywhere in accommodation to the good of love and of faith with those to whom He appears. Thus the Lord was seen by Gideon, and by Manoah and his wife, also by Moses, and the Israelitish people. This, therefore, is what is meant by "seeing Jehovah face to face," and by "seeing Jehovah and not dying." It is clearly evident that the face itself in respect to the interiors which are of His Divine love was not seen, for it was said to Moses:

That no one can see Jehovah's face and live (Exodus 33:20).

Yet it is said that "they saw Jehovah face to face;" which shows clearly that "seeing the faces of Jehovah" in the passages cited above signifies seeing Him in the interiors of the Word, of the church, and of worship, which nevertheless is seeing Him in externals from internals. That the Jewish nation was in the externals of the Word, of the church, and of worship, apart from internals, may be seen in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 248); what the external is apart from the internal, and what the external is in which is the internal, see n. 47).

[17] That the Jewish nation was such, was also represented and signified by:

Their covering the Lord's face, striking it, and spitting in it (Matthew 26:67; Mark 14:65; Luke 22:64);

for all things related in the Word respecting the Lord's passion represent and signify arcana of heaven and the church, and in particular the quality of the Jews in respect to the Word, the church, and worship. (That this is so, see above, n. 64, 83, 195 c.)

[18] It can be known from what has been thus far explained, what "the face" of Jehovah or the Lord signifies, namely, the Divine love, and all good in heaven and in the church therefrom; and from this it can be known what is signified by "hiding" or "concealing the faces," in reference to Jehovah or the Lord, namely, that it is to leave man in what is his own [proprium] and thus in the evils and falsities that spring forth from what is his own [proprium]; for man viewed in himself is nothing but evil and falsity therefrom, and that he may be in good he is withheld from these by the Lord, which is effected by being elevated out of what is his own [proprium]. From this it can be seen that "hiding and concealing the faces," in reference to the Lord, signifies to leave in evils and falsities; as in the following passages. In Jeremiah:

For all their evil I have covered My faces from this city (Jeremiah 33:5).

In Isaiah:

Your sins have hid God's faces from you, that He hath not heard (Isaiah 59:2).

In Ezekiel:

My faces will I turn away from them, that they may profane My secret, and that the violent may enter into it and profane it (Ezekiel 7:22).

The nations shall know that for their iniquity the sons of Israel were carried away; and therefore will I hide My faces from them (Ezekiel 39:23).

In Lamentations:

The face of Jehovah hath divided them; He will no more regard them (Lamentations 4:16).

In Micah:

Jehovah will hide His faces from them, even as they have made their works evil (Micah 3:4).

In David:

Thou didst hide Thy faces, I was troubled (Psalms 30:7).

Wherefore hidest Thou Thy faces, and forgettest our affliction and our oppression? (Psalms 44:24).

Thou hidest Thy faces, they are affrighted; Thou gatherest in their spirit, they expire, and return to their dust (Psalms 104:29).

In Moses:

My anger shall glow against the people in that day, and I will forsake them, and will hide My faces from them. In hiding I will hide My faces in that day because of all the evil which they have done (Deuteronomy 31:17-18).

I will hide My faces from them; they are a generation of perversions (Deuteronomy 32:20).

In Isaiah:

I will tarry for Jehovah, although He hideth His faces from the house of Jacob (Isaiah 8:17).

In David:

How long wilt Thou forget me, O Jehovah? how long wilt Thou hide Thy faces from me? (Psalms 13:1).

Hide not Thy faces from me; put not Thy servant away in anger (Psalms 27:9).

Hide not Thy faces from Thy servant, for I am in distress; hasten, answer me (Psalms 69:17).

O Jehovah why casteth Thou off my soul? Why hidest Thou Thy faces from me? (Psalms 88:14).

Hide not Thy faces from me in the day of my distress (Psalms 102:2).

Answer me, O Jehovah; hide not Thy faces from me, lest I become like them that go down into the pit (Psalms 143:7).

In Ezekiel:

When I shall have brought together the sons of Israel upon their own ground, then will I not hide My faces any more from them, for I will pour out My spirit upon the sons of Israel (Ezekiel 39:28-29).

In David:

He hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of Israel; neither hath He hid His faces from him; but when he cried aloud unto Him He heard (Psalms 22:24).

[19] In these passages it is said that Jehovah, that is, the Lord, conceals and hides His faces on account of iniquities and sins, and He is entreated not to conceal or hide them, and yet He never conceals or hides, that is, His Divine good and His Divine truth; for the Lord is Divine love itself and mercy itself, and desires the salvation of all; therefore He is present with all and with each one, even with those who are in iniquities and sins, and by this presence He gives them the freedom to receive Him, that is, truth and good from Him, consequently they also do receive if from freedom they desire to. Reception must be from freedom, in order that goods and truths may abide with man, and be with him as his own; for what a man does from freedom he does from affection, for all freedom is of affection, and affection is man's will; therefore what is received in freedom, or from man's affection, enters his will and endures. It then endures because the will is the man himself and in the will his life primarily resides, but secondarily in the thought or the understanding. This therefore is why man ought to receive Divine good and Divine truth, with which the Lord is always present.

