Chapter 1.

The Book of the Birth of Jesus Christ

1. The book of the birth of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

The first words said in Matthew are “The book of the birth of Jesus Christ.” ¹ In the original Greek, the very first word of the New Testament is Βίβλος (Biblos). meaning “Book.” Let us pause to ask, “What is meant by the term ‘book’? What is the universal or “internal sense” of this word?”

In the literal sense, a book is a collection of printed pages, bound together, and enclosed between covers that serve to protect the contents. More figuratively, we sometimes speak about our “book of life”; it is the record of our lives, containing everything we have ever done, thought, felt, loved and intended. In brief, it is really our essential self, our fundamental nature. So the term book in scripture represents much more than a physical book; it stands for every moment of our lives, what we have thought, what we have felt, and especially what our true motives have been — in short, the entire, interior content of our life. In other words, “the book of our life” is our true nature. ²

So, we are about to read a book — not just any book — but a book about the inmost states of a person’s life; it’s a book about motives and intentions; it’s about someone’s true character. And in this case, as the first verse clearly states, it’s a book about Jesus Christ.

Taken literally, this book will tell us about the external facts of Jesus’ life: His ancestry, His birth, His life, His death, and His resurrection. And as we read at a more spiritual level, we come to see that this book is about Jesus’ inner life — the revelation of His true character. This is the internal sense; it is the sense beyond and within the letter of scripture. It’s not just about external words and deeds; it’s about the thoughts and feelings within those words and deeds — the loving intentions that gave rise to everything that Jesus said and did.

As we study the internal sense of the events surrounding the life of Jesus, we begin to realize that the story of Jesus’ life parallels our own. We come to see that the gospel is not only a story about God’s coming to earth in the name and form of Jesus Christ; it is also a story about how God is “born” in each of us, “crucified” in each of us, and “rises again” in each of us. In other words, the gospels are not just about Jesus — although His story is crucially important; it’s about how God incarnates within each of us, how love and wisdom can take on flesh and blood within each of us, and how each of us can experience a new birth into spiritual life. It’s a wonderful, complex story not only about the temptations we must face, but also about the possibility of resurrections to new life in every moment.

In other words, the wonderful story about how God came to earth as Jesus Christ, was born in Bethlehem, grew up in Nazareth, performed miracles in Galilee, was crucified in Jerusalem and rose again is our story as well. It discloses the way God secretly fashions a new nature within each of us according to our willingness to live according to His will.

It should be noted, however, that spiritual development does not take place suddenly. It is a gradual process which takes place within every individual to the extent that a person strives to overcome tendencies towards self-will and self-absorption. Rather than being “reborn” in a moment, people who are regenerating are being born again and again as they enter ever higher levels of spiritual consciousness. These successive “births” are wondrously illustrated in the opening verses of Matthew where we read about the the “birth” or, as it is also translated, about the “generation” of Jesus Christ.

The term “generation,” spiritually seen, refers to the successive births of all things that are of love and faith. As we grow in our ability to receive God’s love, “Jesus” is being successively born in us; as we grow in our ability to receive God’s wisdom, “Christ” is being successively born in us. In brief, “the book of the generation of Jesus Christ,” refers to the miraculous way in which God generates new spiritual life in each of us. It is a book not only about Jesus and His gradual growth, but also about us. It’s a book about our gradual, sequential, perfectly ordered spiritual growth — a process called regeneration. ³

At first glance, the opening phrase, “The book of the birth of Jesus Christ,” seems to be nothing more than an introduction to a rather uneventful listing of Jesus’ ancestors in time. But seen more deeply, it is a summation of the spiritual history of humanity — the spiritual history of the human race up to the time of Jesus’ advent into the world. And at a deeper, more personal level, it is our own story, the story of our spiritual development. It is especially the story of our gradual opening to the advent of divine love and divine wisdom in our life, beginning with Jesus’ birth in us, and how His true nature gradually becomes our true nature until it can truly be said that we are “made in the image and likeness of God” (Genesis 1:26).

Son of David, Son of Abraham

At first, Jesus Christ is not seen as God Incarnate. He is seen as any other person born on earth — a man among men, descended from human beings, and having a specific ancestry. We read that He is descended from David, who in turn is descended from Abraham (υἱοῦ Δαυὶδ υἱοῦ Ἀβραάμ). But, as we shall see, a deeper look at this genealogy reveals that it is a record of how the human soul is gradually prepared for the birth of the Lord.

