778. "And wine, oil, flour, wheat." This symbolically means that these Roman Catholics no longer have any worship that springs from celestial truths and goods, because they have nothing inwardly in their worship that corresponds to the aforesaid things.

This statement is similar to ones explained just above and in previous numbers, the only difference being that the valuables here symbolize celestial goods and truths.

Just what goods and truths are called celestial, and what spiritual, may be seen in no. 773 above. It may also be seen that the Roman Catholics meant here possess none of these, nor are there any in their worship. For, as we said above, the goods and truths of doctrine are present in worship as the soul is in the body. Consequently worship without these is a lifeless worship. Of such a character is worship that is reverent in outward appearances, but which has in it no internal reverence.

That wine symbolizes truth springing from the goodness of love may be seen in no. 316 above. That oil symbolizes the goodness of love will be seen in the next number. Flour symbolizes celestial truth, and wheat symbolizes celestial good.

[2] Wine, oil, flour and wheat symbolize the truths and goods in worship, because they were the ingredients in drink offerings and grain offerings, which were offered on the altar along with other sacrifices, and sacrifices and other offerings offered on the altar symbolize worship, since it was in these that the Israelites' worship chiefly consisted.

That drink offerings, which were ones of wine, were offered on the altar along with other sacrifices, can be seen in Exodus 29:40; Leviticus 23:12-13, 18-19; Numbers 15:2-15; 28:11-15, 18-31; 29:1-7ff.; and also in Isaiah 57:6; 65:11; Jeremiah 7:18; 44:17-19; Ezekiel 20:28; Joel 1:9; Psalms 16:4; Deuteronomy 32:38.

That oil was also offered on the altar along with sacrifices, can be seen in Exodus 29:40.

That grain offerings, which consisted of wheat flour, were offered on the altar along with other sacrifices, can be seen in Exodus 29:40).

It can be seen from this that these four articles - wine, oil, flour and wheat - were sacred and celestial elements in their worship.

681. And it became blood as though of a dead man, and every living creature in the sea died. This symbolizes the infernal falsity in those people by which every truth in the Word was extinguished, and so also every truth in the church and in faith.

Blood as though of a dead man, or blood oozing and mixed with pus, symbolizes infernal falsity. For blood symbolizes Divine truth, and in an opposite sense, that truth falsified (no. 379). But blood as though of a dead man symbolizes infernal falsity, inasmuch as death symbolizes the extinction of spiritual life, and so a dead man symbolizes something infernal (nos. 321, 525). That every living creature died means symbolically that every truth in the Word, in the church, and in faith was extinguished. For a living creature symbolizes the truth of faith; accordingly a living creature that has died symbolizes the truth of faith extinguished.

A living creature in the Word, or a soul when referring to a human being, symbolizes his spiritual life, which is also the life of his intellect; and because the intellect is formed by truths, and truths have to do with faith, therefore a living creature or soul symbolizes the truth of faith. That this is the symbolic meaning of a living creature or soul can be seen from many passages in the Word, and also from those that mention both soul and heart. The soul and heart plainly mean a person's life, but it is his life in consequence of his will and intellect, or spiritually speaking, in consequence of his love and wisdom, or of his charity and faith; and the life of the will springing from the goodness of love is meant by heart, while the life of the intellect springing from truths of wisdom or of faith is meant by soul. These are meant by soul and heart in Matthew 22:37, Mark 12:30, 33, Luke 10:27; Deuteronomy 6:5; 10:12; 11:13; 26:16; Jeremiah 32:41; and elsewhere. Also in passages which mention heart by itself and soul by itself.

The reason these terms are used comes from the correspondence of the heart with the will and love, and of the soul's action in the lungs with the intellect and wisdom, as may be seem in Angelic Wisdom Regarding Divine Love and Wisdom, Section Five, where this correspondence is discussed.