[20] This is what is meant by:

Behold I stand at the door and knock; if any man hear My voice and open the door, I will come in to him and will sup with him (Revelation 3:20).

But when man from freedom chooses evil he shuts the door to himself, and thus does not let in the good and truth that are from the Lord; consequently the Lord then appears to be absent. It is from this appearance that it is said that Jehovah conceals and hides His faces, although He does not conceal and hide. Moreover man as to his spirit then turns away from the Lord, and consequently does not perceive the good or see the truth, which are from the Lord; this is why it appears as if the Lord did not see him; and yet the Lord sees each and every thing pertaining to man. It is from this appearance also that the Lord is said to conceal and hide His faces, and also is said to set [ponere et dare] His faces against them, also that He regards them with the back of the neck and not with the faces, as in the following passages. In Jeremiah:

I have set My faces against this city for evil, and not for good (Jeremiah 21:10).

In the same:

I set My faces against you for evil, to cut off all Judah (Jeremiah 44:11).

In Ezekiel:

I will set My faces against that man, and I will lay him waste, and I will cut him off from the midst of My people (Ezekiel 14:8).

In the same:

I will set My faces against them; let them go forth from the fire and the fire shall devour them, when I shall have set My faces against them (Ezekiel 15:7).

In Moses:

He that shall eat any blood, I will set My faces against that soul, and I will cut him off (Leviticus 17:10).

In Jeremiah:

As the east wind will I scatter them before the enemy; with the back of the neck, and not with the face, will I regard them (Jeremiah 18:17).

That it is man who sets his face against the Lord and who turns himself away from the Lord, whence evil comes to him, is evident also from the Word. As in Jeremiah:

They have turned unto Me the back of the neck, and not the faces (Jeremiah 32:33).

In the same:

They have made their faces harder than a rock; they have refused to return (Jeremiah 5:3).

In the same:

They have gone away in their own counsels, in the hardening of their evil heart, and they have become turned backwards and not forwards (Jeremiah 7:24).

And in Isaiah:

Your sins have hid God's faces from you (Isaiah 59:2).

[21] That the evil turn away their face from the Lord does not mean that they do it with the face of the body, but with the face of their spirit. Man can turn his face whatever way he pleases, since he is in a state of freedom to turn himself either towards heaven or towards hell, and moreover a man's face is taught to deceive for the sake of the appearance before the world; but when man becomes a spirit, which he does immediately after death, then he who had lived in evils turns the face altogether away from the Lord (as can be seen from what has been said and shown in the work on Heaven and Hell 17, 123, 142, 144-145, 151, 153, 251, 272, 511, 552, 561). This is what is meant by "they have turned unto Me the back of the neck, and not the face," and "they have become turned backwards and not forwards." And because such then come into the evil of punishment and hell, those who have turned themselves away suppose that this is from the Lord, and that He regards them with a stern countenance, and casts them down into hell, and punishes them just as an angry man would do, when yet the Lord regards no one in any other way than from love and mercy. It is from that appearance that these things are said in the Word. In Isaiah:

When Thou shalt do fearful things that we look not for, the mountains shall flow down before Thee (Isaiah 64:3).

In David:

It is burned with fire, it is cut down; they have perished at the rebuke of Thy faces (Psalms 80:16).

In the same:

The faces of Jehovah are against them that do evil, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth (Psalms 34:16).

In Moses:

Behold I send an angel before thee. Take ye heed of his faces; for he will not bear your transgression (Exodus 23:20-21).

In Ezekiel:

I will lead you into the wilderness of the peoples, and I will have judgment with you face to face (Ezekiel 20:35).

In Moses:

When the ark set forward, Moses said, Arise O Jehovah, let Thine enemies be scattered; and let them that hate Thee flee before Thy faces (Numbers 10:35).

In Revelation:

I saw a throne high and great, and Him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away (Revelation 20:11).

[22] These things are said respecting the signification of the face in reference to Jehovah or the Lord. The face in reference to man signifies his disposition and affection, and consequently the interiors which belong to his mind, and this because the disposition and affections, or the interiors that belong to man's mind, present themselves to be seen in the face; this is why the face is said to be an index of the mind; the face also is an effigy of the interiors of man, for it represents them, and his countenance corresponds to them. That "faces" in reference to man signify affections of various kinds, can be seen from the following passages. In Isaiah:

They say, Turn aside out of the way, decline out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from our faces (Isaiah 30:11).

"Cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from our faces" signifies to cause the Lord to cease from the thought and affection, thus everything of the church, "the Holy one of Israel" meaning the Lord; to withdraw from the truth and good of the church, which is from the Lord and in which is the Lord, is signified by "Turn aside out of the way, decline out of the path," "way" and "path" meaning the truth and good of the church.

[23] In Lamentations:

They have not accepted the faces of the priests, and they were not gracious unto the faces of the old (Lamentations 4:16).

Again:

Princes were hanged up by their hand; the faces of the old were not honored (Lamentations 5:12).