The genealogical table in Matthew includes fourteen generations from Abraham to David. This represents a succession of spiritual births in which we grow from early states of simple trust and obedient love (Abraham) into more developed states of understanding and truth (King David). But along with understanding and truth comes a forgetting of our earlier, simpler, more childlike states of trust and obedience. And so, there are fourteen more generations from David to the captivity in Babylon — a succession of births recording our gradual spiritual decline as the accumulation of hereditary evils increasingly overtake us and hold us captive.

This is spiritual “Babylon,” a state in which our primary concern is for ourselves, with little thought of loving others or serving God. At its worst, Babylon represents the desire to rule over others, and to control them. In brief, it is to deny others the right to make their own choices or to enjoy their own freedom. Instead, believing we know what is right for others, we make ourselves (either through direct rule, or more subtly through clever manipulation) their lord and master. Though it would be difficult to admit, whenever we do this, we have put ourselves in the place of God. ⁴

Our descent into total bondage to evil does not happen overnight; rather it comes about gradually as we rely more and more on ourselves and less and less on God. Finally, there are recorded fourteen more generations, during which time we fall into utter spiritual darkness. We begin to believe that we alone know the truth, and in doing so, we forget about God; we might even believe that God does not exist at all.

All would be lost if it were not for one thing. At first, we may hardly notice it at all, for it happens as inconspicuously as the birth of a child in a stable. It is a quiet occurrence without any particular grandeur, and yet it is the greatest, most significant moment in our lives. It is the birth of God in us; it begins as only a dim awareness that there is something holy, pure, and righteous in life, something that is both within us and beyond us. It is a dawning in the darkness; the one who called Himself “the light of the world” is about to be born in us. It is as if God is saying, “Let there be light” (Genesis 1:3).

The Genealogy

2. Abraham begot Isaac; and Isaac begot Jacob; and Jacob begot Judah and his brothers;

3. And Judah begot Perez and Zara of Tamar; and Perez begot Hesrom; and Hesrom begot Aram;

4. And Aram begot Aminadab; and Aminadab begot Naasson; and Naasson begot Salmon;

5. And Salmon begot Boaz of Rahab; and Boaz begot Obed of Ruth; and Obed begot Jesse;

6. And Jesse begot David the king; and David the king begot Solomon of her [who had been the wife] of Uriah;

7. And Solomon begot Rehoboam; and Rehoboam begot Abijah; and Abijah begot Asa;

8. And Asa begot Jehoshaphat; and Jehoshaphat begot Joram; and Joram begot Uzziah;

9. And Uzziah begot Jotham; and Jotham begot Ahaz; and Ahaz begot Hezekiah;

10. And Hezekiah begot Manasseh; and Manasseh begot Amon; and Amon begot Josiah;

11. And Josiah begot Jechoniah and his brothers, at [the time] of the carrying away into Babylon;

12. And after the carrying away into Babylon, Jechoniah begot Salathiel; and Salathiel begot Zerubbabel;

13. And Zerubbabel begot Abiud; and Abiud begot Eliakim; and Eliakim begot Azor;

14. And Azor begot Zadok; and Zadok begot Achim; and Achim begot Eliud;

15. And Eliud begot Eleazar; and Eleazar begot Matthan; and Matthan begot Jacob;

16. And Jacob begot Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.

17. Therefore all the generations from Abraham until David [are] fourteen generations; and from David until the carrying away into Babylon [are] fourteen generations; and from the carrying away into Babylon until the Christ [are] fourteen generations.

The first seventeen verses of Matthew record a succession of spiritual births. From one point of view, these spiritual births chronicle the development of the human race from first conception — creation itself — to the first coming of the Lord.

