7930. 'To inflict the plague' means damnation which they bring on themselves. This is clear from the meaning of 'the plague' here as the damnation of those belonging to the spiritual Church who have been governed by faith separated from charity, dealt with in 7879, 7926. Regarding damnation, that the ones to inflict it on the evil are the evil themselves, see just above in 7926.

'And you shall keep this custom as a statute for yourself and your children for evermore' means that all this will be in keeping with Divine order as it will apply from now on to those belonging to the spiritual Church. This is clear from the meaning of 'keeping this custom for evermore' as that all this is to be observed from now on; from the meaning of 'as a statute' as in keeping with order, dealt with in 7884; and from the representation of the children of Israel, [to whom 'yourself and your children' refers here,] ¹ as those who belong to the spiritual Church, dealt with in 4286, 6426, 6637, 6862, 6868, 7035, 7062, 7198, 7201, 7215, 7223.

The order meant here is that which has existed in heaven since the time that the Lord, from His Divine Human, began to bring order to all things in heaven and on earth, which was immediately after the Resurrection, Matthew 28:18. In keeping with this new order those belonging to the spiritual Church could now be raised to heaven and enjoy eternal blessedness; it could not be done in keeping with the old order. Formerly the Lord brought things into order by means of heaven; but latterly He did so by means of His Human which He glorified and made Divine in the world. The glorification of His Human brought so great an increase of might that those were raised to heaven who could not be raised previously, and also so great an increase that the evil departed from all around and were shut away in their hells. This order is what is meant here. ²

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7879. 'And the plague will not be on you for the destroyer' means that damnation from hell will not enter in. This is clear from the meaning here of 'the plague' as damnation, for this plague is the death of all the firstborn in Egypt, which is damnation, see 7778; and from the meaning of 'the destroyer' as hell which inflicts damnation. The implications of this, that hell inflicts damnation, are as follows: The vastation that the evil undergo in the next life, also their damnation, and their being cast into hell too, is not brought about directly by the individual spirit immersed in evil but by the hells. For the evils that arise there all come about as a result of influx from the hells; none does so without that influx from there. Their rise also depends on the state of evil in which the spirits undergoing vastation and damnation are caught up; and that state of evil depends in turn on the degree to which goodness and truth have been removed. This state determines the amount of contact they have with the hells; and the hells are very ready to inflict ill, for inflicting ill is the greatest delight of their life. Since the hells are like this the Lord keeps them shut. Indeed if they were to be opened the whole human race would be destroyed; for the hells constantly long for the destruction of all. The destruction by pestilence of seventy thousand men, because of David's numbering of the people, 2 Samuel 24, and the killing in the camp of the Assyrians of a hundred and eighty-five thousand in one night, 2 Kings 19:35, were done by the hells at times when they had been opened. Similar destruction would take place at the present day if they were opened; they are therefore kept strictly closed by the Lord. With regard to damnation from the hells being unable to enter in among those maintained by the Lord in goodness and truth, meant by 'the plague will not be on you for the destroyer', see immediately above in 7878.