"Not to accept the faces of the priests" signifies to value as nothing the goods of the church, which are of love and faith; for "the priests" represented the Lord in respect to Divine good, and thus signified the good of the church, and "faces" signify all things thereof that have reference to love and faith. "Not to honor the faces of the old" signifies to account as nothing all things of wisdom, "the old" signifying wisdom, and "faces" all things thereof, because they signify interior things; "the princes hanged up by their hand" signify that all intelligence was rejected, "princes" meaning the primary truths from which there is intelligence.

[24] In Moses:

Jacob said respecting Esau, I will appease his faces with the present that goeth before me, and afterwards I will see his faces; peradventure he will accept my faces (Genesis 32:19-20).

"To appease his faces," signifies to captivate his mind; "afterwards to see his faces" signifies to know what the disposition is; "peradventure he will accept my faces" signifies, peradventure he will receive me with a kindly disposition; "to accept the faces" meaning to have good will towards anyone from affection. In the same:

Thou shalt not wrest judgment; thou shall not regard faces, neither take a gift (Deuteronomy 16:19).

"Not to regard faces" signifies not to have the mind better disposed towards superiors, the rich, and friends, than towards inferiors, the poor, and enemies, because what is just and right is to be regarded without respect to person.

[25] In Malachi:

I have made you contemptible and lowly unto all the people, according as ye keep not My ways, and accept faces in the law (Malachi 2:9).

"Accepting faces in the law" has a similar signification as "regarding faces in judgment," quoted above, namely, to have the mind better disposed towards, and to show more favor to superiors, the rich, and friends, than to inferiors, the poor, and enemies. In Isaiah:

What mean ye? Ye crush the people, and grind the faces of the poor (Isaiah 3:15).

"To grind the faces of the poor" signifies to destroy the affections of knowing truths with those who are in ignorance of truth and yet wish to be instructed; "to grind" signifying to destroy, "faces" signifying the affections of knowing truths, and "the poor" those who are in ignorance of truth but wish to be instructed, for these are the spiritually poor.

[26] In David:

The daughter of Tyre shall bring an offering; the rich of the people shall entreat thy faces. The king's daughter is all glorious within; her vesture is inwrought with gold (Psalms 45:12-13).

"The king's daughter" signifies the spiritual affection of truth; "the daughter of Tyre" signifies the affection of the knowledges of truth and good; to be enriched with these is signified by "bringing an offering;" "the rich of the people" signify the intelligent, and in an abstract sense, the understanding of truth and good; to be gifted with these is signified by "entreating his faces;" for all things of intelligence dwell in the spiritual affection of truth, which therefore is signified by his "faces." (The rest may be seen explained above, n. 195)

[27] In the same:

Yet do I confess ³ Him, the salvations of my faces, my God (Psalms 42:11; 43:5).

"The salvations of my faces" signify all things that are within, thus those that are of the mind and the affections, accordingly those that are of love and faith; because these are what save they are called "salvations." Evil affections, which are lusts, are expressed by the same term, "faces," because they appear in the face, for the face is the external or natural form of the interiors, which are of the disposition and mind; and in the spiritual world these make one, for there it is not permitted to put on other faces than those that are from the affections, thus that correspond to the interiors which are of their mind. This is why the angels of heaven are radiant and lovely in face, while infernal spirits are dusky and misshapen in face.

[28] This, too is evidently the meaning of "faces" in the following passages. In Isaiah:

Throes and pangs seize them, they travail like a woman bringing forth; they are amazed every man at his companion; their faces are faces of flames (Isaiah 13:8).

This treats of the Last Judgment, when the evil are let into their interiors. The interiors of those who are in the love of self and the world, and thence in hatreds and revenges, are meant by "their faces are faces of flames;" and such also do they appear. Their torments from the influx of Divine good and Divine truth are signified by "throes and pangs seize them, they are in travail like a woman bringing forth." Their torments are likened to the throes and pangs of women bringing forth for the same reason that the comparison is used in Genesis 3:16; for evils and falsities are then conjoined; and when this is the case "pangs seize" when Divine good and truth flow in.

[29] In Ezekiel:

Say to the forest of the south, The flame of the grievous flame shall not be quenched, wherefore all faces from the south even to the north shall be burned therein (Ezekiel 20:47).

"The forest of the south" means falsity within the church, consequently those there who are in falsities; the church is signified by "the south" because it can be in the light of truth from the Word; and falsity from evil is signified by "forest;" the vastation and destruction of the church by the love of falsity from evil is signified by "the flame of the grievous flame, by which all faces shall be burned;" "all faces" meaning all the interiors of the men of the church in respect to the affections of truth and good, and the thoughts therefrom; "from the south even to the north" signifies all things of the church from first to last, or interior and exterior; "the south" meaning the interior or first things of the church, and "the north" the exterior or last things of the church; this is the signification of "the south" and "the north" because those who are in the light of truth from the Lord are in the southern quarter in the spiritual world; while in the hells under them are those who are in natural lumen by means of which they have confirmed themselves in falsities; and in the northern quarter are those who are in obscurity of truth from the Lord, and in the hells under them are those who are in falsities, but not in any natural lumen whereby they have confirmed their falsities.