But from another point of view, these first seventeen verses reveal the descent of the Divine through the heavens — the Infinite God of the universe taking on a finite human form. This “finition” of the Divine was absolutely necessary, for if God were indeed to come to earth, He would have to do so in a way that we could grasp and understand. If He were to manifest Himself in all His glory, no one could possibly bear His presence any more than one could bear the heat and light of the sun touching the earth. His Glory and divinity would have to be clothed in humility and humanity. The burning fire of the divine love and the blinding glory of the divine truth must be accommodated to our ability to receive. ⁵

The greatest example of this is how the literal stories of scripture — although they are accommodated to finite, human understanding — contain infinite levels of truth. In this way the Word of God serves as an external container of inner truth, just as the body functions as a container for the soul. The same can be said of Jesus Christ who was born of Mary. His human body, conceived in Mary’s womb, served as an external covering for the Infinite Love and Wisdom that were His very essence — His Divine Soul.

This was the only way that Jehovah God could come to earth and be with us. It was necessary that He take on a human body, along with its corrupted heredity — the heredity He received in Mary’s womb. This is quite different from the idea that Jesus was born “without sin,” or that His mother, Mary, was “exempt from original sin.” ⁶

The case is very much the opposite. In fact, God needed to be born in the womb of an ordinary woman — a woman with ordinary faults and failings. And He had to do so in an ordinary way — just as He is born in each of us when we are ready to receive Him. In fact it was absolutely necessary that Mary be a normal person, inclined to evils of every kind, just like anyone else. In this way Jesus could take on, through Mary, a corrupted human heredity. Through this external covering, He could be like one of us, making Himself both approachable and accessible.

But making Himself accessible to human beings was only part of the plan. By taking on human fallibility through Mary, He also made Himself accessible to evil spirits. Clothed in a human body, with all of its limitations and inherited corruptions, He could be approached and attacked by hellish influences — evil spirits from hell who desired nothing more than to destroy Him, both soul and body. ⁷

This process might be compared to a “sting operation” in which Jesus made Himself potentially susceptible to evil — something altogether impossible if He had remained fully Divine. In taking on a body from Mary, along with its inclinations to evil, Jesus was able to “draw out” the evil spirits who openly attacked Him. Through successive combats of this nature, He gradually subjugated the hells and glorified His humanity.

When we read of Jesus’ life on earth in the literal narrative, we see little of this inner struggle, or what Swedenborg calls His “combats against the hells.” But a careful reading of the internal sense will show us in what way, and to what degree, God fought for us (in Jesus) — not just on the cross, but throughout His entire life on earth.

The Power of Adoption

18. And the birth of Jesus Christ was in this way: His mother Mary, being betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, was found with child from the Holy Spirit.

19. And Joseph her husband, being just, and not willing to expose her to public infamy, intended to send her away privately.

20. And while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, fear not to take to thee Mary thy wife, for that which is begotten in her is from the Holy Spirit.

21. And she shall bring forth a Son, and thou shalt call His name Jesus; for He shall save His people from their sins.”

22. And all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was declared by the Lord through the prophet, saying,

23. “Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel, which is, being translated, God with us.”

24. And Joseph, being awakened from sleep, did as the angel of the Lord had directed him, and took to him his wife,

25. And knew her not, until she brought forth her firstborn Son; and he called His name Jesus.

As we have seen, verses one through seventeen record the developmental process by which the human soul is prepared for the birth of Jesus Christ. Next, in verses eighteen through twenty-five, the birth process itself is recorded, from conception to delivery. The language of the letter could not be more specific: “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows.” Then comes this key statement: “After His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Spirit” (1:18)

It is marvelous how clearly this is stated in the literal sense of the Word. That which is born of Mary has no mortal father; rather, this Child is born of the Holy Spirit. Initially, Joseph is “minded to put her away secretly.” This is because Joseph knows that he is not the father of this child. In other words, Jesus does not have a human father — nor does He need one. That’s because the Father is in Him as His very soul. ⁸ It is quite clear, then, that Jesus is not the son of Joseph.” Jesus is born of “the Holy Spirit” — the Spirit of God descending to earth to take on human form. ⁹

The child conceived within Mary’s womb is not Joseph’s child, and Joseph knows it. And yet, even while Joseph struggles within himself, he is comforted by an angel who says “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to yourself Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins” (1:20-21).

Like all human beings, Joseph is naturally inclined to love his own offspring best, just as we tend to love our own ideas more than the ideas that are generated by others. In the corporate world, the phrase “not invented here” refers to the idea that we prefer to buy the products that our own company produces, rather than the products of a competitor. Similarly, the ego tends to be proud of its own ideas, even as parents take more pride in the accomplishments of their own offspring than in the achievements of other children.

