1063. Verse 10. And they are seven kings, signifies the truths of the Word falsified and profaned by such. This is evident from the signification of "kings," as being the truths of the Word (See n. 29, 31, 625, 1034); also from the mention of "seven," which has reference to what is holy, and in the contrary sense to what is profane; therefore "seven kings" signify the truths of the Word falsified and profaned. "Seven kings" have this signification because the "seven mountains" just mentioned signify the goods of the Word adulterated and profaned. For in the Word where good is treated of truth is also treated of, because of the heavenly marriage, which is the marriage of good and truth in all the particulars of it (See above, n. 238, 660, 775).

[2] One who does not know that in the Word "kings" signify truths can by no means know what is meant by "kings" in many passages in the Word, as in Daniel where it is said:

The heads and the horns of the beasts are kings or kingdoms (Daniel 7:17, 24; also in Revelation 16:12, 14; 18:3; 19:19; 21:24).

And in this chapter:

The seven heads are seven kings; the five have fallen, and one is, and the other is not yet come. And the beast that was and is not is the eighth king, and is of the seven, and he goeth into perdition. And the ten horns are ten kings, who have not yet received a kingdom; and other things that follow (Revelation 17:10-12).

For if kings were here meant by "kings" it could not possibly be divined by any conjecture what these expressions mean. But when it is known that "kings" signify the truths of the Word and thus the truths of the church, the meaning is plainly evident. Moreover, by the numbers so many truths are not to be understood, but such truths as are signified by the number in the spiritual sense. For if seven truths were signified by the "seven kings," and five truths by "the five kings who have fallen," and ten truths by the "ten kings" and as many "horns," from all this no spiritual sense could in any way result; therefore it must be altogether known that all numbers signify in the Word the qualities of the things which are described.

(Continuation respecting the Fourth Kind of Profanation)

[3] In this kind of profanation are those especially who read the Word and know about the Lord; because from the Lord through the Word are all things holy that can be profaned; things not from that source cannot be profaned. That is said to be profane that is the opposite of what is holy, and that offers violence to what is holy and destroys it. From this it follows that those do not belong to this kind of profanation who do not read the Word and do not approach the Lord, as is the case with the Papists, still less those who know nothing about the Lord and the Word, like the Gentiles. Those who belong to this kind of profanation appear after death at first with a face of human color, around which float many wandering stars; and those of them that had been leaders sometimes appear shining about the mouth. But as they are brought into the light of heaven, the stars and the shining of the mouth vanish, and the color of the face is changed to black, and likewise their garments. But the blackness of these profaners draws something from blue, as the blackness of the other kind of profaners draws something from red, for the reason that the latter profane the goods of the Word and of the church, while the others profane the truths of the Word and of the church. For red derives from the sun its signification of good, while blue derives from the sky its signification of truth.

10011. 'And pour it on his head, and anoint him' means a representative sign of Divine Good in the Lord, suffusing His whole Human. This is clear from the meaning of 'pouring oil on Aaron's head' as Divine Good suffusing the Lord's whole Human, for 'oil' means Divine Good, 4582, 9474, 'Aaron' the Lord in respect of Divine Good, 9806, and 'head' the whole Human; and from the meaning of 'anointing' as a representative sign of this thing, dealt with in 9474, 9954. The reason why 'the head' means the whole Human, or the whole person, is that everything in the human being comes down from the head; for the body is an extension from the head. Therefore also what a person thinks or wills, an activity that takes place in the head, presents itself in the body as an effect. The situation with the head is like that with what is highest or inmost in the heavens. This comes down and flows into heavens below, bringing them into being and making them extensions from itself. Therefore also the human head corresponds to the inmost heaven, the body down to the loins to the middle heaven, and the feet to the lowest heaven. In short, in things that are extensions only that which is inmost has life essentially. From this it is evident that since God is the inmost in all things, or what amounts to the same thing, is the highest of them all, from Him alone comes the life that all things possess. Therefore insofar as a person receives what is of God he has life within him.

[2] Furthermore the oil that a priest was anointed with flowed from the top of his head right down onto his body, as may be seen in David,

It is like the good oil upon the head running down onto Aaron's beard, which runs down over the collar ¹ of his garments. Psalms 133:2.

In Matthew,

A woman poured an alabaster flask of balm over Jesus' head as He reclined [at the table]. Jesus said, She has poured this balm over My body to [prepare it for] the tomb. Matthew 26:7, 12.

And in Mark,

A woman came having an alabaster flask of very costly spikenard ² ; and breaking the alabaster flask she poured it over Jesus' head. And Jesus said, This woman has come beforehand to anoint My body for burial. Mark 14:3, 8.

From these places it is also evident that 'anointing the head' is anointing the whole body.

[3] The use of 'the head' to mean the whole person is further clear from very many places in the Word, for example in Isaiah,

The redeemed of Jehovah will return, and will come to Zion with song, and everlasting joy upon their heads. Isaiah 35:10.

In Moses,

Let the precious things of the produce of the sun, the firstfruits of the mountains of the east, and the precious things of the earth come on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of the Nazirite among his brothers. Deuteronomy 33:14-16.

In Jeremiah,

Jehovah's storm will burst upon the heads of the wicked. Jeremiah 30:23.

In Ezekiel,

I will bring their way upon their own heads. Ezekiel 11:21; 16:43; 22:31.

[Similar words occur in] Joel 3:4, 7; Obadiah verse 15. In Ezekiel,

Woe to those who make veils upon the head [of persons] of every stature to hunt souls! Ezekiel 13:18.

In David,

God will bruise the head of [His] enemies, the hairy scalp ³ . Psalms 68:21.

From all these places it is now evident that 'head' is used to mean the whole person, so that 'pouring oil on Aaron's head' means Divine Good in the Lord, suffusing His whole Human. While He was in the world the Lord made Himself Divine Truth, and when He left the world He made Himself Divine Good, see the places referred to in 9315(end), 9199(end).

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