[30] In Joel:

Before him the peoples tremble; all faces have gathered blackness (Joel 2:6).

This treats of evils and falsities devastating the church, and of the judgment upon those who are in them; those who are in falsities are signified by "the peoples who tremble;" their interiors which are in the falsities of evil are signified by "the faces that have gathered blackness;" "faces" meaning the interiors, and "blackness" the falsity of evil. The infernals who are in falsities from evil appear black in the light of heaven.

[31] In Daniel:

In the latter end of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, a king hard in faces shall rise up (Daniel 8:23).

This was said of the four horns of the he-goat, by which are there meant four kingdoms, but "kingdoms" there do not mean kingdoms but the states of the church, for "a he-goat of the goats" means faith separated from charity, which is called faith alone; "the latter end of their kingdom" signifies the end of the church, when there is no faith because there is no charity; "when the transgressors are come to the full" signifies when there are no longer truth and good, but evil and falsity; these words signify the like as "when iniquity is consummated and fulfilled" (respecting which see above, n. 397). "A king hard in faces" signifies no truth but only falsity in their interiors; "king" signifying truth, and in the contrary sense falsity; "faces" the interiors, and "hard in faces" the interiors without good; for where there is no good, truth is hard, while truth from good is mild, because living; and truth without good even becomes falsity in their interiors or thought, since they do not think about it spiritually but materially, because they think from things corporeal and worldly, and thus from the fallacies of the senses.

[32] In Ezekiel:

Sons hard in their faces, and hardened in heart (Ezekiel 2:4).

"Sons hard in their faces" signify those who are in truths without good, and in an abstract sense truths without good, which in themselves are falsities (as has been said above); and "hardened in heart" signifies those who do not admit good, and who are therefore in evil, for where good cannot enter evil enters; "the heart" signifies also in the Word the good of love, and "a hardened heart" signifies the same as "a stony heart," namely, where the good of love is not admitted; but "a heart of flesh" signifies where it is admitted.

[33] In Isaiah:

Their tongue and their doings are against Jehovah, to rebel against the eyes of His glory; the hardness of their faces answereth against them (Isaiah 3:8-9).

"Their tongue and their doings which are against Jehovah" signify thought and affection; "the tongue" thought, because the tongue utters what man thinks, and "doings" affection, because man does what is of his affection; these "are against Jehovah, and rebel against the eyes of His glory" when they are against Divine good and against Divine truth; for "Jehovah" in the Word means the Lord in respect to Divine good proceeding from His Divine love, and "His glory" means Divine truth; to be against this is signified by "rebelling against the eyes of His glory;" "the hardness of their faces which answers against them" signifies to refuse Divine truth and Divine good, and not to admit them into their thoughts and affections, which are their interiors.

[34] In Ezekiel:

Behold I have made thy faces hard against their faces, and thy forehead hard against their forehead (Ezekiel 3:8).

This was said to the prophet, by whom is signified the doctrine of truth and good combating against falsities and evils; therefore "his faces made hard against their faces" signifies the rejection of falsities by truths, and "his forehead hardened against their forehead" signifies the rejection of evil by good; for "faces" signify the affections of truth, or the affections of falsity, and "forehead" signifies the affection of good or the affection of evil. The affection of truth and good is hardened and becomes outwardly hard from zeal, when it is combating against falsity and evil, otherwise it could not repulse them; but it is not so inwardly. From this it can be seen how these words must be understood. Since "faces" signify man's interiors, or the things that are of his thought and affection, the same word in the Hebrew that means "face" means what is interior.

[35] (In these explanations various things have been said respecting "faces" which cannot be easily understood, perhaps, without further exposition; I will therefore add what has been said and shown respecting faces in the Arcana Coelestia, namely, that the face is formed to a correspondence with man's interiors, n. 4791-4805, 5695; on the correspondence of the face and countenance with the affections of the mind, n. 1568, 2988, 2989, 3631, 4796, 4797, 4800, 5165, 5168, 9306; consequently the interiors shine forth from the face, n. 3527, 4066, 4796; with the ancients the face made one with the interiors, n. 3573, 4326, 5695; it also makes one with the interiors with the angels in heaven, and with sincere men in the world, n. 4796, 4797, 4799, 5695, 8250; in the other life the faces of all become such as their interiors are, n. 4798, 5695; experiences respecting changes of the face there according to the interiors, n. 4796, 6604; on the influx of the interiors of the mind, or of the understanding and will into the face and its muscles, n. 3631, 4800; with flatterers, dissemblers, hypocrites, and the deceitful, the face does not act as one with the interiors, n. 4799, 8250; with such the face is taught to feign sincerity, honesty, and piety, n. 4326; how influx from the brains into the face became changed in process of time, and with it the face itself in respect to its correspondence with the interiors, n. 4326, 8250; the natural of man is like an interior face to the spiritual mind and its sight, n. 5165, 5168. See also what has been said and shown respecting faces in the work on Heaven and Hell 46-48, 142-144, 457-459, 553.)