But Joseph “being a just man” realizes that there is more going on than his own ego concerns. At this point, he represents a quality in us that can awaken to spiritual reality: “Being awakened from sleep,” Joseph does exactly what the angel of the Lord commands (1:24). This is a picture of how we gradually come to see that our highest thoughts and most tender feelings are not from us (“not invented here”), that they are not the result of our clever understanding, nor are they the product of our sympathetic nature. In other words, our highest thoughts and tenderest feelings are not our offspring; rather, they are gifts and blessings that come to us, and are given to us, so that we may adopt them as our own. This is sometimes referred to as “grace,” a gift that is freely bestowed upon us without our doing anything to earn it or deserve it.

Whenever we are “awakened from sleep,” like Joseph, we begin to see that the truth we have been given and the compassion we feel are always miraculous births — and that God is the true Father. The “Holy Spirit” has come upon us; all we have to do is adopt these noble thoughts and benevolent emotions — as Joseph did — as if they are our own. ¹⁰

Poznámky pod čarou:

741. That seduceth the whole world, signifies that pervert all things of the church. This is evident from the signification of "the whole world," as being all things of the church (of which presently); and as all things of the church are signified by "the whole world," so "to seduce it" signifies to pervert those things; for all things of the church are perverted when the good of charity, which is the good of life, is separated and removed from faith as not contributing and effecting anything to salvation. Thereby all things of the Word and thence all things of the church are falsified, for the Lord says that the law and the prophets ¹ hang on these two commandments, "To love God above all things, and the neighbor as thyself." These two commandments signify to live and act according to the commandments of the Word; for to love is to will and to do, since what a man interiorly loves, that he wills, and what he wills that he does. "The law and the prophets" signify all things of the Word.

[2] There are two principles of evil and falsity into which the church successively falls. One is dominion over all things of the church and of heaven, which dominion is meant in the Word by "Babel" or "Babylonia;" into this the church falls by reason of evil; the other is the separation of faith from charity, in consequence of which separation all the good of life perishes; this is meant in the Word by "Philistia," and is signified by "the he-goat" in Daniel, and by "the dragon" in Revelation; into this the church falls by reason of falsity. But since this chapter treats of "the dragon," which especially signifies the religion of faith separate from charity, I will mention in passing some things whereby the defenders of faith separate seduce the world. They especially seduce by teaching that as from oneself no one can do good that is in itself good, or can do good without placing merit in it, so good works can contribute nothing to salvation; nevertheless, goods should be done on account of use for the public good; and these are the goods that are meant in the Word and thence in preachings, and in some of the prayers of the church. How great an error this is shall now be told. When a man does good from the Word, that is, because it is commanded by the Lord in the Word, he does it not from himself but from the Lord, for the Lord is the Word (John 1:1, 14), and the Lord is in those things that man has from the Word, as He teaches in these words in John:

He that keepeth My word, I will come unto him and will make My abode with him (John 14:23).

This is why the Lord so often commands that His words and commandments must be done; and that those who do them shall have eternal life; so also that everyone will be judged according to his works. From this it then follows that those who do good from the Word do good from the Lord, and good from the Lord is truly good, and so far as it is from the Lord there is no merit in it.

[3] That good from the Word, thus from the Lord, is truly good, is evident also from these words in Revelation:

I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hear My voice and open the door, I will come in to him and will sup with him and he with Me (Revelation 3:20).

This shows that the Lord is always and continually present and bestows the effort to do good, but that man must open the door, that is, must receive the Lord; and he receives Him when he does good from His Word. Although this appears to man to be done as of himself, yet it is not of man but of the Lord in him. It so appears to man because he has no other feeling than that he thinks from himself and acts from himself; and yet when he thinks and acts from the Word he does it as if of himself, therefore he then also believes that he does it of the Lord.

