392. The souls of those slain because of the Word of God, and because of the testimony that they held, signifies those who were rejected and concealed because of Divine truth and because of their confession of the Lord. This is evident from the signification of "those slain," as being those who were rejected by the evil and concealed by the Lord (of whom presently); also from the signification of "the Word of God," as being Divine truth. What the Lord speaks is called the Word of God, and that is Divine truth. The Word or the Sacred Scripture is nothing else; for in it all Divine truth is contained, but it is only before the angels that the truth itself in its glory is manifest in it, because to them the interior things of the Word, which are spiritual and celestial, become manifest and also constitute their wisdom. "The Word of God," therefore, signifies in the genuine sense Divine truth, and in the highest sense the Lord Himself who spoke it, for He spoke from Himself, or from His Divine, and what proceeds from Him that also is Himself.

[2] That the Divine proceeding is the Lord may be illustrated by this: About every angel there is a sphere that is called the sphere of his life; this spreads abroad to a great distance from him. This sphere flows out or proceeds from the life of his affection or love; it is therefore an extension outside of him of such life as is in him. This extension is effected by means of the spiritual atmosphere or aura, which is the aura of heaven. By means of that sphere the quality of an angel in respect to affection is perceived at a distance by others; this has been granted me sometimes to perceive. But about the Lord there is a Divine sphere, which near Him appears as a sun, which is His Divine love, and from this that sphere proceeds into the whole heaven and fills it and constitutes the light that is there; this sphere is the Divine proceeding from the Lord, which in its essence is Divine truth. This comparison with angels is made as an illustration, to show that the Divine proceeding from the Lord is the Lord Himself, because it is a proceeding of His love, and the proceeding is Himself outside of Himself. The above is further evident from the signification of "testimony," as being the confession of the Lord, and the Lord Himself (of which presently).

[3] That "those slain" here mean those who were rejected by evil spirits and concealed by the Lord, or removed from the eyes of others and preserved to the day of the Last Judgment, can be seen from what was said in the article above, also from what follows in the two verses in which they alone are described. In the article above it was said that "the former heaven" that passed away consisted of those who in externals lived a moral life, and yet were merely natural and not spiritual, or who lived a sort of spiritual life merely from the affection or love of fame, honor, glory, and gain, thus for the sake of appearance. Although these were inwardly evil, they, nevertheless, were tolerated, and constituted societies in the higher places in the spiritual world. These societies, taken together, were called a heaven, but "the former heaven" that afterwards passed away. From this it came to pass that all those who were spiritual, that is, who were inwardly as well as outwardly good, not being able to be with these, withdrew from them, either voluntarily or being driven away, and wherever found they were persecuted; on this account they were concealed by the Lord and preserved in their places until the day of judgment, that they might constitute "the new heaven." These therefore are those that are meant by "the souls of those slain seen under the altar." This makes clear that "those slain" signify those who were rejected and concealed, for they were hated by the others, because of Divine truth and because of their confession of the Lord; and those who are hated are called "those slain," because to hate is spiritually to slay. That such are meant by "the souls of those slain," can be seen further from what follows in the two verses where it is said of them, "And they cried out with a great voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on those that dwell on the earth? And there were given to every one of them white robes; and it was said unto them that they should rest yet a little time, until their fellow-servants, as well as their brethren, who were to be killed, as they also were, should be fulfilled." That those above described are meant by "those slain," no one can know but those to whom it has been revealed; for who can know, except by revelation, of whom "the former heaven" (Revelation 21:1) consisted, and of whom "the new heaven" was formed; and that those of whom the new heaven was to be formed, were in the meantime concealed and preserved by the Lord? And unless these things had been revealed to someone, all things contained in Revelation in its internal sense must have remained hidden; for in it such things as were to take place in the spiritual world before the Last Judgment, and while it was going on, and after it are chiefly treated of.

[4] That "testimony" signifies the confession of the Lord, and the Lord Himself, can be seen from the passages in the Word that follow. This signification has its origin from this, that the Word in each and every particular testifies respecting the Lord; for in its inmost sense it treats of the Lord alone, and in its internal sense of the celestial and spiritual things that proceed from the Lord, and in particular the Lord testifies respecting Himself in everyone who is in the life of love and charity; for the Lord flows into their heart and life and teaches them, especially respecting His Divine Human; for He grants to those who are in a life of love to think of God under the human form, and God under the human form is the Lord.