Poznámky pod čarou:

3703. 'And He said, I am Jehovah, the God of Abraham your father' means the Lord in whom that good originated. This becomes clear from the fact that Jehovah is the Divine Being (Esse) itself of the Lord, who is called 'the God of Abraham' by virtue of Divine Good - 'Abraham' representing the Lord as regards Divine Good, see 2172, 2198. And because Divine Good is the source of all celestial and spiritual goods, and consequently of all truths also, the phrase 'your (that is, Jacob's) father Abraham' is used, when in fact Isaac was his father. The reason why 'father' in the internal sense means good is that good is the source of every single thing that has being and truth the means by which it is brought into being. Thus every single thing is born from a marriage of good and truth. Heaven itself, which consists of nothing else at all but the Divine marriage of Good and Truth, derives from the Divine Marriage of Good and Truth and of Truth and Good within the Lord.

[2] The whole natural order also in every single part has reference to what is good and what is true. In it, that is, the natural order, the celestial and spiritual goods and truths that belong to heaven are represented, and in heaven Divine Goods and Truths that are the Lord's are represented. From this it becomes clear that good is like the father and truth is like the mother, and that therefore 'father' in the internal sense of the Word means good, and 'mother' truth. Indeed they mean the goodness and truth in which lower or derived goods and truths originate, which in relation to them are as daughters and sons, and are also consequently called daughters and sons in the Word, 489-491, 2362. They are also in relation to that good and truth as brothers and sisters, as grandchildren and great grandchildren, as sons-in-law, fathers-in-law, and daughters-in-law; in short they are as every degree of blood relationship and relationship by marriage. And all these relationships stem from the marriage of good, which is the father, to truth, which is the mother. For all things - every single one - in heaven exist as in blood relationships of love to and faith in the Lord, or what amounts to the same, of good and truth, see 685, 917, 2739, 3612, and the most ancient people therefore compared all these things to marriages, 54, 55. See also 718, 747, 1432, 2508, 2516, 2524, 2556.

[3] That 'father' in the internal sense of the Word means good may be seen from very many places, as from the following: In Isaiah,

Pay attention to Me, you who are pursuing righteousness, who are seeking Jehovah; look to the rock from which you were hewn; and to the hole of the pit from which you were dug; look to Abraham your father and to Sarah who bore you, for when he was but one I called him; and I blessed him, and I will multiply him. For Jehovah will comfort Zion, He will comfort all her waste places, and will make her wilderness like Eden and her desert like the garden of Jehovah. Isaiah 51:1-3.

This refers to the Lord and His Coming, as is evident from every detail. As regards Divine Truth He is called 'a rock' and 'a pit', and as regards Divine Good 'Abraham your father'. And because the Divine marriage of Good and Truth is represented by Abraham and Sarah, see 1468, 1901, 1965, 1989, 2011, 2063, 2065, 2172, 2173, 2198, 2507, 2833, 2836, 2904, 3245, 3251, 3305 (end), the expressions 'Abraham your father' and 'Sarah who bore you' are used. This explains why it is said that they were to look to the rock and to the pit, and to Abraham their father and to Sarah. It also explains why the promises follow immediately after, declaring that 'Jehovah will comfort Zion', which is the celestial Church, see 2362, and that 'He will comfort her waste places, and will make her wilderness like Eden and her desert like the garden of Jehovah'.

[4] Abraham has a similar meaning when elsewhere in the Word he is called 'father', as in John,

Jesus said, I speak what I have seen with My Father, and you also do what you have seen with your father. They answered and said to Him, Our father is Abraham. Jesus said to them, If you were Abraham's sons, you would do the works of Abraham. You do the works of your father. John 8:38-39, 41.

And in Matthew,

Do not presume to say within yourselves, We have Abraham as our father. I tell you that God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the axe is laid to the root of the trees; every tree not bearing good fruit will be cut down and cast into the fire. Matthew 3:9-10.

And in Luke,

When the poor man Lazarus died he was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died and was buried; and when he was in hell he raised his eyes and saw Abraham far off, and Lazarus in his bosom. Calling out he said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me. I ask you, father, to send him to my father's house. Luke 16:19-end.

In these places it is evident that Abraham was not meant but the Lord as regards Divine Good. For Abraham is unknown in heaven, and when his name is used in the Word the Lord is meant, see 1834, 1876, 1989, 3305 (end).

[5] That 'father' means good in the internal sense becomes clear from the following places: In Moses,

Honour your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged on the land which Jehovah your God gives you. Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 5:16.

This commandment, like the rest of the Ten Commandments, is true in both senses - in the internal sense 'honouring father and mother' is loving what is good and true, and in what is good and true loving the Lord, see 2609, 3690. 'Days on the land' means resulting states of good within the Lord's kingdom, as is clear from the meaning of 'days' as states, 23, 487, 488, 493, 893, 2788, and from the meaning of Canaan, to which 'the land' refers here, as the Lord's kingdom, 1607, 3038, 3481, and from 'being prolonged' having reference to good, 1613.