[4] From this it can be seen that the good that a man does from the Word is spiritual good, and that this conjoins man to the Lord and to heaven. But the good that a man does for the world's sake and for the sake of the communities in the world, which is called civil and moral good, conjoins him to the world and not to heaven. Moreover, the conjunction of the truth of faith is with spiritual good, which is the good of charity towards the neighbor, because faith in itself is spiritual, and what is spiritual cannot be conjoined with any other good than what is equally spiritual. But civil and moral good, separate from spiritual good, is not good in itself, because it is from man; yea, so far as self and the world lie concealed in it, it is evil; this good, therefore, cannot be conjoined with faith, yea, if it were to be conjoined faith would be dissipated.

[5] "To seduce the whole world" signifies to pervert all things of the church, because "the world" signifies in general the church as to all things of it, both goods and truths; but in particular it signifies the church in respect to good; this is the signification of "world" when "the earth" also is mentioned. That "the earth" in the Word signifies the church has been shown above (n. 304, 697); but when "the world" is also mentioned "the earth" signifies the church in respect to truth. For there are two things that constitute the church, namely, truth and good, and these two are signified by "earth" and "world" in the following passages.

[6] In Isaiah:

With my soul have I desired Thee in the night; yea, with my spirit in the midst of me have I early waited for Thee; for when Thou teachest the earth Thy judgments, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness (Isaiah 26:9).

"Night" signifies a state in which there is no light of truth, and "morning" a state in which there is the light of truth; the latter state is from love, but the former is when there is as yet no love. So "the soul that desired Jehovah in the night" signifies a life that is not yet in the light of truth; and "the spirit in the midst of him with which he waited for Jehovah in the morning" signifies a life that is in the light of truth; so it is added, "for when Thou teachest the earth Thy judgments, the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness," which signifies that the church is in truths from the Lord, and by means of truths is in good; "earth" signifying the church in respect to truths, and "world," the church in respect to good; for "judgment" in the Word is predicated of truth, and "righteousness" of good, and "inhabitants" signifying the men of the church who are in the goods of doctrine and thence of life. (That "judgment" in the Word is predicated of truth, and "righteousness" of good, may be seen in the Arcana Coelestia 2235, 9857; and that "to inhabit" signifies to live, and thence "inhabitants" those who are in the good of doctrine and thus of life, may be seen above, n. 133, 479, 662)

[7] In Lamentations:

The kings of the earth believed not, and all the inhabitants of the world, that the enemy and the adversary would come into the gates of Jerusalem (Lamentations 4:12).

"The kings of the earth" signify the men of the church who are in truths, and "the inhabitants of the world" the men of the church who are in good; that "kings" signify those who are in truths may be seen above (n. 31, 553, 625); and that "the inhabitants" signify those who are in good has been shown just above. Thence it is clear that the "earth" signifies the church in respect to truths, and the "world" the church in respect to good. And as all things of the doctrine of the church were destroyed by falsities and evils, it is said that "they believed not that the enemy and the adversary would come into the gates of Jerusalem;" "enemy" signifying the falsities that destroyed the truths of the church, which are meant by "the kings of the earth," and "adversary" signifying the evils that destroyed the goods of the church, which are meant by "the inhabitants of the world;" "Jerusalem" meaning the church in respect to doctrine.

[8] In David:

Let all the earth fear Jehovah, let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him (Psalms 33:8).

Here, too, the "earth" signifies those who are in the truths of the church, and "the inhabitants of the world" those who are in the goods of the church. In the same:

The earth is Jehovah's and the fullness thereof, the world and they that dwell therein; He hath founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the rivers (Psalms 24:1, 2).

Here, also, the "earth" signifies the church in respect to truth, and "the fullness thereof" signifies all truths in the complex; and the "world" signifies the church in respect to good, and "they that dwell" signify goods in the complex. What is signified by "founding it upon the seas and establishing it upon the rivers" may be seen above (n. 275, 518).

[9] In Isaiah:

We have conceived, we have travailed, we have as it were brought forth wind; we have not wrought salvation in the earth, and the inhabitants of the world ² have fallen ³ (Isaiah 26:18).

Here, again, the "earth" stands for the church in respect to truths, and the "world" for the church in respect to goods. (The rest may be seen explained above, n. 721.) In the same:

Come near, ye nations, to hear, and attend ye people; let the earth hear and the fullness thereof, the world and all its offspring (Isaiah 34:1).

