9668. “要照着你在山上所看到的样式立起居所” 表照所代表的天堂里的良善和源于它的真理之状态而朝向四个方位. 这从 “居所” 和 “照着你在山上所看到的样式” 的含义清楚可知:

“居所” 是指天堂的一个代表 (参看9594节);

“照着你在山上所看到的样式” 是指照天堂里的良善和源于它的真理之状态而朝向四个方位. 这就是 “立起居所所依照的样式” 所表示的.

“西乃山”, 就是它出现的地方, 是指天堂 (参看9420节). 从这段描述明显可知, 纵向来看, 居所从东到西, 入口在东边, 柜子在西边. 因此, 两面朝南, 朝北. 居所的东区代表良善上升的状态, 西区代表良善下降的状态, 南区代表真理住在光中的状态, 北区代表真理住在阴暗中的状态.

入口朝向东区, 是因为主通过爱之良善进入天堂, 这也可见于以西结书中论述 “新殿” 的地方, 那里有这些话:

他带我到一座朝东的门, 看哪, 以色列神的荣光从东路而来. 耶和华的荣光从面朝东的门照入殿中. 耶和华的荣光充满了殿.(以西结书 43:1-6)

之后:

耶和华对我说, 这朝东的门必须关闭, 不可敞开, 任何人都不可由其中进入, 因为耶和华以色列的神已经由其中进入.(以西结书 44:1, 2)

从这些话很明显地看出, 唯独主通过爱之良善进入天堂, 来自主的爱之良善充满并构成天堂.

“东” 表示爱之良善方面的主, 因为主是天堂的太阳 (3636, 3643, 7078, 7083, 7270节). 但在天堂, 情况是这样: 东方是主显为太阳的地方, 这太阳正对着右眼 (4321节的末尾,7078, 7171节). 从那里向西, 因而在东西一线上的, 是那些处于爱之良善的人; 不过, 那些住在真理之光中的人朝南, 而那些住在真理之阴中的人朝北. 天堂里的所有人都仰望主, 因为在那里向前看就是仰望主. 在天堂, 没有人能背对祂向后看, 无论他怎样转动 (参看4321节的末尾节). 但这是一个属世人无法理解的奥秘. 这些就是在山上指给摩西看, 要照之立起居所的样式所代表的事.

The Bible describes many things as being holy, or sacred. The Ark of the Covenant is one very holy object. The inmost chamber of the tabernacle is called the "Holy of Holies". Things that proceed from the Lord are holy. Objects are holy if they contain something, or represent something, from the Lord. For that reason, the names of the Lord in human languages are holy because they represent qualities of the Lord, things that are Him. The Bible is holy because it contains, interiorly, the Lord's divine truth. The tabernacle of Israel was holy -- not because of the wood or gold or dyed cloth -- but because those things represented qualities that the Lord has. Those same qualities exist, as in an image, in the spiritual states of people who follow the Lord's laws. No person is holy, but if a person's mind contains truth from the Lord and his or her will comes to love the truths and the actions that these truths suggest to him, then his or her mind will contain holy things, because those truths and loves come from the Lord. These things become that person's life and they remain with that person in heaven, after death.

(Odkazy: Arcana Coelestia 3997, 4091, 8302)