[6] Since 'father and mother' had these meanings many laws were therefore laid down in the Jewish representative Church relating to parents and sons. In every case good and truth were meant in the internal sense, and in the highest sense the Lord as regards Divine Good and Divine Truth, as in Moses,

Whoever strikes his father and his mother shall surely die. If anyone curses his father or his mother he shall surely die. Exodus 21:15, 17.

In the same author,

Any man who curses his father or his mother shall surely be put to death; he who curses his father and his mother, his blood shall be on him. Leviticus 20:9.

Cursed is he who treats his father and his mother with contempt; and all the people shall say, Amen. Deuteronomy 27:16, 17.

In Ezekiel,

Behold, the princes of Israel, every one according to his power, ¹ have in you been intent on shedding blood; in you they have treated father and mother with contempt. Ezekiel 22:6-7.

In Moses,

When a man has a stubborn and rebellious son, in no way obeying the voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and though they correct him he still does not obey them, his father and his mother shall take hold of him and bring him to the elders of the city, and to the gateway of their place. And all the men of that city shall stone him with stones so that he dies. Deuteronomy 21:18-19, 21.

[7] In all these places 'father and mother' in the sense of the letter is used to mean father and mother, but in the internal sense good and truth are meant, and in the highest sense the Lord as regards Divine Good and Divine Truth. This is also the Lord's own teaching in Matthew,

Jesus stretching out His hand over His disciples said, Beyond My mother and My brothers; whoever does the will of My Father who is in heaven is My brother, and sister, and mother. Matthew 12:49-50.

And in the same gospel,

Refuse to be called master, for one is your Master, Christ; but all you are brothers. And call nobody your father on earth, for one is your Father who is in heaven. Matthew 23:8-9.

It is not being called master or being called father on earth that is forbidden here, but acknowledging in the heart any other father than the Lord. That is, when the names master and father are used one should understand the Lord whom in the highest sense they represent, in the same way, as stated just above in 3702, as anything perceived on earth by the most ancient people who were celestial was to them the means for thought concerning the Lord.

[8] Much the same is embodied in what the Lord told one of the disciples who said,

Lord, let me first go away and bury my father. Jesus said to him, Follow Me; leave the dead to bury the dead. Matthew 8:21-22.

Indeed the relationship of father on earth to Father in heaven, who is the Lord, is as one who is dead to one who is living, even as the law itself about honouring parents is so to speak dead unless it holds honour, worship, and love to the Lord within it. For that law about honouring parents comes down from the latter Divine law. And because it comes down from the latter, the living element which exists within the law about honouring parents is received from this Divine law. This is why the Lord said, 'Follow Me, leave the dead to bury the dead'. What Elijah told Elisha is also similar in meaning,

Elijah passed beside Elisha and cast his mantle over him, and he left the oxen and ran after Elijah, and said, Let me kiss, I beg you, my father and mother; then I will go after you. He therefore said to him, Go away; go back again; for what have I done to you? 1 Kings 19:19-20.

Elijah represented the Lord - see Preface to Chapter 18, and 2762.

[9] In Malachi,

Lo, I am sending you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of Jehovah comes. And he will turn the heart of the fathers to the sons, and the heart of the sons to their fathers lest I come and smite the earth with a ban. Malachi 4:5-6.

And in Luke where the angel addresses Zechariah regarding his son John,

He will go before the Lord in the spirit and power of Elijah to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children. Luke 1:17.

From these places it is evident that 'fathers' and 'sons' are not used to mean fathers and sons but the goods and truths of the Church which the Lord is going to restore.

[10] In Malachi,

May Jehovah be magnified upon the border of Israel! A son should honour his father, and a servant his lord. If I am a Father, where is My honour? If I am a Lord, where is the fear of Me? Malachi 1:5-6.

'A son' stands for those who are governed by the good of the Church, 'a servant' those who are governed by its truth. Here 'a Father' clearly stands for the Lord as regards Divine Good, and 'a Lord' as regards Divine Truth.

[11] In David,

My father and my mother have forsaken me, and Jehovah welcomes me. Psalms 27:10.

'Father and mother' stands for good and truth which are said to have forsaken a person when it is realized that of himself he is unable to perform anything good or to know anything true. For the meaning, it is evident, is not that David's mother and father forsook him.

[12] In the same author,

You are more beautiful by far than the sons of men. All glorious is the king's daughter within, in her clothing with gold interweavings. Instead of your fathers will be your sons; you will make them into princes in all the earth. Psalms 45:2, 13, 16.