The simple in the Christian world so think, as also the heathen who live in charity according to their religious principle. Both these are astonished when they hear the learned speak of God as not to be perceived in any human form, for they know that thinking thus they could not see any God in thought, and therefore could have little belief in the existence of a God, since the faith which is the faith of charity wishes to comprehend in some way what is believed; for faith is of thought, and to think what is incomprehensible is not to think, but only to have knowledge and to speak from that without any idea. Angels, even the wisest, do not think of God otherwise than as in the human form; it is impossible for them to think otherwise, for the reason that their perceptions flow according to the form of heaven, which is the human form from the Lord's Divine Human (on which see Heaven and Hell 59-86); and for the reason that the affections from which are their thoughts, are from influx, and influx is from the Lord.

This has been said that it may be known why "testimony" signifies the Lord, namely, because the Lord testifies respecting Himself with all who accept His testimony, and these are such as live a life of love to the Lord, and a life of charity towards the neighbor. These receive His testimony and confess Him, because a life of love and charity opens the interior mind by the influx of light from heaven, for a life of love and charity is the Divine life itself; for the Lord loves everyone, and does good to everyone from love; consequently where that life is received the Lord is present and is conjoined to the man, and thus flows into his higher mind which is called the spiritual mind, and by light from himself opens it.

[5] That "testimony" signifies the Lord, and with man the confession of the Lord from the heart, and in particular, the acknowledgment of the Lord's Divine in His Human, can be seen from this, that the law which was given on Mount Sinai and written upon two tables, and afterwards placed in the ark, is called the "Testimony;" whence also the ark was called "the ark of the Testimony," and the tables also were called "the tables of Testimony;" and because this was most holy, the mercy-seat was placed upon the ark, and over the mercy-seat were sculptured two cherubim, between which Jehovah, that is, the Lord, spoke with Moses and Aaron. This makes clear that "the Testimony" signifies the Lord Himself; otherwise the mercy-seat would not have been placed upon the ark, nor would the Lord have spoken with Moses and Aaron between the cherubim which were upon the mercy-seat. Moreover, when Aaron entered within the veil, which he did once every year, he was first sanctified, and afterwards he burnt incense till the smoke of the incense covered the mercy seat; it is said that unless he did this he would have died. From this it is clearly evident that the Testimony that was in the ark, and that was the law given on Mount Sinai and inscribed on two tables of stone, signified the Lord Himself.

[6] That the law is called "the Testimony" is evident in Moses:

Thou shalt put into the ark the Testimony which I shall give thee (Exodus 25:16).

He put the Testimony into the ark (Exodus 40:20).

The mercy-seat that is upon the Testimony (Leviticus 16:13).

Lay up the rods of the tribes before the Testimony (Numbers 17:4).

That the tables and the ark were therefore called the tables and the ark of the Testimony (Exodus 25:22; 31:7, 18; 32:15).

That the mercy-seat was placed upon it, and over the mercy-seat two sculptured cherubim (Exodus 25:17-22; 26:34).

That the Lord spoke with Moses and with Aaron between the two cherubim (Exodus 25:16, 21-22; Numbers 17:4 and elsewhere).

That they sanctified themselves before they entered thither, and that the smoke of the incense covered the mercy-seat lest they should die (Leviticus 16:1-34).

[7] That "the testimony" signifies the Lord is evident also from this, that what was upon the ark was called the mercy seat [propitiatorium], and the Lord is the propitiator; the ark also, from the testimony in it, was the holy of holies, both in the tabernacle and in the temple, and from this the tabernacle was holy, and also the temple. The tabernacle represented heaven, and also the temple, and heaven is heaven from the Lord's Divine Human; from this it follows that "testimony" signifies the Lord in respect to His Divine Human. (That "the tent of meeting" represented heaven, see Arcana Coelestia 9457, 9481, 9485, 10545; likewise the temple, see above, n. 220; and that heaven is heaven from the Lord's Divine Human, see Heaven and Hell, n. 59-86.) The law proclaimed from Mount Sinai is called "the Testimony" because that law, in a broad sense, signifies the whole Word, both historical and prophetical, and the Word is the Lord, according to these words in John:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word; and the Word was made flesh, (John 1:1) John 1:14).

The Word is the Lord because the Word signifies Divine truth, and all Divine truth proceeds from the Lord, for it is the light in heaven, that enlightens the minds of the angels and also the minds of men, and gives them wisdom; this light in its essence is Divine truth proceeding from the Lord as a sun (of which light, see Heaven and Hell 126-140); therefore it is afterwards said, "the Word was with God, and God was the Word." It is also said in John:

In Him was life; and the life was the light of men. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man coming into the world (John 1:4, 1:9).