That "nations" mean those who are in goods, and "peoples" those who are in truths, may be seen above (n. 175, 331, 625); therefore it is added, "let the earth hear and the fullness thereof, the world and all its offspring," "the earth and the fullness thereof" signifying the church in respect to all truths, and "the world and all its offspring" the church in respect to all goods.

[10] In the same:

All ye inhabitants of the world and ye dwellers on the earth, when the ensign of the mountains shall be lifted up, see ye, and when the trumpet shall be sounded, hear ye (Isaiah 18:3).

"The inhabitants of the world and the dwellers on the earth" signify all in the church who are in goods and truths, as above; the Lord's coming is signified by "when the ensign of the mountains shall be lifted up, see ye, and when the trumpet shall be sounded, hear ye;" "the ensign upon the mountains," as well as "the sounding of the trumpet," signify a calling together to the church.

[11] In David:

Before Jehovah, for He cometh, for He cometh to judge the earth; He shall judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in truth (Psalms 96:13; 98:9).

This treats of the Lord's coming, and the last judgment at that time. Because the "world" signifies those of the church who are in good, and "peoples" those who are in truths, it is said that "He shall judge the world in righteousness and the peoples in truth;" "righteousness" as well as the "world" refers to good. In the same:

Before the mountains were brought forth, and before the earth and the world were formed, from everlasting and even to everlasting Thou art God (Psalms 90:2).

"Mountains" signify those who dwell upon mountains in the heavens, who are those that are in celestial good, while "the earth and the world" signify the church consisting of those who are in truths and in goods.

[12] In the same:

Jehovah reigneth, He is clothed with majesty, Jehovah is clothed with strength, He girdeth Himself; the world also shall be established, nor shall it be moved; Thy throne is established from then, Thou art from eternity (Psalms 93:1, 2).

This is said of the Lord when about to come into the world; and as He has glory and power from the Human that He united to His Divine, it is said that "He is clothed with majesty and strength," and that "He girdeth Himself;" for the Lord assumed the Human that He might have power to subjugate the hells. The church that He was about to establish and protect forever is signified by "the world that shall be established and shall not be moved," and "the throne that shall be established;" for the "world" signifies heaven and the church as to the reception of Divine good, and "throne" heaven and the church as to the reception of Divine truth.

[13] In the same:

Say among the nations, Jehovah reigneth; the world also shall be established, neither shall it be moved; He shall judge the peoples in uprightness; the heavens shall be glad and the earth shall rejoice (Psalms 96:10, 11).

This, too, is said of the Lord about to come, and of the church to be established by Him and protected to eternity, which is signified by "the world that shall be established and not moved," as above; and as the "world" signifies the church in respect to good it is added that "He shall judge the peoples in uprightness;" the "peoples," like "earth," signify those who are in the truths of the church, therefore it is said "the peoples of the earth," but "the inhabitants of the world;" "uprightness" also means truths. The joy of those who are in the church in the heavens and in the church on earth is signified by "the heavens shall be glad and the earth shall rejoice."

[14] In the same:

Jehovah shall judge the world in righteousness, He shall judge the peoples in uprightness (Psalms 9:8).

Because the "world" means the church in respect to good, and "righteousness" is predicated of good, it is said "Jehovah shall judge the world in righteousness;" and as those are called "peoples" who are in truths, and "uprightness" means truths, as above, it is said, "He shall judge the peoples in uprightness." In Jeremiah:

Jehovah maketh the earth by His power, and prepareth the world by His wisdom, and by His intelligence He stretcheth out the heavens (Jeremiah 10:12; 51:15).

"Jehovah maketh the earth by His power" signifies that the Lord establishes the church by the power of Divine truth; "He prepareth the world by His wisdom" signifies that He forms the church that is in good from Divine good by means of Divine truth; "by His intelligence He stretcheth out the heavens" signifies that thus He enlarges the heavens.

[15] In David:

The heavens are Thine and the earth is Thine, the world and the fullness thereof Thou hast founded (Psalms 89:11).

"The heavens and the earth" signify the church in the heavens and in the earths, both in respect to truths, and "the world and the fullness thereof" signifies the church in the heavens and in the earths, both in respect to goods, "fullness" meaning goods and truths in the whole complex. In the same:

If I were hungry I would not tell thee, for the world is Mine and the fullness thereof (Psalms 50:12).