This refers to the Lord. 'Instead of your fathers will be your sons' stands for Divine Truths becoming as Divine Goods. 'The king's daughter' stands for the love of truth; 'clothing with gold interweavings' for the nature of that truth grounded in good. Since the subject is the Lord and His Divine Human, as is evident from this Psalm as a whole and in every part, every single phrase clearly has reference to one and the same thing. So the phrase 'the king's daughter' is not used to mean the daughter of the king, nor are the phrases 'clothing with gold interweavings', 'instead of your fathers will be your sons', and 'their being made into princes in all the earth' to be taken literally, but each phrase means Divine celestial and spiritual things. 'A daughter' means affection or love, see 490, 491, 2362; 'the king' Divine Truth, 1672, 1728, 2015, 2069, 3009; 'gold' good, 113, 1551, 1552. 'That which is interwoven' has reference to natural knowledge, 2831, in this case therefore to Divine natural truth. 'Clothing' means such truths as clothe good, 297, 2576; 'sons instead of fathers' truths begotten from good, in this case Divine Truths being as Divine Goods, 264, 489, 491, 533, 1147, 1729, 1733, 2159, 2623, 2803, 2813. 'Princes in all the earth' are the first and foremost things of the Lord's kingdom and Church - 'princes' being the things that are first and foremost, 1482, 2089, 'the earth' the Lord's kingdom and Church, 1413, 1607, 1733, 1850, 2117, 2118 (end), 3355.

[13] In Moses,

Your fathers Jehovah delighted to love, and He chose their seed after them, even you out of all peoples, as at this day. Therefore circumcise the foreskin of your heart and be stiff-necked no longer. Deuteronomy 10:15-16.

'Fathers' here in the internal sense stands for the Ancient and Most Ancient Churches, whose members were so called by virtue of the love they had of good and truth - the most ancient people, who were celestial, by virtue of their love of good, the ancients, who were spiritual, by virtue of their love of truth. The goods and truths existing in the Church are referred to as 'the seed Jehovah chose'. Clearly Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and the latter's twelve sons are not meant by the fathers referred to here, nor the Israelite and Jewish people by 'the seed'. Rather the statement is made regarding them and addressed to them in order that the internal sense may be given some external form and so be intelligible to men.

[14] In Isaiah,

The boy will uplift himself against the old man, and the base fellow against the honourable; for a man will take hold of his brother in his father's house, [saying,] You have clothing, you will be leader for us. He will say, In my house there is neither bread [nor clothing]. Do not make me a leader ² of the people. Isaiah 3:5-7.

This refers in the internal sense to a perverted state of the Church when truth is no longer acknowledged as truth, and it is not known what good is. 'A man will take hold of his brother in his father's house' stands for acknowledging everything as good. 'Clothing' stands for truth, 1073, 2576, 'a leader (or prince)' for a first and foremost matter of doctrine drawn from truth, 1482, 2089. 'In the house there is neither bread nor clothing' stands for neither good nor truth - 'bread' meaning good, 276, 680, 3478, and 'clothing' truth, 297, 2576.

[15] Because father and mother, and also daughters and sons, represented goodness and truth in the representative Churches many laws existed which possessed from those representatives that which was Divine within them, such as the following,

If a priest's daughter has acted profanely by committing whoredom, she is profaning her father; she shall be burnt with fire. Leviticus 21:9.

'A priest's daughter' stands for the affection for good, 'father' for the good from which that affection springs. 'Committing whoredom' stands for profaning what is good. What 'committing whoredom' is, see 2466, 2729, 3399, and what 'acting profanely', 1008, 1010, 1059, 2051, 3398, 3399. Also,

If a priest's daughter has been made a widow or divorced and has no seed she shall return to her father's house, as in her youth; she shall eat of her father's bread. No stranger shall eat of it. Leviticus 22:13.

[16] And this law also,

If you see among the captives a wife with a beautiful form and you desire her to take her for yourself as wife you shall bring her inside your home; and she shall shave her head and pare her nails; and she shall take off the clothing of her captivity born upon her, and shall sit in your house and lament her father and her mother a whole month; and after that you shall go in to her and know her, and she shall be your wife. Deuteronomy 21:11-13.

Every single detail in this law is representative of natural truth, which is adopted by good once it has been purified from falsities. Such truth is meant by 'a wife beautiful in form among the captives'; purification from falsities by 'bringing her inside your home', and by her 'shaving her head, paring her nails, taking off the clothing of her captivity, and lamenting her father and mother'; and adoption by 'after that going in to her, knowing her, and taking her as a wife'.

[17] The Marriage Laws requiring marriages to be contracted within the tribe and the family, and also the Inheritance Laws forbidding the transfer of inheritances from one tribe to another, which are written in the Word, also had the same origins, that is to say, in the celestial and spiritual marriage in the Lord's kingdom, or the marriage of good and truth, which are meant by 'father and mother'. The same applies to the laws laid down relating to the permissible and the forbidden degrees of affinity. Each law in the Word concerning those matters has reference inwardly to the law of the affiliation and joining together of good and truth in heaven, and to the affiliations of evil and falsity in hell, which are separated from the former. For laws to do with permissible and forbidden degrees, see Leviticus 20; for laws forbidding the transfer of inheritances from one tribe to another, and for those requiring marriages to be contracted within the tribe, see Numbers 27:7-9, and elsewhere. In heaven the position of every single thing is fixed according to blood relationships of good and truth and to relationships of them through marriage, see 685, 917, 2739, 3612.

[18] Since the Israelitish people represented the Lord's kingdom in heaven and so the heavenly order existing there, the command was also given for them to be singled out according to tribes, according to families, and according to the houses of their fathers, see Numbers 26:1-end. In addition to this they were required to pitch camp around the tent of meeting in conformity with that heavenly order, and also to journey in conformity with it, as stated in Moses,

Each one of the children of Israel shall pitch camp beneath his own standard, by the ensigns of his father's house, at a distance around the tent of meeting. And in the same formations they also set out. Numbers 2:2, 34.

