10255. “一半, 就是二百五十” 表相应的量. 这从系之前数字的一半的数字的含义清楚可知, 系前一个数字的一半的数字是指在某种程度上存在之物, 以及足够的量, 或目的或功用所需的量, 因而也指相应的量. 正因如此, “二百五十” 因是之前数字的一半, 也就是说, 是数字 “五百” 的一半, 故表示相应的量. 举个例子有助于阐明这一切. 以数字 “十” 为例. 当这个数字表示所有人时, 它的一半, 或五就表示他们当中的一些人; 当十表示完整或完全之物时, 五就表示一个足够的量; 但当十表示大量时, 五就表示些许等等. 其它所有数字在减半时也是这种情况. “五” 表示人们当中的一些, 以及在某种程度上存在之物, 或些许, 同样表示一个足够的量和目的或功用所需的量 (参看4638, 5708, 5956, 9102, 9689节). 因此, 当 “十” 表示所有人, 完整或完全之物, 或大量时, “五” 的各种含义都与数字 “十” 的含义有关. “五十” 相对于 “一百”, “二百五十” 相对于 “五百” 的含义也一样. 数字是大还是小则无所谓; 大数字和构成它们的小数字具有同样的含义 (参看5335, 5708, 7973节); 在圣言中, 数字表示属灵的真实事物 (参看9488, 10127节提到的地方). 由此可见, 现在这个数字, 就是之前数字的一半, 并非表示对内层真理的感知相对于对外层真理的感知是一半, 而是表示相应的量. 天上的事物不像地上的事物那样可以测量和数算, 因为天上没有空间和时间, 取而代之的是状态, 状态的性质和数量不是用任何数算来感知的. 数算和测量与诸如属于时空的那类事物, 因而与那些适合自然界的最低层的事物有关.

301. As regards the second arcanum, if they had been instructed in mysteries of faith they would have perished for ever, meant by the words 'Now by chance he will put out his hand and also take from the tree of life ¹ and eat, and live forever', the position is this: Once people have become reversed orders of life and are unwilling to rely on anything but self and the proprium as the source of their life and wisdom, they are given to reasoning as to whether any matter of faith which they hear about is so or not so. And because self, sensory evidence, and facts are the basis of their reasoning, they inevitably adopt a negative attitude. And when their attitude is negative they also speak blasphemy and practise profanation, and at length do not care whether or not they mingle together unholy things with holy. When man becomes such he stands so condemned in the next life that there is no hope of salvation for him, for the things that have been mingled through acts of profanation remain that way permanently. The moment some idea of what is holy enters in, so does the idea joined to it of what is unholy, and this makes it impossible for that person to live in any but a community of people who are condemned. Anything at all that has been joined to, and is present as, an idea within a person's thought is in the next life perceived very precisely even by spirits in the world of spirits, but more so by angelic spirits. It is perceived so precisely that from merely one idea they know his whole character. Getting rid of unholy things such as are joined on to those that are holy is not possible without hellish torment, which is so intense that if man knew about it he would beware of profanation as of hell itself.

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