This is said of sacrifices, that the Lord does not delight in them, but in confession and works, for it is added:

Should I eat the flesh of the stout ones, or drink the blood of he-goats? Sacrifice unto God confession, and pay thy vows to the Most High (Psalms 50:13-14).

So "if I should be hungry" signifies if I should desire sacrifices; but as the Lord desires worship from goods and truths it is said "for the world is Mine and the fullness thereof;" "fullness" signifying goods and truths in the whole complex, as above. This is said of the beasts that were sacrificed, but these signify in the spiritual sense various kinds of good and truth.

[16] In Matthew:

These good tidings of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world, for a witness unto all, and then shall the end come (Matthew 24:14).

Because the "world" signifies the church in respect to good it is said that "these good tidings shall be preached unto all nations," for the "nations" who are to hear and receive signify all who are in good. Moreover, "nations" signify all who are in evils, who also will hear; but then the "world" signifies the whole church when it is already in evils; therefore it is said that "then shall the end come."

[17] In the first book of Samuel:

Jehovah raiseth up the depressed out of the dust, He exalteth the needy from the dunghill, to make them sit with princes, and He shall make them to inherit the throne of glory; for the bases of the earth are Jehovah's, and He hath set the world upon them (1 Samuel 2:8).

This is the prophecy of Hannah the mother of Samuel. "To raise up the depressed out of the dust and the needy from the dunghill" signifies the instruction of the Gentiles, and the enlightenment in interior truths which would be revealed by the Lord, and thus the removal from evils and falsities. "The bases of the earth" signify exterior truths, such as those of the sense of the letter of the Word, for on those truths interior truths have their foundation; therefore the "world" which He hath set upon them signifies the church in respect to all its goods and truths. (But as to this see above, n. 253, 304)

[18] In Isaiah:

Jacob shall cause them that are to come to take root, Israel shall blossom and bud, so that the faces of the world shall be filled with the increase (Isaiah 27:6).

"Jacob" means the external church, and "Israel" the internal church; and as the internal of the church is founded upon its externals, and internals are thereby multiplied and made fruitful, it is said that "Jacob shall cause them that are to come to take root, and Israel shall blossom and bud;" the consequent fructification of the church is signified by "the faces of the world shall be filled with the increase."

[19] In the same:

Is this the man that maketh the earth to tremble, that maketh the kingdoms to quake, that hath made the world a wilderness, and thrown down the cities thereof? Prepare slaughter for his sons for the iniquity of their fathers, that they rise not up and possess the earth and the faces of the world be filled with cities (Isaiah 14:16, 17, 21).

This is said of Lucifer, by whom "Babylon" is meant, that is, the love of ruling over heaven and over the earth; therefore "to make the earth to tremble, to make the kingdoms to quake, to make the world a wilderness and throw down the cities thereof," signifies to destroy all things of the church; the "earth" meaning the church in respect to truth; "kingdoms," churches distinguished according to truths; the "world" the church in respect to good, and "cities" doctrinals. "To prepare slaughter for the sons for the iniquity of their fathers" signifies the destruction of the falsities that arise from their evils; "that they possess not the earth and fill the faces of the world with cities" signifies lest falsities and evils, and doctrinals from them, take possession of the whole church.

[20] In the same:

The earth shall mourn and be confounded, the world shall languish and be confounded, the exaltation of the people of the earth shall languish, and the earth itself shall be profaned under its inhabitants (Isaiah 24:4, 5).

This describes the desolation of the church in respect to its truths and goods by reason of the pride of self-intelligence, and the profanation of truths that are from good. The desolation is described by "mourning, being confounded, and languishing;" the church in respect to truths and goods is signified by "the earth and the world;" the pride of self-intelligence by "the exaltation of the people of the earth," and the profanation of truths that are from good by "the earth shall be profaned under its inhabitants."

[21] In Nahum:

The mountains shall quake before Him, and the hills shall melt; the earth shall be burnt up before Him, and the world and all that dwell therein (Nahum 1:5).

What is signified by the "mountains" that shall quake, and the "hills" that shall melt, may be seen above (n. 400, 405). But "the earth and the world and they that dwell therein shall be burnt up" signifies that the church in respect to all its truths and goods will be destroyed by infernal love.

