2362. “看哪, 我有两个女儿, 还没有亲近过男人” 表对善与真的情感. 这从 “女儿” 的含义清楚可知, “女儿” 是指情感 (参看489-491节). 她们 “还没有亲近过男人” 表虚假还没有玷污过她们, “男人” 表理性真理, 在反面意义上表虚假 (265, 749, 1007节). 情感有两种类型, 即对良善的情感和对真理的情感 (参看1997节). 前者, 即对良善的情感构成属天的教会, 在圣言中被称为 “锡安的女儿或女子”, 或 “锡安的处女”; 而后者, 即对真理的情感构成属灵的教会, 在圣言中被称为 “耶路撒冷的女子”.

如以赛亚书:

锡安的处女藐视你, 嗤笑你; 耶路撒冷的女子在你后面摇头. (以赛亚书 37:22; 列王纪下 19:21)

耶利米哀歌:

耶路撒冷的女子哪, 我可用什么与你相比呢? 锡安的处女哪, 我可拿什么和你比较, 好安慰你呢? (耶利米哀歌 2:13)

弥迦书:

你这羊群的高台, 锡安女子的山冈哪, 从前的权柄, 就是耶路撒冷女子的国权, 必归与你. (弥迦书 4:8)

西番雅书:

锡安的女子哪, 应当欢呼. 以色列阿, 应当发声. 耶路撒冷的女子哪, 应当满心欢喜快乐. (西番雅书 3:14)

撒迦利亚书:

锡安的女子哪, 应当大大喜乐; 耶路撒冷的女子哪, 应当发声. 看哪, 你的王来到你这里! (撒迦利亚书 9:9; 马太福音 21:5; 约翰福音 12:15)

属天的教会, 或主的属天国度被称为来自对良善的情感, 即来自对主自己之爱的 “锡安的女儿或女子” (参看以赛亚书 10:32; 16:1; 52:2; 62:11; Jer. 4:31; 6:2, 23; 耶利米哀歌 1:6; 2:1, 4, 8, 10; 弥迦书 4:10, 13; 撒迦利亚书 2:10; 诗篇 9:14). 属灵的教会, 或主的属灵国度被称为来自对真理的情感, 因而来自对邻之仁的 “耶路撒冷的女子” (参看耶利米哀歌 2:15). 第一卷多次论述了这两种教会及其特征.

由于属天教会通过存在于对邻之爱中的对主之爱而存在, 故它尤其好比未结婚的女子或处女. 事实上, 它也被称为 “童女”, 如启示录:

这些人未曾沾染妇女, 他们原是童女. 羔羊无论往哪里去, 他们都跟随他, 因为他们在神的宝座前没有瑕疵. (启示录 14:4-5)

这一点在犹太教会中也有所体现: 承接圣职的不可娶寡妇, 要娶处女为妻 (利未记 21:13-15; 以西结书 44:22).

由本节内容可以看出圣言在内义上何等纯洁. 但它在文字上没有表现出来, 如当读到 “看哪, 我有两个女儿, 还没有亲近过男人, 容我领她们出来给你们, 就照你们看为好的对待她们吧! 只是这两个人, 不要向他们作什么” 这些话时, 人们只会想到淫秽的事, 尤其那些过着邪恶生活的人. 然而, 通过所给出的解读明显可知, 这些话在内义上何等贞洁, 也就是说, 它们表示对良善与真理的情感, 以及不向主的神性和神圣施暴的人出于这些情感的享受所感知到的幸福.

6844. Take off your shoes from upon your feet' means that the powers of the senses, which form the external levels of the natural, should be removed. This is clear from the meaning of 'shoes' as the powers of the senses forming the external levels of the natural, dealt with in 1748; and from the meaning of 'feet' as the natural, dealt with in 2162, 3147, 3761, 3986, 4280, 4938-4952. 'Taking off' plainly means removing since one is talking about the powers of the senses. Particular expressions have to be used in application to the actual matter to which they refer; thus 'being taken off' is applied to shoes, and 'being removed' to the powers of the senses. The implications of all this need to be stated. Anyone can see that here 'shoes' represent something that does not accord with Him who is holy and Divine, so that 'taking off one's shoes' was representative of the removal of things like that. Without this representation what would it matter to the Divine whether a person drew near in shoes or in bare feet, provided that inwardly he is the kind of person who can draw near the Divine in faith and love? Therefore the powers of the senses are meant by 'shoes', and those powers, which form the external levels of the natural, are by nature such that they cannot remain when one thinks with reverence about the Divine. Consequently because it was a time when representatives had to be observed, Moses was not allowed to draw near with his shoes on.

[2] The reason why the powers of the senses that form the external levels of the natural are by nature such that they cannot receive the Divine is that they are steeped in ideas of worldly, bodily, and also earthly things because they are the first to receive them. Therefore sensory impressions contained in the memory as a result of the activity of the senses draw their nature from the light and heat of the world, and hardly at all from the light and heat of heaven. As a consequence they are the last things that can be regenerated, that is, receive something of the light of heaven. This explains why, when a person is ruled by his senses and sensory impressions control his thinking, he inevitably thinks of the Divine as he does of earthly things. If also he is ruled by evil those impressions make him think in ways altogether contrary to the Divine. When therefore a person thinks about the kinds of things that have to do with faith and love to God he is raised, if he is governed by good, from the powers of the senses which form the external levels of the natural to more internal levels, consequently from earthly and worldly things nearer to celestial and spiritual ones.

[3] This is something people do not know about, the reason being that they do not know that internal levels distinct and separate from external ones are present within them, or that thought exists on increasingly internal levels as well as on more external ones. And unaware of these things a person cannot reflect on them. But see what has been stated already about thought ruled by sensory impressions:

People whose thought is ruled by sensory impressions have little wisdom, 5084, 5089, 5094, 6201, 6310-6312, 6314, 6316, 6318, 6598, 6612, 6614, 6622, 6624.

A person may be raised above the level of the senses, and when he is raised he comes into a quite gentle light; and this happens especially to those who are being regenerated, 6183, 6313, 6315.

All this now shows what is meant by 'taking off one's shoes from upon one's feet'. A person's natural divides into the external, the middle, and the internal, see 4570, 5118, 5126, 5497, 5649. The internal natural is meant by 'the feet', the middle natural by 'the soles', and the external by 'the shoes'.