10262. A hin. That this signifies the amount sufficient for conjunction, is evident from the signification of a “hin,” which was a measure of liquids, here of oil, as being the amount sufficient for conjunction; for by “oil” is signified the Lord’s Divine celestial good, which is the very conjunctive of all in the heavens; hence by its measure is signified the amount sufficient for conjunction, and everything of conjunction. The Lord’s Divine celestial good is the very conjunctive of all, because it is the very being of the life of all; for it vivifies all things by means of the Divine truth that proceeds from this Divine good, and it vivifies them according to the quality of the reception. Angels are receptions, and so also are men; the truths and goods with them afford the quality according to which is effected the reception, thus the conjunction.

[2] Two measures are mentioned in the Word, which were in holy use, one for liquids, which was called the “hin,” the other for dry things, which was called the “ephah;” by the hin were measured oil and wine, and by the ephah, meal and fine flour; the measure hin, which was for oil and wine, was divided into four parts, but the measure ephah was divided into ten. The reason why the measure hin was divided into four, was that it might signify what is conjunctive, for “four” denotes conjunction; but that the measure ephah was divided into ten was that it might signify what is receptive, the quality whereof was marked by the numbers, for “ten” signifies much, all, and what is full. (That “four” denotes conjunction, see n. 8877, 9601, 9674, 10136, 10137; and that “ten” denotes much, all, and what is full, the same as a “hundred,” n. 1988, 3107, 4400, 4638, 8468, 8540, 9745, 10253)

[3] (That the measure “hin” was for oil and wine in the sacrifices, and that it was divided into four; but that the measure “ephah” was for meal and fine meal, which were for the meat-offering in the sacrifices, and that this was divided into ten, can be seen in Exodus 29:40; Leviticus 5:11; 23:13; Numbers 15:3-10; 28:5, 7, 14.) From all this it is evident that by a “hin” is signified the amount sufficient for conjunction, and by an “ephah” the amount sufficient for reception. Moreover, the oil conjoined the fine flour, and the flour received it, for in the meat-offering there were oil and fine flour.

[4] There were other measures besides, which were in common use both for dry things and for liquids; the dry measures were called the “homer” and the “omer,” and the liquid measures the “cor” and the “bath.” The homer contained ten ephahs, and the ephah ten omers; but the cor contained ten baths, and the bath ten lesser parts (concerning which see Exodus 16:36; Ezekiel 45:11, 13, 24).

[5] But in Ezekiel, where the new temple is treated of, there appears a different division of the ephah and the bath; the ephah and the bath not being there divided into ten, but into six; and the hin there corresponds to the ephah, as is plain in this prophet (Ezekiel 45:13-14, 24; 46:5, 7, 11, 14). The reason is that the subject there treated of is not celestial good and its conjunction, but spiritual good and its conjunction; and in the spiritual kingdom the corresponding numbers are twelve, six, and three, because by these numbers are signified all things, and when they are predicated of truths and goods, all things of truth and of good in the complex. (That these things are signified by “twelve,” see n. 3272, 3858, 3913, 7973; also by “six,” n. 3960, 7973, 8148, 10217; in like manner by “three,” by which is signified from beginning to end, thus what is full, and in respect to things, everything, n. 2788, 4495, 5159, 7715, 9825, 10127) That these numbers involve similar things is because the greater numbers have a like signification with the simple ones from which they arise by multiplication (see n. 5291, 5335, 5708, 7973).

[6] As by the “hin” is signified the amount sufficient for conjunction with spiritual truth also, therefore likewise for the meat-offering in the sacrifices from the ram, there was taken a third part of a hin of oil, and for the drink-offering a third part of wine (Numbers 15:6-7); for by the “ram” is signified spiritual good (n. 2830, 9991). From all this it is now again clearly evident that by the numbers mentioned in the Word are signified real things; otherwise to what purpose would have been so frequent a designation of quantity and measure by means of numbers in Moses, in Ezekiel, and elsewhere?

5708. Five measures. That this signifies much increased, is evident from the signification of “five,” as being much (of which in what follows); and from the signification of “measures,” as being states of truth from good (see n. 3104). As regards “five,” it is a number that signifies a little, likewise some, and also much. Its signification depends upon its relation to the number of which it is a part (n. 5291): as a part of “ten” it involves the same as ten, but in a less degree, because it is half of the number ten; for as numbers formed by multiplication signify the like with their simple numbers (see n. 5291, 5335), so numbers produced by division signify the like as their multiples-for instance “five” the same as “ten” and as “twenty” and also as “one hundred” and “one thousand,” and so on. (That “ten” denotes what is full may be seen above, n. 3107, 4638.) Five more measures were given to Benjamin than to the rest of his brethren because of the signification of the matter in the internal sense; ten measures could not have been given, for they would have been far too much. By traditions from the Most Ancient Church the ancients knew what some numbers signified, and therefore they made use of these numbers when anything occurred which they might serve to signify, as here the number “five;” and in other cases they applied several other numbers, as “three” to signify what is full from beginning to end; “seven” to signify what is holy; “twelve” to signify all things in their complex.