The heart means love. A good heart means love to the Lord and to the neighbor, while a hard or stony heart means the love of self or the world -- riches and things. When the psalmist asks the Lord to search his heart, he wants the Lord to see what it is that he loves. And we are what we love. What we eat may form our earthly body, but it's only temporary, what we love forms our spiritual body, beautiful or ugly as we have chosen. It's interesting to note that the first multi-cellular motion of our embryo is the pulsating that starts in a twist of blood vessel that is to become our heart, and the last motion of our natural body is our heartbeat. It is there for all of our natural life. And of course there is a beating heart in our spiritual bodies when we come to put them on.

1183. Saying, Thus with violence shall Babylon, that great city, be cast down, and shall be found no more, signifies the total destruction of that doctrine, and that these shall not rise again. This is evident from the signification of "to be cast down with violence," as being total destruction; also from the signification of "Babylon that great city," as being that religious persuasion and its doctrine (of which frequently above); also from the signification of "found no more," as being not to rise again.

(Continuation)

It is otherwise with those whom the Lord leads. He leads those who love truths, and who will them from Himself. Such are enlightened when they read the Word; for the Lord is in the Word, and speaks with everyone according to his apprehension. When such hear the speech of spirits, as they sometimes do, they are not taught but led, and this with such precaution that the man is left to himself; for every man, as has been said before, is led by the Lord by means of affections, and from these he thinks as if from himself in freedom; if this were not so man would be incapable of reformation, nor could he be enlightened. But men are enlightened variously, each according to the quality of his affection and consequent intelligence. Those who are in the spiritual affection of truth are raised up into the light of heaven, even so as to be able to perceive the enlightenment.

[2] This it has been given me to see, and from it to perceive clearly what comes from the Lord and what from angels. What has come from the Lord has been written; what has come from the angels has not. Moreover, it has been granted me to talk with angels as man with man, also to see the things that are in the heavens and that are in the hells; and for the reason that the end of the present church has come, and the beginning of a new one, which will be the New Jerusalem, is at hand; and to that it must be revealed that the Lord rules the universe, both heaven and the world; that there is a heaven and a hell, and what these are; that men live even as men after death, those who have been led by the Lord in heaven, but those who have been led by self in hell; that the Word is the Divine itself of the Lord on the earth; also that the Last Judgment is accomplished, that man may not expect it forever in this world; as well as many other things belonging to the light that is now arising after darkness.