[8] This makes clear that the Lord is meant by "the Testimony;" for the law written on the two tables, which was called the "Testimony," signifies the Word in the whole complex, and the Lord is the Word. (That "the law" in a broad sense signifies the Word in the whole complex, in a sense less broad the historical Word, and in a strict sense the ten commandments of the Decalogue, see Arcana Coelestia 6752.) This law was also called "a Covenant," and so the tables on which it was inscribed were called "the tables of the Covenant," and the ark was called "the ark of the Covenant" (See Exodus 34:28; Numbers 14:44; Deuteronomy 9:9, 15; Revelation 11:19; and elsewhere); and this because "Covenant" signifies conjunction, and the Word or Divine truth is what conjoins man with the Lord; from no other source is there any conjunction. (That "Covenant" signifies conjunction, see Arcana Coelestia 665, 666, 1023, 1038, 1864, 1996, 2003, 2021, 6804, 8767, 8778, 9396, 10632.)

This law is called both "a Covenant" and "a Testimony," because when called "a Covenant" it means the Word by which there is conjunction; and when called "a Testimony" it means the Lord Himself who conjoins; and on man's part, the confession of the Lord and the acknowledgment of His Divine in His Human, which conjoin. From this it can be seen why the Word is called in the church "a Covenant," the Word before the Lord's coming "the Old Covenant," and that after His coming "the New Covenant;" it is called also "the Old and the New Testament," but it is to be called "the Testimony."

[9] That "Testimony" signifies the Lord, and on man's part the confession of the Lord and the acknowledgment of His Divine in His Human, is evident also from these passages in the Word. In Revelation:

They overcame the dragon by the blood of the Lamb, and by the Word of the testimony. And the dragon was angry, and went away to make war with the remnant of her seed, that keep the commandment of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ (Revelation 12:11 17).

I am thy fellow-servant, and of thy brethren that hold the testimony of Jesus. The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy (Revelation 19:10).

"The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy" signifies that the confession of the Lord and the acknowledgment of His Divine in His Human is the life of all truth, both in the Word and in doctrine from the Word.

[10] And elsewhere:

The souls of those slain with the axe for the testimony of Jesus, and for the Word of God, received not the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand (Revelation 20:4).

These passages will be explained in what follows. In David:

Jerusalem is builded as a city that is conjoined together; and thither the tribes go up, the tribes of Jah, a testimony to Israel, to confess to the name of Jehovah. For there are set thrones for judgment (Psalms 122:3-5).

"Jerusalem" signifies the church in relation to doctrine, which is said to be "builded" when it is established by the Lord; "as a city that is conjoined together" signifies doctrine in which all things are in order, "city" meaning doctrine; "thither the tribes go up, the tribes of Jah," signifies that in it are all truths and goods in the complex; "a testimony to Israel, to confess to the name of Jehovah," signifies the confession and acknowledgment of the Lord there; "for there are set thrones for judgment" signifies that Divine truth is there according to which judgment is executed. That this is what "thrones" signify, see above n. 253.

[11] In the same:

Jehovah hath set up a testimony in Jacob, and a law in Israel (Psalms 78:5).

"Jacob" and "Israel" signify the church, "Jacob" the external church, and "Israel" the internal church; and "testimony" and "law" signify the Word, "testimony" that in the Word which teaches the goods of life, and "the law" that in it which teaches the truths of doctrine. Because those who are in the external church are in the good of life according to the truths of doctrine, and those who are in the internal church are in the truths of doctrine according to which is the life, so "testimony" is predicated of Jacob, and "the law" of Israel.

[12] In the same:

If thy sons shall keep My covenant, and the testimony that I shall teach them, their ¹ sons shall sit upon the throne for thee forevermore (Psalms 132:12).

This is said of David, but David here means the Lord; "his sons" mean those who do the Lord's commandments; of these it is said, "if thy sons shall have kept My covenant and My testimony," "covenant" meaning the like as "law" above, namely, the truth of doctrine, and "testimony" the like as "testimony" above, namely, the good of life according to the truths of doctrine. Like things are signified by "covenant" and "testimonies" in David (Psalms 25:10).

