89. Verse 4 These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when He created them, on the day in which Jehovah God made the earth and the heavens.

'The generations of the heavens and the earth' are stages in the formation of the celestial man. The fact that the formation of that man is now the subject is also quite clear from the details that follow, for example 'no plant had yet sprung up', 'there was no man to till the ground', then 'Jehovah God formed the man', and after that 'every beast and bird of the air'. ¹ According to the previous chapter, man, beast, and bird have been formed already, which means that a different man is the subject here. This is further evident from the fact that 'Jehovah God' is now mentioned for the first time, whereas previously, when the subject has been the spiritual man, He is called simply 'God'. Also 'ground and field' are referred to now, whereas previously it was merely 'the earth'. And in the present verse 'heaven' is first of all mentioned before 'earth' and then 'earth' before 'heaven'. This is because 'earth' means the external man and 'heaven' the internal. With the spiritual man, in whom reformation is taking place, the starting point is the earth or external man; but here, where the subject is celestial man, the starting point is the internal man or heaven.

Poznámky pod čarou:

The woman clothed, or encompassed, with the sun, and the moon under her feet (Revelation 12:1), signifies the Lord's new church in the heavens, which is the new heaven, and the Lord's new church about to be upon earth, which is the New Jerusalem.

That the Lord's new church is signified by this woman, appears from all the particulars of this chapter, understood in a spiritual sense. The sun signifies love. The reason why she appeared encompassed with the sun is because the church is principled in love to the Lord, for it acknowledges him, and does his commandments, and this is to love him (John 14:21-24).

The reason why the moon was seen under the woman's feet is because the church on earth is meant, which is not yet conjoined with the church in the heavens. The moon signifies intelligence in the natural man, and faith; and by appearing under the feet is signified that it is about to be upon earth.

(Odkazy: Apocalypse Revealed 533; John 14)