[22] In David:

The channels of waters appeared and the foundations of the world were revealed at Thy rebuke, O Jehovah, at the breath of the spirit of Thy nostrils (Psalms 18:15; 2 Samuel 22:16).

That all things of the church in respect to its truths and goods were overturned from the foundation is signified by "the channels of waters appeared and the foundations of the world were revealed;" "the channels of waters" meaning the truths, and "the foundations of the world" its goods, and "to appear" and "to be revealed" meaning to be overturned from the foundation. That this destruction is from the hatred and fury of the evil against Divine things is signified by "at Thy rebuke, O Jehovah, at the breath of the spirit of Thy nostrils;" the "rebuke" and "the spirit of Jehovah's nostrils" have a similar signification as "His anger and wrath" mentioned elsewhere in the Word. But since the Lord has no anger or wrath against the evil, while the evil have against the Lord, and as anger and wrath appear to the evil when they perish to be from the Lord, therefore this is so said according to that appearance. "The breath of the spirit of Jehovah's nostrils" means also the east wind, which destroys by drought, and overturns by its penetrating power.

[23] In the same:

The voice of Thy thunder is in the world, the lightnings enlightened the world, the earth trembled and quaked (Psalms 77:18).

His lightnings shall enlighten the world; the earth shall see and fear, the mountains shall melt like wax before Jehovah, before the Lord of the whole earth (Psalms 97:4, 5).

This describes the state of the wicked because of the Lord's presence in His Divine truth, which state is like that of the sons of Israel when the Lord appeared to them upon Mount Sinai. That they then heard thunders, saw lightnings, and that the mountain appeared to be in a consuming fire as of a furnace, and they feared exceedingly, is known from the Word. This was because they were evil in heart; for the Lord appears to everyone according to what is his quality, to the good as a recreating fire, and to the evil as a consuming fire. From this it is clear what is signified by "the voice of Thy thunder is in the world, the lightnings enlightened the world, the earth trembled and quaked;" and "the mountains shall melt before Jehovah, the Lord of the whole earth;" "the world" meaning all that are of the church who are in goods, but here who are in evils, and the "earth" all that are of the church who are in truths, but here who are in falsities.

[24] In Isaiah:

I will visit malice upon the world, and upon the wicked their iniquity (Isaiah 13:11).

Here, too, the "world" means those that are of the church who are in evils, and the "wicked" those who are in falsities, therefore it is said "I will visit malice upon the world, and upon the wicked their iniquity;" "malice" means evil, and "iniquity" is predicated of falsities.

[25] In Job:

They shall thrust him away from light unto darkness, and chase him out of the world (Job 18:18).

Because "light" signifies the truth, and the "world" the good of the church, and when the wicked man casts himself from truth into falsity he also casts himself from good into evil, it is said "they shall thrust him away from light into darkness, and chase him out of the world," "darkness" meaning falsities, and "to chase out of the world" meaning to cast out from the good of the church.

[26] In Luke:

Men will faint for fear and for expectation of the things coming upon the whole world; for the powers of the heavens shall be shaken; and then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud of the heavens with power and much glory (Luke 21:26, 27).

This is said of the consummation of the age, which is the last time of the church, when there is no longer any truth because there is no good; the state of heaven at that time is described by these words, that "men will faint for fear and for expectation of the things coming upon the whole world;" this describes the fear of those who are in the heavens, that everything of the church in respect to its good and therefore in respect to its truths would perish, and the expectation of help from the Lord. That the power of Divine truth is weakened is signified by "the shaking of the powers of the heavens;" "the powers of the heavens" meaning Divine truths in respect to power; that the Lord will then make evident Divine truth, which has power and from which is intelligence, is signified by "then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud of the heavens, with power and much glory."

[27] "The earth and the world" have a like signification in the following passage in Revelation:

They are the spirits of demons doing signs to go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them together unto the war (Revelation 16:14).

It is said "unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world," because one thing of the church is signified by "earth," and another by "world." As the "world" signifies the church in respect to good it also signifies all things of the church, for good is the essential of the church; therefore where there is good there is also truth, for every good desires truth and wishes to be conjoined to truth and to be spiritually nourished by it, thus also reciprocally.

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