[13] "Testimonies" are mentioned in many passages in the Word, together with "law," "precepts," "commandments," "statutes," and "judgments;" and "testimonies and commandments" there signify such things as teach life, "law and precepts" such as teach doctrine, "statutes and judgments" such as teach rituals, as in the following passages in David:

The law of Jehovah is perfect, restoring the soul; the testimony of Jehovah is sure, making wise the simple. The commandments of Jehovah are right, making glad the heart; the precept of Jehovah is pure, enlightening the eyes; the judgments of Jehovah are truth, they are righteous altogether (Psalms 19:7-9).

In the same:

Blessed are the perfect in the way, who walk in the law of Jehovah. Blessed are they that observe His testimonies, that seek after Him with the whole heart. Thou hast enjoined Thy commandments to be strictly kept. O that my ways may be directed to keep Thy statutes! Then shall I not be ashamed, when I have respect unto all Thy precepts. I will confess to thee in uprightness of heart, when I shall have learned the judgments of Thy righteousness (Psalms 119:1-7 manner in verses 12-15, 88-89, 151-156, etc.).

Poznámky pod čarou:

9212. 'If you ever take your companion's clothing as a pledge' means if factual knowledge of truths is dispersed by illusions that are a product of sensory impressions. This is clear from the meaning of 'taking as a pledge' as receiving a token for goods that are supplied, for 'a pledge' is a token for goods that are being lent. When spiritual things are understood instead of these, supplying goods means giving instruction in truths, and the token or pledge in this instance means truth on the level of the senses. For 'the clothing' here which is given as a pledge means the lowest level of the natural, which is that of the senses. Since illusions abound on this level and illusions wipe out truths, 'taking your companion's clothing as a pledge' means the dispersing of truths by illusions that are a product of sensory impressions. The fact that these things are meant is clear from the whole train of thought in the internal sense.

[2] In general 'clothing' means everything that clothes another, and so whatever is relatively more external. Consequently the external or natural man is called the clothing in relation to the internal or spiritual man. In a similar way truth is called the clothing in relation to good, because truth clothes good; likewise factual knowledge of truth in relation to the truth of faith which belongs to the internal man. Sensory perception, which constitutes the lowest level of life with a person, is the clothing in relation to factual knowledge of truth.

'Clothes' are lower things that cover higher ones, or what amounts to the same thing, exterior things that cover interior ones, see 2576, 5248. In general they are truths, 4545, 4763, 5319, 5954, 6914, 6917, 9093, factual knowledge of truths, 6918, or truths on the level of the senses, 9158. Sensory perception constitutes the lowest level of life with a person, 4009, 5077, 5125, 5128, 5767, 5774, 6201, 6313, 7442, 7693, and sensory perception is subject to illusions, 5084, 5089, 6201, 6948, 6949, 7442.

[3] The meaning of 'clothes' as truths owes its origin to representatives in the next life. There angels and spirits appear dressed in clothes in keeping with the state of faith or truth that is theirs, and their clothes are varied in keeping with the changes which that state undergoes. Those governed by authentic truth appear dressed in white garments, and those governed by truths springing from good in shining ones. But those governed purely by good, as angels of the inmost heaven are, called celestial angels, appear naked. So it is then that clothes are truths, and that truths are meant in the Word by 'clothes', as may be seen from places referred to above. To these places let the following in the Gospels be added:

[4] In Matthew,

When Jesus was transfigured His face shone like the sun, and His garments became [white] as the light. Matthew 17:2.

'Face' in the Word means the interiors, in particular the affections, 358, 1999, 2434, 3527, 3573, 4066, 4796, 4797, 5102, 5695, 6604, 6848, 6849, and 'God's face' Goodness itself, 222, 223, 5585. 'The sun' means God's love, 2441, 2495, 3636, 3643, 4060, 4321 (end), 4696, 7083, 8644. From this it is evident what the meaning is when it says that the Lord's face shone like the Sun, namely that His interiors were the Good of Divine Love. 'His garments became [white] as the light' means Divine Truth radiating from Him, which also appears in heaven as the light, 1521, 1619-1632, 3195, 3222, 3485, 3636, 3643, 4415, 5400, 8644.

[5] In the same gospel,

When Jesus drew near to Jerusalem they brought the she-ass and the colt and laid their garments on them and set Him on them. But a very great crowd spread their garments on the road, while others were breaking off branches from trees and spreading them on the road. Matthew 21:1, 7-8.

Riding on a she-ass and her colt was a representative sign of the Supreme Judge and King, see 2781, as also is evident from what comes before in verse 5,

Tell the daughter of Zion, Behold, your King is coming to you, meek, seated on a she-ass, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.