This was why, when Balaam saw Israel dwelling according to their tribes, the Spirit of God came upon him and he delivered this utterance, How good your tabernacles are, O Jacob, your dwelling-places, O Israel? They are like valleys that are planted, like gardens beside a river, etc., etc. Numbers 24:2, 5-6, and following verses.

From every word used here it is evident that not Jacob or Israel were meant but the Lord's kingdom in heaven and His Church on earth, which were represented by that order in which he saw them spread out at that time.

[19] From these examples one may also know what is meant in the internal sense of the Word by orphans! that is, the fatherless, namely people whose state is a state of innocence and charity and who wish to know and put into effect what is good but are not able to do so. Such a state exists in particular with those outside the Church whom the Lord cares about and adopts in the next life as His sons. And since those people are meant by 'orphans', when these are mentioned in the Word, sojourners and widows are in many instances mentioned too. For 'sojourners' means those who are receiving instruction in goods and truths, 1463, and 'widows' those whose state is one of good but not so much of truth, or those whose state is one of truth but not so much of good, and who yet desire what they lack. Since these three - orphans, sojourners, and widows - belong to a very similar line of meaning, therefore all three are in most places mentioned together, as has been stated, see Deuteronomy 14:29; 16:11, 14; 24:17, 19; Jeremiah 7:6; 22:3; Ezekiel 22:6-7; Zechariah 7:10; Psalms 94:6; 146:9. From these considerations one may now see what 'father' means in the genuine sense, namely good, and in the highest sense the Lord.

[20] Now because most things in the Word also have a contrary sense, so has the word 'father'. In that sense it means evil. Equally so 'mother', which in the genuine sense means truth, in the contrary sense means falsity. The contrary meanings may be seen from the following places: In David,

The iniquity of his fathers will be remembered before Jehovah, and the sin of his mother will not be wiped out. Psalms 109:14.

In the same author,

They drew back and acted treacherously like their fathers; they turned about like a deceitful bow. Psalms 78:57.

In Moses,

Until the remainder of you waste away in their iniquity in the lands of your enemies: and they will also waste away in their fathers' iniquities with them. Leviticus 26:39. In Isaiah,

Prepare slaughter for his sons because of the iniquity of their fathers, and let them not rise up again and possess the earth, and fill the face of the earth with cities. Isaiah 14:21.

In the same prophet, I will repay your iniquities, and the iniquities of your fathers together. Isaiah 65:7.

[21] In Jeremiah,

The house of Israel is ashamed, they, their kings, their princes, and their priests, and their prophets, who say to wood, You are my father, and to a stone, You gave birth to me. For they have turned their neck to Me and not their face. Jeremiah 2:26-27.

In the same prophet,

Behold, I am laying before this people stumbling-blocks, and fathers and sons together will stumble against them, neighbour and his friend, and they will perish. Jeremiah 6:21.

In the same prophet,

The sons gather pieces of wood, and the fathers kindle fire, and the women knead dough to make cakes for Melecheth. ³ Jeremiah 7:18.

In Ezekiel,

I will do in you that which I have not done, and such things as I will not do any longer, because of your abominations. Therefore fathers will eat their sons, and sons will eat their fathers; and I will execute judgements on you, and I will scatter the whole remnant of you to every wind. Ezekiel 5:9-10.

This refers to the profanation of what is holy. In the same prophet,

Thus said the Lord Jehovih to Jerusalem, Your tracings and your births are of the land of the Canaanite. Your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite. Ezekiel 16:3.

[22] In Matthew,

Brother will deliver up brother to death, and father the son; and children will rise up against parents and put them to death. And so you will be hated by everyone for My name's sake. I have come to set a man (homo) against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man's (homo) foes will be those in his own household. Whoever loves father and mother more than Me is not worthy of Me, and whoever loves son and daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. Matthew 10:21-22, 35-37; Luke 12:49, 52-53.

In the same gospel,

Everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for My name's sake will receive a hundredfold and will be allotted the inheritance of eternal life. Matthew 19:29; Luke 18:29-30; Mark 10:29-30.

In Luke,

If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and his mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own soul, he cannot be My disciple. Luke 14:26.

[23] In Mark,

Brother will deliver up brother to death, and the father his children, and children will rise up together against parents and will kill them; for you will be hated by all for My name's sake. Mark 13:12-13; Luke 21:16-17.

This refers to the close of the age and is describing the state of the Church when perverted as regards good and truth, that is to say, when evil rises up against truth, and falsity against good. The meaning of 'father' in the contrary sense as evil is evident from the places just quoted and also from the following in John,

Jesus said, If God were your father you would love Me, for from God I went forth and now come. You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desire. He was a murderer from the beginning and took no stand on the truth because the truth is not in him. When he speaks a lie he speaks from what are his own, for he is the teller of a lie and the father of it. John 8:42, 44.

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