1232. “亚兰” 表对良善的认知. 这可从前面所述, 以及圣言推知, 如以西结书:

亚兰人因你的货品繁多, 就作你的客商; 他们用绿宝石, 紫色布, 绣货, 细麻布, 珊瑚, 红宝石兑换你的货物. (以西结书 27:16)

这论及推罗, 或拥有认知. “货品, 绿宝石, 紫色布, 绣货, 细麻布, 珊瑚, 红宝石” 在此无非表对良善的认知. 何西阿书:

从前雅各逃到亚兰的田野, 以色列为得妻服侍人, 为得妻与人放羊. 耶和华借先知领以色列从埃及上来, 以色列也藉先知而得保存. 以法莲大大惹动主怒. (何西阿书 12:12-14)

此处 “雅各” 表外在教会, “以色列” 表内在属灵教会. “亚兰” 表对良善的认知, “埃及” 表败坏的知识, “以法莲” 表败坏的聪明才智. 在此上下文中, 这些所表示的意思无法从字义看出来, 只能通过内义推知, 这些名字的内义表教会的真实事物, 如前所述. 以赛亚书:

看哪, 大马士革已被废弃, 不再为城, 必变作废墟. 以法莲不再有保障, 大马士革不再有国权; 亚兰所剩下的, 必像以色列人的荣耀. (以赛亚书 17:1, 3)

“亚兰所剩下的” 在此表对良善的认知, 它们被称为 “以色列的荣耀”. “亚兰” 或叙利亚在反面意义上表对已败坏的良善的认知. 一个词具有 (好与坏) 两方面的意义, 这在圣言中是常有的事 (以赛亚书 7:4-6; 9:11-12; 申命记 26:5).

4293. In the internal historical sense 'for as a prince you have contended with God and with men, and have prevailed' means on account of the stubborn perverseness which was a product of their false delusions and evil desires. This becomes clear from the meaning of 'God' and the meaning of 'men' as truths and goods, dealt with above in 4287, though here the selfsame words have the opposite meaning because in this internal historical sense they are expressions used in reference to the descendants of Jacob, with whom no truths or goods were present interiorly, as shown above, only falsities and evils. Falsities are false delusions because they are the product of such delusions, and evils are evil desires because they are the product of such desires.

[2] As regards that nation's insistence that they should play the representative part, that is, that they themselves should constitute the Church in preference to all nations throughout the whole world, see above in 4290. More than this it is the fact that they were allowed to do so on account of the stubborn perverseness which was a product of their false delusions and of their evil desires that is meant here. No one can know the nature of those delusions and desires unless he has some contact with them in the next life. To enable me to know, such contact has been granted to me, for I have talked on several occasions to those people there. They love themselves and worldly wealth more than anybody else does, and above all they fear loss of position as well as loss of gain more than anybody else does. Consequently today as in former times they despise everyone else in comparison with themselves; they are also utterly intent on the acquisition of wealth, and in addition are full of fear. Because that nation has been like this since ancient times they were better able than others to be kept in external holiness devoid of all internal holiness, and so in outward form to represent things that constituted the Church It was these false delusions and evil desires that produced such stubborn perverseness.

[3] This is also apparent from many things which are mentioned regarding them in the historical narratives of the Word. After being punished they were able to demonstrate an external humility such as no other nation could do, for they were able for whole days to lie prostrate on the ground and to roll themselves in the dust and not get up until the third day. They were also able for many days to beat their breasts, and to go around in sackcloth, in tattered garments, with ashes or dust sprinkled over their head. They were able to fast continuously for many days, and during that time to burst into bitter tears. But these were the expressions solely of bodily and earthly love, and a fear of losing their pre-eminence and worldly wealth. For there was not anything internal which moved them since they did not know at all, and did not even wish to know, what the internal was, such as the matter of a life after death, or that of eternal salvation.

[4] From this it may be seen that because their nature was such they had to be dispossessed of all internal holiness, for this holiness accords in no way at all with the kind of external holiness that has just been described; indeed the two are utterly contrary to each other. It may also be seen that they were better able than others to play the part of a representative of the Church, that is to say, to represent holy things in external form, devoid of all internal holiness; and that thus by means of that nation some kind of communication with the heavens was possible, see 4288.