It is also evident in Mark 11:1-12; in Luke 19:28-41; in John 12:12-16; and in Zechariah 9:9-10, where it says of the Lord that He would ride on an ass, and on a young ass, a son of she-asses. There He is called a King, and in addition it says that His dominion will be from sea even to sea, and from the River even to the ends of the earth. The fact that the supreme judge rode on a she-ass, and his sons on young asses, see Judges 5:9-10; 10:3-4; 12:14; and that the king rode on a she-mule, and the king's sons on mules, 1 Kings 1:33, 38, 44-45; 2 Samuel 13:29.

[6] When the disciples laid their garments on the she-ass and her colt, it represented the recognition that truths in their entirety were the foundation on which the Lord as supreme Judge and King rested; for the disciples represented the Lord's Church in respect of truths and forms of good, see 2129, 3488, 3858 (end), 6397, and their garments truths themselves, 4545, 4763, 5319, 5954, 6914, 6917, 9093. This same recognition was likewise represented when the crowd spread their garments, also the branches of trees, on the road. Another reason why they spread them on the road was that 'the road' means the truth by means of which a member of the Church is led, see 627, 2333, 3477. And the reason why they also spread the branches of trees was that 'trees' meant perceptions and also cognitions or knowledge of truth and good, 2682, 2722, 2972, 4552, 7692, so that their branches are the truths themselves. Those actions were also performed then because it was customary for the chief persons among the people to lay their garments on supreme judges and kings' she-asses and mules when they rode in pomp on them, and for the people themselves to spread their garments on the road, or the branches of trees instead. For in heaven judgeship consists in Divine Truth derived from Good, and kingship in Divine Truth, 1728, 2015, 2069, 3009, 4581, 4966, 5044, 5068, 6148.

[7] In Luke,

No one adds a piece of a new garment onto an old garment; in doing so he splits the new, and the binding from the new is unsuitable for the old.

Luke 5:36.

The Lord used this comparison to describe the truth of the new Church and the truth of the old Church; for 'garment' means truth. Sewing on one or binding it to the other means destroying both; for the truth of the new Church is interior truth, thus truth for the internal man, whereas the truth of the old Church is exterior truth, thus truth for the external man. The latter kind of truth prevailed in the Jewish Church, for by means of external things this Church represented internal ones, whereas the Church of today has knowledge of the internal truths that were represented then, because the Lord has revealed them. The fact that these truths are not suited to external ones in such a way that they can exist together is what the words used by the Lord serve to mean. From all this also it is evident that 'garment' means the Church's truth.

[8] In John,

Jesus said to Peter, Truly, truly I say to you, When you were a boy you girded your loins and walked where you wished. But when you are old you will stretch out your hands, [and] another will gird your loins and lead you where you do not wish. John 21:18.

No one without knowledge of the internal sense can see what these words imply; plainly, they contain arcana. In the internal sense 'Peter' means the Church's faith, see the Prefaces to Genesis 18, 22, and 3750, 6000, 6073 (end), 6344 (end). Consequently Peter when he was a boy means the nature of the Church's faith as it is initially, and Peter when he would be old means the nature of the Church's faith as it is finally. From this it is evident what 'when you were a boy you girded your loins and walked where you wished' means, namely that the Church's faith as it is initially is faith composed of truth derived from good, thus faith composed of charity towards the neighbour and of love to the Lord. And at this time a member of the Church in doing what is good acts freely, because his actions spring from the Lord. For aspects of the good of love are meant by 'the loins', 3021, 3294, 4280, 4575, 5050-5062, so that 'girding the loins' means clothing good with truths; and living is meant by 'walking', 519, 1794, 8417, 8420, so that 'walking where one wishes' means leading a life that is free. Those people lead a life that is free, or act freely, whose faith springs from love to the Lord and charity towards the neighbour; for they are led by the Lord, 892, 905, 2870-2893, 6325, 9096. 'When you are old you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird your loins and lead you where you do not wish' means that the Church's faith as it is finally will be none at all, at which time falsities that arise from evil springing from self-love and love of the world will take the place of faith and enslave it. This is the arcanum which these words spoken by Lord contain and which can be seen only from their internal sense. All this shows once again the kind of way in which the Lord spoke, namely in such a way that an inner meaning might be present within every detail, to the end that heaven might be joined to the world by means of the Word. For without the Word, that is, without Divine Truth that has been revealed, they are not joined together; and if they are not so joined the human race perishes.