571. That had been prepared for the hour, and day, and month, and year, signifies continually in the state. This is evident from the signification of "being prepared for the hour and day and month and year," as being to be continually in the state, that is, of depriving themselves of all understanding of truth, and thence of spiritual life, which is signified by what follows, namely, "that they should kill the third part of men;" for "hours," "days," "months," and "years," signify in the Word the states of life in particular and in general, therefore "to be prepared for" these periods signifies to be continually in that state. "Hours," "days," "months," and "years," do not mean hours, days, months, and years, because in the spiritual world times are not divided into such intervals, for the sun from which the angelic heaven has its light and its heat is not carried around as the sun in the natural world is apparently, therefore it does not cause years, months, days, or hours; but times in the spiritual world, although they succeed each other as times do in the natural world, are distinguished by the states of life. (What these are may be seen in the work on Heaven and Hell, under the head, The Sun in Heaven, n. 116-125; Changes of the State of the Angels in Heaven, n. 154-161; Time in Heaven, n. 162-169.) From this it can he seen that the angels "had been prepared for the hour, day, month, and year," signifies to be continually in the state that is treated of in what follows. That an "hour," signifies state, so also a "day," a "month," and a "year," in like manner, is evident from the passages in the Word in which they are mentioned, but to quote those passages here would be too lengthy. (This, however, can be seen from what is shown respecting Time in the work on Heaven and Hell; also Arcana Coelestia, that "times" do not signify in the Word times, but states of life, n. 2788, 2837, 3254, 3356, 4814, 4901, 4916, 7218, 8070, 10133, 10605.) "Times" signify states for the reason that in the spiritual world there are no stated times of the day called morning, noon, evening, and night, nor stated times of the year called spring, summer, autumn, and winter; nor are there changes of light and shade, of heat and cold, as in our world, but instead of these there are changes of state in respect to love and faith; and from these no idea can be had of the intervals into which our times are divided, although times have progression there as in the natural world (as to this see Arcana Coelestia 1274, 1382, 3356, 4882, 6110, 7218). And as the sun of the angelic heaven, which is the Lord, is continually in its rising, and makes no revolutions as the sun of our world apparently does, but there are instead merely changes of state with the angels and spirits according to their reception of the good of love and the truth of faith, therefore times correspond to changes of state and signify them (Arcana Coelestia 4901, 7381). Therefore angels and spirits think apart from any idea of time, which man cannot do (Arcana Coelestia 3404).
